I struggled with my finances for years. I was never good with how I handled my money.
You see, for years, I was working in a company that pays well and yet I had zero savings and the worst part is, I was still living paycheck to paycheck.
And you know why that was the case? It’s because I had a lot of bad money habits and I let all of them control my life.
Often, regardless of our good intentions and best efforts in better managing our money, we may still have so many daily habits that are not only keeping us broke and stuck living paycheck to paycheck but are also costing us so much without us even realizing it.
After having to quit my job, I was basically stuck in financial ruin.
The money that I was earning through freelance work was just not enough to cover the basic necessities and I still had debt that needed to be paid every month.
So, every day, I had to face so many financial struggles.
I knew that if I wanted to better my situation if I wanted to get out of debt and stretch every dollar that I had, I needed to make some drastic changes with how I was handling my money.
I needed to reassess all my spending and saving habits.
And let me tell you, doing this was by far the best decision that I have ever made.
So, if you are also struggling with your finances, read on and make sure that you are not sabotaging yourself with these habits.
Here are 5 bad money habits that you need to break to start building wealth…
You always love to choose convenience…
I can’t stress this enough but always opting to go for the easiest and most comfortable way had cost me so much more than what I expected.
Whether you’re fond of getting fast food every day, constantly choosing to take that Uber ride, or it can even be choosing to have your groceries delivered.
If your money is tight and your goal is to save, constantly doing all these things is definitely not helping you.
I know it’s so easy to ignore the upfront charges for choosing these things, especially since it’s low and of course, it’s convenient.
But what we don’t realize is those upfront charges will easily add up and will end up costing us so much more than what we expected.
It’s not bad to choose convenience every once in a while, or if it’s a necessity but if you allow yourself to constantly make these kinds of purchases, that’s when the problem starts.
Spending more than what you earn…
We already know that doing this is a big no-no and will only eventually lead us to financial ruin and yet we still find ourselves living this kind of lifestyle.
I did and I regretted it.
I worked hard for years and yet I had zero savings and I was constantly living paycheck to paycheck — this is what I got from allowing myself to live beyond my means.
You may not see the damage that this behavior will cause now but trust me, allowing yourself to constantly live this lifestyle will only trap you into debt.
And debt is a vicious cycle.
So, take the time to reassess this behavior and do what can do to cut your spending and learn to budget effectively.
Related: 5 Habits that are Keeping you Poor without even Realizing It
Having no emergency fund…
I admit I was never a firm believer of having emergency funds and I never really saw its importance until last year.
Regardless of how much we try to avoid emergencies and we are certainly not hoping for one but at some point, or another, an unexpected expense can easily pop up.
And when you are not prepared financially when this happens, not only will you be causing yourself so much stress scrambling to look for the money to cover it but you may also be trapping yourself in debt.
This happened to me and until now, I’m still paying the price.
So, believe me when I say that having some cash save up for emergencies is vital.
You don’t have to start big. Start with the amount that you are comfortable with, start small if you must and just increase it as you go.
Your finances will thank you for doing this!
Being too afraid to invest…
I know often investing can be scary, confusing and just a big risk to take but we all have to remember that, we can never truly achieve financial independence if we constantly refuse to make investments.
I remember a co-worker once told me, that you can never be really rich and achieve financial freedom if you are only working — we need to make investments.
It’s basically how the rich get richer. Investments are a crucial part of wealth building.
I know doing this can be too overwhelming so start by talking to a financial advisor to help you out.
Related: 5 Things I Stopped Buying to Save Money
You refuse to set goals and you keep making excuses…
I was never a good saver.
Saving money for me was just a thought, something that I knew I had to eventually do but I never had the motivation to stick with it.
And you know why?
It’s because I didn’t have any goals. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with the money I was earning.
All I kept thinking about was spending my money now.
Setting a goal requires you to take action. It motivates you to take the steps needed since you already know the benefits that you will be reaping.
Doing this does not only help you make better money decision but it also gives you a clearer picture of the actions that you need to do now to help you achieve your goal faster.
So, stop making excuses and take the time to set those long-term and short-term goals.
Be as specific as possible and once you have determined those goals, be sure to set a timeframe for each one.
Being aware of our spending and saving habits is vital in helping improve our financial
So, start by recognizing those bad habits and slowly replace them with good ones.
Remember, you don’t have to do it all at once. I know breaking a habit and developing a new one can be tough, so take small steps and be consistent with your efforts.
Remind yourself that all the sacrifices that you are willing to do now will reward you tenfold in the future — you got this!
