We spend based on our priorities. This determines our financial priorities. When we decide something is a must, we find a way to make it happen. This often means leaving undone things that are important to us deep down.
The challenge is not that we do not have financial priorities. We all do. The challenge is that many have no clue what their financial priorities are. Their financial priorities are driven by the environment and expectations of others. This is often not clearly defined, hence we just go with the flow.
We are essentially operating a constitution we had no inputs in. Many are unaware of the fact that we can and should make our own rules. We can convene our personal constitutional conference and fashion out a personal constitution that works for us. We can define what our financial priorities are.
To determine your financial priorities, you need to know what you really want
Knowing your financial priorities starts from knowing what you really want. Thinking through what we really want does not come naturally to most of us. We believe that life is they way it is hence and all we can do is to keep hustling. We don’t believe that we can achieve what we really want. The belief that luck and forces outside our control determine the future makes us abdicate our responsibility to envision our desired future. This is the crux of the matter.
For years, I could not understand how knowing what you really want helps in getting my act together to move in the direction I want. I paid dearly for this lack of understanding. I wasted time going round in circles until it became clear in my mind what I really wanted.
Make decisions in alignment with your desired financial priorities
We make decisions all day long. Oftentimes, those decisions are financial. There are needs and wants competing for the amount of money you have. When the amount of money we have is not enough to meet competing needs, a decision has to be made. It becomes a difficult decision when you have no idea what your financial priorities are. If you do, it makes it easier but not less painful. There are financial decisions you will make that will upset some people. It is painful.
However, you have to make up your mind what is more important to you. Acting in alignment with your core values, beliefs and goals is very rewarding and fulfilling, no matter the pain that goes with in. The more you have clarity, the less pain you feel when you don’t meet the expectations of others. The more of such decisions you make, the closer you move towards your goals.
Progress is a powerful motivator. When you decide where you want to go, and start to make decisions in alignment with your desired destination, you start to see desired results. This motivates you to do more, and see more results. When you get to this place, getting there is not a matter of if, but when.
Image: thenewageparents.com
