Is there anything more scary than not having enough money for the things you need to take care of? Whether it’s food, bills, clothing, kids, other things, it’s a frightening proposition when you can’t figure out if you have enough money or, worse yet, don’t have a job or work in a career where you work from project to project.
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Even though we have a fairly thriving business, nothing’s ever guaranteed. Even rich people worry about downturns in income depending on how they generate their income and spend it. Very few people in the world have unlimited money, and there comes that “push to shove” moment where we all need to get going, otherwise things might get cramped.
For the majority of people there are fears about money, or lack thereof. They can be conquered by changing the way you think about money however; that’s what we’re going to do now with these 4 ways of conquering money fears.
1. Change the way you think about money
In the book Secrets Of The Millionaire Mind, T. Harv Eker states that he had two beliefs that kept taking him from the riches he kept making back to the poorhouse over and over that he had to overcome. Both were phrases from his childhood that his father would repeat over and over. The first is “Money is the root of all evil.” The second was “All rich people are crooks.”
He realized he didn’t want to be evil or a crook, so every time he made a lot of money he lost it quickly and had to start over again. By changing his mindset and recognizing that all rich people aren’t dishonest (as a matter of fact he learns how generous a lot of wealthy people were) he was able to figure out that not only does having a lot of money not mean you’re bad, but you can do great things for others with money.
2. Know what your money situation is to either comfort your mind or know you have to figure out a way to fix it.
Almost everyone I know hates the term “budgeting“, yet the beginning process of it is necessary for you to actually see how much money you have on a regular basis and what your outlay of funds is for the things you really need. By doing that, you’ll either recognize that you’re really good, good enough to pay your bills and survive, or potentially in trouble and need to find a way out.
It’s always better to know; trust me on this. You can’t do anything about, well, anything in life, if you don’t know where you’re starting from and what you need to do. Maybe you need to get either a new job or second job. Maybe you need to start putting some of your money away for a rainy day. Maybe you want to buy something significant in the near future; maybe you want to work towards a secure retirement. No matter what, knowing where you stand is always more comfortable a place to be than worrying about what you don’t know.
3. There’s always something else out there for everyone; just expand your mind.
There are too many people who worry about losing their job who aren’t making the money they need to make. When you approach things from a position of fear, it’s hard to think straight.
Too many people think of themselves as the job they presently have and nothing else. Every person has a skill that someone needs. Every person also has the ability, unless the economy is tanking and unemployment is around 10% (which it’s not right now) to find jobs that might seem lateral that may actually pay more or have other benefits that equate into a better income. If you need more education, or a change in hours or anything else that you’re not used to, why not give it a try. Nothing says you have to stay there permanently.
Think about all the skills you have, because everyone has more skills than they know about, and figure out what you might be able to do to make more money. Who knows, you could end up being like Sara Blakely.
4. There’s always help; you’re not alone.
Whenever there are money problems, most people feel like the weight of the world is on them and that they don’t have any options. Truthfully, there are always options, always people who are ready to help in some capacity, and I don’t mean looking to your friends to borrow money from, although that could be an option.
There are services (like us lol) that can help you figure out a budget. There are services that will help you find a job or help you put together your resume. There are free training classes you can take to move in a different direction. There are networking groups of all types where you can go to meet others who did or do what you do, who might need some help or know of jobs you can apply for.
It can be demoralizing to lose a job, or worry about not having enough money, but remember #1 above. As Zig Ziglar used to say, “Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will.” Believe in yourself, know your position, and money will never be a problem that bothers you all that much.