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Hi Friend,
Taking control of your finances can feel like a long, lonely road. You find yourself saying no to fun events, purchases you would previously have jumped on, and delicious meals out.
It can be tough saying “no” all the time, and it flies in the face of the philosophy of saying “yes” to everything. Unless, I guess, you frame it as that you’re saying “yes” to financial freedom, but now we’re in a philosophical discussion about how saying “yes” to something means saying “no” to another thing, so are we really saying “yes” to everything? I don’t have the philosophical answers here, and my brain is starting to hurt just thinking about it.
Anyhow, something I’ve found really helpful is to find resources that encourage me to take control of my finances, by focusing on taking control of other areas of my life. I’ve found the ones I like (I’ll share them with you), followed them on social media and subscribed to their newsletters.
Here’s an example of a resource I found: Becoming Minimalist.
Now, before you worry that I’m frantically rummaging through my dresser, donating everything I can get my hands on for the sake of living with only one pair of pants, one shirt, and one pair of socks, I’m not. I don’t know that I’ll ever become a minimalist. It’s honestly not in my DNA (anyone who’s seen the house I grew up in knows that well).
But I don’t have to commit to full-on minimalism to get something out of his writing. He’s advocating for owning fewer items, living a less cluttered life, and spending less money while prioritizing things that are truly important.
Reading his writing helps me focus more on why I want to take control of my finances, and how my spending has prevented that in the past. He goes beyond the financial aspect of owning less stuff and into the other benefits, such as less stress and less time spent organizing, both of which are things I can benefit from.
By following him on Facebook, I put his content in exactly the place I’m most vulnerable to spending—scrolling on my social media feed. I’m far less tempted to click on a link to a fantastic dress that’s on sale if I’ve just read one of Becoming Minimalist’s blog posts on how we own too much stuff. And I know when I see an ad I might want to click on, if I scroll another few seconds I’ll likely come across one of his posts, so I’ll get the reinforcement to not spend.
Here’s who I follow:
Becoming Minimalist: A ton of great content on the benefits of owning less stuff
Be More With Less: About decluttering (I’m specifically interested in getting rid of clothing—she started Project 333, which involves choosing only 33 items of clothing to wear for 3 months at a time)
Good Noms, Honey!: Delicious recipes that are primarily low FODMAP (and created by an absolutely amazing woman who is one of my favourite people on the planet)
Unpublishable: All about how the beauty industry markets to us, and has us believing all sorts of false things about ourselves and their products (since reading her newsletter, I’ve committed to going a month with no makeup and my skin has never looked or felt better)
Whatever your spending weakness is, see if you can find someone whose philosophy aligns with who you want to be—you don’t have to fully embrace it, but some of their words of wisdom might resonate with you, and might give you the boost you need to say "yes" to your financial security when you’re most tempted to spend unnecessarily.
Cheers to your financial success,
Heidi
Note: I have not been compensated in any way to mention the above resources. They are resources that I truly enjoy and get benefit from.