Steering your financial ship straight instead of sideways means you’ll be investing in your real dreams and goals.
Recently, I took a trip to Mazatlan, Mexico. This is a photo I took as my family and I were headed out marlin fishing for the day. Our captain steered the bow of the boat between these two islands. This reminded me of how people choose to navigate their financial life.
If our boat captain had decided to turn left or right as we went between these islands, needless to say, it wouldn’t have looked pretty. Just the same look as people who veer off the financial wellness path. It doesn’t look pretty either. If you’re looking sideways and getting distracted by shiny things when your financial future depends on your sticking to disciplined money awareness and spending, you’re going to have some financial wrecks along the way. Depending on the extent of the financial wreck, will depend on how much time is required to clean it up.
Just like our trusty captain who took us to the best fishing spots, where you place your focus as the captain of your financial ship, is the exact direction you’ll go? Here are a few focus-oriented strategies to help you stay focused on your financial health and wellness:
Tune into where you’re placing your focus throughout the day
Tune into where you’re placing your focus throughout the day. Are you getting more done when your focus is directed on the task at hand? Notice what happens when you become distracted. Did it take longer to complete what you initially set out to do?
Distractions cause unwanted detours from what really matters. And when this happens, it takes longer to get back on track. That can happen in our financial life too. If you ignore what really needs your focus long enough, you’ll be headed off in some direction that doesn’t align with your financial health and wellness.
When you know you need to focus on attending to your finances and getting things in order, block out just 10-15 minutes three to four times every week. Starting with small amounts of practice focus time will help build your endurance for times you’ll need longer money management sessions.
Steering your financial ship straight instead of sideways means you’ll be investing in your real dreams and goals
Have you made a promise to yourself that you would make certain financial sacrifices in order to improve your money situation to only say yes to another Friday night social outing ending with expensive food and drinks? Where did you initially place your focus when you made that promise? Hint and obvious answer – on yourself and your financial health. Then where did you decide to place your focus? Well, you know the answer.
Where we place our focus is exactly where we’ll go. It dictates what we will experience as an outcome. Focus on excessive spending, you’ll get more debt. Focus on saving, you’ll have more money and feel more prosperous. Steering your financial ship straight instead of sideways means you’ll move in the direction of your real dreams and goals.
Creating a better relationship with money takes deliberate attention
Are you a parent? If so, when you plan to spend special time with your children, do you follow through or bail on your commitment? To have the kind of relationship you desire with your children, you know that it takes deliberate focus and attention and implementation of important building blocks for the relationship you envision with your children.
Creating a better relationship with money takes deliberate attention as well. If you make a money decision that you know will change your life for the better over time, but you don’t stay committed to that decision, you’ll inevitably end up at the same place each and every time and working backwards.
You get to choose the direction you’d like to point your financial ship. I hope it’s full steam ahead! By the way, we did reach our destination on our fishing trip and although we didn’t reel in any marlin that day, my Son and daughter-in-law did catch two mahi-mahi. We were also entertained by a pod of porpoises on our way out to the deep blue Pacific Ocean. What a great day it was and a yummy dinner too!
