Keeping Your Finances—and Emotions!—on the Path of Balance
Michelle Clary of Piton Wealth shares her advice for keeping your emotions—and finances—in check.
Have you ever found yourself in a fear cycle when it comes to money? Does it feel like the more you avoid making a financial plan, the larger the task looms? You’re not alone. Fears about money can mean that emotions become unstable and out of balance.
So let’s hone in on stability and balance. Let’s not say that financial instability breeds emotional instability. Let’s say stability and balance are the path, and your goals are how your orient your stability and balance. In my life as a financial advisor, entrepreneur, mother, wife, and Christian, among the many things that I have come to learn is that you will never be able to control completely how long and winding the path will be to your goals. You can, though, keep those goals in sight and you can orient yourself so that you maintain stability and balance in the direction of your goals.
“You do not have to dread updating your financial plan, if you keep sight of your goals and remain committed to balance. ”
This is true equally of money and emotions. Imbalance in one does not cause imbalance in the other. Lack of orientation toward your goals is the instability and that puts both money and emotions out of balance. Conversely, maintaining balance in finances or in emotions itself maintains balance in the other, as long as you are aligned with your goals.
So what does this mean for you? Make a plan. Center your sights on your goal. It’s natural for fears to arise, but as long as you keep your sight trained on your goal, you will feel more balanced financially and emotionally.
Nothing says that this will be easy. If you are saving for one or more major events, such as a house, vacation, education, retirement or reducing debt, but your expenses are rising because of inflation, do not abandon those goals. Update your financial plan. It may well mean extending the time frame of a plan or scaling down the goal, but maintain a reliable balance of what you can contribute to those goals and what you will have to spend. It can also be reassuring to plan to readjust more often than you would otherwise. You do not have to dread updating your financial plan, if you keep sight of your goals and remain committed to balance.
Don’t let financial fear control your emotions or hinder your long-term aspirations. Articulate your goals and construct your plan around them. Stay oriented toward your goal and you’ll feel more balanced through whatever life may throw at you.
Read more from Michelle in our Fall/Winter ‘22 issue here. This content was originally featured in our Money section, which is generously sponsored by Piton Wealth.