Do you think you’re telling yourself the truth about money?
We may think we know the facts about our finances. But our beliefs can often overshadow the facts.
Our wishes, hopes, and fears can tip the scales away from the truth. This makes it easier for us to believe what we want to about money — and it can happen without us even realizing it.
The money lies we tell ourselves can change the way we think and act when it comes to finances.
And since most of us rarely talk about money with our friends and family, the money lies we tell ourselves stick around. That can lock us into destructive beliefs and reinforce poor financial habits.
But no matter what money lies we tell ourselves, it’s never too late to set the record straight.
Let’s look at some of the most common money lies we all buy into at some point.
- I’ll be happier when I have more money…
- I deserve it, regardless of whether I can afford it…
- I have strong financial willpower…
- I’ll save more later…
- I have plenty of time to plan for my financial future…
- There is good debt and bad debt…
- Wanting more is bad…
How many of these money lies sound like something you’ve told yourself?
At some point, I think we’ve all tricked ourselves with at least one of them.
Maybe we were rationalizing a decision, or we were trying to make ourselves feel better about what we wanted to do with our money. And we probably didn’t make the best financial choices as a result.
Here’s the truth.
Honesty goes a long way with finances.
What we tell ourselves, and what we believe, about money influences our financial behaviors. If we’re not telling ourselves the truth, our money lies won’t just drain our wallets. They can affect our financial awareness and inflate our confidence. And they get in the way of maintaining or growing wealth.
When we recognize the money lies that we believe, we can reset our thinking, change our mindset, and start taking action. And that sets us up to make better choices and make more progress toward our big financial goals.
