Change Your Money Mindset: 5 Ways to Reframe the Belief, “I’m Bad with Money.”

Sep 6

Have you ever been disappointed with your financial picture? Or overspent and found yourself filled with regret? You might be tempted to throw up your hands and declare, “I’m terrible with money!” and accept that statement as fact. Let’s face it: Money can be a highly emotional topic and fraught with limiting beliefs.

Hopelessness about personal finances is more common than you might think, but it doesn’t have to be! Beating yourself up about mistakes you’ve made is likely to keep you stuck, rather than encourage you to take confident action.

Wondering how to change your money mindset and flip your script? Here are five ways to get your money mindset back on track and empower yourself to make great financial choices (and feel good doing it!):

Become a lifelong learner
Face your finances head-on
Focus on the positive
Practice self-compassion
Self-regulate with mindfulness

Become a Lifelong Learner

Get curious about what’s not going as well as you’d like and commit to learning a little more about it. We become skilled at new things with knowledge and practice, and money management skills are no exception. Don’t expect yourself to be perfect. The fact that you’re reading this blog post is proof that you’re learning and growing, so pat yourself on the back!

Want to know more about investing? Consider adding a personal finance podcast to your feed. More of a book person? Reading is great for your brain and mood. By picking up a book on financial literacy, you’ll be learning new skills while also boosting your health. A win-win! By adding just 10 pages a day to your routine, you’ll end up reading about 15 books a year, putting you miles ahead of where you are now. Or even one book a year might be a big accomplishment.

Keep in mind that growing pains are expected, and you don’t have to know everything all at once. Start small and remember that consistency is the key to sustainable growth.

Face Your Finances Head-on

The most common reason people claim to be bad with money is that they avoid the subject altogether. Keeping yourself in the dark is tempting as a way of avoiding reality, but it will not help you manage your money effectively. Having a clear view of your financial picture, no matter how scary it is, enables you to see what needs work and even what’s going well.

Set aside a few hours to look at your spending, saving, and budgeting habits and you’ll come out with a ton of clarity. Sure, it might be frightening to genuinely know how much debt you owe or how long it will take to pay off your mortgage, but bringing the monsters out from under the bed will allow you to craft a plan. And remember, numbers are just data. They don’t have anything to do with your self-worth.

If you’re not ready to do it on your own, enlist a financial coach to help you sort through your finances and set goals for your future financial health.

Focus on the Positive

It’s easy to hyper-focus on what’s going wrong, but what about things that are going right? Think of all the times you have managed your money well and make a list of financial wins. Celebrate what you already do well!

Are you paying off debt?
Saving for a big purchase?
Investing in a retirement account?
Contributing money to causes that make the world a better place?

Acknowledging the ways you are taking care of yourself financially will give you more motivation to continue. Keep this list somewhere you can refer to it and add to the positive momentum. The more you focus on the wise choices you've made, the more likely you are to continue the trend.

Practice Self-Compassion

We often fail to look clearly at our finances because of negative emotions. Self-judgment leads to a repeating cycle of bad feelings and avoidance while practicing kindness and self-compassion can help you let go of the feelings and thoughts that cause you to shrink away from taking positive action.

Forgive yourself for perceived mistakes. Write a compassionate letter to yourself, with the reminder that you are doing the best you can and that your experience is not unique. It’s incredibly human to deal with financial challenges, regardless of your age or tax bracket. Reframing your struggles as shared experiences instead of unique personal failures reminds you that you’re not alone.

Alternately, imagine holding yourself and your finances with more kindness. This simple act opens the door to new ideas that come from a place of neutrality instead of despair. (Hint: These new ideas will be much better than any you can come up with from a place of overwhelm!)

Self-Regulate with Mindfulness

You don’t have to have a meditation practice to make mindfulness a valuable part of your life. Noticing when your nervous system is on high alert can help you pinpoint trouble areas and strengthen your capacity to move through challenges.

How can you apply this to finances?

Observe yourself as you navigate your day. What feelings and body sensations come up when you glance at your bank statement? How do you feel when paying for dinner or groceries? If you notice fear or worry creeping up, practice observing without critique. Become aware of your thoughts and feelings in the present moment.

Can you discern familiar emotions? Body sensations? A negative thought loop? Believe it or not, just by being aware of your undercurrent of reactions and emotions, you give yourself a window to make different choices.

For example, you might catch yourself adding items you don’t need to your cart as a reaction to a stressful day. You could even keep a spending journal where you note those emotions as you consider a purchase. Including mindfulness as a part of your financial health can help you notice and curb emotional some of that spending.

Reframe Your Beliefs about Money with a Financial Coach

Implementing any one of these ideas can move you into more peace with your finances. Start today to educate yourself, make room for clarity, celebrate your wins, practice self-compassion, or engage in mindfulness techniques. Each small shift can snowball into meaningful progress.

Finally, remember that you don’t have to do it alone! At Budget Babble, we approach personal finance from a holistic perspective, and we recognize that emotions play a big part in everyone’s financial growth. I’m here to help you at any point in your journey. Book a coaching session with me to increase your financial knowledge, clarity, and focus.

Content in this material is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

Written By: Lindsay Dell Cook

Lindsay Dell Cook is a CPA and Financial Coach. She founded Budget Babble in 2016 and has been working with individuals and couples to improve their financial lives since. When she’s not working, Lindsay can be found on a walk with her family or snuggled up with a cat and a good book.