Although it’s easy to blame our money woes on outside economic forces, healthy personal finances are governed by motivation and mindset. Fixing your current money-situation means taking responsibility about your financial decisions and making conscious choices because, as financial advisor and popular radio show and podcast host Dave Ramsey says, “Money is not just about math; it’s about behavior.”
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Ramsey previously posted to X, writing “Personal finance is only 20% head knowledge. The other 80% — the bulk of the issue — is behavior. And it’s our behaviors with money that can get us into the biggest trouble or lead us into the biggest successes.”
Backing up her father’s viewpoint, Ramsey Show co-host Rachel Cruze stated, “If you want to get to the root of why you behave the way you do — why you spend, save, use debt, put off investing and more — you’ve got to learn about how the psychology of money affects you.”
Of course, every personal financial situation depends on a number of factors — what you earn and owe, your cost of living and your financial goals — but bad spending and saving behaviors are common to all and can be broken by practicing better self-discipline with your money.
Here are five bad saving and spending habits that you can start to break today.
The gap between living and living well is narrowing all the time. With life’s essentials costing more than ever, and savings and paying off debt more important than ever, non-essentials, or wants, need to take the hit.
Even in the best of economic times, you should be focusing on trimming your discretionary spending on things like entertainment, hobbies and leisure and travel expenses. Resisting impulse buys and discounts and getting rid of any unused streaming platforms and meal delivery services will leave you with more money to save, pay off debt and invest. Pause before buying anything non-essential, and you will find that most discretionary expenses can wait.
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Whether you use a 50-30-20 rule or ruthlessly track every penny that comes and goes, it’s essential to make a budget, stick to it and review it regularly, so that you can control short-term expenses and meet long-term needs.
A small change like a hike in your insurance rate can funnel funds away from other pressing obligations. So, picking a system and monitoring it frequently is essential to give you a clear idea of your goals and how to achieve them.
