Have you had enough?

March 12, 2015 By

How much is enough conceptDid I get your attention?  Did you ask “Well, what is enough?”  Or did you think “What does ‘enough’ mean?”  For many of us we have no idea what ‘enough’ is or means.  Take money for example; I hear from my clients all the time “I just need enough money.” Or, “I just want to make enough money.”  But what does ‘enough’ mean?

So let’s first define ‘enough’.  It means sufficient, adequate, as much as necessary or as much as needed.  I’m not sure about you, but I know that my clients and most people (I’m including myself in there too) want more than needed.  I want enough money so that I can do and have whatever I want.  Plus, I want to feel secure and not have to worry if I can meet my financial obligations day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-money and yes, year-to-year.  Therefore, I want more than enough.

So have you had enough of enough?  My clients have.  When they say they just need enough money or to make enough, we do some coaching around that.  I ask them to define what enough is to them.  When they do, they realize that they actually want more.  And we then take it a step further and I ask “What do you want more for?”  It’s absolutely amazing what they say!  I hear things like: they can help more people, they can reach more, they can spend more time with their kids, on their health, take a trip, hire help and the list goes on.

Look, for most of us we do have enough, and it is okay to want more.  It’s actually more than okay because when you say “I want more” you will get it and you will also help more people around you.  Think of it this way, what if you had all the money in the world, would you do something to help someone else?  Many of you will say yes.  And so then, isn’t it worth striving for having more than enough?

I’d say so!  So say goodbye to just ‘enough’ and hello to more – more joy, more freedom, more happiness and dare I say more peace of mind!

 

Filed Under: Money Habits, Personal Development Tagged With: , , ,

Do you have it?

April 3, 2014 By

money down the drain (640x480)Money, that is.  Or are you wondering where it went?  Where does the money go?  Did it go out the window?  Down the drain?  Was it stolen?  Do you know where your money goes?  If you said yes – congratulations… err maybe.  Do you really know where it goes?  Do you track it or do you just know it goes out to pay bills?

Why am I talking about this?  Because it has recently come to my attention that many people are living blindly.  They have no idea how much money they bring in and worse, how much they send out.

Recently I worked with a client who realized with much dismay and discomfort that more money was going out than coming in and the reason it wasn’t noticed was because credit cards were bridging the gap, which of course caused more stress and anxiety.

Well then, there it was out in the open, she now knew exactly how much money came in and went out.  This knowledge first made her sad, then afraid.  See, she thought she had enough money.  Yes, this knowledge was stressful and scary but once she saw it she was relieved.  Every month she dreaded paying her bills and looking at her checking account because underneath everything she knew she didn’t have enough, she only ‘pretended’ to have enough.  Yet a funny thing happened.  After seeing the figures, she realized that she was no longer at the effect of this but could be at the cause.  She could take steps to release the stress and worry and begin to have enough!  It was a beautiful thing to watch and experience with her.

She had stuck her head in the sand and hoped it would go away… and it didn’t, it only got bigger.  The more she ignored it the bigger it got and the more afraid she became.  The day she found out exactly how much money was coming in and going out was the day everything changed.  She put steps in place to change her behaviors and began really paying attention to her money situation.  She is now making and saving money, paying down debt and feeling great.  She knows exactly what her figures are and she knows she wants to feel empowered rather than afraid.

I’ve been writing a lot on the subject of money.  It’s because it is a hot topic!  The beauty of knowing where your money goes is that you now have a say in it.  Money doesn’t just walk out the door – though it may feel that way.  You have control over it.  Here is your chance to be in control!  Go for it, what do you have to lose?  More money that’s all!  And you have everything to gain, money especially.

I want to teach you how to use your archetypes (don’t worry, I’ll explain what those are) to your advantage so you stop doing the things that sabotage your efforts to grow your money tree! If you are interested, click here for more info.

Filed Under: Money Habits Tagged With: , ,

Do you have enough money?

March 13, 2014 By

Money BagWouldn’t it be great to have bags of money? That would be enough… wouldn’t it?

But what does having enough money mean to you?  Have you ever said “I just want to have enough money”?  I’m going to guess that yes, you have.  I know this because that is what my clients say to me… and most anyone I talk to says the same thing.  So my question is what does having enough money mean to you?

I ask because it means different things to different people.  For a pre-teen they might want to have enough money to buy lunch at the school cafeteria and a pack of gum at the corner store.  For a college student they might want to have enough money to buy a car and to go out and have fun in it.  For a working woman/man they might want to have enough money to pay for rent, utilities and food and have extra left for fun and shopping.  For newlyweds it might be for their first home and for a family it might be to house, clothe and feed them all and for a retired couple it might be to maintain a lifestyle.  As you can see, the answer is different for everyone.

No matter where you are it matters what enough means to you and it’s important to know exactly what enough is to you.  Many people have no idea what they need to live.  They have no idea how much income comes in and how much goes out.  In order to have enough money, you need to know your figures.  In my business I need enough money to run my business and cover my operating costs and pay myself a salary.  And I know exactly what those numbers are which makes every decision I make a confident one.

I love to share tips so here are several for you to begin your own journey to having more than enough money for living your life:

  1. Know exactly how much you bring in.  Get a sheet of paper and fold it in half.  On the left, write Income and on the right, Expenses.  Then go through your paychecks and add them up for the month (you could do the whole year but get a monthly figure first).  Write that figure down on the left side of your paper.
  2. Know exactly how much you send out.  Add up all your monthly expenses (again you can do the whole year as you probably have quarterly and yearly expenses, but let’s get that figure for the month first).  Go through them a second time, you’ll forget something – I always do.  Write that figure down on the right side of the paper.
  3. Know your bottom line.  Subtract your expenses from your income.  Hopefully you have a bigger income number than expenses number, but if you do not, don’t panic.  Take a breath and congratulate yourself for taking the time to take this first step to discovery.
  4. How to have more than enough.  If you have less income than expenses, it’s time to look at those expenses and scale back or cut some out.  Sometimes when you see your monthly expenses it is easy to know what needs to go… and sometimes it is more difficult.  Yet if you are spending more than you are earning, you need to make changes.  So get to taking things out!  Don’t confuse a want with a need: want = cable TV and need = food to eat.
  5. Give yourself credit.  It can be scary and discouraging yet you are now on the upswing.  Once you know where you stand, it will be hard to continue doing the things you had been doing that brought you to this point.  You are stronger than you think you are.  This is where you tell yourself you are happy and proud of knowing your exact figures.

I know this is not easy.  I’ve been in the “I don’t have enough money” position.   I’ve had that feeling of “Wow, I can barely feed myself let alone my pets.”  I’ve been there paying one bill I thought was more important to pay before another.  I’ve made half payments to just make sure I sent a payment.

On the flip side, I now experience the relief of knowing my bottom line and the figure that is my ‘enough money’.  I know the triumph of making choices that bring me the result I want, which is having enough money.

If you have had money struggles and overcame them, I’d love to hear how you did it.  Please post below!

Filed Under: Money Habits, Personal Development Tagged With: , , , , , ,