Three Tips for Mastering Your Financial & Personal Goals

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Do you ever feel like you are making daily decisions according to the direction the wind blows? Might you yearn to feel more in control of your time and resources? When you live within your means and according to your belief system, you are more likely to be at peace. Here are a few simple steps you can take to manage your money, become more connected to your community, and live according to your values.

  1. Cost of Living

If you’ve never made a budget before, there are a number of apps that allow you to make technology your CFO, so to speak—such as Mint, BUDGT, and Spendee. This type of financial tracking is not only relatively easy and convenient, but it’s also fun!  There are many financial software options for small businesses, if you’re an entrepreneur. You might also try the method of withdrawing an allotted amount of money at the beginning of each week, only allowing yourself to spend what you have withdrawn. Although it requires discipline, you may be encouraged to be a better saver when forced to use paper money, since you’ll be able to see your funds in front of you.

If you choose to live within your means, as opposed to constantly living with debt, you will be happier and healthier in the long run. Take something as simple as cooking in, as opposed to eating out. You’ll not only save money, but you’ll have more with less. Instead of meeting up with friends at a local happy hour, suggest cooking dinner together. You’ll know your friends better by the end of the night, since making a meal together requires teamwork and planning. There’s also the potential to learn a few culinary tricks from your friends, making it more appealing to stay in next time you’re tempted to go out. Moreover, you may lose some weight by cooking at home, since restaurants make counting calories a tricky venture.

  1. Connection to Community

One potential benefit of living in a smaller metropolitan area is a closer connection to your food sources. There is a well-established network of small-scale farmers, nationwide, who participate in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). This method of direct farm support allows for a mutually beneficial relationship to develop: farmers are granted needed funds early in the season, which allows for investment in seeds and other farm-related costs; also, consumers are provided with a regular supply of farm produce that is pre-selected, and this can introduce subscribers to new fruits and vegetables they may not already be familiar with. This lack of familiarity encourages consumers to make new dishes and learn about new produce.

There is also the opportunity for subscribers to visit the farm to which they’ve subscribed. Visitation rights allow for further understanding of the growing seasons and the agricultural process, potentially making seasonal eating more appealing. You’ll likely find year-round mangoes less appetizing when you realize all the sacrifice it took for them to be transported from somewhere in the Southern Hemisphere, as opposed to from a farm in your zip code with fair compensation for labor and transportation. It’s easy to join a local CSA, if you’re interested in increasing your connection to the agricultural community around you: Local Harvest has a handy search engine just for this purpose.

  1. Passions & Priorities

According to public servant values, to live with integrity means acting “in accordance with relevant moral values and norms.”  For example, if you’re a writer, ideally you devote a relatively substantial amount of your time to the act of writing. Moreover, your budget should follow suit; for example, you should devote some portion of your income to new reading material and to submitting your work to print journal and online venues so that your writing may be considered for publication. Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way suggests this technique of devoting a certain portion of your budget to submission expenses.

Following this practice requires putting more energy into long-term planning, rather than short-term indulgence. You may find yourself suddenly against using a credit card to purchase a new outfit and more interested in less immediately-tangible activities like reading about pioneers in your field. Role models will provide inspiration and examples for best practices of how to develop your skills and talents. Planning for the long-term may not be appealing, at first; however, you will eventually feel grateful that you put in the hard work toward developing yourself as an artist or entrepreneur.

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Living according to your values requires some effort, and it’s not always as obvious as it might at first appear. If you avoid the use of fast credit and easy compensation, your rewards will consist of not only financial savings but also less overall stress, increased well-being, and tangible progress toward long-term, personal goals!

Elizabeth Larios