Tweaking mental attitudes about money can be the key to an improved financial picture.
Has being broke and remaining deeply in credit card debt become the norm for your life? If so, it may seem nearly impossible to improve your financial situation. But staying mired in debt doesn’t have to be the case forever.
With a few adjustments to your mental attitudes towards money, you can begin 2023 with the attainable goal of paying off debt so you can live a more financially secure life.
Here are three tips for developing a better money mindset to improve your finances in 2023.
1. Envision the life you want
Visualize yourself being free of credit card debt, paying bills on time, and saving for vacations. Visualization isn’t just a bunch of woo-woo or magical thinking. It’s about priming your mind for prosperity. You’re already constantly filling your subconscious mind with all kinds of thoughts, maybe including things like “I’ll never be able to pay off this credit card” or “I’m always broke.”
That mindset is only holding you back and keeping you stuck in a bad financial situation. Instead, envision how happy you’ll be when your credit card balances are paid off. Work on visualizing, start the day without the stress of too much debt on your shoulders.
Seeing these positive scenarios in your mind readies it for seizing opportunities that arise that can help you have more money and less debt. With this mindset, you’re more likely to look for a better-paying job so you can pay off debt faster. Your mind will also be able to come up with more ideas to help you achieve your financial goals.
2. Take a look at your sense of self-worth
There are all kinds of life events such as huge medical bills or car and home repairs that can cause credit card debt to rise. But sometimes we might have issues with what we think we deserve and find ways to self-sabotage our finances. Before you scoff at this idea, think about it without beating yourself up.
Maybe there’s a part of yourself that doesn’t think you deserve to have emergency savings, earn a good income, or stay out of credit card debt. That’s not to say that everyone with a credit card debt burden has low self-esteem. Just give this concept some thought.
If you have a mindset that you’ll never get ahead, maybe you formed that idea as a teen or young adult. Maybe you got deeper into debt more recently after the loss of a loved one. Perhaps you think of financial stress as just a part of life. If so, you can still reverse those attitudes.
If your money mindset keeps you broke, try to get to the root of why you spend too much or don’t think you can find a higher-paying job. There’s also no shame in going to a therapist who can help you figure out where your attitudes about money came from and how to modify them.
Find out: 4 Tips to Help Develop a Saving Mentality
3. Utilize visual tools
Using visual tools can motivate you to pay off debt or save for financial milestones faster. For example, you can print out a fundraising thermometer template found online or draw your own. Put your goal at the top with dollar amount increments leading to the top. Then fill in each increment with a red marker each time you hit that goal.
Post it on your refrigerator so your goal is always present in your mind. With a visual image, you’ll be motivated to pay off debt, save for a down payment on a house or new car, and save for vacations or other financial goals much faster than simply setting a goal with no visual motivator.
Published by Debt.com, LLC
