Have you ever thought about your relationship with money?
If your answer is no, I highly encourage you to read the book “Your Money or Your Life” by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez. I recently read it, and I am here to share what I consider to be the most important takeaways of the book’s nine-step process.
The first statement that really caught my attention in this book was “…how much is enough money for you to have a life you love, now and in the future.”
In this book, enough is defined as the peak of the fulfillment curve. Anything in excess is defined as clutter. Collectively, we think we have jobs so that we can pay our bills, but we spend more than we make on more than we need, and these consumption patterns have caused global environmental damage.
This book is a great first step to breaking the hold of the “more-is-better” myth many of us have been believing.
I encourage that everyone takes the time to read this book for yourself, as it will transform your life. There are several steps that I find exceptionally important.
The first of many: find the amount of money that you have made in your lifetime by creating a balance sheet to show what assets and liabilities you have acquired.
After doing that, answer the question, “how much of my life am I willing to sell to have money in my pocket?” Furthermore, ask yourself, “what does financial independence mean to me?”
Answering those questions sets up the foundation to remolding your financial life.
Establishing the actual cost it takes to maintain your job, and to compute your hourly wage, is the next step. This would include the cost of commuting, costuming, meals, daily decompression, escape entertainment, vacations, job-related illnesses or injuries and any other job-related expense.
Finally, you must actively start keeping track of every cent that comes in and out or your life to effectively succeed with these steps and to continue your financial success journey.
These tips are only the beginning of financial freedom. We are only at the tip of the iceberg. Robin and Dominguez continue to list out money advice in their collaborative book. It is a tremendous read, and I cannot recommend it enough.
Next week, we will explore their words of wisdom further and take a deeper look into how you can transform your finances.
Chelbee-Lynn Rosenkrance can be reached at [email protected].