This month of March you may be thinking about all things green – including your hard-earned cash! You may also hope that some good luck finds its way to you. Oddly enough, many people view luck as an integral part of their personal finances. The idea that wealth is a direct result of “getting lucky” with your job positions, salary, or the market pervades in our society despite evidence to the contrary.
Still, many believe that in order to find success in their financial lives, they need to catch some kind of a break. Something has to go exactly their way, and all of it is outside their control. It’s this kind of thinking that leads people to live a life of scarcity, rather than one of abundance.
Instead of focusing on the ways you’re lucky (or unlucky) with money, step outside that unhealthy mindset. This St. Patrick’s Day, you can start making your own luck with these three easy tips.
Look at Your Earnings
When was the last time you asked for a raise? In all likelihood, the answer may be “never.” In a culture that values being polite, asking for more money may feel rude or confrontational. Many of us want to avoid these conversations at all cost – not instigate them ourselves!
But the truth is, if you want to be earning more, you may need to ask for it. Of course, there’s a method to the art of salary negotiation. Shooting an email to your direct manager may not be the best course of action. However, taking the time to understand your company’s review policy, write a meeting agenda that outlines the value you provide to the organization, and speak candidly with your supervisors about why you believe you deserve a pay increase could be worth your while.
Ultimately, if you don’t feel the position you’re in is paying you what you’re worth when you compare the salaries at similar companies for similar roles, it may be time to start job hunting. You deserve to be paid fairly for the value you’re bringing to the table.
However, if you love your current job and aren’t ready to jump to a new position – but still want to be making more money each month – you might consider starting your very own side hustle! From monetizing a blog, to freelance writing, to launching a local consulting business – the options are endless. Bonus points if your side hustle can be consistently used into retirement as a valuable retirement income stream!
What Are Your Priorities?
If you’re still mentally linking wealth and luck, you may want to take a hard look at your financial priorities. All too often people think that there’s “never enough” money, when the truth is that there’s plenty of money available to them but they’re spending it in the wrong places. Change your narrative from one of “never enough” to one of abundance where money flows to and from you easily by prioritizing your spending.
You’re more likely to feel emotionally fulfilled (which is often synonymous with “lucky”) if you spend your money in areas that are important to you. Spending mindfully can look different for everyone, but setting a cash flow oriented budget and a few mindful money goals is a good place to start. It also helps to jot these things down. Your money priorities might look like:
- Save for retirement
- Pay down credit card debt
- Spend more time with friends and family
- Travel
You might notice that only two of those are distinctly money related – and that’s okay! You’re allowed to have both money-focused goals and spending priorities like travel or experiencing new things with the people you care about. In fact, focusing your spending on these more inwardly-focused goals will help you to feel “lucky” with money, and you’ll feel less of a need to spend frivolously.
Work With a Professional
Part of creating your own luck is creating a financial plan that meets your unique needs. A professional financial planner can help get you on the path to success by creating avenues that help your money start to work for you.
In the long term, working with a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ helps you to grow your wealth and develop a relationship with a money-minded professional who can act as a sounding board, accountability partner, and counsel. Building this relationship, and working with them to develop a strategy that sets you up to live the life you want to live, is one of the best ways to start living in financial excellence. So, kick “luck” to the curb this March – you’re all the luck you need.
