Yahoo Finance Every Money Move You Make Should Be Intentional: 6 Ways To Start Now
If you dream of becoming wealthy one day, every money move you make should be intentional. That’s because becoming rich isn’t something that happens randomly (unless you’re born into it.) Rather, it comes as a result of a series of thoughtful, purposeful decisions.
See: 8 Key Signs You Haven’t Made It to the Upper Middle Class
Learn: 3 Things You Must Do When Your Savings Reach $50,000
If you want to be more intentional with your money, here are a few ways to start.
Clearly Define and Write Down Your Financial Goals
You likely have many different money goals: pay off student loans, buy a house, or pay cash for a new car. The best way to organize your goals and work toward achieving them is to write them down.
Do more than make a list of your goals, however. Take the time to clearly define each goal, write down why you want to achieve it in your lifetime, and when you’d like to reach it.
Indicate which goals are short-term goals and which are long-term goals. For your long-term goals, break them down into smaller goals that you’d like to achieve in the next year, three years, and more. Revisit your list often and check your progress. Put your list in a place where you can see it, and each time you hit a milestone, write a date next to it.
Spend Based on Your Values
When you adjust your spending and only spend based on what you value, it helps you to avoid mindless spending. For example, if you value traveling and intentionally create a savings account for a trip, you’re less likely to mindlessly spend money on clothes at the mall.
Furthermore, if you value donating to charity, it can tremendously impact your happiness. A 2022 study from lending platform Happy Money found that the “relationship between individuals donating to charity and higher levels of happiness was equivalent to earning $36,000 more income, or a near 6 percent increase in happiness.”
In other words, becoming wealthy isn’t necessarily about saving everything you earn. A rich life is one where you enjoy your hard work by allocating money toward your passions and top priorities. Consciously saving and spending helps you to plan, build and save for the things you truly care about.
Check Out: 10 Top Ways To Become Rich by Only Working on Weekends
Increase Your Financial Knowledge
If you want to be more intentional about money, focus on continuous learning. It’s great to keep abreast of market fluctuations, investment opportunities, new IPOs and retirement planning.
You can start small by learning about the assets you already have, such as learning more about your 401(k) at your job and making sure you’re investing in the best asset allocation for you. If you own a home, it’s a good idea to track its current value. Increasing financial knowledge also includes reading several personal finance books or asking an expert questions.
Many people work with financial advisors but outsource their money decisions to them. Instead, be an active part of your investing journey. Ask questions, even if they seem silly at first. If a concept or type of investment seems difficult to understand, keep reading and asking for advice until it makes sense.
If you want to become wealthy, managing your money should be an active part of your daily life rather than an afterthought. That’s what it means to be intentional.
Build Multiple Streams of Income
If you want to accelerate your journey to financial independence, build multiple income streams. While it’s certainly possible to become wealthy on one income, acquiring different ways to make money can increase the possibility of you reaching your goals sooner.
This could mean starting a side business to bring in extra income that you can use to invest. It could also mean learning about dividend investing, real estate investing, or any other form of investing that interests you.
The more income streams you have, the more diversified you are. That way, if one of them doesn’t earn as much as you hoped, you have others to rely on. Having multiple streams of income also insulates you should you get laid off from your primary job.
Cultivate an ‘Abundance Mindset’
Becoming wealthy isn’t just about the returns you get on your investments. And, it’s not about accumulating as much cash as possible. Being wealthy is truly a mindset where you have enough to do what you love and spend days as you wish.
There are two primary mindsets, especially when it comes to money. There is an abundance mindset, where you believe you’ll always have enough. People with abundance mindsets give freely and generally have a positive outlook. According to a research study published in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, this mindset greatly helps people make “goal-directed decisions.”
People with a scarcity mindset tend to hoard money. They believe there is not enough to go around. They worry that if they give, they might not have enough for themselves. This mindset might make it challenging to enjoy life.
It takes time and conscious effort to cultivate an abundance mindset. Intentionally choosing to have a positive outlook takes practice. However, the more intentional you can be about having this money outlook, the better for your longtime personal and financial growth.
Be Flexible on Your Journey
It might seem like advising you to “be flexible” is the opposite of “be intentional,” but being flexible has some merits. After all, life is unpredictable. You can have your entire early retirement plan mapped out, only to be surprised by an unexpected job loss or a family member who is suddenly ill and needs your care.
For those reasons, it’s important to know when to be flexible and when to stick to the plan. It’s about having enough awareness to realize when it’s worth it to spend money on a once-in-a-lifetime event. It’s knowing how to be intentional and make choices that reflect your values, even in the midst of being flexible.
Building wealth isn’t always a series of carefully planned steps. It’s more about discipline, about bouncing back when you experience financial setbacks and surprises. It’s about the continuous pursuit of knowledge so you can make the best financial decisions for you. Mostly, it’s about taking your financial future into your own hands and taking ownership of your path to wealth.
More From GOBankingRates
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Every Money Move You Make Should Be Intentional: 6 Ways To Start Now
