If any of you have hung around our More Than Enough Financial offices in Ottawa, you have heard a few one-liners that David – our head coach and CEO – likes to use to remind people to stay out of financial debt.
His coaching clients like to call them – “Dave-isms”! Although he may have revised or borrowed these thoughts from other coaches and financial advisors over the years, he has adapted them to remind people of what is important.
Here are a few.
1.“Plan what you spend and spend what you plan.”
Simple to say not so simple to live out.
Plan your spending.
This means taking your next four-to-eight weeks and looking ahead at all of your expenses. Use an excel spreadsheet, or paper if you like that better, and write down all the expenses that you know you have in this cycle of weeks. If you have a spouse, do it together with your spouse. If you are single, sit down with yourself, and plan out the expenses. (This plan encourages you to be forward looking instead of focusing on where the money has gone).
Then look at your income and when you are getting paid in this cycle, so you are not caught off guard. This also includes another thing we hear David say: “Automate, automate, automate!” Make your bill payments as automated as possible so you don’t miss a payment or get charged interest for being a few days late.
Commit to the plan.
Commit with words. Commit on paper. Hold yourselves accountable. If you have an unexpected expenditure or have forgotten to plan for something, make sure you adjust your spending plan, talk to your spouse, and work out how this will affect your four-to-eight week cycle.
Spend what you plan.
This means actually spending what you have planned.
You have planned, you have committed. Now stick to it!
2. “Live on less than you make.”
Again, maybe easier said than done in our culture that is so debt-focused and savings averse.
David often says that if we do not make intentional choices to live debt-free or cash-only, we will automatically gravitate to credit. Sixty years ago, our financial institutions were geared primarily for savings. Today, we see more and more focus on credit with high interest costs.
To live on less than you make takes planning, commitment, and action. It ties directly back into the first “Dave-ism” to “plan what you spend and spend what you plan.”
3. “Give every dollar a name.”
It is no secret that our culture wants to disconnect us from our cash in hand. Plastic, tap and online shopping can keep us disconnected daily from our money. This disconnection can also keep us from financial awareness.
When you plan your spending in a four-to-eight week cycle, you are giving every dollar a purpose, a name, an address. You are telling your money where to go, instead of it telling you. This may be a paradigm shift in your thinking, your awareness, and how you have been “doing” money. But try it, and see if you don’t like the control, the knowledge and the awareness it will give you. You won’t be caught off guard by those credit card bills, when you have planned the destination of every dollar you earn.
Let our More Than Enough Financial office know how you are fulfilling these “Dave-isms” in your life. We would love to hear from you. Email info@morethanenough.ca or call 613-520-4157.
Remember, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” So go out and “just do it!”