The Quiet Confidence…
The Quiet Confidence…
…of getting your financial sh*t together
Anxiety is fun, hey? If you’ve ever experienced the heart racing palpitations of anxiety, you know just how fun it can be!
For me, anxiety is almost a daily occurrence (I know, so much fun). The triggers are many, and if I’m honest, up until recently this whole financial goal thing has occasionally kicked up anxious feelings.
But Jill, you seem like you’re getting your poop in a group, why would this savings project trigger anything but euphoric celebration?
Well… Though I have gotten into a good savings rhythm, a little voice inside my head has remained, whispering random unhelpful things like: “will this whole savings project work? Will it really help you reach your goals? Is it worth it?”
Oh brain, how truly diabolical you are.
It’s true, these fun questions have popped up from time to time over the last year. I mean, at first these kinds of thoughts were pretty consistent. I was nervous and anxious, not sure if what I was doing was right or even sane. And of course I didn’t help things much by obsessively checking my bank account. As if the money I deposited a few weeks ago would mysteriously disappear and I would be left with nothing. Or, I would spend chunks of my day multiplying out potential savings trying to get a sense of how much I could save in a year, because, again, my brain is psychotic.
This initial period was as much fun as I’m sure it sounds.
As the year went on, I found my savings stride but I continued to experience these whispered questions occasionally. That is, until recently.
You Mean, It Works?
There I was, just minding my own business a few weeks ago, when it hit me. “Huh, I haven’t thought about my investments in a while. I think I’ll just check to see how they’re doing.” Now mind you, a million dollars didn’t materialize in my bank account out of nowhere, but when I checked, my finances looked decent. They were pretty much on-par with what you can expect when saving a decent chunk of your pay and letting a little bit of market growth do its thing. But yeah, things looked positive.
After checking, I felt this weird sensation flood my body, I felt a sense of ease about my finances. What an interesting sensation! As someone who has been working to get their financial sh*t together for the better part of a year now and having no clue if my strategy and approach would actually move me in the direction I want, this was a welcome sensation.
And then it dawned on me. My approach and plan is actually working. Yes, sure there have been bumps along the way (the market “correction” earlier this month for example), but I’m starting to see the numbers coalescing like all of the books I’ve been reading said they would.
Look, when you start out saving and investing, you’re effectively throwing your money in a pit hoping that it does what a few experts say it will do. That’s a lot of trust to put in the hands of a big, unknown system like the stock market. Talk about anxiety producing.
But as I let the realization sit with me, that things look like they are slowly - ever so slowly - moving in the right direction, another feeling emerged, the feeling of confidence.
Mmmm, Tasty Confidence
Getting your financial sh*t together isn’t for the faint of heart. It takes effort, intentional decisions, and courage to really move your life in the direction you want. But let me tell you, the confidence that starts to build when your finances begin to come together is worth it.
Suddenly, all of the changes you’ve made have been worth the sacrifice. Not because you become a millionaire overnight, but because you can see that if a general plan is followed things will move in the right direction.
This understanding translates into a quiet confidence that permeates throughout your life. You start to look at challenges differently, because you tackled something seemingly insurmountable as your finances, you know you'll be able to figure it out.
And I'm not suggesting that developing a financial plan and sticking to it will address all life's fun challenges, but it certainly helps to give you a little boost of confidence. And perspective.
And isn’t that all we need in life? The confidence to know that you’ll figure it out and the perspective to understand that good things take time.
At the end of the day remember, you’ve totally got this!
Over the past many weeks of creating content and templates, I realize that to help sustain this passion project I would be grateful for your support!
For those with a dollar to spare, I’ve set up a Buy Me A Coffee account for folks to contribute to here and there. For those frugally focused, I would be incredibly grateful if you were to share my work with your networks and folks you think would enjoy my journey (via email, social media, or homing pigeon).
A special thank you to those who contributed to my Buy Me A Coffee or shared a post! Your support means the world to me - truly.
Whether you're able to contribute or not, I’m so glad you’ve joined me on this journey!
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