5 Essential Money Habits for Women
Everyone can do money better.
Whether you’re already rich or you’re rebuilding from a crisis, there are 5 essential money habits you should ensure you have in place. And remember, it’s NEVER too late to start!
1. Know where you stand
You can’t keep your head in the sand forever. At some point you need to take stock of what your current financial position is - especially if you’re you’re in a marriage or defacto relationship.
Don’t worry, it’s not as difficult as your think!
Firstly, I’d like to point out that if you’re the kind of woman who gets overwhelmed or bored by finance talk you’re not alone and it’s not your fault.
We as women have been conditioned by society to believe that money is not something we’re good at. For thousands of years, money has been a man’s domain. Our mothers, grandmothers and great grandmothers literally were deemed by law to be incapable of managing their own finances.
Of course, that’s not true! You ARE amazing at money and you always have been. Your beliefs simply got in the way of this. Thankfully our laws have now caught up to reflect our innate financial brilliance (but only in the last 30 years or so).
So step into your power. Set a timer for 20 minutes and dive into my quick guide on How to Identify Your Net Assets and How to Identify Your Net Income.
NOTE: If you’re not currently working and your partner is financially supporting you, it’s even MORE important for you to take part in and understand your joint financial position. When you’re in a defacto relationship or marriage, you are each responsible for each other’s debt whether you know about it or not. Relationships are supposed to be a partnership so questions need to be asked for your own self-respect and security. If you’d like more information on how to strike up a conversation on this with your partner, please DM me @loveluckwealth or comment on this post.
2. Set goals
If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up somewhere else.
That somewhere else is probably NOT where you want to be.
You need to direct the show.
Setting goals and regularly reviewing them is a powerful habit that can set you up for financial success - it’s scientifically proven.
An amazing WOMAN, Dr Gail Matthews, of a Californian University found that you are 42% more likely to reach your goals just by writing them down AND reviewing them daily. That’s HUGE.
So why aren’t you doing it? Set your timer for another 20 minutes and download my guide on How to Set Goals that Stick.
3. Silo your income
One of the reasons humans have trouble following their intentions is because of unconscious sabotage.
For example, let’s say you have a goal of saving $20,000 for your next luxury holiday. On paper, it’s very doable but somehow every month you forget to quarantine your earnings or an unforeseen expense comes up that you have to tap into your account for.
There’s a reason this happens.
It’s because every time you look at your internet banking your brain sees that money just sitting there and this, coupled with your thoughts of ‘this is too hard’, or ‘I’m no good at money’, leads to some form of sabotage.
You never reach your goal.
Instead, try automating your finances:
Set up an automatic banking transfer that will occur every payday to silo a fixed percentage of your income into a separate high interest, zero fee savings account at a different banking institution to the one you use for your everyday accounts.
This is a brilliant tool to set and forget your savings plans. Out of sight, and out of mind, your savings will grow behind the scenes quickly and efficiently to reach your goal on time without sabotage.
4 Invest
Invest for your future and leave a legacy. Investing is different to saving as investing is about putting your money to work so that you can make money from money.
There are a few ways you can do this…
A) Retirement. Ensure you have a tax effective retirement plan in place. Government websites such as Money Smart can help you create this plan, or you may be in a financial position to hire your own Financial Planner. The important thing is that you START, so don’t over complicate this.
Most retirement accounts are only effective because they are inaccessible until you’re over 65 years old. But there’s no reason why you can’t also invest outside of this regime. It makes investing more ‘real’ and exciting, and of course it’s also liquid so you can tap into it if needed.
B) Stocks. 20 years ago the barriers to entry for investing in the stock market were high and in accessible to the average woman. This is no longer the case. Most banks now offer low cost brokerage accounts you can use to build your own share portfolio. There is no minimum spend, so you can start with as little as $100.
Over the last 35 years, the stock market on average has returned 11%. That’s inclusive of the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, COVID and economic recession. True investing is like buying a house, you buy quality and you hold for 10 years or more - it’s really quite boring and therefore easy. You can diversify across industries, countries and asset types to minimise risk. I teach investment basics in my Signature Course.
C) Investing also comes in the forms of property investment, business investment and, my favourite, investing in YOURSELF.
Traditionally, you home is not considered an investment as you’re not in a position to sell it to access the capital (i.e. you will always need somewhere to live). If property is your thing, instead invest in a rental property that is positively geared (where the return is greater than the costs and loan repayments), and rent in the area you desire to live. At least you’ll have a passive income stream which is good for the soul. Bear in mind that putting all of your investments in one basket (i.e. one property) does NOT meet the definition of a well diversified investment. It is general consensus in the finance world that a good portfolio is a quality, well-diversified portfolio held for the long-term.
If you have an awesome business idea with a compelling WHY, by all means look into it! Working for someone else is limiting as you’re always trading time for money - get off that train if you can.
Finally, investing in your own education and mindset is money never wasted. We were put on this earth to grow, so grow!
5. Your words are your wand
Take notice of how you speak both to yourself and to others - money is listening.
Money is energy and it is attracted to people who vibrate as a match for it. Your words, thoughts and beliefs act as a magnet. This magnet either repels or attracts the wealth you desire.
“Everything is energy and that's all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want and you cannot help but get that reality. It can be no other way.” Albert Einstein
To ensure you’re attracting rather than repelling money…
Catch yourself when you say or think phrases like:
I’m no good at money
I can’t afford that
Money is hard
Flip them into more positive phrases like:
I am excellent at money
I always have more than enough
Money always has my back
Money comes to me in unexpected ways
Set your timer again to take a deep dive into why you may be resisting money and how to uncover your unconscious fears and beliefs HERE.
I hope this article has inspired you to introduce some new money habits into your life!
I love to hear your stories and a-ha moments so please comment below or direct message me @loveluckwealth. Have a wonderful, abundant long weekend!
P.S. I have a new online workshop available! To register click on the button below.
Legal Note: Information provided by Love Luck Wealth is factual in nature and does not take into consideration your personal financial situation. It is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice nor financial product advice in any way. Remember, the value of any investment can go down as well as up. Before acting, you should consider seeking independent personal financial advice that is tailored to your needs from an appropriately licensed or authorised financial adviser.