Back in 2017 when I was thinking about what I wanted to name my blog I pretty quickly decided on “Money Mindful Moms” because it embodied what I wanted my message to be and who my message was for.
I’m not here to tell you how to invest, or what
you should or shouldn’t be doing with your money. There are plenty of people on the internet who will tell you that. I won’t tell you that money is the most important thing or the least important thing, but I will be the first to encourage you as a mom to put it on your list of priorities and it starts with being more mindful.
I don’t mean the woo kind of mindful (although I’ve been known to love some “woo” from time to time.) I mean being aware and intentional when it comes to your money.
If you’re just starting to prioritize your money or you need your excitement about money to be reignited, I have 11 things you can try right now to get headed in the right direction. Maybe don’t try all 11 at once because it’s kind of hard to be mindful in 11 ways at once so that defeats the purpose. Pick one to start with and you can build from there as you see fit.
1. Write down your 10 year goals for yourself and your family, then ask yourself “would you be able to tell these are my goals based on my current money habits?”
My Pastor once shared “I can tell what matters most to you by what you spend your time on and what you spend your money on.” So if you’re saying you want something but your money choices aren’t aligned, it’s time to change your habits or change the goal.
2. Go take a look at all of your accounts and investments
So often we set things up and don’t check in with them often. If you have a 529 plan for your kids, a Roth IRA, emergency savings accounts, anything that has your money in it, go check it and make sure it’s still working for you. If you need to make any adjustments you can do that.
3. Remove tempting shopping apps from your phone
It’s not about not shopping, it’s about being more mindful when you do. Our favorite stores have made it oh-so easy for us to quickly and easily spend money. Sometimes just not having it easily accessible and at your fingertips to tempt you can help. You can still shop when needed but you’ll have to go to your computer to do so and just that extra step can save you from those tricky impulse buy situations.
4. If you work outside the home, do some research on how you can earn more money within your company
Maybe it’s as simple as asking for a raise, or maybe it might require taking a college course or looking into promotion opportunities available in your company. Oftentimes there is more money on the table but we don’t know what’s available because we don’t look into it.
5. Start paying with cash
There’s nothing quite like the sting of paper money leaving your hand to pay for something. It’s an easy way to be more aware of your spending vs swiping a card every time.
6. Read a book about money
Some of my favorites:
7. Do a spending audit
Go through your budget or print your bank statements if you don’t currently have a budget. What have you been spending money on that doesn’t serve you? How can you set yourself up to avoid those spending patterns? What subscriptions and other bills that are automatically taken out of your account each month are things you no longer use, need or want? There may be things you didn’t even realize you were spending money on.
So those were a handful of ways you can be more money mindful but, friend, please don’t forget you already are mindful with your money! You wouldn’t have read this all let alone all the way to the end if you weren’t. These are just a few things you can do if you want to keep progressing
<3 Krista
If you are a busy mama looking to go from just getting by, to thriving when it comes to your money, follow Krista on instagram @moneymindfulmoms for more