Blame financial problems on external factors is the norm, but it is the truth? Sometimes. Unexpected things happen after all. On the other hand, some people manage to handle the unexpected without any real financial difficulty, right? What are they doing differently?
To begin with, some people - even some with a low income - set aside money for the inevitable car repair or visiting the doctor. A car repair, a visit to the doctor, a washing machine breaking down - these are all unexpected at the time they occur. But on the other hand, it is entirely predictable that they will happen at some point in your life, right? If you believe, or pretend that they will not - and therefore did not have money allocated to them - maybe there is something wrong with how you think.
Fortunately, you can change how you think. You can choose to reflect on your past, for example, and note that each year you have had more "surprises", which cost several hundred dollars. You may remember the financial problems they caused and the stress and decide to be ready next time. So you can devote a little money each week in anticipation of these "unexpected" events. This does not mean that you worry about these things - just the opposite. You plan, so you need not worry.
Poor Thinking Habits Equal Financial Trouble
There are other ways in which poor thinking habits affect the financial area. For example, you probably know how much easier it is to buy things when you have a credit card. Research confirms this, by the way. It even shows that people will pay more when you pay with credit. In one study, offers those who were allowed to use credit cards at an auction for Boston Celtics tickets twice as high as those who were obliged to pay cash (although the latter were allowed two days to pay).
Naturally, this tends to be freer of credit can get you into trouble. A solution? Trains even thinking about all the money as cash. Every time you stand with a possible purchase using a check or credit card, ask yourself whether you would do it if it was cash in your hands. If this is too difficult to get money from your bank account before you go shopping, and let the Credit home.
Your mind works in certain habitual patterns. The idea is then, that rather than let it mislead you, you can use these habits in your favor. Another way to do it is to procrastinate in making purchasing decisions. When we defer on anything, we often just do not get it done. The same applies when putting out to buy something. If it's important enough, you'll still buy it later, but many things will be left un bought. Putting off purchasing decisions can dramatically reduce your costs.
Here is another habit to program in your thoughts: Think of prices in terms of hours worked. Suppose you see a new TV you like and it costs $ 1,800. Now let's assume you make around $ 12 per hour after all taxes. When you look at that TV, do the math. It takes 150 hours to your work to pay for it. Imagine will work for an extra day each week for 19 weeks (8 hours a day) to pay for television. Is this price too high now?
Includes the cost of interest if you buy on credit. You can pay $ 2,400 for the TV before you finish. In this case the price is 200 hours (work Saturdays for half of the year, for example). In fact, the total cost with interest for all purchases and you may change your mind on many of them.
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