mdolla: How to Stop Worrying About Money Even If You Don't Earn Much

If you asked anyone to list their top 5 concerns, I’m confident money or finance would be up there. Salaries, loans, mortgages, debts, stocks, investments, or other financial concerns that you can name are concerns we ponder on a daily basis.

So how can I not think about my financial situation? You might ask. The answer is financial freedom.

So What Is Financial Freedom?

Financial freedom, on paper, means not being tied to burdens or concerns financially. In other words, a financially free person spends their money without worrying when is the next paycheck coming or how to pay off debts and loans.

It does not mean acting cool or boast in front of your friends or proving a point to your family, but rather for you to sleep peacefully at night and wake up with positive thoughts, rather than thoughts: “I am desperately searching for money day 34”.

How We Can Benefit from Having Financial Freedom

Unless you live only in the present day, and don’t think about the near future (which is not the smartest decision nowadays), there are only benefits in being financially free. Firstly, it’s your emotional freedom – your thoughts are not constantly stuck to your bank account and unpaid bills. Secondly, you are aware of your expenses (well the majority of them, because we all have unexpected bills) and profits. You know when you can splurge on something you crave or need and when you need to cut back. Thirdly, it lets you make long-term plans like summer holidays or that yoga retreat you’ve been dreaming about.

Financial Control Is Out of Your Reach? Here’s What To Do

Financial freedom will not happen overnight, and it might require doing some damage control as well. I have described a perfect scenario: you start with a solid base (your family) and go step-by-step. However, a lot of us go through a rocky road and get to the focusing point after a few positive and negative experiences. It is important that you are ready to start the path where you are willing to try hard and gain financial freedom. Let’s look at 5 ways to regain control of your finances:

Turn your back on unnecessary loans

There are people out there who take loans for their wedding party. One day of fun and months of paying for it, is that really smart and logical? I understand we live only once and you will only have one (hopefully) wedding day, but there are definitely ways to work around it and have a small, but tasteful wedding. And this is just one of the many examples of unnecessary loans. Do not follow your momentary emotions and think about consequences, about conflicts that might arise and realize that it can all be avoided, if you sit and think smartly and thoroughly about a serious step you are about to make.

Think twice on purchases, buy on second thought

You don’t have to be a shopocholic to buy things you don’t need. At one point of time we all have been there. I am not talking about big purchases, because sometimes the small ones adds up to an even bigger amount. A t-shirt here, a trendy scarf there, endless phones cases (for every mood possible), do not even get me started on cosmetics (for girls) and for car/laptop/bike accessories (for guys). My advice is not to buy something right there on the spot with the first impulse, but think about it a little. Are you sure you need it? May be you already have a similar item? Just really think about, may be even sleep on it (if we are talking about an expensive item), that’s all I am suggesting.

Avoid hooking on any harmful habits (it kills you and your wallet)

The price of addictive items is increasing drastically, however from what I know, it doesn’t make people fight their bad habits. People just carry on doing whatever they were doing, and the only thing that changes is the frequency of them complaining about prices which going up. It’s a matter of a simple math to find out how much you could have saved, if you were not involved in buying these addictive items. Just count how much you spend in a week/month/year on these items, and I’m telling you the number will surprise you.

Do things you like and enjoy and most importantly keep doing them

Have a habit of being active, and by active I mean work, physical activities and emotional activities. Everything that makes your brain work and your soul happy. Find out what kind of literature you enjoy and keep reading (let it be Vogue or comics, if that’s what you love), do sports (for example I’m in love with tennis), do something for your soul and mind (in my case it’s definitely yoga), hobbies are very important (I write, and hope one day it’ll turn into something more serious). You might think: “how will it give me financial freedom”? All these activities will teach you to stay sharp and energetic, and they will make you want to accomplish more and more.

Donate genuinely (sound awkward, doesn’t it?)

I understand that this point is making your finances go another direction. However, I am a firm believer that the more you give the more will come back. The trick is to be as genuine as possible when you make donations (by donations I mean not only money, it can be anythnig which help people in need). This is a rather philosophical approach, because you must set your mind on a thought that you truly want to help and do not hold on to whatever it is that you are giving away.

A combination of these tips will definitely create successful path for regaining your financial freedom or at least making it stronger. The best part is that once you make a habit out of these hints, it’ll become so natural for you to live peacefully without unnecessary worries.

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