I love this time of year: the changing of season, the reestablishment of routines, and refreshing the goals that were set when the year started. It’s the perfect opportunity to pause and evaluate what’s crowding us, what may not be serving us any longer, and what we can change heading into the final months of the year.
As an advisor, one of the areas I believe that could use some attention is our attitude and behavior towards money. I call it our mental script.
Mental scripts are built into us as kids. Normally by the time we hit middle school we have a financial imprint, a belief system regarding money. Sometimes it’s positive; often it’s negative. If you grew up hearing about how expensive everything is, or surrounded by money fights, then your mental script may be one that says, “Money is hard to get” or “Money causes pain.” You may be left to wonder why you hate budgeting, thinking about retirement, or even talking about money.
However, if the opposite is true and your childhood experiences with money were positive, then you operate as an adult with an entirely different set of beliefs. This is not only reflected in how we save, spend and give our money, but in how we feel about it.
The problem is that we typically don’t recognize our money scripts until we intentionally stop to evaluate them. And– fun fact– opposites tend to attract. I’ve sat with many couples who have entirely different money scripts and didn’t realize it. And parents, our kids inherit our beliefs. Think about how you discuss money in front of your kids; you are building their mental scripts.
Pay attention to how you think, feel, and talk about money. If your mental script is not serving you, then out with the old and in with the new. Let’s not wait until January to take action.
Angele Gerten is a financial advisor who loves teaching people how money works & creating lifetime relationships with her clients as they work towards their financial goals together. She focuses on a variety of areas including debt elimination strategies, establishing a budget & an emergency fund as well as investing for the future. Email: angelepfs@gmail.com