When To Seek Money Help
If you come down with a slight cold, you usually know how your body responds. You can take some cough medicine and be fine in a day or two. You also know when it’s something a little more extreme, and it’s time to schedule that doctor’s appointment. Or in my case, wait until it’s too late and nearly pass out on the floor of the pharmacy, worrying everyone in the grocery store. True story.
Money is more personal to a lot of people than health. We have so many cultural and emotional hang-ups around money, and we never discuss it. Most people will shame you if you do. This leads to too many people ignoring experts and setting out on their own.
The problem is, there are no cues like with your health. Your money isn’t constantly providing feedback like your body is. Don’t wait until you’re on your financial deathbed. It’s okay to seek help sooner.
Your Money Is Sick
I don’t mean sick in the physical sense. I’m talking about your money being sick. It could be credit card debt or student loans. It could be living paycheck to paycheck. However this sickness manifests itself in your life, the root cause is almost always the same. You are trying to go it alone, operating on limited or outdated information. You're oblivious to the advice of experts.
Maybe you’re in the 28 percent of Americans who have no form of savings whatsoever, according to Bankrate. Or you’re in the 25 percent who have fewer than 3 months expenses in the bank. You try and save, you tell yourself you’ll stick to a budget. It never works.
Your relationship with your money is sick. It has been warped by preconceived notions. You've gotten outdated guidance. Most mainstream personal finance experts fail the average person. In reality, the hard-fought “frugality” of most experts doesn’t work for most people. It leaves you feeling stressed, never hitting your goals, and never-ending up with enough in the bank. It’s time to seek help.
You Don’t Feel In Control Of Your Money
Credit card interest. Overdraft fees. Late payment fees. Most people who need help getting a grip on their money are all too familiar with one of these, if not all them. When you don’t know where your money is, or where it’s going, you will end up subjected to these fees. In other words, it costs you to not be in control of your money.
If you think you did a good job of sticking to your budget only to realize you didn’t, you’re in this camp. You’re definitely in this camp if you don’t have a budget at all. Your budget is the roadmap for your money, helping you do everything you want. It isn’t a list of rules and things you can’t do. Once you have a handle on your money, your budget is your single greatest asset.
Working with a financial coach will help you to craft that budget that actually works for you. Rather than slogging through it, feeling dejected that you spent $197 on groceries instead of $195, you can feel free. You can learn to understand your money, where it’s going, and how to put it to work for you. Stop throwing away your money on fees and impulses. Use it to invest in your own financial literacy with a financial coach.
Your Relationships Are Strained
Money is one of the biggest sources of disagreements in romantic relationships. Every couple has argued about money at some point. It even underpins a lot of arguments that don’t seem to be about money on the surface. I'll go ahead and give a disclaimer here. The services of a financial coach should never replace the guidance of a licensed professional counselor.
But financial coaches are uniquely equipped to deal with your relationship with your money. No two people view money in the exact same way. We all interact with it based on our ingrained psychology. A financial coach can bridge the gap between how the two of you see money and come up with a plan that works for you both.
If your money is leading to a strain on your relationship, it’s time to seek help. Schedule a free call with me to discuss your issues. I’ll tell you if I believe they would be best handled by a financial coach or a licensed therapist. If you keep going down the same path, handling things the way you always have, the odds of change are low.
Your Savings Keeps Disappearing
Savings accounts are for just that: savings. More than that, you should use your savings account for short- to medium-term goals, like a vacation or a down payment on a new house. Any goal that’s more than about 5 years out, you should be investing that money. But that’s another article.
Savings accounts are not for paying your bills. They’re not for transferring money to your checking account for a meal out or a recurring bill. In other words, once money goes into your savings account, it shouldn’t come out. At least until it’s time to pull the trigger on whatever you were trying to buy.
Sure, you should have an emergency fund for those unexpected bills like a busted pipe or medical bill. Even those are pretty predictable. You don’t know when the pipe will burst, but you can know about how much it’ll cost when it does and save that amount.
Most people don’t do that though. Most people treat their savings account like a second checking account that pays them a little interest. If you fall into that camp, it’s time to seek help. In a second I’ll give you a quick fix for that problem, but it might not do much good. If your underlying psychology and relationship with money aren’t rock solid, you don’t need a quick fix. You need a complete overhaul of your Money Journey.
The Quick Saving Fix I Promised
Here’s the quick fix: change your savings account. Odds are, you have it at the same bank as your checking account. This is a problem because it means the instant transfer of money between the two.
Open a savings account at an online, high-yield bank, and you force a wait. At the least, it’ll take 3 days to move money from your savings to your checking. Most people don’t plan their impulses 3 days in advance. Then automate transfers to (not from) that savings account and you’re all set.
Seeking Help Removes That Burden
There’s a reason the first step is admitting you have a problem. Once you accept that you don’t know everything, doors start to unlock. The mere act of seeking help with your finances will result in you gaining more knowledge about your money than you had before. For some people, that’s all they need.
Some people want some quick help planning for their goals and setting up their budget, then they want to take it from there. (Yes, I offer that! Reach out about a Budget session!) Still, others need a coach throughout the whole process, with all the knowledge and accountability that entails. Whatever situation you’re in, seeking help starts to take the weight off your shoulders
Once you know there is an expert out there you trust and turn to, you can start to learn from your mistakes. Most products and services in the financial world are designed to be confusing so that you spend more money than you need to. Or pay more fees than you should. Turning to an expert can help you cut through all that and know what you’re getting into. That way, you can make the best decision for your unique situation.
Getting Help Can Let You Succeed
I tell my clients this all the time: my only goal is to help you reach your goals. That’s it. I don’t take part in any affiliate programs or allow any ads on my website. In other words, I don’t make any money if you click on anything on this site (besides the link to hire me, obviously). That’s on purpose.
If I made money when you visited a particular website, opened a particular bank account, or bought a particular product, my motives would shift. I’d be incentivized to push the things that made me money. As it stands, I recommend brands and companies I trust, but only if they are right for that particular client. No two people are the same, and everyone has unique needs.
As a financial coach, I’ve had the opportunity to meet and talk to a lot of people who work in financial services. I’ve spoken with Certified Financial Planners, Real Estate Agents, other financial coaches, and so many more.
While there are bad eggs and people with the wrong motives, I’ve reached an important conclusion. Most of these professionals share a similar goal to mine.
Good financial professionals only want to help people and see them succeed. Working with me on your Money Journey not only gives you a personal accountability partner, but it also gives you so many more financial experts. They'll be there for me to recommend if your situation calls for it.
Whether you are looking to manage your investments, buy a house, or get life insurance, I can recommend someone who only has your best interests in mind. That’s an amazing stress reliever.
How to Seek Help
Like I said before, my only goal is to help you reach your goals. I’m delighted when my clients share their success stories with me. If you have come to the realization that your relationship with your money could use some work, the first step is to start seeking help.
I recommend you start with my FREE course on building your ideal budget. It only takes 3 weeks to get through, but the process is life-changing. You can craft a budget you actually enjoy, set goals you’ll achieve, and live a life that excites you. Sign up for that at the bottom of this page.
Otherwise, you can book a free 30-minute call with me to discuss your unique situation. Let’s get to know each other, and see how I can help you stop stressing about your money. If you decide it’s what you want, the next step is signing up for my more in-depth personal coaching Money Journey.
While this one isn’t free, it provides value that far outweighs its costs. We will work together to learn what’s holding you back with your money, change your underlying thought processes, and craft a life that excites you. Send me an email at steven@hearthstonemoney.com for more information about that. Use the subject line “Blog Post Help” for a special discounted rate.
Now go assess your financial situation. It’s time to stop pretending to be your own coach and decide if a professional is right for you.