On: Mindfulness
AND A RATE CUT!!
Excuse my unexpected summer break. I hit a very busy period in my life, a combination of being 30 + weeks pregnant and starting a new job. Those two events paired with some travel put me in a place where I could only tackle what was right in front of me. It’s a full season of life over here!
My return lined up perfectly with the Fed (finally!!) cutting interest rates by 0.5% today. A bold cut that gave investors more than they hoped for. The markets were up for a bit but closed lower. I think once it processes the information we’ll likely see an uptick tomorrow and Friday. My general feeling is that the rate cut has already been priced into the market because we all knew it was coming and it won’t make too big of an impact. The Fed did hint that they foresee more cuts coming this year as well.
It might be the slight chill in the air or that the first day of fall is less than a week away but it suddenly feels like I have the holidays on my mind. I thought it was an appropriate time to talk about mindfulness (something I love to discuss here!) because the end of the year can feel like a mad dash of parties, gifts and celebrations. Many of us enter January with a feeling of what happened, how did I spend so much money and why does this keep happening.
We’d all benefit from cultivating a mindfulness practice around our finances so we can avoid ending the year in a spiral of obsessive saving and out of control credit card swipes. Mindfulness is a topic that is thrown around a lot these days. We’re encouraged to practice it when it comes to how we eat, move, consume media, and interact with the world. But we often don’t think about it in correlation to money. What does it mean to be mindful when it comes to your finances?
When it comes to money our minds often go to “spending is bad, saving is good”. People think saving money is the equivalent of being financially savvy but that’s not all there is to it. Saving money, especially fixating on it, is a form of control, and without the understanding of why you’re doing it, it’s just a temporary fix. And spending money isn’t inherently bad. Feeling guilty every time you buy something isn’t healthy or productive.
The true unlock happens when we’re able to create a mindful practice around how you interact with money. Finances are universally a stressful topic which means that people want to rush through talking or thinking about it. Being mindful, moving slowly, considering your options, making a plan, and being calculated are all things that likely won’t feel good when you start working on your relationship with money. You’ll want to numb out and just get through it all as fast as possible. If you remember this interview I did with my friend on getting out of debt she talks about one of the best outcomes to tackling her debt is a sense of empowerment to start paying attention.
I also feel the freedom to pay closer attention to my money. I’m looking at our bank statements and spending. All things I was avoiding for so long. I feel empowered to be able to manage my own money which feels wild to say.
When people express how overwhelmed they are with understanding their finances I recommend taking a step back and starting by just paying attention. There is no need to come in promising yourself big changes with your saving or spending behaviors. It simply means that anytime money is involved, getting paid, spending, saving, etc. That you start paying attention. We are so good at disconnecting. Handing over our credit cards without thinking about it. Having a paycheck automatically hit your account and barely looking at, automating your credit card paying and never even knowing the balance. We’re a society that’s very good at zoning out and I want you, for those brief periods, to turn in. Practicing mindfulness doesn’t need to be complicated, to me it isn’t anything beyond simply paying attention.
I want you to pay attention at night when you’ve had a glass of wine or you're watching a show and you start online shopping. What are you experiencing? So often how we spend our money is a reaction to something else. We shop online too much because we’re unhappy with something else in our lives. And it gives us that moment high, that hit of bliss and then later you might feel guilt or shame. Why did I buy that, I didn’t need it, etc. And you shame yourself and then feel more disconnected from your money and the cycle starts again.
So, the first step is to simply pay attention. Anytime money is involved, how do you feel, is there a rush? are you panicked, is it stressful? Next time you feel that stressed, racing feeling when you’re buying something or making a financial decision take a step back. Nothing should feel rushed or stressed. That feeling is a sign of being disconnected. Of letting the emotion drive the decision rather than your mind.
I’ve mentioned this before but the practices we cultivate around our relationship with money benefit every aspect of our life. It’s all connected and taking the time to create healthy habits and boundaries around your finances will also make unexpected positive impacts in other areas. Just a little encouragement to tackle the hard things because the payoff is worth it.
More good days ahead ...