Having Financial Control

What does it mean to have financial control? Having financial control means having a good relationship with money. Some people have a poor relationship with money. An unhealthy relationship with money begins when we see money as way to boost our self-esteem. Additionally, it is unhealthy for us to see the use of money as stress relieving. Some people form shopping addictions. To have financial control, we must understand why we value money. We all want money for different reasons. For some, money is a way to have a stable life without financial worries. Some have a taste for luxury. For others, money is a way for them to look good. This can often lead to people spending excessively and in the most extreme cases go into debt. Moreover, some people spend money excessively to manage anxiety which can also lead to debt. The first step to financial control is understanding why we want money; can we afford to buy luxury items or are the luxury items compensation for low self esteem? A more productive way of managing low self-esteem is therapy and self-help books. Similarly, if someone is spending excessively on material things, they do not need for stress relief, it would be more productive to deal learn stress management through therapy and self-help books. People can also book stress-relieving massages which is a much healthier way to deal with stress than spending excessively on unnecessary things. Moreover, for someone who sees money as stability, they should look for ways to save. We can save money by cooking more instead of eating out. If you do not know how to cook you can invest in cooking books and cooking classes. Having financial control also means avoiding debt as much as possible. It is not necessary to buy the newest iPhone, car, and laptop. This is needless spending which leads people into more and more debt. Furthermore, people can save money from cancelling their gym memberships and trying at home workouts. YouTube has endless and specific exercise videos which can be accessed for free. Furthermore, subscriptions which are not being used can be cancelled. Other ways to manage money include downsizing. For example, it is more practical to rent out an apartment than it is to rent out a house as a single person. Additionally, people spend a lot of money on activities during their free time like going to the cinema, clubs, and bars. People can look for inexpensive activities to do such as arts and craft as well as playing sports. Financial control means prioritizing the things that we want and appropriately timing our purchases, so we are not cash strapped. Financial control means living within our means and not overspending to keep up with what we see on social media. Mostly having financial control means understanding ourselves and our goals in life. We need to understand that buying more things will not create happiness. The idea that material things create happiness is a narrative that is pushed by advertisers because they want people’s money. This is not a realistic way of achieving happiness, so we must ask ourselves what is it that we really want? Is it meaningful relationships, a new career or focusing on our mental health? Sometimes we must identify factors which are making us unhappy. Such factors can be a toxic workplace, a troublesome relationship, or unresolved past issues. We must look internally to find happiness instead of looking outwards to material things. Looking to material things for happiness is a bottomless pit which leads nowhere, it is best to keep that money in a savings account for a rainy day.  In conclusion, having financial control means not spending money for the wrong reasons and setting clear goals for what we want to achieve financially. For some people this means saving for a new house, car, or vacation. Much of the time we cannot have all these things at the same time. Having financial control means prioritizing our goals and not living outside our means. Going into debt is living outside of our means. Having financial control means knowing ourselves, resolving any issues which would cause us to spend excessive amounts of money and making responsible purchases.