My Confession To You

I am not perfect

No surprise, right?

I am not perfect with money

There, I said it. It’s true. Even though I’m a Financial Wellness Coach I am prone to making mistakes and not enjoying everything I have to do to succeed with money.

Sometimes the only thing keeping me from raiding my emergency fund for new camera gear is my wife.

Sometimes I don’t want to spend the time saving for something and get a credit card to get it now.

Sometimes I forget to write my budget before the first of the month.

Sometimes I get a credit card offer in the mail with a “great” points system and think that I could get free stuff and not develop bad spending habits.

Sometimes I see Amazon.com’s offer of free money to sign up for their card and want to “take advantage” of the offer.

Sometimes I overspend a budget category.

Sometimes I forget to pull out cash to use for our grocery budget and use the debit card, hoping I don’t overspend the budget.

Sometimes I want to not invest 15% of my income for the future and enjoy my hard work today.

Sometimes I don’t want to act like an adult.

But I am an adult

And my wife & future child depend on me being responsible. Sometimes when I do what is right, its not because it’s fun, easy, or makes me feel good. It’s because as an adult I force myself to see beyond myself, beyond now, beyond how I feel.

When I make a mistake, I look at the WHY. I try to learn the cause of it and change my behavior/habits to not make the same mistake twice.

What keeps me on the straight and narrow, financially?

My wife, first of all. She is my accountability partner and any mistakes I make will be known and addressed (with love and forgiveness).

You all; Writing, teaching, and coaching about responsible personal financial actions & habits forces me to do the right thing. I know that the moment I sign up for a credit card or car loan, my credibility with you is lost, maybe forever! I would not trust a coach who acted opposite of the way he/she coached.

What do you struggle with? How do you overcome those struggles?