Don't Do THIS With Your Money

I don’t hang out in bars, but I was having a drink with a good friend while I was on a business trip and I literally heard two groups of people more or less say the same thing.

Let me paraphrase it.
“So I finally got a new client, they wired me $X in my bank, so order anything you want.”

What I processed was this:

“I’ve been flat broke, but the second I got some money in my checking account, I found a way to spend it here today.”

I see this EVERYWHERE and frankly, whenever someone asks me how to become an entrepreneur, I say this to them...

Say you wake up tomorrow with $10,000,000 wired into your bank account...paint me a picture of what your entire day would look like.

If at ANY point, they mention something about buying something beyond their means, I will literally stop them in their tracks and say they’re not mentally ready.

You might be wondering now...

What’s that got to do with lifting big ass dumbbells at the gym?

Stick with me for a sec….

What’s the number one stressor most Americans worry, lose sleep and divorce over?
MONEY.

That’s right.

Your financial security, by this logic, has a considerable impact on how relaxed and stress-free your gym workouts can be.

Now, I’m no dummy--I know talking about money is taboo. And I wouldn’t bring it up, if the statistics weren’t so troubling.

According to a Careerbuilder study, 78 percent of American workers report they are living paycheck to paycheck.

40% of Americans, according to CBS can’t cover a $400 emergency out of pocket.

I truly hope you’re not one of them.

If you are one of the 4 in 5 who’s worried, here are NINE tips I developed when I was $65,000 in debt, had 4 credit cards maxed out with only $92 in my bank account that you can use today, to ease the burden:

1. Make More Money - If you work for someone...pick up a copy of Seth Godin’s book “Linchpin” and become a freakin’ monster at your job to the point where they can’t afford to lose you.

2. Snowball your way out of it-- List out all of the debts you owe from smallest to biggest. Focus on knocking out the smallest debts with ALL of your excess money first while making the minimum payments on everything else.

3. Sell crap you don’t need-Have a garage sale or list them on Craigslist.

4. Negotiate with your bill providers-there’s services like BillCutterz who will hound service providers you’re using to negotiate lower rates.

5. Stop shopping at convenience stores-- It's the little things that add up to the big things.

6. Eliminate subscriptions-- Get rid of your cable subscription and go to the library; drop your Amazon Prime membership and build patience with 3-day shipping instead of 2.

7. If you’re going to shop online, be smart about it- Use apps like Honey to scour the internet for discounts.

8. Commit to saving- Be intentional, set a goal and save.

9. Stop trying to keep up with the Joneses-- This lies at the root of most people’s money problems.

Here’s the crazy part.

I STILL DO MOST OF THESE THINGS!!!!

As hard or as crazy as this might sound, making money isn’t the hard part. Holding onto it is!

Here’s to your financial health--and less stressful workouts, moving forward.