Metis AM
Money can be an emotive subject. Far from simply being about numbers and data, money can cause you to experience a range of emotions, often based on your early experiences with your finances.
Your feelings about money can influence the decisions you make with your wealth. If left unchecked, you could find that this causes you to act impulsively, making unwise choices that might hinder your ability to achieve your long-term goals.
But, by understanding your relationship with money, you may find it easier to notice if your emotions are affecting how you manage your wealth. Consequently, you can take steps to ensure your feelings don’t negatively affect your financial decisions.
Read on to learn more about how your relationship with money may be affecting you and how your planner can help you to navigate this.
Your relationship with money can trigger a range of different emotions that affect how you manage your wealth
Your feelings about money today were likely influenced by experiences you had as a child, and this can result in a range of different behaviours when it comes to managing your wealth. These experiences and feelings are sometimes known as your “money story”.
By being aware of your money story, you can spot any behaviours that could sabotage your wealth accumulation so that you can continue to make progress towards your goals. Below are a few examples of how different relationships with money could manifest.
1. Hoarding savings and investments for fear of running out of money
A common behaviour that often stems from beliefs formed in childhood is hoarding savings or investments. This may be because money equates to safety for you, so you want to hold on to as much of it as possible. Perhaps you find it difficult to accept that you have “enough”.
Though it may seem like the sensible thing to do to set aside your savings for later on, this can actually hinder your ability to achieve your lifestyle goals if taken to the extreme.
You might become so preoccupied with building up your savings that you delay spending your wealth to create the lifestyle you’ve been dreaming of.
2. Overspending on treats or luxuries
While some may find it challenging to spend their hard-earned money, others may find setting money aside in savings more difficult. This might be because your early experiences of money were that it was to be used to buy the things you love, whether that’s material possessions, holidays, or experiences with your loved ones.
The opposite may also be true, though. If you didn’t have a lot of money as a youngster, you might feel uncomfortable holding onto wealth in savings and investments now that your circumstances have changed.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with using your wealth to create the lifestyle you love. But it’s important to be mindful of your future income needs as well and to contribute to savings and investments that will help you to maintain that standard of living.
3. Giving generous gifts that jeopardise your own financial wellbeing
For some, spending on themselves is challenging, but spending on others is different. If you’re a generous gift-giver, you could be at risk of depleting your own savings in the process.
Giving financial gifts to causes you care about and to loved ones is one of the wonderful things about building wealth. You might find joy in seeing those around you achieve their goals using the gifts you have given them. But it’s important to balance this with your own financial needs. Otherwise, you could find it more challenging to achieve your long-term goals.
Your planner can help you to navigate your relationship with money and make sensible decisions about your wealth
Fortunately, there’s a simple way that you can take control of your relationship with money so that you can manage your wealth in a way that helps you move closer to achieving your goals.
Your financial planner can help you to identify any behaviours that may not be serving you and offer guidance in developing new money habits. This isn’t about telling you how to use your money; rather, it can help you to make more informed choices about how you spend and save.
Consequently, you can make the most of your wealth by building a lifestyle you love today without jeopardising your future financial wellbeing.
Get in touch
To learn more about how we can help you to make sensible decisions about managing your money so that you can move closer to achieving your long-term goals, please get in touch.
Email enquiries@metiswealth.co.uk or call 0345 450 5670 today to find out what we can do for you.
Please note
This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.
The value of your investments (and any income from them) can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Investments should be considered over the longer term and should fit in with your overall attitude to risk and financial circumstances.
