Do you let your negative beliefs about money hold you back? If so, you need to identify each and every negative personal finance belief you have. Second you need to decide how you're going to put a positive spin on those beliefs. I'm here to help you every step of the way. Today let's talk about Jim, a young man who believed he didn't deserve to be successful with money. He came from a low income family and had three older siblings who were doing well in their respective careers. Yet as the baby of the family, Jim felt he would never come close to the income of his siblings. He had convinced himself that he could not be a personal finance success. His two brothers and his sister always got better grades than Jim who averaged a 'B' during his best school years. Jim had convinced himself that he couldn't do it - he couldn't get good grades like his siblings, he wasn't smart enough to get a good job, and he couldn't be successful in life because he didn't have what it took. Essentially, he had convinced himself he was a failure. Therefore, in many ways - he was. Our minds our powerful. What we believe has a strong impact on what happens in our lives. After graduation, Jim took a boring entry level position with a big company. But unlike others who believed in themselves, Jim didn't look upon his position as a way of getting in the door and then moving up the corporate ladder. He simply saw himself delivering in office mail until he retired. He even turned down a promotion once because he didn't believe he could handle the added responsibility. He was afraid of failing. Afraid of stepping outside his comfort zone and taking a chance on himself. Jim essentially set himself up for failure. Since he believed so strongly that he couldn't improve his personal finances he never did. That was until he meet Mark an intern at the company that was a real go getter. They took a shine to each other instantly. Mark looked at Jim has a father figure and in some ways, Jim looked at Mark as a younger self. After a few months of coffee breaks and lunches with Mark, Jim started changing. For the first time in his life he took positive action. Through his friendship with Mark he learned to believe in himself and in his abilities at work. He had picked up a lot of skills over the years - he just hadn't acknowledged his abilities. He also accepted a promotion within the company. Within the year, Jim had an even better job with new company and was earning more money than he ever managed. Over time his thoughts out himself and what he was capable of became even more positive. His new beliefs continued and within five years he was making more than his highest paid sibling. The point here is, you CAN do it! You need to believe in yourself and in your ability to make all your personal finance goals a reality. |