ReportWire

Tag: impulse spending

  • Ellyce Fulmore is putting the personal back into personal finance – MoneySense

    Ellyce Fulmore is putting the personal back into personal finance – MoneySense

    What was the biggest money lesson you learned as an adult? 

    The understanding of how big a role your identity plays in your finances. Finance is deeply personal and intersectional, and your money is directly impacted by aspects of your identity such as privilege, race, gender, sexual orientation, mental health, disability, systems of oppression and more. The identities you hold will impact how you view, understand, spend and approach your money. 

    I didn’t fully understand this until I came out as queer and was diagnosed with ADHD. These realizations helped me make sense of a lot of my money behaviours and challenges. For example, I struggled with impulse spending for years, and ended up with $15,000 of high-interest debt because of that. I felt so ashamed of this debt, but I didn’t know that having ADHD makes me four times more likely to impulse spend than someone without ADHD. By understanding who you are, the privilege you hold and/or barriers you face, your lived experience and your trauma, you can begin to change your relationship with money and create a financial plan that makes sense for your life.

    Learning this lesson is what inspired me to write a book and start my financial literacy company, Queerd Co., where our approach to financial literacy goes beyond the conventional, giving folks permission to be full human beings—not just numbers on a spreadsheet. At Queerd Co., our goal is financial equity, and every course we create, resource we recommend, space we hold and discussions we lead will aim to take a shame-free and identity-based approach to money.

    What’s the best money advice you’ve ever received?

    That your financial situation is not your fault, and the shame you feel around money is not solely your shame to carry. I learned this inside of the Trauma of Money certification program, where we spent time examining and unpacking the idea of shame and responsibility when it comes to our money. The reality is that many of us inherit money trauma and learn our financial behaviours and habits from our caregivers. We also have to consider the government policies, financial institutions, and larger societal systems such as capitalism, and how those play a role in the decisions we make and the financial challenges we are subjected to. In the Trauma of Money, we were taught to ask ourselves, “Whose shame is this?” to help call attention to the fact that some of the shame we feel has been placed upon us, despite it not being our shame to carry. This advice really helped me reframe the way I felt about my past financial decisions.

    What’s the worst money advice you’ve ever received?

    I tell this story in chapter 1 of my book, which is all about finding safe spaces: The first time I went to talk to a financial advisor at the bank, the advisor made a misogynistic comment along the lines of, “When you have a husband, he will take care of this for you.” This was his response when I tried to ask questions about some financial terms he had briefly mentioned. This was horrible advice because: a) it was misogynistic; and b) it was encouraging me to not be in control of my own financial situation. I cannot stress enough how important it is to have financial autonomy, even within a marriage. If you ever find yourself in an abusive relationship, having access to your own money will give you the freedom to leave.

    Would you rather receive a large sum of money all at once or a smaller amount regularly for life? 

    It would depend on the amount. If the smaller amount was enough to cover my monthly expenses, then I would choose that option, because it would give me the immense privilege of never again stressing about paying my bills. It would also take a lot of pressure off my business and allow me to explore more creative pursuits. But if the amount wasn’t enough to cover my bills, then I’d prefer the lump sum. I could actually make more money from the lump sum in the long term by investing it, but the first example would be a better decision emotionally. 

    What do you think is the most underrated financial advice?

    Gamify your finances. This is great advice for almost everyone, but especially for anyone who is neurodivergent. If you can make managing your money fun and enjoyable, you’ll be more likely to actually keep up with it, and have greater success with reaching your goals.

    What is the biggest misconception people have about growing money?

    That being “good with money” and building wealth is just a math game, and that all you need to do is manipulate the numbers—it’s so much more than that. Creating the perfect spreadsheet, debt repayment plan or investment strategy will never address the root of your money issues. We’ve been taught that if we follow the formulaic system for success, we will be wealthy and happy. But there’s no magic formula for success, because everyone’s lived experience, values, goals and definitions of wealth are different.

    MoneySense Editors

    Source link

  • Flow state vs. cash flow: Make better money decisions by discovering your flow state – MoneySense

    Flow state vs. cash flow: Make better money decisions by discovering your flow state – MoneySense

    • Emotion regulation: Engaging deeply in an enjoyable activity boosts your mood and generates positive emotions, which in turn strengthens your ability to manage stress and navigate difficult emotions. It helps maintain emotional balance, which is beneficial when making investment and spending decisions. Being calm means you’re less likely to react impulsively with your money, leading to fewer costly mistakes. This emotional steadiness leads to thoughtful financial choices.
    • Fulfillment and happiness: Flow can bring enjoyment to what you’re doing, making the activity rewarding. Csikszentmihalyi’s research indicates that flow can contribute to increased happiness and overall life contentment. Budgeting to have more of these moments can lead to lasting life satisfaction.

    How money can make you happy

    You’ve likely heard that money is a tool. While that’s true, using money as a tool for happiness can be challenging. We attach so many emotions and meanings to money that it can be hard to separate them. However, that shouldn’t deter us from using money to mindfully invest in engaging, joyful activities and experiences that create moments of flow.

    How to use flow for a better relationship with money

    A musician I know named Greg says he’s always been grounded by music. He was born deaf, and a successful surgery at the age of two unlocked sound for him. He has embraced music ever since. By his early 20s, Greg had learned to sing, write music and play the guitar. He performed at local gigs and on international stages. Yet, as he became more and more successful, accomplishing the stardom he always thought would make him happy, he felt drained by his music label’s relentless push for commercial hits, which diminished his drive for creating artful and meaningful music. 

    Greg went to Hawaii for a year-long reprieve and rediscovered flow in music. He looked back at his “best” performances, where he felt deep flow states, and recognized that it didn’t happen at sold-out shows. Instead of pursuing commercial success, he focused on making music at private workshops, writing songs for people, and performing at wellness and yoga festivals.

    Now, more than 20 years later, Greg’s life is filled with flow moments that involve his music. In Hawaii, he built a life with meaning and purpose. It’s no longer about chasing success, money and big hits. 

    His new life comes with challenges, of course, especially when it comes to finances. And when I asked Greg if he would change anything, he responded with a big smile: “Would I like more money? Sure, but I wouldn’t change a thing. My [happiness] bank account is through the roof. I have a great life.”

    How to invest in self-care and flow states

    The takeaways from Greg’s example and Csikszentmihalyi’s research are to integrate more flow states into our lives (and ultimately our finances) by doing the following steps:

    1. Write out the activities you find flow in. What are you doing when you feel in the zone? What captures your full attention? List the activities and think about how to prioritize them in your life.
    2. Budget for flow moments. Dedicate money to these activities you truly love. Think of it as investing in your well-being. Cut out activities you’re doing just because you think you should be doing them. 
    3. Be smart with your self-care choices. Balance flow with your need for financial security—they’re not mutually exclusive. Don’t risk essential expenses for flow states. However, you can still evaluate your expenses (housing, transportation, food, etc.) to discover ways to decrease those costs.
    4. Don’t do it alone. Sharing your flow experiences with others can deepen them. Can you join or create a group aligned with your interests?
    5. Reflect and adjust. Just like you do with your annual budget or investing portfolio, regularly check in on your flows. Reassess how your spending affects your ability to achieve flow. Be flexible and reasonable, and adjust as needed.

    Why should you care about flow? If you care about your money, you will

    When reflecting on our lives, we hope that when our time on this Earth is over, we can say, “I did it. I lived a good life.” Of course, a “good life” doesn’t mean it was easy—life is always full of challenges, obstacles and setbacks. But scientific research shows that the more we invest in our well-being, the more resilience we have during challenging times. Flow states offer us emotional regulation and life satisfaction.

    By intentionally spending time and money on areas in our life that bring flow and happiness, perhaps we can experience not just how money makes the world go around, but also how we can use it to sing and dance a little more. 

    Shaun Maslyk, CFP

    Source link

  • What do de-influencers really do? – MoneySense

    What do de-influencers really do? – MoneySense

    Wang started her content creator side hustle as a creative outlet when she was a pharmacy student. She posted her OOTD (outfits of the day) snaps on Instagram in 2015. Over time, her approach evolved—and she went viral after posting videos that exposed poor quality materials for a high price tag at popular retail stores. 

    What is de-influencing?

    De-influencing is a social media trend where influencers recommend what viewers should not buy, or debunk popular products. The trend has gained traction, and it makes sense, given that Canadians are dealing with stubborn inflation, leading to climbing prices for consumer goods, and a higher cost of living. Many of us are on the hunt for value. Wang, for instance, visits retail stores and points out certain items and materials that she advises people not to buy because of their quality or value for money. Read more about 2023 shopping trends. 

    “I never planned for or wanted to make content creation my full-time career and I still feel that way,” she says. “The reason being, as a full time content creator or influencer; you’re at the mercy of companies who are writing your paycheque. I like the freedom of being able to be truthful and sometimes critical of retailers without worrying about if they would want to work with me in the future.”

    You might wonder if this method means she might not strike as many deals as an influencer, but she says she is able to bring in substantial income from her side hustle. Wang says her social media earnings come from sponsored content and advertising revenue on YouTube.

    Her goal as a content creator isn’t just to make extra money, though. “Fighting textile pollution caused by fast fashion is a passion of mine and definitely something my content revolves around,” Wang says. “Most environmentalists use guilt as a tactic to stop people from buying fast fashion but this doesn’t work. If guilt-tripping people worked, we would all be vegans.” Instead of guilt-tripping, she strives to show people to skip fast fashion if possible, or at least buy better quality items. She demonstrates that buying garments with better quality can lead to longer-term savings, since she shows in her videos that high-quality items with certain materials have lasted her several years and several wears. 

    “I know that fast fashion is the only option for some, but there are ways to shop fast fashion more sustainably. My hope is for viewers to apply what they’ve learned regardless where they’re shopping.”

    To find out more about Wang’s shopping tips and tricks, and her personal finance lessons, we asked her about what she does as a de-influencer. 

    What’s your best shopping tip? 

    Almost every day, I remind Canadians that a brand name does not always equal good quality. Most people don’t realize that. A lot of Canadians spend their hard-earned money on poor-quality items just because it’s a brand name. Just like we pay attention to the ingredients in our food, we should look at the materials and construction of our clothes instead of relying on brand name to tell us if something is good quality. 

    Margaret Montgomery

    Source link