Getting financially fit won't look the same for everyone. For some, it might mean paying closer attention to decisions that you would have given little thought to previously. It can also look like questioning that inner voice that always says, "you can afford it." In some instances, you likely can, but there are certain things you just can't afford.
1. You can't afford to not know your numbers.
Your financial numbers are critical to getting the next YES, keeping you from paying additional fees, and sometimes understanding the canyon between you and your financial dreams and goals. Your financial numbers are your FICO/VantageScore, the interest rates on your credit cards, your debt-to-income ratio, account balances, loan terms, etc.
Knowing your numbers helps you make smart financial decisions with your eyes open, leaving little room for surprise and disappointment later. When you know your numbers, you can spot expensive patterns sooner and pivot to protect your plans.
2. You can't afford to carry people who don't think to carry themselves.
I am not talking about the death of compassion. Everyone needs help sometimes. I'm talking about the kind of "help" that becomes one-sided or is eventually seen as obligatory by the person you've been helping.
You're reading the playbook. You're making the plays, tracking the bills, planning for future benchmarks - but the person you've been helping has decided preparation for their own financial success costs too much but is more than willing to take every dollar, ride, favor, and bailout you're willing to provide.
In cases like these, it's time to tighten the spigot.
You can love and still have limits. You can be generous without unwittingly becoming someone else's emergency budget.
Planning, tracking, and executing your own financial strategy is heavy enough without carrying someone who may not be carrying enough of their own weight.
3. You can't afford to not read before you sign.
Theo was excited to close on his home. This was something he had dreamt of for years, and the day was finally here.
When he sat down to close, he was rightly overwhelmed with the number of documents he had to sign. He had good momentum in the beginning, but as 30 minutes became 1 hour, he started to question if he really needed to read the documents before he signed. Remembering the instructions to ask if he had questions before signing each section, he decided he would stop asking.
He gleefully took this approach for the remaining sections. Theo cheerfully shook the hands of the closing specialist who congratulated him and left to wait for the call that the documents had been recorded.
In time, Theo faced a rough patch financially, as we all do. But when Theo requested a forbearance on his home loan, he was denied. Theo found out his closing documents explicitly stated he would never be eligible for a forbearance during the life of the loan.
That was a painful way to learn that signed documents become contracts, not formalities.
Terms of any agreement you sign matter. If your signature is on it, your future money or stability may be tied to it. Google it, ask about it, pause on it. Do everything you need to do to protect yourself and your money.
4. You can't afford payday loans as a financial strategy.
They are tempting. Tempting because it's quick and it looks like there's no other way to get out of the current situation. If I could say "NO" in a bullhorn, I would. Payday loans as a solution or inclusion in a financial strategy are destructive. Destructive for you, your financial plans, your emotional stability, and your financial peace.
It typically goes like this... you get the loan to relieve an immediate financial emergency or to have a normal weekend where money stress melts away and you can enjoy a movie or purchase a garment that makes you happy. For once in a long while, you feel like the weekend ended on a good note.
The next payday arrives with its own problems, but there's a new problem: that payday loan is due. Not to mention the other bills.
Unfortunately, most people get another loan or extend the life of the current one just to keep moving. This cycle can make getting ahead harder because your future income is always tied to paying this debt - not to mention payday loans carry some of the highest interest rates for borrowing money. They are called predatory for a reason.
This is not shame. Most people have secured a payday loan at one time in their lives. The point is to recognize that what seems affordable, most likely isn't.
5. You can't afford that impulse buy.
Upselling is a sign of business in action - get as many products sold before the customer swipes their credit card. And almost instinctively, buyers tell themselves, "Hey, I deserve this." And sometimes you do.
But if every impulse to purchase is acted on, your plans will remain plans.
Impulse buys can eat into money you said was to pay off debt, build your savings account or emergency fund, or relocate or travel. That's the unassuming nature of purchasing impulsively. When the urge is impulsive, you haven't had time to look at goals and how the impulse buy will affect them.
The next time you are checking out and an item not on your list pops up, ask yourself, "Is this part of my plan or is this just business in action?"
Ask yourself: can your goals afford this impulse?
How Proofing Dough Can Help
If you're ready to understand your patterns, reconstruct your habits and make stronger financial decisions with more clarity, Proofing Dough has tools to help you do that in real life.
- Explore Build to better understand how to navigate at ProofingDough
- Rep your personality with the I Stopped Dating Bad Decisions Tee
- Start with The Credit Clean Up Plan if your story includes debt, avoidance or credit stress
- Book a Financial Counseling session if you want personalized support
