It is all a lie

What is a lie?

According to the Cambridge Dictionary it can mean to be in or move into a horizontal position on a surface but it can also mean to say or write something that is not true.

There are so many lies about money. Some are based on self-limiting beliefs you might have arrived at from personal experience and for all sorts of personal reasons. But some are real lies fabricated by others and the world around us to limit the way we respond to money and it is these lies I want to look at today.

We need to change the way we think about money so that we can start to think differently about how we respond to it. As soon as you think differently about it, you will start to act differently towards it.

10 lies you might believe about money:

1. You will only be happy when you earn enough money.

Sorry to bust your bubble but more money won’t make you happier! If you can’t manage your current paycheck you won’t be able to handle a bigger one. It is the habits and discipline you have towards money that will inevitably determine whether you will be able to live a financially free life. When people earn more money, but they haven’t established a healthy relationship towards it, it won’t last. Don’t give me that answer that you can then buy more shoes and a bigger car. Those thinks might give you temporarily status, but they won’t fill your soul forever. The car will wear off and so will your shoes.

2. The only way to get more money is to work harder.

You should work smarter not harder. We all have 24 hours in a day. Think about creative ways you can work smarter not harder. How can you use technology to save you time? One of my mentors years ago gave me the best advice ever. He said “Christelle try to get your rate per hour as high as possible. We all can only work an x-number of hours a day, make sure you make them productive ones and if they are not being used then use it for something else.” Make sure when you do tasks that they are at a rate that is appropriate to your pay scale. We can’t do that for all our tasks but be selective and see which ones you can delegate so that you can focus on what you are best at and deliver a better rate of return. You might just be the most expensive tea lady in the world.

3. People with money are evil and greedy.

Wealthy people are not all evil and greedy. I know many wealthy people who have used their money to make a difference in people’s lives and have an impact to try to make the world a better place for some individuals. The one thing we all leave behind the day we die, is a legacy and you can decide today what type of legacy you want to leave behind. I have also seen time and time again it is often the people who DON’T talk about how much money they have, that are truly wealthy. Are you going to be a consumer or a contributor? Decide today.

4. Investing in the stock market is complicated and only for the wealthy.

I can still remember the days when you had to buy 100 shares at a time, you couldn’t only buy one or a portion of it. Back in the day you had to phone your broker and hope they traded at a reasonable price. Today, knowledge is at the tips of our fingers and we can trade on our phone or devices while doing shopping. There is absolutely no excuse for anyone not to have a portfolio in the stock market. ETF’s also makes it so easy today to have exposure to offshore indices with Rands.

5. If I don’t look at my money everything will still work out.

An-ostrich-head-in-the-sand approach is not going to solve your money problems, sorry my friend. You must take action! It is like eating a chocolate cake every day and still hoping to lose weight. You must work at it! If you are not intentional about your approach to saving money and investing, it is definitely not going to happen automatically.

6. You are throwing your money away when you rent.

This lie might have some truth to it, depending on a lot of variables. Your age, your balance sheet (how much assets and liabilities you have) and definitely location or time in the cycle. When we got married we rented in order to save money for a decent deposit for our first house. Looking back, I can see it was the right thing to do, the market was very expensive at the time and there wasn’t really anything that we could afford that I felt was worth all the money! For 18 months we looked online, visited and dreamed about every property we spotted. We broke walls, build new ones and envisioned what it could look like until the day I walked into our first house. I just knew it! Sold it was, that same day. I am so grateful we waited, buying a house is a very serious business and I really don’t believe anyone should take it lightly especially not first-time buyers.

7. Buying a home is always a good investment.

I get so upset when I hear people make comments like: you can never go wrong with property, property always goes up, if you don’t get in now you will never get in. Let me tell you now, those are all lies! You and I know there are currently MANY suburbs in our beautiful country that have the one for-sale board after the other. We know that property prices in some areas have declined as much as 13%! Trust me, your bond price hasn’t declined at the same rate. If the words like always, definitely and guaranteed are used when it comes to investments you should always be suspicious because every asset class, even property, ALWAYS carries a degree of risk. You should just understand what the risks are and determine if it is worth it to take it for an expected return or, if not, have the power of conviction to sit the round out.

8. Everyone has debt.

No not everyone does!! Financially free people don’t and you don’t have to have debt either. You can pay off that car earlier or have no credit cards! There are millions of people in the world that are financially free but it took discipline and perseverance to get them there. The question is do you have what it takes to get yourself there?

9. We work hard we deserve to spend our money.

Ok, so you work 50 hour weeks or maybe even more? Then my question will be, can you say you save at least 20% of your gross income? If you do then, hey, go for it… spend the rest of your money on whatever you want. But remember:  be considerate of what you are spending it on. You can either be a consumer or you can be a contributor to a better world. There is so much need in the world, make a difference with your money. It is truly better to give than to receive!

10. I am not that good with money.

Please stop believing this lie. These are all excuses you use to avoid working at it. When you try to lose weight your mind will give you any excuse in the book not to go and exercise but the only way one can overcome it, is by acting on your decision not on your feeling. You know it will be beneficial in the long run to go for that walk or swim so then Just do it (sorry Asics, Nike just does it). The same discipline is needed for your money. Stick to your decision, don’t act on your feelings. Get good with working with money otherwise your money is going to work you.