Every single day, we make hundreds of decisions – all adding up to tangible outcomes like credit scores and account balances. So, why do so many of us feel “stuck” when it comes to financial habits?
If you’re running into the same problems again and again, it’s not you… it’s neuroscience. To navigate non-stop decision-making, brain structures like the basal ganglia save energy by repeating patterns. In other words, habits run on autopilot… but that’s actually a good thing. Autopilot requires code, and in this case, you are the one who writes it. Nobody else can manage the settings, and no habit can be deployed without the confirmation of repeated behavior. You and you alone have access – automated efficiencies included.
Ready to swap heavy lifting for plug-and-play power? Harness these five habits that fuel financial success.
#1 Learn your financial landscape
The more you know, the more you grow. If you want to open more doors of opportunity, being honest with yourself is an essential first step – especially when it comes to money. Consider your strengths and weaknesses, pay close attention to your routines and be on the lookout for misalignments between your vision and your current state.
To make awareness automatic, start by adding your banking app to your phone’s home screen. By frequently checking your balance, crucial financial tasks like managing expenses, tracking goals and detecting fraud become routine. Imagine what you could accomplish if these tasks became as second-nature as checking social media.
To keep up momentum, try out these tips:
- Hold yourself accountable by blocking time for weekly check-ins on your digital calendar. In addition to reviewing your information, this is a great opportunity to make goals tangible and tactile with data visualization tools such as charts, graphs, scatter plots and maps.
- Get selective by reducing spending temptations, unnecessary alerts and anything that brings more clutter than insight.
- Put your finances into context by calculating how many hours you’d need to work in order to afford regular expenses and wish-list items.
#2 Flex financial literacy
There’s always more to learn about money. To expand your financial literacy, pinpoint a few topics aligned with your big picture goals. Each week, pick one topic, block off half an hour and get to know it a little better. Next, reinforce what you learned by discussing the subject with someone you trust. Talking about money promotes transparency, builds confidence in decision-making and establishes accountability – all of which are beneficial to forming positive habits.
Jumpstart your financial literacy by committing to these small steps:
- Next time you encounter a valuable financial thought, check the website for a newsletter or search for the author on LinkedIn.
- Be honest with yourself about what you don’t know – if you continue to hear a financial buzzword you aren’t familiar with, take a couple minutes to run a quick search.
- Ask your smartest finance-minded friends about their favorite insights; you never know what you might learn.
#3 Go automatic
Automation is a financial game-changer, and there’s no shortage of tools available to do the work for you. To dip your toe into the water of automation, try “paying yourself first” with a routine direct deposit into a dedicated savings account. Determine what income percentage or dollar amount you can save each month, then ensure transfers are complete before making any new payments.
Next, consider these automation action items:
- Use a subscription review app to spot redundancies and consolidate services.
- Utilize SMS or app alerts to flag large transactions, low balance warnings and other relevant notes.
#4 Pick up on patterns
In the world of finance, patterns emerge as rapidly as credit card late fees. Recognizing patterns can help you prepare for anticipated shifts, respond quicker to unexpected changes and make more educated guesses. For example, you’ve likely noticed that the cost of living typically increases on an annual basis. What insight could you extract from this observation and how might you implement those learnings? Perhaps you could use inflation to your advantage by increasing automatic 401(k) contributions by 1%. What other financial trends have caught your attention?
Practice pattern recognition by transforming insights into action:- As you familiarize yourself with your current finances, jot down any questions that come to mind. Being able to identify information gaps is half the battle!
- Rate patterns within your history to see which patterns are worth repeating and which may need to be adjusted.
- Implement brief “freezes” to pause spending; during this time, take note of your learnings and consider which patterns you’d like to continue or discontinue.
#5 Follow the "why"
Finance may be a numbers game, but there’s still room for heart. Did you know that purpose increases motivation, boosts productivity and enhances resilience? Certified Financial Planner® Holley Cary of First Horizon Bank recommends asking yourself what you want to accomplish first, then weaving your spending plan around those goals. To infuse purpose into your everyday practices, ask “why?” as often as possible.
Any time you start a financial task, ask yourself purpose-driven questions like:
- What is my financial philosophy and what principles does it value?
- What indicators do I need to see in order to recognize financial success?
- How could I spend 10 minutes working toward financial success today?
These habit-starters are just the beginning. To find the best habits for your financial circumstances, dive deep into what’s working for you, what isn’t and what you’re curious about. Just remember that old habits are just that – regardless of your track record, you have the ability to rewrite the code and start anew. When we realize the power is in our hands, the possibilities for positive habits are endless.
If there’s one step you take today, let it be this: ask yourself, “What can I do today that will help my finances tomorrow?” Then give yourself grace and repeat.
