Simplicity and money are not normally words that go together.
When it comes to money we have been conditioned by the financial media to believe that it is complicated…
This perception has been orchestrated to ensure financial advisors, brokers and banks continue to make vast fees from your confusion.
Recently I mentioned a book that details this phenomenon brilliantly, it’s called ‘Where Are All The Customers Yachts?”.
So this week I want to outline for you the only get rich quick scheme that will actually work, ‘The Secret of Simplicity’.
The more you simplify your financial life, the easier it is to take control of your money and implement the steps to achieve financial freedom.
And as you know, control of your money is what you want…
…and need before financial freedom can be achieved.
You want to be the one dictating where your money goes. To demystify the typical stress and anxiety that is normally attached to money and how to manage and grow it.
Simplicity is how you can leverage your money to empower your dreams and passions.
The simpler you make managing your money, the quicker you will take back control.
What is Simplicity
Modern society has almost created a negative tone to simplicity…
It is unfortunately associated with the instant gratification mindset and is often therefore defined as the quickest option, the short cut or worse, of lower value, the path of least resistance.
But it is none of these…
My good friend google defines simplicity as:
- The quality or condition of being easy to understand or do.
- The quality or condition of being plain or uncomplicated in form or design.
This is a lot better, but I want you to think of simplicity as more than just the end state.
When it comes to your money, think of simplicity in the following terms:
- Ruthlessly extracting anything in your life that stands between you and your passions.
- Deeply discerning and life-giving.
- Eliminating fuss, clutter, obligations, noise, actions, expenses, ‘stuff’ and even people that take away rather than add to your ability to experience life to the fullest (Remember the rule of 5)
- A journey to increased intimacy with the real truth of what excites you.
I believe intimacy is the gift of simplicity…
…and you can begin the journey of discovering your intrinsic worthiness by shedding the excess layers of clutter and complexity that we add to our life – money and elsewhere – under the false proviso that these things will validate us and prove we are okay.
There is no better place to start this journey than with your money.
In the book ‘The Art of Simplicity’ by Dominique Loreau, he describes simplicity as living with ease as your ultimate goal.
He suggests that it is not about tidying up your clutter but instead clearing it out and putting systems in place to make the maintenance of your surroundings as easy as possible.
Let’s start to apply this principle to your money.
Simplicity and Money
My experience from coaching people with money is that there is little surprise that people are struggling to stay on top of things.
It is not uncommon to hear of people who have more than ten financial accounts set up for various scenarios and purposes…
An assortment of credit and store cards, maybe a student loan, a fancy revolving line of credit that the bank said was perfect for you, transaction accounts, savings accounts, mortgages, term deposits, and investment accounts.
It’s exhausting just listing them.
And the real kicker, is some people don’t even remember they have some of these accounts, let alone the passwords…
I can hear you laughing now, oops, that’s me…
As a simple starting point for your journey into controlling your money, take the time to identify all the accounts, cards, loans, and mortgages that you have. It may be liberating in itself.
Now I understand that there are going to be different scenarios where having additional accounts for your money and investments makes sense…
Just understand the point where necessary is overtaken by excessive.
Focus on controlling your money and that means going from “oh I can’t keep up with this!”, to, “mmm this isn’t as hard as I thought, I can do this!”
It reminds me of a Paul Kelly song, an Aussie songwriter, ‘From small things, big things grow’…
Gaining control of your money removes the hurdles that have prevented your success up to now.
You have the opportunity to start fresh and create the life, the financial life, exactly how you want it to be…
First strip back all the unnecessary layers, and then we can slowly add more detail as and when it adds to your vision for your life and your money goals…
The Time to Freedom
Another benefit of simplicity is that the road to mastery gets significantly shorter.
By implementing some basic systems and habits, as you master your money, it will be easier and easier to stay in control.
It takes considerably less time, energy, and stress to stay in control rather than to gain control over a whole lot of complexity.
As a consequence, you are far more likely to stick with it and keep taking actions resulting in accelerated learning and improved results.
And so this successful cycle continues. It’s another example of the power of compounding…
A number of years ago I was sitting in a packed live event about wealth creation.
At the end, we received a presentation on how we could implement some of the strategies we had been taught in this shiny new managed fund product.
The disclaimer in the product document was many pages, which should have been my first red flag.
But, with the expectation of how this was going to ‘simply’ apply what we had learned I decided to invest some money into the product.
It was supposed to be designed to make money no matter what direction the stock market moved…
Unfortunately, when the stock market dropped dramatically, the safety mechanisms built into the product actually made it impossible to rebuild when the market recovered.
The complexity of the product had made it too difficult to manage and it ended up being an expensive and time-wasting investment.
Since this time it has been my objective to only invest in what I understand and what can be explained in simple terms.
When you keep your money matters simple, easy to understand, and easy to update, you stay in control.
Instead of spending six years or more getting a financial Ph.D. or spending twenty years like I did to learn the art of simplicity…
…why not just sit down and simplify your financial situation and master the 5 Steps to Take Charge of your Money.
That way you can get on with living the life you want to live with all the freedom of choice you deserve.
Flexibility
The last benefit of simplicity is increased flexibility.
We can plan until we are blue in the face, but none of us can anticipate everything.
Life happens.
The ability to adapt is essential and a key aspect of our lives. Especially with your money.
You get laid off, a close family member falls ill, an unexpected pregnancy, an opportunity to pack up and head off to a new continent, or even an unexpected marriage.
It’s during the times when life slaps you, whether it’s your fault or not, and hands you opportunities that you’ll be most thankful for taking steps to increase simplicity.
When life sometimes strikes, the money issues that follow can often weigh down your recovery by piling on extra stress.
But a simplified approach to money can actually reverse this effect.
It can be the catapult that gets you through those times and up again when you’ve been knocked down.
Conclusion
ConclusionSimplicity and flexibility aren’t just there for life’s challenges and those tough times, it’s also there for life’s opportunities.
Simplicity and flexibility allow you to jump at the things that come your way.
The secrets of simplicity are the key to taking charge of your money and setting yourself up for a financially free life full of all those things that you dream about.
Leave me a comment and let me know what one thing you can do right now to simplify your money situation.
And if you want to take your money journey to the next level, claim your free Smart Investor Call by clicking on this link, and let’s get your financial life simplified as soon as possible.