Is Your Money Mindset Keeping You Stuck Financially? Observe These 4 Behaviors to Find Out

Rorygez Fresh/Shutterstock.com

People may desire to change their money mindset because they recognize that their current one is limiting their financial potential. It’s not allowing them to reach their financial goals, like increasing their savings or building wealth. But to really change something, you first have to become aware of what’s really going on.

If you would like to know what your current money mindset is and how it might be keeping you financially stuck, pay attention to these four behaviors.

4 Behaviors to Observe When Evaluating Your Current Money Mindset

1. How you think about money.

   This is probably the most obvious one on the list. But have you ever really taken a moment to observe your own thoughts about money? For example, when you see someone with a nice car, what thoughts come to mind? Do you think, “I wish I could afford a car like that”?
   
   This thought and thoughts like it say you’re limiting yourself when it comes to money. This kind of thinking implies, “I’ll always be in a financial situation where items like that are beyond my reach.” But if becoming wealthy or financially free are goals of yours, why not try thinking like someone who has already achieved those goals?
   
   This is a concept I learned from the book Atomic Habits by James Clear. For instance, if you find this kind of limited thinking entering your mind, you can ask yourself, “What would a millionaire be thinking right now?” or “How would a wealthy person approach this situation?”
   
   Or maybe you don’t care so much about material things. Maybe you have thoughts like these: “I don’t really care about money” or “Money isn’t very important to me.” These thoughts will also hold you back from doing what’s required to invite more of this vital energy into your life.
   
   Sometimes people can look at others who care about having nice cars and clothes and houses and think they’re actually above them for eschewing things like that. Or else they look at people who use money in a greedy fashion and think they don’t want to be anything like them, so they would rather stay ignorant about money because they associate it with those kinds of people.
   
   But while money might not serve them if they use it to buy material things, I’m sure there are other things money could help them do. For instance, people with this mindset might feel comfortable donating generously to charity.
   
   But these thoughts of being above those who value money and fears of being associated with people who misuse money aren’t helping them. In fact, by not learning about money and inviting abundance into their lives, they’re actually doing everyone a great disservice, including themselves. They know how they would use money if they had more of it, and they know they would use it in a positive way. The world needs more people using money in a positive way.

2. How you talk about money.

   What words actually come out of your mouth when you talk about money? Do you say things like, “I never have enough money” or “Why are the prices of things always going up?” Or do you talk about money with phrases like, “I can afford anything I want” and “I have more than enough money.” The words you use to talk about money are directly tied to your money mindset. What you believe about money comes out in the way you speak about it.
   
   When it comes to changing your money mindset, you’ll have to make a conscious effort to change the way you talk about money. And you’ll probably have to do this before the things you tell yourself become true in a tangible form.
   
   So, even if you’re concerned with the rising prices of things, you can tell yourself, “I have more than enough money to keep up with these rising costs.” Or if you find that you have to work extremely hard to earn money, you can tell yourself, “Money comes to me easily.”
   
   It might feel awkward or uncomfortable to tell yourself these things initially, but by changing the way you talk about money, it can change your perception of it over time. And you’ll also find that, because of something called “confirmation bias,” your brain will look for evidence that the new things you’re telling yourself are true. But you have to use real emotion when you tell yourself these things. (Changing the way you think about money can also help with this.)

3. How you feel about money.

   How do you feel about money? Really. Take a moment and picture a large quantity of money. How do you feel about it? Do you feel excited or do you feel icky? Do you feel energized or do you feel overwhelmed? These feelings speak volumes about your money mindset.
   
   And when you see wealthy people, how do you feel? Do you feel envious? Do you feel inspired? Do you feel like you too could become wealthy? Because there’s really nothing stopping you from becoming wealthy but you. You can make all the excuses you want about why it wouldn’t be possible in your situation, but they would all just be excuses. You can make wealth your reality if you really want to.
   
   And if you find yourself feeling indifferent about money, that says something, too. It says you probably don’t care enough about it to do what’s required to invite more of it into your life.
   
   Part of having a money mindset that empowers you to take charge of your finances is associating money with positive things so that you want to have more of it. If you’re indifferent about it, then you’re probably indifferent about having more of it. But if you really want to welcome more money into your life, you need to cherish money the way you would cherish a loved one.
   
   If this way of relating to money is new to you, that’s ok. Just start slow. Instead of trying to force yourself to get comfortable with the idea of having a lot of money, try instead to imagine how it would feel if you no longer had to stress about your finances. Imagine all the things you could do with that money. You don’t have to start dreaming about physical money (it’s ok if you do, though). But if you want to welcome more money in, try to picture the freedoms and benefits that come with it.

4. How you use money.

   You may say things like, “I would love to have more money,” but then you splurge on things like expensive vacations or clothing. Or you spend money to keep up with the lifestyle of the people around you, even succumbing to lifestyle inflation.
   
   Do you really know where all your money is going? Are you spending it on things that will educate, nourish, or benefit you or others in some way? Or do you spend your money on things that, when you really think about them, don’t add that much value to your life or anyone else’s?
   
   This is a topic that’s addressed in T. Harv Eker’s book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. There, T. Harv Eker talks about how rich people are good at managing their money. They know what to do with the money they receive so that they continue to grow their wealth.
   
   Even as you start inviting more money into your life, try to learn how to manage the money you do have, which is actually a suggestion from the book. Learn about things like budgeting, minimizing spending, and investing. And if you’re trying to start building wealth in your 30s, you can check out this post to learn the principles that can help make it possible.

Final Thoughts

Before you can start to make real changes to your money mindset, it’s important to learn what your current one is. If you weren’t already aware, I hope now you have a better understanding of how you currently view and relate to this valuable resource. And if you’ve discovered that your money mindset is holding you back financially in any way, I hope now you know what you need to change to transform it.

~ Ashley C.

Note: The advice presented here is for informational purposes only. If you’re in need of professional financial advice, please see a qualified professional.