Financially Fit: Improve Your Financial Life by Listening to Your Inner Money Voice

What motivation do you need to get your financial life in order and get financially fit? Are you waiting for the next bonus? Or waiting for some certain thing to happen before you take action? What better time than now? There are so many reasons to get started and give your financial life the priority it deserves.

The approach to getting financially fit is similar to that of getting physically fit — full commitment, positive lifestyle changes, and most of all, a desire to feel happier and healthier in your relationship with money. What are your financial desires? What do you want to feel? When you decide you want to get financially fit, you'll stop putting up with habits that no longer serve a purpose and begin creating new and lasting ones that propel you forward right into the financial life you know you deserve.

Here are 4 reasons to get financially fit and improve your financial life, today!

1. You want to sleep better at night.

It's been proven that stress and worry depletes energy and can keep you awake at night. Are your money issues affecting your energy or your sleep? Is it because your bills are piling up, or you're procrastinating about financial paperwork, keep thinking you don't have enough money, or because you know you're overspending?

Whatever might be on your mind, it's something you probably know deep down that you've been delaying doing. My clients have often told me that after getting their financial life in order, they sleep better at night. I know they are because I see the peace and calm in their eyes when they speak about money now versus then in their financially fit journey. Having your financial life in order will give you hours of precious sleep.

2. Your spending is out of control.

When you're financially fit, you'll know how much and where you're spending your money. You'll lean spend (go light) when necessary and splurge (purchase some of your wants) a little when it's in your money planning. Managing money is not about extremes — either spending wildly or depriving oneself, but instead it's about managing wisely and taking time to make smart financial decisions. I encourage you to take some time to write down where you have been spending your money in the last three months and then create a spending plan that will help you feel more in control of your finances. A money plan can help you rein in on your spending and help keep you accountable.

3. You're behind on your retirement savings.

Retirement savings is an important part of money planning and being financially fit. How do you view your future? What are you doing in retirement? Are you traveling, maybe going out to eat every weekend? Are you doing all the things you love? What are the things you love? Write down exactly what you want your retirement financial life to look like, and then prepare now for what you want later. Sometimes I'm asked if it's too late to start saving. It's never too late! You may have some catching up to do and you may have to modify your plans a bit, but generally you can make a lot happen to reach your financial desires when you commit to doing so. I encourage you to work with a trusted financial planner to help you with the proper investment allocations and appropriate retirement planning to get you to your desired retirement financial life.

4. You want to feel financially successful.

How do you define financial success? Is it a certain amount of money in your checking or retirement account, or reaching a desired gross salary? Financial success is all about having a great relationship with money and making good financial decisions. If what you're doing isn’t working, you'll never feel financial success. Figure out what you need in order to feel financially successful. Is it saving more for retirement, spending less, feeling in control of your financial life?

Write down what financial goals you want to achieve in the next 30 days. Take small steps every day toward reaching those goals. As you make progress toward your goals, reward yourself — maybe with a glass of wine, a movie, massage, or some much-needed quiet time listening to your favorite music. The more you reward yourself for your accomplishments, the more you'll be motivated to stay financially fit.

Take small steps in becoming financially fit — do something every day that contributes to your financial success and enhance your financial life — and you'll begin to see changes and the results from your goal-setting. If you stumble, just begin again. It may take some time to change those old habits, but if you stick with it, you'll get to your ultimate money goals!