Broke Spirit: Why Money Woes Might Be Out Of Your Control

When you sit down and think about money and saving it, you conclude that you're trying very hard to follow the path that will lead you to financial freedom. You've cut back on restaurant dining. You took a long, hard look at your bills such as cable, phone, and internet and made cuts where applicable. You even stopped spending money without thinking on certain incidentals that can add up quickly. Those few cups of coffee per day at Starbucks immediately come to mind. But despite your best efforts, you still aren't able to stay ahead of the financial curve the way you'd like. You start to believe that cutting back might be only the start of what needs to happen to ensure you aren't working just to break even but instead want to make some serious headway when it comes to having a little savings or retirement in case of emergency or when you're ready to call it quick, respectively. Cutting back, for starters, goes above and beyond just ridding yourself of a few bills or cutting out the caffeine (or other habits you can kick to the curb). You have to determine how to free yourself of the “can you stop this” mentality. You know the type: the latest and greatest piece of technology, gadget, appliances or anything else that carries a high price tag and truly isn't necessary when you look around and take stock of what you already have. Your smartphone is just fine, and that washer and dryer, for example, have been working well for nearly a decade. Upgrading just for the sake of doing so plagues your intent to set some money aside. Buying something like a new fridge should be reserved for when your current appliance goes bad and stops working, not just because something bigger and better came out. A lot of this can be traced back to your friends and family, too. So you buying something that you don't need isn't their fault, but often you want to have the same products they do, so you whip out your credit card and start trying to replicate what they already have. Everyone has a different financial situation, and the one that matters most is yours. From spending to your job itself, you may be your worst enemy in that regard. You need to ask yourself questions about your current profession and career prospects. Are your trying to gain that promotion or just getting by and doing the bare minimum? Are you sending out resumes and cover letters and constantly keeping your ear to the ground for any new jobs? Answers to those may indicate why you're still working at that same job and can't seem to break through that glass ceiling. Also included in that is your lack of interest in picking up a second job. Having two jobs isn't ideal, and some situations certainly prohibit it. But if you're working 8-4 and coming home and watching television for the rest of the evening, chances are you have some time to play with to start earning a little extra. Doing so, along with truly minding your spending more so than the obvious, could be the ticket out of debt you've been wanting.