Here’s an inconvenient truth: Your financial role models are probably still affecting how you handle your finances today.
Maybe your parents weren’t responsible with their money and you learned your money habits from them. Maybe because they never talked about finances in school and all you were taught is that wanting more money is bad, you’ve learned to downplay its importance and ignore it. Now cash flow is at the center of your business’s survival and you’re finding out you can’t ignore it or bring any bad money habits into your business if you want to succeed.
With some dedication, you can gradually move past your conditioning. You can let go of those limiting beliefs that are keeping you from abundance. (Read more about limiting beliefs here).
The way forward is through financial literacy. Financially literate women business owners are a million times more confident and more prepared for whatever money situation that gets thrown their way in their business.
Convinced you should grow your financial literacy? You’ll want to make it a habit to regularly seek out education, learn to see your money objectively, and get an accountability partner.
Seek out education.
There are so many resources out there. Unfortunately, you’ll probably only be able to touch the surface of all the available information but it’s worth asking and finding an answer to these two questions: What don’t I know? and Where can I learn what I don’t know?
You might prefer learning through a blog (Get more actionable advice and learn more about the basics, like small plates accounting, here), a book, by reaching out to another business owner, taking a course, or attending a webinar. Follow how you prefer to learn so that you’re engaged and absorb the information.
Get objective about your money.
We all tie emotions to our money. It’s a human reaction because your money affects your quality of life. It’s what gives you access to your vision and allows you to provide for your family. However, that makes decision-making in financial matters difficult. If you can manage to separate your feelings from your finances, you’ll be able to make responsible decisions based on the data. If not, you may need to outsource your financial matters. (Find out whether your business could benefit from a bookkeeper or an accountant here).
Find an accountability partner.
Getting familiar with your finances can be a scary prospect to face alone. The fear and uncertainty might convince you to continue to ignore your finances or that you’ll pay attention to them later. An accountability partner won’t let that happen. They’ll encourage you that you can get a handle on your finances and help remind you why you’re learning more about your finances in the first place. Working by yourself, you might let yourself slide and then be disappointed about not reaching your financial goals or improving your finances. With an accountability partner, you’ll be kept on track. Plus, you’ll have someone to celebrate with when you reach your goals!
Keep educating yourself, separating the emotions from the money, and checking in with your accountability partner and you’re bound to be in a better financial position in your business. Financial literacy is powerful because knowledge is powerful. (Read more about the power of applying that knowledge here).
No matter what you were made to believe about finances, you are more than capable of shedding your limits and creating abundance in your business. I can’t wait to see you succeed.
