Did you know that being a Scrooge and becoming too frugal can actually be counterproductive?
We’re often told to tighten our belts, cut all unnecessary expenses & save, save, save if we want to achieve our financial goals. But that can actually stop more money from flowing!
So today we’ll talk about why and how being too frugal can be counterproductive – and what to focus on instead to help you achieve those financial goals and encourage MORE money to flow.
We’ll cover 4 ways over tightening your belt can choke the flow of money and abundance. Then we’ll discuss 3 things you should focus on instead so you can achieve those goals AND attract more money along the way.
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But let’s be clear. I’m not telling you NOT to save money and cut unnecessary spending. It’s great to stop wasting money. But it’s also way toop easy to go overboard and over tighten that belt so much that you’re also completely choking the flow of abundance!
What’s worse, you may also convince yourself that to get financially ahead, this is how life has to be. You may be reinforcing and creating a poverty mindset.
Plus, living too skint is usually not sustainable. And that can lead to budget blowouts and a sense of failure. And sometimes all that frustration will result in a full blown ‘budget rebellion’ where you go on a spending spree and undo all the great progress you just made.
Before we get into it, a little story for you:
When I was a broke, newly single mom, I would drive into my son’s very expensive private school in my Mazda. It wasn’t a bomb, but this school carpark was full of convertible Bentleys and other luxury vehicles, with nannies driving the kids to school. And I would feel so embarrassed and like I didn’t belong at all, and like I had ‘broke single mum struggling to pay her rent’ tattooed across my forehead.
But the really interesting thing is that even after my business took off and the money started flowing in, that feeling persisted. I still felt like I didn’t belong. I still felt uncomfortable and awkward. I still felt embarrassed and ashamed – even though I was probably making more money than some of the other parents. And don’t get me wrong – everyone was quite lovely. It was nothing they did. It’s just what I perceived and how I felt.
Even though I was making great money and running a successful business, I still felt less than. And that is the danger here. If you overdo the frugality thing, if you turn this into a way of life, you may program yourself into thinking that you are a pauper. That you don’t belong and don’t deserve the nice things in life.
Having more money does not guarantee feeling abundant.
So let’s cover a few ways being too frugal can block the flow of money. What you’ll notice is that these points are all about marrying the magical with the practical, which is what I’m all about.
Because you have an energetic relationship with money. You either magnetically attract it – or repel it. You also have an unconscious relationship with money – your internal stories about your self-worth, your deservingness and whether money is hard or easy to make. And then you also have a practical relationship with money, which is all about having money confidence and knowing what to do with your money.
We need to bring all of that together and into harmony. This is what the Magnetic Money™️ program is all about. You can check it out here.
NUMBER 1:
The first thing to remember is that feeling abundant is what makes you magnetic to more. So if you overdo the cost cutting and start living too frugally, you leave no room for feeling abundant and enjoying the money you have. And that means you’re closing the gates that allow more abundance to flow.
You are the magnet.
When you feel abundant, you attract abundance. And when you feel like there’s not enough, you attract more ‘not enoughness’.
So you want the actions you take to make you feel abundant and celebrate the money you have in your life.
NUMBER 2:
Having dedicated fun money is a legitimate manifesting exercise that allows you to attract more money consistently.
It helps you naturally align with the vibration of abundance and become magnetic to more.
So it’s important to have SOME fun money that you can spend on whatever you like – no judgment, no repercussions, no apologies and no guilt.
But the problem is that when most people decide to ‘tighten their belt’, fun money is the first thing to go!
(Of course, you need to have your money system set up to ensure you know where to find your fun money and how much there is so you can spend it without adversely affecting your goals. You can check out the Magnetic Money™️ System Bootcamp here if you need help with setting up your money system)
NUMBER 3:
Over tightening your belt and living really skint will almost guarantee budget blowouts. Because life happens.
And if you keep blowing the budget, you’ll start feeling like you failed, like you can’t do this & like it doesn’t work. You might go into full blown ‘budget rebellion’ where you go on a spending spree and undo all your good work.
So you don’t want to over tighten the belt to where it’s not sustainable.
(There’s an episode linked below in which I take you through the basic principles of a money system that works, so be sure check that out next.)
Let me know in the comments:
Have you given up on budgeting because you kept blowing the budget?
And have you ever gone into a full budget rebellion and gone on a spending spree? (and what did you buy?)
NUMBER 4:
Now, the final reason you don’t want to over tighten your belt and become a total scrooge is that it can really fuel a poverty mindset.
Lots of people who join the Magnetic Money™️ program are already trying to overcome a poverty mindset. And as I showed you in my personal story, more money doesn’t change that pattern!
If your unconscious program says it’s never enough and you’re not safe, you still won’t be able to relax even when you make more money. You’ll still worry.
We call that an Accumulator Habit Archetype pattern. It’s usually fed by an old money story that says “I’m not safe. It’s never enough.”
And so when you get into a habit of drastically cutting costs, you’re reinforcing that pattern and story. And the problem with that is that even when you’ve completely changed your financial situation, you’ll still feel broke. And that is just no fun.
So, let’s talk about what you can do instead, that will allow you to reach your financial goals WITHOUT inadvertently turning off the tap of abundance.
FIRST:
Whenever you cut costs, do it from a place of empowerment.
You want to feel excited, knowing this is helping you move forward financially. You don’t want to feel like you’re sacrificing your first born to pay off a credit card! You want to feel like you’re trimming some fat that was just weighing you down anyway.
And whatever you’re substituting that old thing with, make sure it’s something that nourishes you even more.
NEXT:
Leave plenty of wiggle room!
You want to prevent budget blowouts and a full blown budget rebellion. You want to feel good about staying on track and you want to actually achieve those goals.
Leaving plenty of wiggle room and not making things too tight is a simple way to help you chieve that.
FINALLY:
We already talked about the importance of fun money.
Yes, cut spending on things you don’t need. Save money where money is being wasted. But amongst all of that, there has to be some dedicated fun money that allows you to feel abundant and celebrate the money you do have – even if it’s $10 a week. Even if it’s just that one coffee date you take yourself on.
The trick is to really celebrate and enjoy it.
Feel good about the choices you made and appreciate spending that fun money even more.
There’s a world of difference between savouring your weekly coffee date even more because it’s more special now versus feeling like you’re not allowed to do anything fun anymore because you have to save money.
In an upcoming episode, I’ll be talking about the importance of focusing on what you have in order to attract more. I’ll be pointing out the ways people get it backwards, even though they think they’re doing it right. So keep an eye out for that!
Now, to succeed with all of this, you will need to have your banking sorted. Because that’s the basic infrastructure through which your money flows. So if you haven’t taken my free workshop to help you organize and tidy your banking yet, I suggest you hop on it now.
And if you’re ready for a full blown money transformation and want high-touch, live support from myself, then check out Magnetic Money™️.
I hope you enjoyed this episode!
Let me know your biggest take-is in the comments below and I’ll see you in the next one.
xx Miriam
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