There are many money lessons I’ve learned along this journey. Out of the many lessons, there are two tips that not only help me to be more financially responsible, but also help me with life in general.  The two most important financial tips that I’ve learned and consistently apply, are discipline and having an accountability partner.

Discipline

Discipline is showing a controlled form of behavior or way of working. Specifically, we’re discussing the control you have over your finances. Having discipline is telling your money what to do, and avoiding your money dictating what you can do. If I set a goal, I am dedicated to sticking to it! There are many days when I want to go out and spend uncontrollably, or make purchases that I don’t actually need, but discipline keeps me focused on the big picture. There may be things or experiences you want that will push you further away from accomplishing your goal, but you have to be comfortable with delayed gratification, understanding that you are not saying “no” to the item you want, you’re saying “not yet”. Take pride in knowing that one day, when you are financially free, you will be able to do everything that you want, but in order to get there, you have to make sacrifices and be disciplined now. You don’t have to give up everything, but you have to be disciplined and committed to sticking to your action plan in order to accomplish your goals.  

Practice discipline!

Make a commitment to do something daily or weekly that you usually wouldn’t do. Do this faithfully! This could be transferring money to your savings account, committing not to spend money on certain days a week, sticking to a budget, etc. Practicing discipline helps you to create successful habits of control, and we all want to be in control of our finances.

Accountability Partner

An accountability partner has many responsibilities. First, you need to find someone that is passionate about your success. This person should genuinely want to see you succeed. Your accountability partner should be someone you admire and respect that will not allow you to make excuses.

People are more likely to accomplish goals that they explicitly state, but sharing your goals with another person takes it to another level. Think about it, most people want to be seen as someone who is successful, reliable, and keeps commitments. So, when you share your goals with an accountability partner and that person is constantly asking you about the steps you’ve taken to accomplish your goals, you want to make sure you are doing what it takes for them to see you as reliable and successful.

These two financial tips work together with the many other lessons that I’ve learned. But being disciplined to stick to my budget and having someone else hold me accountable for my results have been the two most helpful things to contribute to my success thus far. Without my accountability partner, I would have given up only weeks after I started this journey. When you have someone holding you accountable, you accomplish so much more. Get an accountability partner today!