What would your current day self say to the younger version of you about money?

A large percentage of people do not have an emergency fund that covers 3 months and many live pay cheque to pay cheque.

• US statistics say 53% do not have emergency funds beyond 3 months and 49% live pay check to pay check, and that study was prior to COVID.

Pay cuts, losing jobs, closing businesses – the heart ache is real here in Australia & New Zealand.

I’ve re written this article many times fearful of rejection. What can I contribute that would be of value to others, I am certainly no financial advisor. I’m ‘a-typical’ of my peer group in that I have had my ups and downs financially and I'm holding out ok... but no shining star award to qualify for a voice relating to money.  But I kept waking up feeling my next blog needed to be about money and helping drive people to be curious to create options... my superpower is helping to inspire people to be curious, to develop options and then put tangible actionable steps in place based on their story or circumstance – so here goes.

This blog is my current self talking to a younger version of me about money

Ferne, treat money as you would a best friend. Keep them close, honour them, don’t discredit them behind their back, envisage and dream what choices you could make in life by having them more abundant day to day in your life. Do not put them down, do not blame them for all the wows in your world. Treat money as if a close loved and cared for friend.

In 2012 Ferne you will have a closet full of awesome shoes purchased from all over the world, you will have accessories galore – you will have a reputation of giving, giving, giving. You will have consistently travelled the world for a number of years with your job. A few New York suits and lots of accessories will be your packing items. You would have spent a significant amount of money on a gorgeous new home, you would have spent a significant amount of money on IVF treatments over 8 years. You would have treated yourself and others to frequent overseas trips creating memories, you would have cared for family and taken loved ones into your home, you would be an exceptional carer for those treasured god children. You would have dabbled in importing and selling furniture items but in truth kept half of them ‘because you loved them’. You would have a salary package that will be beyond what you had ever dreamed of – you would also be a workaholic. You have spent the last handful of years working with an exceptional bunch of people leading a top tier global company. There were so many lessons, so many quality people, you participated in the success, contributed to the success and were valued for the person that you are.

But a message to my younger self, in 2013 the dream you did not think would occur does, you give birth to a beautiful daughter, you will be 49 years of age .. but you will also be made redundant in the same year. You will decide when you were fearful to sell your beautiful home (at a loss), you will lose confidence in your power of making good decisions because of fear. It will take you a few years – 5 years in fact – to rebuild that power and intention … but have confidence you will do it, you (we) are resilient, and we do not stay down. There will be another crisis that occurs in 2020, but you would have put plans in place to ride that through. There will be more crises that occur in the world, and likely more frequent … keep listening to your voice and treat money as a friend.

I’ve put some words together for you Ferne to help keep you focused with intentional actions relating to money; always be curious, always create options, never stop taking actions. 

Ferne, when you go to buy something, figure out quickly if it is a need or a want. If it is a want, put that money aside into an emergency fund until you have at least 8 to 12 months of emergency funds available.  A crises will occur in 2020 and you will be afforded some relief through subsidies .. put as much of this aside as you can into emergency funds, don’t spend it on wants. You will have a salary decrease, when your salary increases again... put that same amount, or as much as you can into your emergency fund.

Write this down and put inside your wallet:

$100 a month put aside into an emergency fund from the age of 25, earning over its life 12% return will give you 1M at 65 years of age.

$100 a month in the same scenario but from 35 will provide you 300K. You have just cost yourself 700K as you may choose wants over needs.

 Be strong in working on your fears, challenges, and blockages to be the best YOU in this life. Learn to listen consistently to your own voice, what is the story you want to be told at your Eulogy or researched on google when you are no longer here. What actions are you taking from today forward to make that a reality – particularly relating to money and the life of passion and intent you wish to lead.

Choose a few people who will inspire you relating to the money sector of your life. Listen, observe, learn, change learned behaviours from your childhood about money. Conduct exercises that break down those blockages ‘money does not grow on trees’, ‘you’ve worked hard today – go treat yourself, you deserve it’. Choose one or two financial superheroes – LEARN! 

Just because money is coming in and going out does not mean you are ok if you do not have 8 to 12 months emergency funds. It just means you are surviving, confront yourself on choices you make and the why you make them. Stand in your truth; look yourself in the mirror and be truthful about the choices you made that got you here.  THEN let the past go and focus on your next chapter.

Ferne, the main obstacle to wealth is fear. You will become a leader in transformation change and help people every day with putting plans in place to mitigate fear in businesses and achieve their tomorrow.  Apply that same method, that same logic and action these steps NOW:

Find the answer to these questions: What is your fear in relation to money? Why don’t you get pleasure out of saving money? why do you get more pleasure out of spending money? And if you do get pleasure out of saving money, what is that driver you can leverage? Unless you know the answer to these questions you cannot create actionable intentional action to alter. Find the answers then…

Put a crises management plan in place! What mitigations do you put into place to mitigate this fear from being realised? If the fear is realised and becomes a real live issue, what are the actionable steps you agree with yourself PRIOR to the fear / issue occurring that you will immediately put into place to deal with that. Write it down, sign it, then file it. Planning actions to take if the fear is realised when you are confident – when you are in hour power is key. We do not make good decisions for ourselves when we are in the powerless or fear character.

Ensure your back yard is in order, that you have a Will you revisit every 5 years, that you have a power of attorney for medical and financial decisions, you have a medical emergency plan written and understood by your nominated authorised person, if you have minors you nominate your wish for them, or nominate a few you trust to have a conversation and make that determination. DO THIS IMMEDIATELY to mitigate the increased risk of something occurring to you as we face some global disruptions in years to come.

Then turn your focus to mitigations for the fear not to be realised, turn up your curiosity, map out some options, create actionable – tangible steps. Spend more time thinking of options and actions and TAKING those actions than you think about your fear.

Ferne, do not dwell on shame relating to money topics or choices that have been made in the past. Stand in the truth, why are you in the position you are in now. You have been brought up in your early life of hearing “we deserve to be treated, we deserve that holiday, we deserve to have that new phone, we wish to provide for others what we did not have... we put things before money, YOU are responsible to alter that thinking to money before things” 

Create a strong value system relating to money Ferne.  I know you believe in being valued for who you are over what you have, but make sure you take actions based on these values.   

The past is the past... it is only valuable if you learn from it. Right here, right now is what matters. Visualise when money comes in you will put money into an emergency fund, there will be another crisis, don’t know when or what, but there will be more over your life. 

Think about the life that is possible if you treat money as a friend. 

Be grateful that you have a wonderful mind and thought process that enables you to think of various ways or channels to create multiple streams of income from things you are passionate about.  Those memories you create with people from experiences you enable. Don’t ever stop doing that. Just be sure to do it AFTER you have your emergency funds tucked away. 

Live below your means but within your needs.  Take these actions at least until you have 8 to 12 months emergency funds available. Every time you go to buy something ask if this is a want or a need. If it is a want, walk away and put that money into your emergency fund

Do not complicate definition of a need. A need is food, medicine, travel to work or job interviews, minimal clothing for your needs . A want is food at a restaurant, travel to visit friends, a fourth pair of shoes, the next version smart phone

And Ferne, this one is a hard one for me to talk to as I know your future and you do not as yet. My word of advice when it comes to romantic relationships and money.

Communication with your partner relating to money is critical especially when you come from different backgrounds, different experiences with money, different messages, different fears and blockages. If you have a partner and you have one vision and treat money with the same value, you have a formula for success. If you do not your formula needs to be adjusted – amended or there will be challenges and the saying “to death us to part”, quickly alters to, “to debt do we part”. If you have one vision and your partner has another vision you will be in different vehicles, and that is ok until you hit a bumpy road, or a crisis and the vehicles end up going in different directions.

Get into the same vehicle with any future partner you have! Know about financial behaviour before you get deeply involved and be prepared to address head on any disconnect to make it work – BEFORE a crisis occurs. It is like a business continuity plan. Create a crises plan before a crises occurs.

In wrapping up Ferne, I ask you to please reflect on these statements

• Get as much pleasure saving as you do spending
• An emergency fund is a non negotiable, at least 8 to 12 months
• Power attracts opportunity and money
• Powerless repels opportunity and money
• You are in the driver’s seat of your life, what gear are you in, what road are you taking on your journey to success relating to money, who are in the passenger seats
• Address your fears and challenges, get answers – turn up curiosity=options, then create actionable steps- and TAKE THEM
• Communicate and get in the same vehicle, relative to money, with any future partner
• Ensure your own back yard is in order relating to what occurs to money if you are compromised, and the less you have the more important this is
• Be more to have more 
• To be more you need to know more about how you deal to money

Ferne, in your mid 50s you will …. 

• Be surrounded by friends who are outcome, action orientated inspiring people relating to financial independence, keep surrounding yourself with people who DO.
• Have sourced an excellent advisor and accountant who also has a great bookkeeper to take the mundane out of your world and free you up to write blogs!
• Listen to a lady called Suze Orman who gives away more than she asks, in a way that resonates with you. You will listen to her podcasts and FREE 12 hours of advice downloadable program which helps you in our next chapter.
• Through your online transformation work a financial advisor finds you who is a wonderful centred soul and is passionate about helping families realise their dreams of tomorrow Joseph Panthradil, Financial Adviser & Loans Specialist.

Ferne, I am going to sign off now as I cannot pass on too many secrets of your (our) future that is now. But in the hopes of inspiring you, we do love Saturday mornings with our daughter, it is a special time of the week we both love, our mother who is 84 lives on our beautiful property in a tiny house on wheels, the build and design we did for her has over 1.6M views on Living Big in a Tiny House you tube channel – WHO WOULD KNOW! We had a cancer scare last year, but all is fine we rejigged our food and water and home environment getting rid of chemicals, mum did too! Numerology says that we are entering a new phase of life at 56 and it feels so real, the moon has been brilliant this week and we have been out walking in the night dreaming of our tomorrow. 

We are happy, healthy and we have an emergency fund.

Ferne Eliz King

Love Life Love YOUR Life