Nervous about Your Money?

I get letters from people every day covering a wide range of emotions. There are the people who write or tweet me, very proud of what they've accomplished. There are the folks who are puzzled about some aspect of money that they just haven't been able to wrap their heads around. (These are the questions I most often answer.) And there are the people who are desperate. They know they've made a mess and they want me to tell them how to get out of the mess.

How you feel when you think about your money is a big indication of what you're doing right and what you may need to tweak. If the thought of opening up a bill, reviewing your spending, or adding up your debt makes you nervous, you may have been in denial and worry about just how deep a mess you're in.

I met people on my last book tour who have yet to crack the spine on the copy of Debt-Free Forever that they bought the year before. It's almost as if they think that just by buying the book they're going to solve their money problems. Jeeze Louise!

No matter how stressed, how nervous, how reluctant you may be right now about your money, the only way you're going to move out of the Nervous Zone is to do something. Yes, you must DO something. You can't just wish things were better. And you can't hand it over to someone else to sort out for you. You messed it up. Now it's time to clean it up. Put on your big-boy pants and get moving.

1. Do a spending analysis. This is the only way to figure out how you got into the mess you're in. I know this is hard work. I know your stomach will churn and you'll want to hide under the bed. But only by figuring out where your money has been going can you plug the leaks.

2. Add up your debt. You've done the damage, now it's time to face the music. For as long as you don't add it up, you can convince yourself things aren't so bad. Grab yourself a plastic lined garbage can (for when you toss your cookies) and add it up.

3. Make a plan. That means making a budget and a debt repayment plan so you can get out of the mess you've made. The tools are on this website. Or you can go borrow a copy of Debt-Free Forever from the library. Or maybe you just have to open up the copy you bought last year and do the work I told you it would take to change your life.

I don't mean it to sound as if I think this is easy. It's damn hard. I know that. I work with people who swoon when I show them their debt, their spending, and where they are headed. But you HAVE to do it if you want you life to be different.

The people I've met who have done the hard work and are debt-free or getting there are so much happier with their lives. With a plan, with the determination to never go down the road to Debt Hell again, they feel free. They feel like they can accomplish anything. They're sure of themselves and of what they're doing with their money. There are no Nervous Nellies amongst them.

Hey, if you're nervous about your money that's a sure sign things should be different. Get moving!