A Spiral of Success

Thidwick, the Big-Hearted Moose House Rich

A Spiral of Success

Have you ever looked up a spiral staircase? The stairs turn in and around on themselves over and over. They're very beautiful. And they demonstrate something so many of us can learn from: one step at a time, even a very small step, can take you from where you are now to where you want to be. Just take that first step. Then the next. Up you go.

Getting to DFF, accumulating a stash of cash to send your kids to university or college, setting up an emergency fund can all feel like impossible feats. When you look at the demands on your time, how will you ever manage to keep up with your spending journal? And if your buddy just will not keep his or her hand out of your pocket, how will you ever save the money you want for retirement?

It is so easy — so much easier — to just keep on doing what you've always been doing. But if you don't change the behaviour, you won't change the outcome. So today's the day you take your first step on the spiral staircase to success.

Change one thing. Just one thing. If you've never been good at tracking your spending, make a label and stick it to your wallet. The label says, "Ask for a receipt."

Collect a receipt everywhere you go. Even if you buy a cup of coffee, get a receipt. Make it a habit to ask for a receipt.

Once you've established the habit of asking for a receipt, get a notebook and every night enter all the receipts for the day in the notebook.

Once you get used to tracking what you're spending, start using your notebook as a spending journal, deducting what you've spent from your balance to keep track of your money's ins and outs.

Got that down pat? Now it's time to enter your transactions against your monthly budget. Don't know how? Well, maybe that was trying to take two or three steps at once. More distance covered, but a lot more effort. Too hard? Step back a stair or two.

Try again.

Figure out how to make a budget. Then start tracking your actual spending against your budget to see how you're using your money.

Whatever it is you're trying to do, break it down into the smallest possible steps and then take one step at a time. Feel secure on that step. Know where you are. Then take the next step.

Your progress may be a little slower, but you'll feel safe in every step you take. And you'll spiral your way to success