The relationship women have with their finances and money is very different from that of men. This is because women often have different experiences with it. And as a result of those experiences, their perception of money is different. This perception brings with it its own set of insecurities and struggles. One of the many struggles women face is their internal “money blocks” or “financial blocks.”
Money blocks can be defined as a series of internal thoughts and feelings that get in your way and hold you back from achieving financial success. They can be formed as a result of prior negative financial experiences and other societal and familial situations.
- Here are 8 money blocks and limiting beliefs that stand in the way of your dreams and how you can get rid of them.
Table of Contents
1. Harboring the “Money Is the Root of All Evil” Mindset
By internalizing a negative narrative of money, you are setting yourself up for financial failure. This is a common misconception in many people’s minds and is a huge money block factor. The idea that it is greedy to want money or feel guilty as a result of wanting more money is deeply rooted in this mindset. These kinds of clichés and ideas about money are damaging to your financial well-being.
You have to realize that money itself is not the root of all evil. Human beings’ excessive greed for it is.
Our behaviors and thought patterns are connected. This is why developing healthy thought patterns will lead to healthier financial outcomes. Instead of painting money in an evil light, think of how useful it is. It is essential to your life, and the more of it you have, the more security and freedom you enjoy. You also have a greater chance of making a positive difference in this world if you have more money.
2. Worshipping Money
While viewing money from a positive angle is important, nurturing too much of a “love” for it is no good.
People who worship money believe that it is the key to ultimate happiness and that it is going to solve all their life’s problems. As a consequence, they may also believe that they can never have enough of it and, therefore, are never satisfied with how much they have. They spend and spend in an effort to “buy” internal happiness and ultimately get left with zero savings or, even worse, debt.
If you worship money and think it is the be-all and end-all, you are going to make some choices that are going to hurt not only you but other people as well. This is because you fail to see beyond money itself. You fail to realize how it affects you or your loved ones. Having money is good but there is meaning to life beyond it, too. Know where to draw the line.
3. Negative Self-Belief and Self-Doubt
Progress begins with your mind. This is why having negative self-beliefs results in all sorts of money blocks. Our negative self-beliefs usually stem from all the ill-informed financial comparisons we make between ourselves and others. They impact your self-esteem in a not-so-good way and manifest adversely in your abilities, such as handling your finances. As a result of a negative belief, you might feel like you don’t deserve more money because there is someone else who works harder than you. Or you might tell yourself that you don’t deserve so much money, just because… you don’t.
Instead of propelling you forward, this negative self-talk sets you back in your financial journey.
Be mindful of what kind of thoughts you let enter your mind. When you find yourself thinking of something negative, counter it immediately with a positive thought. Another thing you can do is face your self-doubts head-on. Talk to yourself honestly. Ask yourself whether the fears that you harbor in your mind are a result of comparison and guilt or are they genuine concerns?
4. Associating Self-Worth with Money
This money-blocking mindset is highly detrimental. People who are busy showing off their money are, more often than not, on the lower end when it comes to net financial worth. This is because they spend compulsively and are careless with their money.
People who base their worth on money overspend in their attempt to show others that they are financially successful. They keep on doing this until they dig a hole in their bank account that is too deep to fill.
5. Dwelling on Mistakes
Mistakes happen!
We all know that. And yet, this particular financial block is one that many people struggle with. Oftentimes, we are so hard on ourselves for our mistakes that we give up on important things altogether. We expect so much from ourselves that any mistake we make disappoints us and leaves us anxious and depressed. The truth is, if you want to move forward and gain success in your financial journey, you have to forgive yourself for the money mistakes you make.
Instead of beating yourself up, take the lessons you have learned and keep moving on. Acknowledge the fact that we are all imperfect and bound to slip up at some point.
The time you spend dwelling on your mistakes could be better utilized in understanding where you went wrong and what can be done to make things right in the future. Nothing worthwhile in life comes without difficulties. Keeping this in mind, stick to your main goal, and do not let your past mistakes – or futures ones, for that matter – get the best of you.
6. Excessively Giving To Others
Being generous is all well and good, but there is a limit to it. You can only ever give so much without losing too much yourself. As with anything in life, when it comes to money, you should have a balance between giving and receiving.
Needless to say, if you give more than you receive, there will come a time when you will be left with nothing for yourself. The people who love you are the only ones who matter in your life. And the people who really matter are not going to define your worth by how much you can provide for them. Being an excessive giver also means that you neglect yourself and your own needs. This attitude is not only detrimental to you financially; it is bad for your health as well.
It is perfectly fine to want things for yourself too. In fact, if you really want to serve people, it is better to be frugal and invest now so that you can help others more in the future.
Money blocks leave most women feeling overwhelmed and confused. Fortunately, your money blocks are a lot easier to combat than you might think.
7. Having Vague Goals
Believe it or not, having non-specific goals can really put a damper on your financial progress. If there is no rhyme or reason to what you want to gain from your finances, then what are you doing here? What are you really fighting for?
Not having a reason to earn more money is going to lead you into money block after money block and you are going to start looking for excuses for why things are not working out. Additionally, other less important tasks are going to fill up your time because you just have not specified how important money is to you and why you really want it.
You will also lose motivation because of a lack of direction and end up staying in the same circumstances forever. Therefore, it is very important to set clear goals along with specific timelines. Figure out the how, why, and when and make a financial plan according to that. This will help you stick with the task and also keep you motivated by the progress you make over time.
Further reading: How to achieve your financial goals.
8. Not Feeling Responsible
Fortunately, this money block is becoming less and less common now but it is still one that a lot of people struggle with. Secretly feeling like someone else should take financial responsibility for you, such as your partner or a relative, stops a lot of people from making an effort to earn more money.
This belief takes your financial independence and power away from you and puts it in the hands of someone else. It hands your financial power over to an external source, which is a path riddled with all kinds of risks.
Moreover, it is a reflection of what you think about yourself. This belief can be an outcome of your believing that you don’t have what it takes to be financially independent. Figure out what it is that is causing you to resort to this belief – is it your negative self-esteem, is it your laziness or is it something else? Nip those insecurities in the bud, take charge of your finances, and become your own boss.
Further reading: Money Management for Women
9. In Conclusion
The goal of this blog post is to make you realize that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. Making money can be as easy as changing your mindset and daring for more. So, take time out of your day to identify and address your money blocks. Understand what you can do to fix them and try to work on them. There are many tools that you can start applying in your daily healing process such as positive affirmations.
I fully believe that you have it in you to make the necessary changes in your life toward a brighter financial future. The only thing you have to do is tweak your mindset, apply the tips I give you, and then watch your success unfold.
If you enjoyed this article on 8 Money Blocks Women Can Overcome Today or have any questions for me, please feel free to leave them in the comment section below!
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