192 | Why Making More Isn’t the Answer

Making more money isn’t the quick fix solution to your money problems that you think it’s going to be.

You may make more now than you did at another point in life when you told yourself things would be better once you made more money. But still, you find yourself wishing you made more.

It’s because the amount you make is only one factor in what’s going on with your finances—and it’s not the most important one.

In this episode, let’s talk about the key to solving your money problems, whether you make more or not.

• • the tendency to believe that things would be better if we made more
  • making more and feeling like nothing changed with your finances
  • addressing the underlying reason for your financial situation not being what you want it to be
  • the importance of what you do with the money you make
  • the typical experience people have of their finances
  • some tips to get things on track, whether you make more or not

You’re listening to Wealthyesque. We are a community of lawyers who believe that true wealth is having control of our time. I’m Rho Thomas, and as a busy wife, mom, and former Biglaw associate, I know all too well the tension between the culture of the legal profession and pretty much everything else you want to do in life. That’s why each week, I’m bringing you the information and tools you need to improve your money mindset and manage your money to create true wealth. Because ultimately, it’s not about the money. It’s about the freedom and flexibility the money affords.

Hey friend. Welcome back to the show. I hope you’re doing well and having an amazing day so far. Today we are talking about your money habits and this common tendency that people have to think that making more money is the answer to their money troubles. Many lawyers get to the point that money feels tight. Maybe they’re running out of money and they have to sublet with credit cards by the end of the month and that kind of thing. And they think that the key is to just make more money. And before I go any further I acknowledge that there are situations where people actually don’t make enough like that’s a real pain. But that’s not the case for the majority of lawyers who just want to walk into here. But anyway, we have this tendency to believe that if we just had a little bit more money that things will automatically be better, right, money’s tight. I just need to make more. I keep running up my credit cards. I just need a little more money. And the thing that I want you to know is you cannot out earn bad money habits. You can’t make enough to make up for bad money habits. That’s why you might notice that when you do make more things don’t actually feel different. Chances are you make more now than you did when you first started practicing. And you probably thought back then that making the amount you’re making that would be amazing. You’d be set and now here you are making this amount and feeling like you still need to make more. When you first get a raise or get a new job making more or whatever the situation is, it may feel better for a short time, but eventually you end up right back in the same position, feeling like money is tight and all that kind of stuff. And the reason that happens is you haven’t addressed the underlying issue, the habits that caused you to be in the situation in the first place. It’s not about the money you make. There are people who make less than you who are building wealth and they’re fine. There are people who make more than you who are still broke and struggling. Because it’s not about the money you make. It’s about what you do with what you make. It’s about how you manage what you make. Most of us are going along spending without any real plan, any real strategy, any intention behind it. We’re not being mindful at all about our spending many times that bleeds into running up debt. So you know, not being mindful of my spending and I put this thing on a credit card, but then I don’t pay that credit card off. So the balance on it starts running up and now I’ve got a minimum payment and then I had this other thing come up and so I took out a loan for that and now I’ve got another minimum payment. And then there was another thing I got another loan and this other credit card and all these minimum payments I start stacking up and eating away at the money that you have available for yourself. If you have hundreds of dollars or 1000s of dollars going out to debt payments off top then that automatically decreases the money that you have available for yourself for your living expenses. So yeah, money’s gonna start feeling kind of tight there right. The key in the situation is not earning more money. And that’s not to say that earning more money isn’t a good thing, but that’s not enough. You have to start being intentional with your money, getting control of your money, habits, spending more mindfully, being intentional, being thoughtful about your choices, making a plan for your finances to spend less than you’re making, having a plan to decrease your debt to pay it off so that you don’t have so much going out and minimum payments. It all comes back to the habits that you have with your money. So here are a couple things you can implement now even if you’ve never make another dollar First, look at your money. You can’t keep avoiding your finances and expecting things to get better. You need to know how much money you have, how much you make each month, how much you spend each month, how much debt you have and what the payments are, how much your net worth is. Become aware of all those numbers, familiarize yourself with them and check on them regularly. It’s just like we talked about last week or the week before what gets measured gets improved. So make sure you’re paying attention to your numbers. Second, create a plan for your finances stop just floating along seeing what happens along with the flow. Right if that’s your approach to your finances than making more that you just keep flowing along with and you keep seeing what happens in going with the flow which is not going to help. Instead we are going to make a plan upfront. So I’m bringing in this amount of money this month. And this is where it’s going. This is how I’m using it. Yes, some of that will be built in needs and such. But I’m a big proponent of making room for fun too, because when you make room for fun, it makes it more likely that will actually stick with whatever plan you create. So make a plan for your finances including things that you need, but also things that you just want. Next, fund your goals first. So a lot of times we’re just going through the month giving everybody else money and hoping that we have something for ourselves. But no instead of just giving everybody else all your money all month and hoping that you have money left to save or pay off debt or invest at the end of the month. Set that money aside. First, put it in your savings account that way is out of sight out of mind. But if something comes up and you need that money for some reason, it’s just a matter of moving it back right like if you go ahead and make the extra debt payment for example, you can’t just call up Chase and ask them to send you that money back if something comes up and you need it. So set the money aside in a savings account. I recommend a high yield savings account that’s not attached to your checking account. And then you can move that money back to achieve your goal right but if something comes up in the interim, and you need some of that money, it’s there, you can easily access it. And finally, stop talking to yourself crazy about money. It is never too late to turn things around. Remember, you have a lot of control over your finances. In most instances. There are lots of things you can do even if you never make more so you just have to recognize that and act on it. So stop talking to yourself crazy. That is not helping. Give yourself some grace. And then move forward from there. Ultimately, your money habits are coming with you no matter how much you make. If you want to make lasting change with your finances, it starts with making a decision to change your habits, not just your income. All right, so that is it for this week’s episode. Please take a second and subscribe to the show. leave a review. All of that helps more lawyers to discover the show so we can spread the information. Thank you in advance for your support. As we close out friends I pray that you take the information you learn here, apply it in your life and open up to the realization that wealth is available to you. As you do that consistently. Week after week. You’ll continue to take steps to regain control of your time, build wealth and live a life of freedom and choice you deserve. Talk to you later.