What are the steps to have more money?

A lot of people are going online to get a quick fix to make more money. For too many, money is a constant stress.

Making more money can seem to be the best solution to solve all their money problems. That’s one of the main reasons people are turning to the internet to start earning more money. Do you really want to build a business where the only goal is to make more money?

Do you think money can solve your problems? I invite you to read this text about lottery winners who lost everything a couple years after winning a big chunk of money.

I’m going to give you 5 steps to follow if you want to have more money:

1- Make a budget

2- Revisit your expenses

3- Get a side hustle to earn more money

4- Pay off you high interests debts

5- Invest every month.

But these are soooo boring! OK, don’t do any of these and try all the get rich quick scams and then, when you see it’s not working, come back to that list.

If you don’t know how money works, you won’t be able to keep it and use it in a way you really want to.

For each step, I’m going to share some tips. If you don’t know how to manage our money right now, you won’t be able to manage a bigger amount of money later.

Keep in mind that the money that you don’t have in your bank account is in someone else’s bank account.

Here, I’m going to give you the Most efficient ways to have more money.

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Step 1: Make a Budget

I don’t want to do a budget…This is such a waste of time! Is it? If you are going for financial freedom and that’s the main reason why you want to create an online business, you know, to diversify your sources of income, this is probably something you already do.

For a majority of people, you want more money because you don’t know where it goes. I have found a statistic from Money Sense  that says that the debt ratio of Canadians got up to 175,4%.

What this means is for every $1 earned, they owe $1,75. Ouch! Things aren’t brighter in the United States. I didn’t find the ratio, but from different sources, the personal debt average is anything between $50,000 to $100,000.

Are we making that budget already?

Choose the most convenient way to make you budget that suits your personality. There are apps available, you can create an Excel document or simply take a sheet of paper and start writing numbers.

Super simple to do. You want to create 2 columns: one for revenues and one for expenses.

Tip: You can separate your fixed expenses from everything that changes month to month. Fixed expenses include your rent or mortgage, insurance, car payments, loan payments, cell phone, internet, cable, etc.

Ok so now, go get all your credit card and bank statements for the past month. With multiple highlighters, you can highlight different spending categories on your statement. For example, you can highlight in yellow all the amounts for gas, in green grocery, in pink restaurants, take out and other food, in blue all your subscriptions and in orange, the clothes. What’s left is in the other category.

Are you scared? It’s super important to know where your money goes. Now, for each category, you add up numbers. Let’s get those numbers going!

In the end, you want to make the grand total of your monthly expenses versus your monthly revenues. Are you happy with the numbers?

If you are not, let’s go to the next step.

Step 2: Revisit Your Expenses

Now that you know the numbers, you can make changes and adjust your future expenses to a determined budget.

Start with the categories that are not essential to survive. You don’t have to cut out all the fun you have going to the restaurant or getting a coffee from Starbucks everyday. You want to prioritize what is really for your mental health and reduce the rest.

Tip: Noticed that I said reduced, not cut off? Unless you have way too much debt and you are really tired of not knowing how you will see the end of it, you don’t need to be super drastic. Let me ask you this: Do you really need your cable subscription? Do you really need 8 gig of data for your cell phone? Can your kids have a cheaper cell phone plan? Is there a way you can pay less for your internet?

There are many solutions available to help you reduce the amount of money that vanishes every month. You want to monitor everything and every time you are about to get your credit card to make a purchase, ask yourself: do I really need it?

Most of the time, the answer will be no. I do that with my kids, they hate it, but it teaches them to be more responsible with their money.

So crushing the numbers here, how much money per month can you save? If you are still unable to save any, it’s time for the next step.

Step 3: Get a Side Hustle to Earn More Money

I know, easier said than done. But for someone who really wants to achieve their financial goals, it’s possible. You may not have to do it for a long period of time. It’s temporary. Unless you want to build a profitable online business, you are in for the long run.

There are hundreds of side hustles available. They can be done from home or somewhere else. Try to choose something you will enjoy a least a little. It can be anything like getting a part-time job, driving for Uber or walking dogs.

You can be a house sitter, a proof reader, a freelancer, an affiliate marketer(but that takes longer to generate money). Maybe there are things in your house you can sell, you can cook for other people.

Maybe you can get a new job that will make you earn more money. Even simpler than that, is there a possibility for you to work overtime or to take more shifts?

I mean, there are so many things you can do, just pick something you can do that will give you an extra income and commit to it until you have saved some money. The goal here is to be able to have some savings as an emergency fund.

Tip: The extra money you are going to earn here is not meant to be spent. It’s to pay off your debts and build an emergency fund. It’s not the time to create new expenses because you are earning more than before. Stick to your budget.

Step 4- Pay Off Your High Interests Debts

Ok, so now you have a budget and you are earning some extra money. Hopefully you have a growing emergency fund.

Some people say an emergency fund is one month of income, some say 3 months, other 6 and I have seen 2 years of income as an emergency fund. Ok ok, don’t panic. You don’t have to go for the 2 years right now. The important thing is to build that fund every month. I’ll talk about it in step 5.

Here, you want to get rid of those high interests debts, often on the credit cards. You can call and ask for a reduced interest rate on your cards. Instead of paying around 20%, you could pay 10%. That’s something to consider.

Keeping in mind that you want to create a safety nest AND pay off your debts you want to create a plan.

Pay more than the required minimum payment on your credit cards every month. This is why having a good budget is important. If the minimum is $100, give $200 or even $300. Take a look at your statement. It tells you how long you will have to pay if you make the minimum payment every month. Do you really want to pay for the next 20 years a shirt you bought on sale?

Tip: To keep a good credit score, you don’t need 10 credit cards. So keep one and hide the others until they are fully paid. Keep one that you have had for the longest time. That helps your credit score.

Step 5: Invest Every Month

This is the fun part. Now that you have the control of your finances, it’s time for you to get financially literate and start investing.

What is it? Oh you don’t have time. Ok, then let me explain this quickly: don’t keep all your money in savings accounts. You are losing money if you keep it in your bank account.

What you want to do is open a brokerage account, there are free ones that charge very little fees for the transactions you make. Wait! You mean I have to buy stocks!? Isn’t that risky? Not as risky as leaving your money at the bank and paying fees for letting your money sleep there.

That’s why you want to get financially literate. Many books out there to learn more about money. Even Tony Robbins wrote one on money.

You need to understand the strategy. You are going to invest money, not trade money. The easiest way to get started is to buy low fees ETFs that mimics indexes like the S&P 500. There will be ups and downs, but the average return is usually above 6%. Just leave your money there.

For your emergency fund, try a no fee savings account. That way, you always have instant access to that money if you ever need it.

The best way to save money and create an emergency fund is to automate your savings. Everytime you are getting a paycheck, there will be an amount of money that will be taken from your checking account to your savings account.

Tip: If your savings account is with another bank, it’s even better because you won’t be tempted to take money from it. Same for your investment account. You want to send the same amount of money every month there, or every time you are getting paid.

What makes that method efficient, is that you are left with no other choice but to stick to your budget and spend no more than what is left in your account. It will be easier for you to build your emergency fund and save for bigger projects you may have.

Automation is great. You set it up and you forget about it. Let time and compound interest do their magic. That way, your money works for you, so, eventually, you don’t have to spend all your time working for money.

In conclusion

Having more money is not something that will happen overnight, unless you win the jackpot. Most millionaires are self made millionaires and they didn’t make their fortune overnight.

Stick to a plan and a budget, increase your income, pay off your credit cards and other debts that would be over 6% interests and iautomate your investment to create a good safety nest and to save money for future plans you have.

Just like building a business, having more money takes time, focus, patience. consistency.

At some point, the budget you have to stick at will become a habit and it will be part of your routine. You will develop good spending habits and you will be able to invest money every month.

Revisit your budget yearly once you have surfaced from the negative zone. That way, you will be able to make adjustments when needed.

Even if it doesn’t always seem like it, there is an infinite amount of money out there. You can always get more. It’s up to you to make smart decisions and use it wisely.

If you want to know more, you can visit Minority Mindset website. There, you will find tons of intersting information. They are based in the United States, so some what they say don’t really apply to other countries, but the basics are the basics and they are good for everyone. They also have a YouTube channel that is full of information.

Let’s get that money!

Cynthia