{"id":12576,"date":"2023-08-17T18:43:45","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T18:43:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/personal-finance\/how-to-get-better-at-talking-about-money\/"},"modified":"2023-08-17T18:43:45","modified_gmt":"2023-08-17T18:43:45","slug":"how-to-get-better-at-talking-about-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=12576","title":{"rendered":"How To Get Better At Talking About Money"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

A recent study from Empower reports that 62% of people simply don\u2019t talk about money. And 43% would rather talk about politics, while 32% prefer to talk about death over money. Even in a day and age when we\u2019re comfortable sharing basically every aspect of our lives on social media, our society is still really, really uncomfortable talking about the Benjamins.<\/p>\n

As much as I\u2019d like to be surprised by studies like that, I\u2019m really not. If anything, running this site for the past few years has taught me that most people are either afraid to talk about their financial situation or don\u2019t believe there is anyone around them to talk to about money.<\/p>\n

While so many people don\u2019t talk about money, that same study reported that 66% believe financial conversations lead to financial freedom and building generational wealth. Additionally, 62% of respondents say it can help improve the gender wage gap, and 56% say that open money conversations can improve workplace transparency.<\/p>\n

If the majority of people believe we should talk about money and see the benefits, then how do we get better at doing it?<\/p>\n

Here Are 7 Steps To Getting Better at Talking About Money:<\/h2>\n

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1. Understand That Money Doesn\u2019t Dictate How Awesome You Are<\/h2>\n

A good portion of our society equates wealth with intelligence. If someone\u2019s moved up the corporate ladder, can start a successful business, or retire early, they must be brilliant. Right?<\/p>\n

The reality is that some of the most intelligent people I know have struggled to build a business or are buried in debt. Not only that, I\u2019d much rather hang out with them over some of the wealthier people I know. At the same time, I know people who\u2019ve found \u201csuccess,\u201d but it\u2019s more luck than smarts.<\/p>\n

Judging yourself based on your bank account or credit score isn\u2019t fair because money is a tool, not a character trait. Once you understand that, it makes it easier to avoid some of the negative stigmas surrounding financial struggles.<\/p>\n

2. Prepare Yourself for Getting Your Feelings Hurt<\/h2>\n

Now with all of that said, when you first start talking about money, it\u2019s easy to get defensive when people try to give you advice.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t even tell you how many times I\u2019ve seen people snap at each other for the smallest things when it comes to personal finance conversations. I\u2019ve definitely gotten negative feedback for my opinions about paying off debt or saving money.<\/p>\n

Cars are a great example. For whatever reason, people see cars as some type of weird metallic extension of themselves. Back when I was still driving a 14-year-old SUV, my story went viral because it didn\u2019t match my income. People thought I was making a statement judging their decisions to drive newer cars and then basically called me an idiot for not driving a more expensive car.<\/p>\n

Being defensive like that is natural, though, especially with personal finance. We\u2019re all conditioned to feel like any perceived critique of our money-handling skills is a direct attack on us personally.<\/p>\n

When I first started having conversations with my mentors, back when I was $40K in student loan debt, I would get defensive about facts. It hurts to be told that you have a negative net worth. It stings when someone says you can\u2019t afford the things that you want yet.<\/p>\n

Eventually, though, that negative stuff wears off. You realize the responses have more to do with how others feel about their financial situation, not yours. Once you reach this point, you can talk about money without all of the emotion.<\/p>\n

3. Find a Mentor<\/h2>\n

The one thing in life that you can\u2019t put a price on is wisdom. Unfortunately, when you\u2019re young, you have to find it elsewhere.<\/p>\n

My mentor, Mike, has had a huge impact on my personal and professional life. He took me under his wing and has taught me a ton of money lessons over the years. Through Mike, I met my other mentor David, who is a commercial real estate investor.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years, I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to hang out with these two very successful people and listen to some pretty interesting personal finance discussions. There were plenty of times when I watched them go back and forth about how to invest, how to run a business, when you should pay cash for things and when you shouldn\u2019t, etc.<\/p>\n

I learned how they think about risk, making decisions, ROI, and so on, and I applied the same strategies to my own finances and business. No one was telling me how to do things, but I learned how to approach big decisions.<\/p>\n

Obviously, mentors aren\u2019t just waiting around for you to find them. Keep it simple and start by looking for successful people in your inner circle of friends and family, and then reach out to them and see if they\u2019ll grab a coffee with you just to talk.<\/p>\n

4. Listen More Than You Speak<\/h2>\n

What\u2019s the point of having mentors if you don\u2019t listen?<\/p>\n

I think one of the hardest things to do in life is to be still and actually listen to what other people say, especially when it comes to personal finance.<\/p>\n

We all have egos, right? There\u2019s nothing wrong with having your own opinion on things, but if you\u2019re more eager to share yours than hear someone else\u2019s, that\u2019s a problem.<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t get anything else out of this article, understand that listening to other people\u2019s wisdom can be the key to success in anything you do.<\/p>\n

5. Consume More Personal Finance Content<\/h2>\n

There\u2019s no shortage of personal finance content these days, from social media, podcasts, YouTube, books, and blog posts. It\u2019s easier to access than ever, and I\u2019ve noticed a trend toward more authentic personal finance content, which I love.<\/p>\n

People are sharing real stories about money and not glossing over the difficult parts. They\u2019re telling you exactly what they\u2019ve gone through and what they\u2019ve done to move forward. Personally, I love this shift because it encourages discussion, and people realize that they\u2019re not the only ones who have ever struggled.<\/p>\n

It goes beyond knowing you\u2019re not alone in your financial struggles\u2014you can learn strategy, best practices, how to approach tough decisions, and how to plan for the future.<\/p>\n

6. Join a Group<\/h2>\n

I know I\u2019m biased, but I think my M$M Facebook group is one of the best private (and free) personal finance communities. Every day I see people share their unbelievably cool personal finance wins, and people constantly talk about how the group has changed their entire approach to personal finance.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a little bit of everything related to personal finance\u2014paying off debt, investing, early retirement, financial independence, budgeting, and saving money, just to name a few.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s really designed to be a place where people who don\u2019t feel very comfortable talking about personal finance can find a group of people who won\u2019t judge them or talk down to anyone (we are very strict on those things).<\/p>\n

My Facebook group isn\u2019t the only one out there. There are more niche groups for things like FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early), female entrepreneurs, real estate investing, budgeting for families, and so on. There are even local meet-up groups if you prefer in-person conversations.<\/p>\n

The point is, there\u2019s something for everyone and no reason not to get involved.<\/p>\n

7. Spread the Word<\/h2>\n

Now, it\u2019s going to take time to master the steps that I\u2019ve laid out, but once you do, try to spread the word in some way. The only reason I got excited about personal finance is that someone took me under their wing and showed me information that I didn\u2019t even know was out there. As you evolve in your own personal finance journey, you could be the same thing for someone else.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not saying that you need to talk to all of your friends and family members about their finances, but if you see an opportunity to get someone excited about personal finances, take a shot and see what happens.<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, money is a tool. It\u2019s a big part of our daily lives, and we should feel comfortable talking about it in the same way we talk about food, TV, music, and anything we interact with on a daily basis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read the full article here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A recent study from Empower reports that 62% of people simply don\u2019t talk about money. And 43% would rather talk about politics, while 32% prefer to talk about death over money. Even in a day and age when we\u2019re comfortable sharing basically every aspect of our lives on social media, our society is still really,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12577,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-12576","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance"},"yoast_head":"\nHow To Get Better At Talking About Money | iSafeSpend<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A recent study from Empower reports that 62% of people simply don\u2019t talk about money. 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