8 Common Money Mistakes Women Make

I am writing this post because I don’t want you, my lovely ladies, to be “young, fabulous, and broke”. I had no concept of money when I was in my  twenties. Now that I am married and I have two children and a mortgage, I hear myself repeating this cliche a lot, ” I was young and stupid.”  When it comes to money I only have 3 rules: God first, then myself, then the bills. Yes, I do believe in tithing.

Here are the mistakes we make when it comes to money:

1. Thinking we own it– Your money is not even your own. The number one mistake we make is thinking that since we worked for it, it is our money. It all belongs to God. It is like the air you breathe. It can be taken away from you in 2.5 seconds. 
2. Not budgeting it – The good thing about budgeting is that you know where your money is going. This way if you need to cut back on something, you know exactly where to start. We also tend to spend too much when we don’t budget.
3. Feeling guilty about spending it- Some of us, especially those of us who have children, feel guilty about spending too much money on ourselves. You work hard for it honey. So you better treat yourself right. I am not saying to go out and splurge, but paying yourself is so rewarding. I am not encouraging you to not pay the bills either. It is okay to pay a portion of the bill if you cannot afford the whole amount. It is better than paying nothing. Your lenders or service providers will take half over nothing;  believe me.
4. Not saving enough of it – You should always save some money for a rainy day, or retirement. If you pay yourself $100. 00 a month, you should save at least $25.00.
5. Not giving enough of it- For those of you who believe in tithing, It is good to give to the church, but if you don’t believe in tithing, I encourage you to give to others because “it is more blessed to give than to receive”. My experiences have proven me right so far.
6. Thinking we can afford it – Ladies, if you have to pull out a credit card to pay for it, you cannot afford it, unless you have the money in the bank to pay for the credit card at the beginning of the next month. The primary purpose of a credit card is to help you build your credit, not to encourage you to use money that you don’t have. 
7. Not investing it – I don’t care what you invest your money in, company stocks, IRA, 401k, people, I don’t care. Invest it. I personally love buying stocks and enjoy the dividends. I also love to invest in people. Knowing somebody who needs money when you can help that person financially is such a blessing.  
8. Not talking about it – It’s okay to say that you are broke. Talk to your best friend or your parents about it. don’t hide it. It will kill you emotionally. If you are responsible to pay the bills, tell your husband or partner when you don’t have enough in the bank to cover the bills. We are human. We make mistakes. It is okay to seek advice. You don’t have to do it alone.