Some habits are easier to pick up than others - mostly bad habits. But for long-term stability, developing healthy financial habits is essential. According to a recent article in DailyFinance, studies have shown that it can take 66 days or more for a person’s behavior to become a habit. If you have poor financial habits, they have probably developed over time and will take time and effort to reverse.

1. Improve Your Habits To Improve
Your Finances

2. Some habits are easier to pick up than
others - mostly bad habits. But for long-
term stability, developing healthy
financial habits is essential. According to
a recent article in DailyFinance, studies
have shown that it can take 66 days or
more for a person’s behavior to become
a habit. If you have poor financial habits,
they have probably developed over time
and will take time and effort to reverse.

3. Want to change
Identifying your problems and making
the decision to change can be the
hardest step on your way to making a
better financial future. This first step
involves asking yourself hard questions.
Do you spend recklessly? Do you make
payments late? Do you take credit card
advances in order to make a payment
on another card? All of these behaviors
can be signs of poor financial habits that
can become serious problems if left
unchecked.
But identifying bad habits is often the
most difficult step. Knowing your
problems and making the decision to
correct them is a large part of the battle.

4. Have a system
Habits are things we do automatically
and the same must be true for your new
financial habits. Paying off debts and
saving money should feel like a reflex.
You shouldn’t have to think about it.
This is why automatic contributions are
such a powerful tool. Knowing that a
certain amount of your income will be
directly funneled into a retirement plan,
savings account or IRA removes the
much of the temptation to make a poor
financial decision. Reducing the number
of decision you have to make with your
money takes much of the guesswork out
of financial planning.

5. Additionally, you can limit your spending
by linking your debit card to an account
with a fixed amount to avoid overages.
Automate whatever you can, and that
will limit the need for excessive
willpower.
Use the buddy system.
It always helps to do things with
someone who can hold you
accountable. Confide in someone you
trust to help you to succeed, and
provide them with the information they
need to check up on you. Your spouse
or bestfriend can provide much needed
checks and balances to keep you from
straying from your financial goals.

6. Focus on what you have to lose.
Behavioral economics shows that
people are much more willing to put
effort into avoiding loss, than they would
be into attaining a comparable gain. Use
this instinct to your advantage. Think
about the money you have lost to your
poor financial habits. Think about the
money you stand to lose. Track your
spending down to the penny to see how
much of it is wasted.
To read more, check out the original
article DailyFinance.
(Photo courtesy of TaxRebate.org.uk)