Money management and NDs

This month, I have teamed up with Colby Stephens, Personal Banker with First National Bank of Omaha. You can also listen to an interview with Colby here.  

 

I (Sheila) asked Colby to write down his thoughts for this blog because some of his advice is information I haven’t heard before. Colby is both ND and a banker, so his hacks may also work for you. Many NDs struggle with impulsive shopping, saving money, and budgeting. 

 

When thinking about finances, I (Colby) am reminded of a book called Rule #1. This investing book’s premise is that investing comes down to just one basic principle -“Don’t Lose Money.” This principle is both

common sense and easy to remember. The hard part with this principle is that investing has risks and many external and internal factors that the investor cannot control. Judgment and disciple are required to be successful with this strategy.

 

I (Colby) preface this example because personal financial well-being is similar. We can also boil it down to one common sense statement. “Save More than you spend.” That’s it. Pretty simple. 

 

But it’s more complex for us individually. Again, this is easy to say but can be challenging to manage because our world is set up to part us with as much and more of what we save and make. Technology makes it much easier to spend hundreds of dollars without leaving the couch and seeing any actual dollars leave our hands. Advertisements everywhere encourage us to get the next great thing to improve our lives. In other words, if you are like me, a neurodiverse person, then impulse purchases feel good and are addicting. If you buy one item, your brain is hardwired to push for that next happiness boost with a new purchase even minutes later.

 

Fortunately, with some personal trial and error, I (Colby) have found something that works for me.

 

1. Automate your payroll to deposit directly into a savings account:

a. The out-of-site, out-of-mind works really well with this concept. You don’t think about spending it if you don’t see it.

b. Automation is one of the biggest helps for me being neurodiverse. The less I have to track and think about savings, the better manually.

c. Treat your savings as if it isn’t yours. You can only spend it if it’s yours, making it less tempting to pull from savings when purchasing past your budget.

d. Your Savings and Checking do not need to be at the same institution. It is okay to build a barrier between you and your savings if you find yourself being tempted. It takes 48 hours to transfer from one institution to another, so your impulse will be gone by then. 

e. Save just for the purpose of saving. If you save for a purchase you want, you will find reasons to spend your savings. Make sure you save just to have money in savings.

f. Any savings is better than no savings. Start with $5.00 if that’s what you can afford. Learning to save is more important than how much. Your savings will increase as you develop the skill and rewire your brain to save instead of spend. I (Sheila) have clients who find a way to show this visually; watching it grow gives them a dopamine hit. 

 

2. Automate your retirement contributions even if you don’t have a retirement account with your employer.

a. Automation is one of the most vital tools in your toolbelt for saving.

 

3. Separate “fun” money and bill money into separate accounts

a. Bills need to be paid, and you don’t want to overspend on fun, causing you not to have enough for bills

b. Give yourself a budget and allow your fun money to be spent however you want, with no regrets. When you’ve spent your fun budget, it’s over until the next deposit. You deserve to give yourself some leeway and enjoy your hard work. Choose your budget and stick with it. If you try it out for a month and want to adjust, that’s okay. You are figuring out what amount works for your guilt-free spending, and that can take a little time.

 

4. If you mess up, don’t give up. Go back to your budget, reassess, and start the process again.

It is a lifelong pursuit, and it may take several tries. What’s important is that, like anything else, it can take time to develop and see the fruits of your adjustments.