HAVE you and your spouse ever fought about money?
It’s not a secret that money has always been one of the biggest reasons why couples fight, families get broken, and lives become stressful.
I was already forewarned even when I was still single, so me and my wife decided that we should already made ourselves acquainted with money. We saw how important it is to learn how to save as it doesn’t only guarantee us a good and worry-free future but it also makes the lives of the people around us better.
Now marriage is a different and a whole new season for everyone and for everything in our lives, including our finances. And bringing in good saving habits into our marriage and family life can turn out to be one of the best things that we can do for our spouse and our family.
But the habit of saving can be challenging especially in marriage when both spouses don’t have the same financial roadmap and goals in mind. Therefore, to make saving fun and effective instead of obligatory for you and your spouse, you might want to:
Agree on the same goals on why you save
Do you dream of moving into a brand new house in the next three or five years? Do you want to replace that old car with the latest one? Or perhaps, that dream vacation that has long been in your dream board?
Discuss your goals with your spouse and set actionable steps on how both of you can make those goals happen. When couples share the same vision and dreams, there is a good chance that their teamwork is activated.
Furthermore, agreeing on the same goals will help both of you encourage and remind each other on why you decided to save in the first place.
Plan for exciting projects together
Your financial goals will help map out your financial road map but creating and planning special projects while you work towards those goals are energy boosters and added motivation.
Discuss with your spouse if there are projects that you would like to take on for the next few months – changing the color of your fence or renovating your kitchen area.
Anything that will excite and motivate both of you to hit that savings target!
Inspire each other to save
No amount of motivation and inspiration from other people can push you to your best than those that come from your spouse. When you hold each other’s hand and remind yourselves about your dreams for your family – now that’s the ultimate inspiration any person can get.
We get the best inspirations from people that we love. And so when we learn to inspire our spouse, we are sure to get results: Hard work, dedication, and focus, to name a few.
Boost each other’s strengths
If your spouse is good at saving, give a compliment. If your spouse is better at budgeting the expenses, show appreciation. If your spouse is not quite disciplined when it comes to spending but shows great attention to detail when it comes to picking out the best food for the family, boost your spouse’s strength.
Focus on your spouse’s strengths instead of his or her shortcomings.
Criticizing your spouse’s ways especially when it comes to saving and handling the finances might just discourage him or her to save, so be careful. Remember that you are there to support and encourage, so less criticism would be best.
THINK. REFLECT. APPLY.
Why do you think it’s important for couples to save? And why is it important for couples to enjoy and be effective at saving? What can happen when couples do not value the importance of saving?
