They should understand your "WHY"

While I am still accumulating resources for my "Emergency Fund"; as I have written on my previous post [Before saving, have an Emergency Fund], I am sharing some ideas to my mom. I find the most convenient time to talk during we're together at the table either eating lunch or dinner. I share what I learned through my readings, experiences and with the talks from people I met from time to time in the topic of money, investments and other financial matters. I also end up questing my mom if she knew about these matters when she's at my age - she just smiled. I sometimes throw-in some joke around with her saying "how come you never taught us about these matters if you knew?"

To my understanding, my parents may have ideas about savings, investments, insurance and other financial matters but it may only be the tip-of-an-iceberg. They may have heard about those but never really had the courage to dug-up because of their mindset, to be a good employee. Most probably they're not much of a risk-taker, maybe because they're afraid to fail and since there are three of us in school, they wanted to be on the safer side.

When we undergo changes in our lives, especially for the ladies getting into the adolescence stage; we often go to our parents or the people who are close to us. We are trying to ask questions and we are continually letting them know our situations. The same thing if we wanted to pursue financial growth for our future. They should be the first to know about our plans, share with them our ideas and maybe they are also willing to do the same and help each other. My family is one of the reasons I am doing this, they may not be directly involved on every aspect but indirectly they will somehow feel the difference as I start doing my financial planning.

I started to share this idea to my girlfriend, and together we watch some of the videos I'm watching about financial literacy and planning. To myself, I think she should understand what I'm doing is not only for myself, my family but also for the both of us, and I also wanted her to understand the idea and if she's open to do it I'm very much willing to help her. For sure she will be the first to notice about the lifestyle change. It will not be a drastic change and be totally frugal but slowly adjusting, minimizing unprecedented and impulse purchase for something of less use and start living by means. With regards to my family, they may notice a few adjustments for my personal-share on the commodity especially on times when cash flow is not high-enough.

Financial Planning is an individual's commitment to do or not. Anybody can tell what needs to be done, how to do it and when to do it but nobody can force anybody to do it unless they understand deep within themselves their reason for doing it in the first place.

If you're serious about changing or improving your financial understanding share it with the people around you, start with your family, friends and your everyday acquaintance. Think of it as a "mosquito coil" when you got your base covered, and your financial ability can stand on its own, then try and reach slowly from the center-outwards, consistency is the key to master it.