4 Simple Ways to Become More Financially Disciplined

If you want to be better with your money and reach your financial goals, you must learn to be financially disciplined. Being disciplined will keep you from making mistakes like overdrafting your bank account and withdrawing from your savings and retirement funds. It will also help you make better financial decisions and achieve more financial success. Some people are naturally more disciplined. For everyone else, financial discipline is a habit that can be learned.

Commit to specific goals. Financial goals are things like “save more money” and “pay off debt" are too vague. When you set financial goals, be specific with amounts and timelines. How much money do you want to save? By when do you want to pay off your debt? Then, commit to seeing it through. The ability to commit and follow through on financial goals is a sign that you’re financially disciplined. 

Set priorities. When it comes to how you spend money, not everything has equal importance. Generally speaking, you should pay yourself first (put money in savings), pay your bills second, and use what’s left over for discretionary spending. Since there are stronger consequences to not paying your bills, you may feel pressured to prioritize bills above saving money. You can break this habit and mindset by planning and arranging your finances in such a way that you can comfortably afford to save money first, then pay your bills.

Continuously express gratitude for the things you have. The desire for new things is hard to overcome, even more so with companies constantly marketing to us. When the people around us always have the latest and greatest, we can feel like we’re missing out if we don’t keep up. One of the best ways to resist the temptation to buy new things is to focus on appreciating what you already have. A genuine and sincere sense of gratitude will leave you satisfied with what you have and less interested in buying new things just to keep up with everyone else.

Manage your time effectively. If it’s really true that “time is money,” then it goes without saying that failing to manage your time is akin to a failure to manage your money. It’s probably no coincidence that some of the most financially successful people have great time management habits. You can manage your time more effectively by creating a plan for your day, focusing on what’s important, staying on task, and fighting distractions.

Being financially disciplined isn’t just about sticking to a budget. Sticking to a spending plan is a big part of being more disciplined with your money, but it’s also more than that. As you become more disciplined with your finances, you’ll probably find that you’re more disciplined in other areas of your life too.