8 Money Lies You Tell Yourself That Can Keep You Broke

Sometimes we don’t even know we tell ourselves these lies. They’re often disguised as beliefs which I’ve come to understand that not all beliefs are facts; and these ones I’m about to share with you are just typical examples of lies we often tell ourselves!.. sorry.

Image credit : Fast forward accounting

Since we barely discuss money with friends, acquaintances, or family, we often find ourselves dwelling on these beliefs for a long time until we’re out of money, and maybe realize how much we’ve fxxked up.


Below are eight common lies we tell ourselves, or have at some point, told ourselves :

1. I have control over my impulses

As an optimist that I am, I always talk or write about how you have control over your behavior — which is true though but that it is only possible with constant practice!

Yielding to impulse buying while telling yourself that you have control over it, is never going to work!

Personally, I believe in retail therapy but I’ll only do that on a budget! We get short-term happiness from instant gratification - but when you get used to yielding to your impulses, then you’re never going to have control over it, and before you know it, all your money is gone; and what happens? 

My advice? Each time you want to buy something you didn’t plan for, give yourself two weeks, and see if you still want it. In that two weeks, you’ll realize how important it is or not.

2. I’ll start saving tomorrow

This is kind of similar to no.1. However, I kind of don’t believe much in saving, but in investing! But you still need some savings for rainy day(s) no one plans for because life happens; and when life happens, you need something to fall back on or sustain you while you get back on your feet! So if you keep telling yourself that you’ll save tomorrow every day you want to spend money unnecessarily, then you’ll never save; and you may run out of money.

3. The future is still far

I once told my hub that if I had the wisdom I have now, I’d have started saving my money from my college days! All the money my mum gave me as pocket money, I’d have been saving part of them; and by now I’d have had so much — so you see how time flies? You tell yourself “oh I’m still very young, and there’s still time to save. I’ll save by the time I’m this age”. I’m sorry, but that age you think will take you years ahead to get to, will happen in a blink of an eye. 

Remember those memes that say “me telling myself I’ll be married, have kids, and own a house at 25”; then by the time you’re 35, you realize that none of that has happened; and you laugh at yourself. That’s what happens with thinking that the future is far!

4. I’ll be happy if I have this amount of money

You ever heard of more money, more problems? The more money you have, the more things you want, and the more stuff there are to fix! They say money can’t buy happiness, but it’s still one of the most pervasive money lies we tell ourselves when dealing with personal finances. Money can buy happiness — but it’s only temporary happiness.

It’s okay to save like I said, but thinking that when you have saved up to a certain amount, you’ll be happy, is nothing but lies. Sometimes you may not even save up to that amount with the time limit you’ve set for yourself. So what happens? You probably get disappointed in yourself.

My advice? Strive for continuous progress instead. Focus on growing your net worth, and be proud of all your progresses!

5. I deserve it even if I can’t afford it

It’s okay to spend money and reward yourself; but spending it on what you can’t afford because you deserve it? I mean you probably do deserve it, but will it make you more money? Or you’ll prefer to ask people for money to buy that; and before you know it, you’re known as someone who’s always asking for money to live a flamboyant lifestyle. 

My advice? If you want to build wealth, then focus on what you can afford at that moment. You can always get anything as your money builds!

6. You won’t achieve anything if you always want more

I’m not sure who started this but this is kind of a trapped mentality. It’s okay to want more for yourself, and for your family or loved ones as long as you don’t let it overwhelm you thereby putting yourself under pressure which affects your entire wellbeing.

Thinking you shouldn’t want more, is like settling for less. It’s okay to want a better life for yourself! It’ll give you more ideas on how to grow financially — instead of just choosing to be in one place or taking every day as it is!

7. I can always pay the debt later

I’m not sure why anyone would think debt is good — especially the ones you can control. I think this is why insurance companies like GEICO Insurance is a good investment! This is an American insurance company by the way (for my American readers). I have no idea if Nigeria has any credible insurance company; but when I make my findings, I’ll see.

I know life happens, and sometimes we run out of money; or we’re in a position where we can’t access our funds. That’s totally different; but being used to owing, is never a good thing! And having the mindset that it’s okay to be in debt; and you’ll pay it later, won’t help you get financial freedom!

Nigerians that take money from loan apps/companies, have you seen how these companies embarrass them when they can’t pay? I’ve seen so many messages on my WhatsApp calling these debtors all sorts of evil names just because they haven’t been able to pay back their loans.

8. Only rich people can build wealth

This mindset will put you in a box. How did the rich get rich? I’m not talking about those with inherited wealth. I’m talking about people who started small — from the scratch. They were once like you and I, but they probably didn’t have this mindset when they started working on their goals.

Sometimes it feels like it takes decades to actually build wealth; but it does though! It takes time if you really want to go through the honest means!

So guys here are 8 money lies we often tell ourselves! I think honesty is very important when it comes to finances! What we tell ourselves or what we believe, really do influence our financial behaviors. 

I had to come to terms with this reality, and it’s helped me to spend better — even though I’m not there yet! But we can always learn, and grow together!!

Thank you for reading… Xo, Moxie 

Have you read 10 Ways To Develop Emotional Maturity

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