Follow up from earlier post: Small purchases may feel harmless, but they add up quickly. With intentional strategies, you can take control of your money and make spending purposeful. ✨ Strategies to Curb Micro-Spending: - 📝 Track Every Dollar: Keep logging your expenses to stay aware of where your money goes. Awareness is the first step to change. - 🚫 Pause Before You Buy: Wait 24 hours before making a non-essential purchase. Many impulses fade with time. - 💳 Set Spending Limits: Create a small, budgeted allowance for micro-purchases each week. This allows flexibility without overspending. - 🛍️ Avoid Triggers: Identify stores, apps, or routines that lead to unnecessary purchases and reduce exposure. - 📦 Unsubscribe and Delete: Cancel unused subscriptions and remove shopping apps from your phone. - 🎯 Focus on Goals: Keep your larger financial goals visible, like savings, investments, or debt repayment, to motivate mindful choices. - 🏦 Use Cash Envelopes: Allocating physical cash for discretionary spending can make micro-purchases feel more real and controlled. ***Live humbly--think about your relationship with others and with money. The video below mentions on how in Swiss culture it is frowned upon to be flashing one's money and how status is not dependent on how someone 'shows off' what they have but rather their ability to manage what they have responsibly. *** I appreciated this because a lot of the U.S. culture (and media that we ingest) is counter to this*** - 💬 Reflect Weekly: Review wins and challenges each week. Celebrate when you make intentional choices and adjust strategies as needed. 💬 Question to consider: What small habit could you change this week to reduce micro-spending and save more toward your goals? (for me? It's going out to eat...It's my biggest expense I would say)

A friend and I are planning to go on a trip next year. Looking at the cost made me think...man, that's pretty pricey. What can I do to save some money? And..my mind automatically went to all the small purchases that I make that aren't really necessary but that give me the little bursts of dopamine. Small spending habits add up faster than most people realize--at least this is the case for me and many that I've seen around me. Paying attention to where your $ goes can reveal patterns and help you make intentional financial choices. ✨ What is Micro-Spending? Micro-spending refers to the tiny purchases we make regularly that often go unnoticed, like: - ☕ Frequent coffee runs - 🍫 Snacks, drinks or vending machine treats - 🛒 Impulse buys at checkout - 📱 Subscription services you forget about - 🍕Lunches at work - 🎁subscription boxes, in-app purchases, delivery fees 💡 Why Track Your Spending: - 📊 Awareness: Seeing where your money goes uncovers hidden leaks in your budget. - 🎯 Goal Alignment: Helps you prioritize spending on what truly matters. - 💰 Savings Boost: Cutting back on small, unnecessary purchases can free up significant cash over time. - 🧠 Mindful Habits: Builds a conscious approach to money instead of automatic spending. ✨ How to Track Spending Effectively: - 📝 Use a Budget App or Spreadsheet: Record every expense daily. - 💳 Check Bank Statements: Regularly review transactions for unnoticed charges. - 🏷️ Categorize Expenses: Group spending into essentials, discretionary, and “micro” purchases. - ⏱️ Set a Weekly Review: Reflect on patterns, wins, and areas to improve. - 🎯 Create Spending Limits: Allocate a small daily or weekly amount for micro-spending and stick to it. (this is something that we've done in the past and it ended up being a good way to practice self discipline too) 💬Question to ponder: What’s one micro-spending habit you discovered after tracking your expenses, and how did it change your approach to money?

I recently watched a video called “17 Tiny Habits That Made Me Rich” and wanted to share the key takeaways. (I may return to this to elaborate on each point further) *** The main message is that small, consistent habits can transform your finances and life over time. ***Some of these habits are not so small and may actually require more effort than others, though Here are some of the habits that were highlighted: 1. Create more than you consume 💡: This can be applied to multiple aspects of life--creating more sources of income and spending /consuming less; creating more time to dedicate to finances and spending less time on things that you would consider time wasters (e.g. scrolling) 2.Surround yourself with positive people/distance yourself from negative influences 🌟: Surround yourself with people that inspire growth and that encourage financial responsibility as opposed to individuals that encourage backsliding/poor habits that lead to financial loss. Additionally, we feel better around individuals with a positive mindset which contributes to generativity and higher motivation. 3.Track your wins and milestones 📝: When you visually see your wins, it's easier to gain momentum. This also impacts the brain and those little dopamine hits can be really powerful. 4.Practice gratitude regularly 🙏: Having a mindset of abundance as opposed to scarcity creates a mental space that is more positive. Negative/unhelpful thinking can keep individuals stuck and not able to see more possibilities. A mindset of gratitude allows us to see opportunities everywhere. 5.Automate savings and investments 💳: make processes easy; have some of your paycheck automatically go into savings; the more barriers you remove, the easier things are. 6.Set clear and realistic financial goals 🎯 : Think SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely: I will put $20 aside each week on Friday for the next year so that by the end of the year I have $1,120 to put towards the vacation I have planned)

I often meet people who say that they are "tired". Conversation then leads to the question of, "Yes, but what KIND of tired are you?". Sleep will only "fix" the physical or sleep-related fatigue. But the other types of tired including mental fatigue (cognitive load), emotional fatigue, or moral or spiritual fatigue/injury all require different types of intervention. This post will focus more on the cognitive/work load type of tiredness--burnout. This type of burnout can still be impacted by physical factors of course, but there are other things at play that require our attention if we are to prevent or decrease the level of burnout. Burnout is an invitation to address your inner life...your relationship with yourself and things in your life! Below is a condensed version of symptoms, causes and interventions. :) Then, a video if you choose to see it. No pressure :) Lastly, a worksheet for yourself or use in your profession! ⚡ Symptoms of Burnout Emotional - 😓 Exhaustion - 😰 Feeling overwhelmed - 😠 Irritability - 😒 Cynicism - 😶 Emotional detachment Physical - 💤 Fatigue - 🤕 Headaches - 🌙 Insomnia - 💪 Muscle aches - 🍽️ Digestive problems Cognitive - 🧠 Difficulty concentrating - 📝 Forgetfulness - 📉 Reduced productivity - ❓ Difficulty making decisions Behavioral - 🍷 Increased substance use - 🚫 Neglecting self-care - 👤 Withdrawal from social activities--there's been times when I've just wanted to stare at a wall and think of nothing (this was a sign of burnout) - 🏢 Increased absenteeism/getting sick more often 🔥 What Causes Burnout - 🕒 Overwork: Long hours without breaks drain energy and focus; poor work-life balance - 📈 Unrealistic expectations: Trying to do too much or please everyone adds constant pressure; I'd say perfectionism and overachieving tendencies can also fall under this category - 💻 Always “on” culture: Emails, messages, and notifications prevent full mental rest--these will be there in certain work environmens. This can contribute to a sense of lack of control and if this is also attached with difficulty setting boundaries, it's burnout waiting to happen - 💔 Lack of support: Feeling isolated makes stress harder to manage - 🎭 Emotional exhaustion: Caring for others constantly leaves little energy for yourself - 😴 Poor self-care and lack of coping mechanisms: Skipping sleep, unhealthy eating, and no exercise weakens resilience; substance use while an attempt at coping, ends up sabotaging this as well

🌱Generativity vs. Stagnation 🌱 - all about leaving a positive mark on the world and contributing to the growth of others. - 🌟 Generativity = guiding the next generation, creating, giving back, or building something lasting (ex: raising kids 👨‍👩‍👧, mentoring 🌟, community work 🤝, writing a book 📖, starting a business 💼). - 🌀 Stagnation = feeling stuck, disconnected, or overly self-focused, without a sense of growth or purpose. 💭 The core question is: Am I making a difference beyond myself? --------bonus read------- https://www.verywellmind.com/generativity-versus-stagnation-2795734 ---_----------_----------_----_----- ✨ Question: What are some ways YOU practice generativity in your own life?