Think about what you could achieve by this time next year…

Do you want to increase your income and savings, but don’t know where to start?

Thinking about money can be very overwhelming. If growing your income is on your to-do list for the new year but you're stuck in the same space, you’re in the right place.

I’ve spent years working on my money mindset, and I want to share my hacks with you. In this article, I share my 9 top tips that will help you 10x your income and savings in 2022.

Note: I know some people might be offended by this episode, please note that I'm just sharing my own experience and this episode does not cover all the things you need to know about money or finances.

#1 Focus on making more money

Here’s the thing: so many people, books, and articles talk about how you can save money.

Of course, you have to be in control of what's going out, but you also need to think about how you can make more money.

Focus your energy on creating more, instead of on spending less. You cultivate a more abundant mindset that way.

So here’s your first tip of the day: figure out how you can make more money.

If you feel like you’re not bringing in as much as you need or would like to, get creative. Consider spending one night a week making some extra cash.

#2 Get out of the poor man’s problem

We’ve all been presented with this choice at one point during our lives: do I spend a lot of money at once or do I spread it out into small payments/get a cheaper option, that'll end up costing me more?

The issue with the poor man's problem is that choosing the payment plan or cheaper option gets you into deeper trouble.

It might seem like an easy way for you to afford something now, but you’ll probably end up spending way more over time.

If your laptop breaks and you don’t have money for a new one, you might be tempted to go for another cheap model. But chances are, that laptop will break too, and you’ll end up paying to get it fixed again.

If you’re in that vicious cycle right now, see what you can do to break the habit.

Example: you want to buy a new car. The payment plan means you’ll end up paying way too much over time for that car, so consider a second-hand option instead. You could also choose to skip the car altogether (for the moment!) and save that money.

It’s about making smart choices.

#3 Embrace delayed gratification

In my parents’ generation aka the boomers, it was really normal to cut back on spending when going through a major life event like having a baby or buying a house.

In the present age of social media, however, us millennials feel like we need to have it all, all the time.

We’re reaaaally bad at delaying gratification:

• Someone’s in the Caribbean on an amazing vacation. “Ugh, I want to be there too!”
• Someone buys a beautiful new home. “OMG, I want to buy a house like that as well!”

The consequence is that we’ll buy things because we’ve seen other people with them.

But we never know the full story: maybe someone went on that dream vacation or bought a big new car, but they have no savings left.

Delayed gratification is something you can work on learning for yourself – and trust me, it will pay off.

Start working on enjoying delayed gratification as well as the joy of looking forward to some things, and your bank account will thank you.

#4 Look at your expenses as assets vs. liabilities – and choose wisely

Essentially, assets are things that make you money, and liabilities are things that cost you money.

• An asset is like real estate: you could buy a house that you rent out, and make money from it.
• A liability is like a new car: the moment you drive the car out of the showroom, it loses value instantly, because it’s now a ‘used’ car.

If you’re in a situation where you’re spending too much and making too little, it’s time to revisit what your non-negotiables are.

Maybe you feel like you can’t eliminate anything else because your expenses such as Netflix AND a phone bill AND an internet bill AND getting your hair and nails done are all non-negotiables for you.

To keep the balance in your personal finances, try to divide your expenses into personal assets vs. personal liabilities.

Example: A personal liability would be getting your nails done every few weeks because the value – pretty nails – disappears.

Example: A personal asset would be your gym membership, as long as you’re using it! If you are, it’s helping you become stronger and improves your life in a number of ways.

Try to keep this in mind the next time you're spending money: is this expense life-improving?

Maybe having pretty nails is life-improving to you because it makes you feel more confident, which might lead to you making more money in the end.

#5 Scrape by in the short-term so it can pay off in the long-run

I've already talked about the poor man's problem and delayed gratification.

Contrary to what Instagram might tell you, getting what you want whenever you want is not normal.

When you look at people who are really rich, chances are that for years and years they didn’t spend all of their money.

Let’s take doctors for example. Doctors go through years and years of scraping by, but later in their life, they make a lot of money. Because they've sacrificed a lot in the beginning.

That’s kind of like what Gary Vee said:

“Eat shit for five years, eat caviar for the rest of your life.”

If you want to create more for yourself, you’re probably going to have to change or sacrifice something – but please don't work yourself into the ground just to become a millionaire by thirty!

As usual, it's all about balance.

Imagine you want to move apartments, but you can’t right now. You’re paying too much for your current apartment to be able to afford the down payment for the new apartment. That’s the poor man’s problem right there.

If you want to get out of that vicious cycle, it will mean having to sacrifice some stuff for a while.

And that could mean sacrificing things you’re used to buying and spending less, or it could mean sacrificing some of your time and energy to go and make more money.

#6 Keep track of what you’re spending

You know I always say ‘what you measure is what you can increase'?

Well, this kind of goes for your finances as well: to know where to ‘increase' you need to collect some data first.

Start by taking a look at your bank account and track all of your expenses for just one month to find out exactly what you’re spending your money on.

Example: Let’s say you’re spending €100 on birthdays each month and you’re making €1700 a month: that’s 6% of your income you’re spending right there.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t give gifts to people but you could definitely find ways to save money in this area.

You definitely should be aware of where your money is going, to say the least.

When you actually sit down and look at your other expenses that don’t occur every week – such as going to the hairdresser – but that occur on average every month, it adds up to be more than you might think.

Here’s my advice: keep track of where your money is going.

You’ll always have your non-negotiables, but if you feel like you have a lot of non-negotiables, you might want to consider scaling that down a bit.

By this time next year, you could have 10x income or 10x savings, if you start tracking and managing your money today.

#7 Pay yourself first

If you keep waiting for your mood or situation to be perfect, it’s never going to happen: you need to start saving NOW.

There’s this book that I love called The Richest Man in Babylon (George S. Clason), and it talks about this 10% rule:

If you save 10% of your income, you can still get by on 90% of your income.

I was a bit skeptical at first, but this is actually one of the easiest ways to build a buffer for yourself.

When your paycheck comes in (either from yourself or from a boss), automatically redirect 10% of that to a different account you don’t see.

It doesn’t sound like much, but over time it really adds up. It might not be a down payment for your house, but it will be a really good financial buffer for when you get sick or need to do some emergency spending.

If you save €30 every month, that’s €360 over a year! Having €360 set aside is better than having €0 set aside.

By saving 10% before you spend, you’re also prioritizing your future.

Instead of getting really psyched for that €30 purse from a fast-fashion store, you’re investing in your future.

Choosing your future self over your today self is really powerful.

#8 Save by spending 10% less

Sometimes the easiest way to save 10% is by spending 10% less.

If you want to save what’s ‘left over’, I’m going to guess that there won’t be anything left over.

You’ll always have an excuse for yourself, like “oh this time, I need to buy Christmas presents”.

Instead, consider looking at the money you’re planning to spend on Christmas presents, and put 10% away already.

I’m sure you can make do with the leftover money – 10% isn’t going to make much of a difference for your spending, but it is going to make a difference for your savings.

#9 Improve your relationship with money

In order to make more money, you’ve got to improve your relationship with money.

When you talk negatively about money, positivity isn’t going to flood back to you.

There’s this Japanese concept that I love of thanking your money when you spend it, called Arigato. (Arigato means ‘thank you' in Japanese)

Instead of being resentful towards the fact that you have to spend money, tell yourself which amazing opportunities spending this money brings to you and thank your money for doing so.

If you spend money feeling resentful or, you send out the signal that you hate your money – and money would hate you right back.

If you tell yourself you can’t afford something, consider switching it to “I choose not to buy that.”.

Example: when I pay the wages of my staff, I thank my money for allowing me to work with these people who want to help in building the business up – instead of cursing about how much their paychecks cost me ;-).

If you focus on what you can’t afford, all your brain will hear is “I can’t.”

Creating options in your life is the definition of freedom, and that’s what we want to create here.

RECAP: What can you achieve in a year?

When you set some financial targets for your savings and earnings, you’d be surprised at how much can charge in a year.

#1 Focus on making more money

#2 Get out of the poor man's problem

#3 Embrace delayed gratification

#4 Look at your expenses as assets and liabilities – and choose wisely

#5 Scrape by in the short-term so it can pay off in the long-run

#6 Keep track of what you’re spending

#7 Pay yourself first

#8 Save by spending 10% less

#9 Improve your relationship with money

By using these tips and taking these small steps to get control over your money, you can start creating more money.

Don't underestimate what you can achieve in 1 year if you start implementing these money habits today.

Start small, and you’ll see massive results. You’ve got this!

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Watch this episode on YouTube, or listen via iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts, and search for episode 108 of The FastForwardAmy Show.