Being a good steward means you’re an effective manager. Therefore, good financial stewardship means you’re effectively managing your money.
Have you ever heard the phrase, “How you do one thing is how you do everything?” For the longest time, that made little sense to me. In the context of financial stewardship, it makes sense.
When you start paying close attention to one aspect of your finances, you pay close attention to all other areas as well. At least that’s been my experience.
I spent the majority of my 20s being a lousy steward of my finances. While I was earning plenty of money, I wasn’t paying attention to my cash flow, didn’t maintain a budget, and was in and out of credit card debt.
Thanks to a professional change, as well as meeting my now wife, I got on the path to financial success. I started paying attention. Together, my wife and I got started by paying close attention to our spending and cash flow. That active interest led to a deeper interest in our saving, giving, and planning.
Truly, once we started putting our attention on one area of our finances, all others improved as well.
Today, I’ve been helping people to become financially successful as a financial advisor for over 20 years, and I’m honored to have been named to Investopedia’s list of the top 100 financial advisors in the country many years running.
To be a good steward of our finances, I think there are five key areas to focus on. My goal here is to help you to become a great steward of yours.
Here’s what we’ll cover:
- Earning
- Saving
- Spending
- Giving
- Planning
Let’s get started.
Earning
John Wesley gave a famous sermon in 1789 in which he said, “Earn all you can, save all you can, and give all you can.”
When you read, “Earn all you can,” what comes to mind for you?
For me, I recognize how short the window is for humans to earn an income. Because of that, we must act with a sense of urgency and maximize our potential. Doing so will allow us to take care of our immediate families, and to also expand our impact to those we care for in our communities.
What would it take for you to earn all you can? Would it require additional education or certification? Perhaps you should start a business or ask for a promotion?
Saving
Saving and investing money has obvious benefits. You’re probably well aware you ought to put money away for your future-self. Yet too few of us are on track to be able to one day step away from full-time work and retire.
I believe once you focus on becoming a good steward of your money, you’ll give your saving and investing priorities more attention. Once you do that, you’ll be able to make tougher choices about delaying gratification.
What would it take for you to save and invest more?
Spending
“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had.” – Acts 4:32
I had the pleasure of hosting Abel Pomar, CEO of AdelFi credit union on the LifeBlood podcast. He shared that passage with me and talked about the idea of “recycling money” in your community.
The basic idea is simple: You identify who and what your community is, and do your best to do business within it. In Abel’s example, he talked about doing business with Christian-owned businesses.
The important idea is to be clear in what your values are, and to do business with people who share those values. Like many others, I had passing ideas/thoughts on what my values were. But it wasn’t until I took the time to sit down and actually think and journal about them that I got crystal clear (mine are Friendship, Justice and Learning).
In service of helping you get clear on yours, you can access our Values course for free.
Have you ever thought about this? What are your personal values?
Giving
To say Jesus was empathetic would be an understatement. Another part of my conversation with Abel dealt with how his credit union works to engage in empathetic banking. This means going far above and beyond traditional lending practices.
For example, when someone applies for a loan, but isn’t in a financial position to be approved, instead of simply denying them, they work to put a plan in place to help that person one day get approved. They provide them with the resources necessary to improve their credit and financial situation. This small, but extremely meaningful, does people a great service.
It struck me that the more time we spend thinking about our personal values, the better we’re able to serve others. Let me explain: Once I know what I stand for, what I stand against, and where I donate money, the more purposefully I can act.
When I encounter a homeless person asking for money on the street, I do not hand them money. Instead, I’m able to direct them to emergency and essential services that my family and I make donations to.
Who and/or what do you give money to? Why have you decided to do that?
Planning
Man plans, and God laughs. But that doesn’t mean we don’t plan. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
Since we’re all aware things don’t always work out exactly the way we want, we need to act accordingly and make preparations. Pre-Pandemic, I would recommend people to have three month’s worth of expenses saved as an emergency fund. Today, I’ve upped that to six.
I want everyone to achieve financial security. But I know that won’t be possible until people first reach financial security. Having an emergency fund of at least six months is that security.
And it’s important to plan for every aspect of your life. You and I need money today, we’ll need money in 10 years, and we’ll need it in 30 years. To help you clarify your most important goals and objectives, you can access our Goals course for free.
Financial planning sounds complicated, but it’s really a simple process. Taking the time to decide what you want your life to look like is the first step. Next, you need to put plans in place for making them happen. Finally, you must execute and adjust along the way.
How much time do you spend thinking about your future?
Closing
Anyone can become a good financial steward.
Decide you’re going to be one, and think deeply about the five areas you’ve just read about.
You can be a good steward of your money.
We’ve got three free courses you can take advantage of: Our Goals Course, Values Course, and our Get Out of Debt course.
If you’re ready to take control of your financial life, check out our DIY Financial Plan course.
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