How your tribe can help you win with money
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One of the main reasons I wanted to build this blog and business was to create community with people who want to be intentional with their money. Space where people can celebrate and encourage each other without fear of judgment or criticism.
If this sounds like the type of community you’d like to be a part of, keep reading! Today we are going to dive into a few ways to use your tribe to help you win with money. Read on to learn more about OUR communities!
Breaking Down Stigma
There were times during our debt-free journey where I felt very alone. We didn’t talk about the process openly. Only a couple of people were there to high five when we reached milestones along the way. As a result, people were shocked when we announced we were officially debt-free!
It seems like we are taught from a young age not to talk about money. There is generally a veil of shame over this whole topic of conversation. Unless you are winning, keep your mouth shut and ‘fake it til you make it’.
Here’s the thing with that, though. You can’t FAKE your way through your finances. You need tools. A strategy. Support and education.
That’s why we are here! Breaking the stigma. Talking about money.
We were in debt. Together, we owed over sixty-five thousand dollars to various lenders, and we often didn’t know how we were going to pay even the minimum payments, let alone chip away at the balances. We didn’t have the knowledge, the tools, or the motivation to get out from under it and that was incredibly scary.
But no one knew any of this, because we didn’t talk about it.
But you guys??
It’s okay to say you are struggling. And it’s okay to say you are kicking butt! Let’s let go of the hush-hush-don’t-talk-about-it attitude and just be honest with each other.
I want talking about money to be normal in your home.
So that you can ask for help when you need it.
So that you can have peaceful, goal-driven budget meetings without fighting.
So that we raise the next generation of humans with the tools and the knowledge and not make the mistakes we made.
Debt-Free Screams
One of the daily features on the Dave Ramsey Show podcast is ‘normal’, everyday people doing debt-free screams. They share where they started, how they hustled, and celebrate their success with one of the people who got them to the finish line!
Part of what kept me motivated on my debt-free journey was listening to other people who had done what I was trying to do. I listened to a lot of Dave during my months of debt-elimination, and I spent many a drive to work wiping tears from my eyes, hearing the joy and pride that people shared during their Debt-Free Screams.
Knowing that there were other people in the world who felt overwhelmed and scared by their finances, who were drowning under a tidal wave of debt, and who worked their butts off to swim to the surface and proclaim “We’re DEBT-FREE!!!” – THAT was my carrot.
If they could do it, so could I!
Our Reach community is designed with the intention of sharing these debt-free scream victories with our tribe! When YOU reach debt-free status, I would love it if you would share a bit of your story and post in our community. This is an opportunity not only for you to feel PROUD of what you’ve done (hello!? This is a huge accomplishment!), but also for you to encourage and inspire others to do the same.
In the future, we are planning to do feature posts to share the stories of our debt-free community. Not only as a place for them to share their journey but also as a place for new readers to see and think “Hey! These people are just like me! Maybe I CAN do this.”
Social Media
I have a tough time with social media because while I think it helps connect us, it also keeps us pretty disconnected from each other, too. If my feed bombards me with pictures that tempt me to break my budget or question my dedication, I’m not following the right people. I choose to follow accounts that inspire and motivate me!
We wrote a whole post about the trouble with Social Media and comparison. Let me say that choosing to be a part of inspirational communities on Facebook or Insta or whatever your platform of choice might be, can go a long way to keeping you motivated and helping you reach your goals!
We are on both Instagram and Facebook – @reachformoreblog on both – if you want to join our community! We’d love to see you there!
Reach for a Million
One of the ways we are checking in with our social media tribe is through a program called Reach for a Million.
My current BIG goal for Reach is for our community to collectively pay off one million dollars. Every few months we do an all-call for people to share and let us know how much debt they have paid off in their debt-free journey.
It is so exciting for me to get notes from friends, family, and strangers sharing the progress they have made. Head on over to our awesome Facebook Group to share your progress!
Share with Your Friends
One part of this journey in breaking down the stigma about talking about money is feeling comfortable to share your story with your friends. Maybe not every human you meet needs to know your debt totals or budget lines. However, it’s really good to share with some select folks what your goals are and what you are doing to achieve them.
For example, I have a pair of awesome ladies who have started doing monthly budget check-ins. They are accountable now not just to themselves, but also each other. Great community building! It is as simple as a monthly coffee date.
Likewise, sometimes a new set of eyes and a gentle nudge to trim down an area or to allocate money differently can make all the difference.
If you feel inspired – share the love! You never know who might need to get their budget started or need a bit of extra motivation this week to stay on track!
Finally…
I hope after reading this you have a sense of how strongly we believe in community and how passionate we are about intentional finance.
Share with your friends.
Talk with someone at work.
Do a ‘Reach for a Million’ check-in with us!
Whatever you do, make sure you have a community as part of this journey. Your tribe can truly help you win with your money – to celebrate the wins and remotivate when times get tough!
Maybe you are just getting started in the world of intentional finance and budgeting. Start here:
- Setting up your zero-based budget in 4 easy steps
- How to balance your zero-based budget
- How to say goodbye to debt forever
And don’t forget to join us on social – @reachformoreblog on both Facebook and Instagram!
