Challenging the Belief: "I Can't Afford It"
Has it seemed like lately everyone around you is going on vacation and you’re looking at prices to Disney World for one week and immediately shut your laptop real quick? You’re thinking wow the reality is $8,000 for one week in the most magical place on Earth, but that magic is going to hit hard when you try to take the kids out of school, take time off, or plan the trip around other commitments. We’re just way too busy and can’t afford it right now.
I’m not here to deny the fact that times are hard. There are lots of people legitimately struggling financially, people who’ve lost their jobs, and some who are in medical situations that have responsibilities that are outside their current means. I want to provide perspective around the belief of “I can’t afford it” that so many of us carry, which by the way is another way to keep ourselves small. By examining this belief and questioning its validity, we can open ourselves up to new possibilities and take control of our financial situation.
When we walk around holding these beliefs as truths, we are limiting our potential. We tell ourselves “I can’t afford it” because we genuinely believe that we can’t, but when we see others doing it we take it personally and get defensive. I talk about intentional spending, and I believe it is so important to use our money on the things that matter to us, the things that we value, because at the end of the day that makes us happy about where we are spending our hard-earned money.
We create a sense of autonomy when we spend our money how we want. Telling ourselves that we can’t afford something disempowers us. We are no longer in control. Things are too scarce to make a decision like that. We become fearful of making decisions, comparing ourselves to others, and just shut down.
But what if how we see the world determines what’s possible for us? So if we go through our days thinking we can’t afford something, we’re going to continue to stay stuck and continue to get the same results. It’s like a circular reference for all you Excel geeks out there like me. When we don’t make decisions based on the thought that “I can’t afford it” we are ignoring and denying our true selves.
We’re telling ourselves that our dreams don’t matter and they aren’t important enough to turn into reality. We are in a helpless state where we’ve conditioned ourselves to be happy in the box that we’ve been given. But what if instead of saying, “I can’t afford it.” we said, “Okay, I don’t have this right now, but what can I do to get this?”
What can I do to make this happen? I’m tired of playing the victim in the belief that other people just have money to do things and I don’t. When we approach life with the perspective of “yes, I can do this.” we’ll be able to get more creative and resourceful and find solutions to our deemed problems. Maybe I sell unused items around my house or take one less trip to Target a month.
Sometimes it takes an accountability partner to keep us on track. Will you be mine? I want you to hold me accountable that within the year I will have booked a Disney trip with the family! Let’s challenge ourselves to question our beliefs and explore the possibilities. Let’s shift from a mindset of scarcity and “I can’t afford it” to abundance together!
If you’ve enjoyed this blog, check out my podcast, Money Isn’t Scary where I help people overcome their fear and negative associations with money by empowering individuals to take control of their finances.