January 7, 2020 • Newsletter
I promise I won’t talk about having perfect vision for 2020. I’m not going to do it. It is overused, it is obvious, and it’s annoying. I have read too many newsletters referencing perfect vision so far this year. And it is only January.
But I am going to talk about setting your intention for the year. After all, we humans love these annual reset points that enable us to recommit to our goals, envision the future we want, and cure all of our worst habits. Of course, most of these well-intentioned thoughts at the beginning of the year disappear before February begins.
So how can we set more intentional intensions?
When it comes to money, the most effective intentions are often very specific ones. So this year, think about setting three money intentions for yourself.
First, what is your saving intention? How much money do you want to have saved by the end of the year? Be clear about what your savings goal is, and be clear about where you want the funds to be stored. Are you saving for an emergency (in which case, having some funds in a savings account is not a bad strategy)? Are you saving for retirement (in which case, your savings will likely be in a retirement account)? Are you saving for both (in which case, your goals need to be specific)? Take a moment to jot down this amount, and note how much you have currently as well. (It will help you track progress over time.)
Next, what is your expense intention? What do you want to spend each month to exist as a human in the way you want to exist? Be clear about this amount, and be even more clear about the reasons behind this amount. Not all of our personal expenses are flexible, and that’s okay. Set an intention that reflects your reality. And set an intention that reflects your values as well. It’s an election year; are you planning to contribute financially to your favorite candidate? Reflect that in your expense intention. We are facing environmental concerns across the planet; are you planning to be cognizant of your own consumption? Reflect that in your expense intention. Take a moment to set your expense intention for each month. Then, you can check in with this amount as the year continues to see how it’s going.
Lastly, what is your income intention? Is there a magic number you’d like to earn this year? Is there a number you’d like to earn from your art, rather than from related sources of income? Are you thinking about changing your pricing strategy? What does that look like? Maybe you are thinking about income in terms of works sold, performances given, or audience members reached. It’s okay to quantify income in these terms. After all, this is your intention.
That’s it. If you simply your financial intentions into three core ones – what you intend to save, what you intend to spend, and what you intend to earn – you’ll be poised to achieve them. And that is quite a vision for 2020.
~Elaine
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