Then the budget gets forgotten as spending increases not only during the summer months but lasts until the end of the year and the cycle starts all over again.
 
The reason I am writing about this is twofold.
 

1. We are a society and culture always on the go, never taking down time during the day and even our vacations are non-stop activities. Go Go Go!
2. Breaking your Summer Spending Plan can create relationship friction and impact your long-term goals.

 
 
Let’s talk about Breaking the Busy Habit.
 
“Busy is a sign of success.” Many people wear it like a badge of honour. I played that game myself until I hit the wall and it came crashing down on me.
 
NOT, taking vacation, down time, coffee breaks etc where we disconnect and that means, no phones, no internet, no tv just taking some time to sit back and be lazy is detrimental to your health. Stress, burnout and depression are the norm these days because we have literally retrained our brain and body with the belief that sitting doing nothing, gazing out the window is considered bad, lazy, and not a good use of our time. Feelings of fear of missing out or guilt around chores/work not getting done creep into our conscious thoughts when we become idle. No one likes to feel like that therefore we get back up and start working or joining in on all the activities that keep us busy busy busy, exhausted and stressed.
 
The one thing you cannot buy is TIME. You get to control how your time is invested. What matters most to you? We all have the same 24 hours per day.

I think that the benefits of taking lazy and idle time during the day and on vacation are much greater than you can imagine.
 

• Increased feeling of emotional wellbeing.
• Better sleep.
• Healthier body and mind.
• Your creativity will increase.
• You will be more productive. (Counter intuitive I know but true)
• Better at problem solving.

 
First thing to acknowledge is taking downtime is a practice. It an adjustment to get used to, because our brains have literally been re-wired to accommodate our busy hectic schedules. We have been trained to operate 24 hours a day never taking time to rest and slow down. God forbid we get caught being lazy or daydreaming. Therefore, you may experience some push back to the exercises I suggest. Be gentle with yourself as you practice being idle or bored.
 
I have a CRAP sheet I give to my clients who have a hard time letting go of the day or are being interrupted by critical self-talk during the day. I ask them to write all their thinking crap onto the sheet of paper parking it for later use. Not that they ever go back to it because who wants to fill their mind with useless self-talk. If you would like a copy of my CRAP sheet send me an email and I will send it out to you.       mailto:barb@barbwallick.com?subject=Send me the CRAP Sheet
 
 Tips for slowing down, being idle and practicing boredom.
 

1. Take one-minute day dream breaks during the day. Set your phone to ding several times a day to remind you to take several deep breaths and dream.
2. Find a nice piece of grass lay down and stare at the clouds/sky passing by.
3. Go for a walk without your phone and consciously notice the sounds, smells and sights around you.
4. Meditate - ignore your thoughts they won’t go away just put them in a bubble and let them float away.
5. Create a place in your home with a comfy chair to sit in. Yes, just sit idly.
6. Embrace doing nothing and don’t be afraid to let people know if they ask what you are doing. “I am doing nothing”
7. Take your coffee and lunch breaks get out of the office without your phone even for 10 minutes.
8. Host boredom parties with your friends - device free of course.

 
I am sure you can take it from here. Remember those long hot steamy summer days are for retraining your brain to be idle.
 
I get my best ideas when I am doing nothing or playing at something that I enjoy and don’t have to think about.

Spending more during the warmer summer months can really mess with your long-term financial plan and create tension in your relationship. By practicing the above-mentioned idleness exercises you will be less inclined to schedule activities that cost money. Seems simple and it is. Here are some other ideas to keep you within your spending plan. I was going to say budget but I really dislike that word.
 
Why do we start spending more in the warmer summer months?
 
Well, it’s warmer and since we have been mostly stuck indoors during the colder winter months our impulse is to go out have fun with friends and family. We also tend to plan the big family vacation as well as have pressure to keep our kids out of our hair during school breaks, not to mention daycare and summer camps.

 
I remember how hard it was to keep my daughter entertained and looked after while I worked. The cost of summer care if I could find it, and summer camps added up. During my summer vacation we would put our little pool up, invite friends over to swim and there were many days of little girls camping out overnight. We love to entertain and made it our mission to be a destination house with the BBQ on and the fire pit bringing welcoming neighbours and friends. We still do actually.
 
Another reason money can be spent Willy Nilly during the summer is quite often we want to make up for time not spent with our children. Perhaps, work has been long and hard and your summer vacation is a way to really spoil your family and spending extravagantly makes your feel happy. It fills a void and it’s a way of making up for time not spend together. Cultivating quality time together creating experiences go much further in our memory banks than buying material items that go by the wayside very quickly. I suggest creating experiences and cultivating quality time together fully present and in the moment.  
 
One of my favourite summer memories was during a summer BBQ. The adults were having a great time when my daughter decided she wanted to paint her Dad’s eyebrows pink. It took a little persuading but before you know, it together with her friends, we pulled out all the old Halloween wigs and had placed them on each of the fathers then painted their eyebrows and beards pink and blue. I never laughed so much and we will always remember that night fondly. There may have been a cold drink involved as well. 
 
Tips to keep Summer Spending in line.
 

1. Schedule time with your spouse/family and plan your summer fun.
2. Create a spending plan and make a game of staying within it.
3. Open an account and save each month towards summer fun
4. Research and find local free activities to do.
5. Practice idleness - picnics in the park - frisbee - beach days.
6. Make a game of teaching your kids to be idle.
7. Enrol your friends in your new idleness methodology.
8. Create fun summer themed parties with everyone pitching in.

 
 
In summary, learning and retraining your brain to rest on idle will actually increase your creativity and productivity this summer. It will also be a great way to stay within your summer spending plan keeping in alignment with your long-term financial plan. Emotional Spending is like emotional eating. It is never the spending or eating that is the problem. It is the reason why you are spending. Which is most often a feeling that you are attempting to experience like joy and happiness, which is covering up perhaps loneliness, sadness and guilt.
 
Remember to appreciate what you have in your life each day, your children, spouse and friends. Spend quality time verses spending to ease the guilt of overworking. Practice down time without your devices. Start daydreaming again your brain will learn to open up to it, slowing down the critical I have to keep busy, so much to do self-talk. Life is to be enjoyed on the journey it is not a race to be more and have more or a race to the finish line. Create memories that last a lifetime.
 
Feel free to reach out to me if you need guidance on your financial journey both in the financial dreaming and practical planning aspect. I am at your service. Don't forget to join me on Social Media see the links below. 

Who are they? You know the gurus and coaches out there preaching and teaching about how if you just change your mindset you will achieve all the success you've ever dreamed of and wanted.
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It has taken me years to realize that having a positive mindset is not enough to be successful. Not to mention all the tips, affirmations and coaching only took me so far. What I didn't realize, I was missing several pieces of the make more money and be successful puzzle. What I also discovered, that going from an employee to entrepreneur was about to shine a light on every insecurity and limiting belief that was hidden deep inside me. I have to laugh now looking back. 

Don't take this the wrong way, having a supportive and positive mindset is very important on the road to financial success, however I got a little tired of reading about what was blocking my success and wanted a little more direction on how to think powerfully, feel good and believe in myself consistently. In other words how does a person release negative and critical thoughts and beliefs permanently. How do you create a supportive and positive mindset that wasn't always a constant battle? 

The bigger question though is why on earth did I keep slipping back into my old patterns? They say when the student is ready the teacher appears.

What I soon discovered was that my positive mindset was not in alignment with my belief system. I was running on old self limiting programming that constantly reminded me that no matter how positive glass half full I thought I was, at a deeper level unbeknownst to me, my programming was telling me I wasn't "good enough" "smart enough" "worthy enough" and on and on it went. I was also harbouring unwarranted and irrational emotions of Anger, Sadness, Fear, Hurt and Guilt. That, what I had experienced over the years from a young age was internalized and I was living it out as an adult. Who knew how powerful my old programming was, I didn't that's for sure. The funny thing is that our unconscious mind organizes, stores and remembers everything good and bad. 

​For me it only came to light after my Mother died. I was always a shy and quiet child and I carried a sadness within me, right into adulthood, experiencing times of wanting to just crawl into a shell and not come out to being depressed and going on medications. I very easily recognized the behaviour and patterns I had fallen into, but didn't know how to shake this deep feeling of sadness all the time. 
It was the perfect storm. Deep rooted unwarranted sadness and all the critical self talk was running the show. I was riding on a roller coaster, some weeks positive and raring to go and some weeks wondering why I even bothered thinking maybe I should just go get a J.O.B. 

From an outsiders perspective I appeared confident and successful, out giving talks, socializing with a smile on my face, but inside I was confused, scared and felt I was running out of time to make a big impact on the world. 
The fire burning inside me, my purpose, vision and need to guide others into financial success wasn't going away so I decided it was time to reprogram my soulware. Time to dig down deep to the root cause of all the crap that wasn't serving me. I hired a NLP Master Coach told her what my problem was and experienced the biggest shift of my life. So big in fact I myself trained to become and am now a Certified NLP Coach. Talk about gaining clarity on how to guide others to releasing critical self talk. 

That was just under 1 year ago, I have never felt better, joyful, purposeful and crystal clear on how I want to show up in the world. I have so much to share having worked 33 years in the Financial Industry not only the typical Financial Planning Strategies we all need to have in place but as a Certified NLP Coach, Time Line Therapy® Practitioner and Hypnotherapist I also have the ability to guide you through the process of releasing old beliefs so you can stand powerfully, confidently and truly earn what you are worth. Imagine what that would look like for you! 
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So, yes mindset is very important, so are the emotions you experience as well as the thoughts you have. Combined they lead to your behaviours. I would love for you to discover the most powerful version of yourself. Book a Money Magic Clarity Call it is never to late. The Power is in You.