Not Financially Free Yet? Maybe You Haven’t Been Selfish Enough. That’s Right, I Said It


Are you being selfish enough to succeed? How’s that for a loaded question today? Ha ha.

But here’s the thing – Imagine what you could accomplish… if your money came first. Before everything else.

Now, before anyone sends me hate mail claiming that I’ve suggested my readers become some narcissistic, money-grabbing barons, hear me out…

Pretend you only had to focus on saving money, investing it and watching it grow in order to see your net worth climb and climb. What if you had no other obligations other than building your wealth? Would you look like Bill Gates? Or Larry Ellison. Would people confuse you for Warren Buffett?

It’s fun to think about “what if” – what would you be capable of if you put your finances over everything else? Most people would answer the question above with something like “I would end up in the BEST financial shape of my life…except that’s not possible. You see, I have…”

• A wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/alien from outer space
• Kids/dragons/pets/aliens from outer space
• A job with a boss who is an alien from outer space
• Time-consuming hobbies like watching my favorite TV program about aliens from outer space
• Friends/obligations who sometimes appear like aliens from outer space

Ask anybody, and they’ll provide you with any and every reason why their finances can’t come first.

The Finances First Philosophy

Today, I’m going to challenge you to spend the next 30 days putting your finances first. That’s right, you get to be as selfish as you need to be in order to accomplish your goals. When you are trying to build healthy habits, especially if you are going all in, it’s often quite difficult to give yourself permission to “be selfish” when society tells you that other things are a higher priority.

Everyone says “I’d love to save more money,” but the reality is this: it’s not what we say is a priority, but rather what we DO that’s the real priority. Give yourself permission to be selfish for a month while you’re getting the ball rolling. Because it’s going to be a challenge to bust through bad habits and societal pressures, this might be what you need to finally build those good money habits that you’ve been wanting to obtain.

Don’t think you can actually put finances first? Let’s take a look at a few examples:

You Become Selfish With Saving Money

You commit to saving 15% more money than normal each week, and there is NOTHING short of a zombie apocalypse that will keep you from saving that money. You let your friends and your loved ones know that saving money comes first. At least for this month. If you start feeling the temptation to spend, or something catches your eye to purchase online, you get up and leave so that you don’t spend the money you’ve committed to saving.

What You Think Will Happen

Your wife will divorce you and your kids will start to go hungry. After all, there’s NO way you’ll find the extra money to save, right?

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What Actually Happens

After a month of saving more money, you learn to how to manage money better. You are FULL of pride because you know that you are taking care of your family for the long term (much to the delight of your loved ones). Your kids are inspired and want to become “financially strong like mom/dad.” People learn to respect that you’re building wealth and stop bothering you to spend money on mindless things.

You Become Selfish With Reading More

Just like you need to consume enough healthy calories for the day, you also need to consume plenty of financial “vegetables and protein” each day. Every day, you have permission to be a little selfish with your time and read more books about investing and wealth. Slow down and actually read complete books instead settling for reading “fast food”, like a quick article online. Take your time and do it right.

What You Think Will Happen

You’ll go blind in three days. Because you’ll spend ALL of your time reading, your friends and family will disown you for your unusual reading patterns, and your golf buddies will forget your name. You’ll miss all of your favorite TV shows and your TV will dry-up and rot away. You’re cable company will cancel your service due to lack of use.

What Actually Happens

You spend more time on reading, forcing yourself to learn systems to manage your money more effectively so you’re prepared for retirement. That time can now no longer be wasted on things that are not important. You realize that 95% of the garbage on TV is useless anyway, and after a week you don’t miss it. After explaining your goals to your friends and family, they start supporting you. Your golf buddies may have forgotten your name, but that’s OK because they start referring to you now as “Mr. Money”.

You Become Selfish With Investing

Like other good money habits, you have an investing discipline that you stick to. You tell your friends you can’t blow a lot of money on a new boat. You attend seminars and conferences to learn how to invest wisely. You buy low like the investing legends, so that you can sell high later. You purchase that investment property you’ve had your eye on and you start having your money work for you instead of the other way around.

What You Think Will Happen

Your friends will hate you because all you talk about is earning a high rate of return on your money, and you won’t have time to go shopping; you’re going to miss out on SO much as you look after your investments. You’ll become Scrooge McDuck and whither away in your mansion, alone.

What Actually Happens

You start wondering what exactly you were wasting time on in the past. You make incredible gains in your net worth, better than you ever have before. The nervousness about your financial future starts to disappear. You still have plenty of time to play with the kids and you have the satisfaction that you’re leading by example for your family.

Look, this article was a little tongue-and-cheek, but I hope you get the point.  Sometimes it takes a jolt to get out of bad habits. And sometimes getting out of bad money habits can take a big jolt. I’m not suggesting that you make a lifelong habit of becoming selfish, just that you perhaps do the opposite of what your normally do with saving, reading and investing for the next 30 days. That’s long enough for any bad habits to be replaced with good habits.

When you put your financial health first before everything else, after a week or two in which you have to scramble to get everything done, you will still find the time you need to get everything else done in your life. Yes, it requires a lot of discipline. Yes, you’ll probably need to give up a few activities. Yes, you’ll need to make time and there will be sacrifices. Yes, you’ll need to get your friends and family on board. Yes, things will be a little different.

And yes, yes, yes…it is worth it. It’s worth it for the peace of mind. It is worth it for freedom. Yes, financial freedom is worth it.

Be free. Nothing else is worth it.

Financial Freedom Monty Campbell

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Ever wondered what it’s really like to be financially free? In a word, it’s great! I post images and videos of me living the financially free life on my Instagram page. Click here to check it out!

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Ready for more tips on how to achieve the free life? Check-out these articles from the blog archives below:

Would You Go Into Battle Without Ammunition? Why Most People Lose The Financial Freedom “War”

Could This Little Known Method Dramatically Improve Your Success With Money?

How To Get Virtually Anyone To Mentor You, Including Famous People

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