Money Mindset Shifts I Made in My 30s
Having experienced my entire life through the lens of an eldest daughter and perennial big sister, it seems that I’m continuing this role at work and amongst my friends. The topic at hand? Money matters. One of the things I’m proudest of since hitting my thirties is the renewed, balanced and smart mindset I have towards my finances. I think it was largely driven by years of balancing books and managing my income as a freelance writer, but what matters it that I’m there. I have the balanced mindset towards money that I always assumed would just come naturally to me in adulthood.
First, a bit of background, since we’re all in different boats and walks of life.
I was raised in a fairly (or very) modest household. My parents are immigrants and moved to England from Hong Kong and Malaysia – thanks colonisation, I guess? As was the case for most immigrants in that age, they worked at restaurants and takeaways and, eventually, bought their own to run. Thanks to that decision, I was a) raised by my Granny, and b) learned to be very frugal since our family’s income largely depended on the hunger of the British public immediately in our local area. We don’t ‘come from money’ and there is no generational wealth to be seen here.
In my adulthood, my income has varied a lot! I’ve gone from traditional 9-5 to freelancer and back again, again, with varying incomes. And, of course, it’s important to note that I am not renting and I don’t have children yet, I’m lucky enough to contribute to a mortgage between two adults, and fund my doggo.
Regardless of reason, I am pretty happy with my finances at the moment, and I thought I’d share some of the ways that I got here.
Pay yourself first
A leftover mindset from my freelancing days, I always pay myself first on payday. This simply means taking care of your savings first, instead of last. To achieve this, I keep a monthly budget tracker that I update every week, which gives me a pretty good idea of my typical spending patterns and, consequently, how much I can comfortably save each month. More on this below! But, essentially, after a bit of forward-planning, this sum then goes straight into various savings accounts, automatically, on payday, via standing orders that I set up years ago. It doesn’t have to be a lot, but I find that starting the month having already saved something, starts your week on a good foot.
Investing
Although I have paid into pension schemes since I started working full-time aged 21, I only started investing ‘properly’ in 2020. And I really wish I’d started sooner! Investing, while risky, can be a brilliant active or passive long-term ‘income’ stream. Essentially, investing is putting money and faith into the standing and success of public companies, and getting a little or lot in return. Your literal return on investment. I shared a post all about my investing tips for beginners a few years ago, if you’re interested in a little more! I prefer to invest in sustainable companies and, each month, I add a small amount into my investing pot and decide where to invest it (often just in ETFs).
Saving for the future
For some reason, I spent a majority of my twenties earning hard and spending hard. Perhaps it was because I had one foot in the influencer circles, where newness and endless trends are normalised, but I just couldn’t really ‘see’ a future to save for. I eventually started saving hardcore at around 27 to buy a home but, before that, I wasn’t in the mindset for any sort of future.
Once I turned 30, that all changed. I got intentional about saving for my house, for big trips I’d always wanted to do, for a potential wedding, for my future family. To do this, I needed to get both realistic and wildly unattainable by coming up with some figures, then ideal dates, then split up how much I ‘needed’ to save. Trust me, this gave me the hugest kick up the behind to start saving my money and stop frittering bits away on the newest must-have shoes or eyeshadow palette or £7 flavoured coffee.
Buy better to buy once
Of course, you all know that I’m a big fan of buying better to buy once: I’ll always prefer to splurge on a genuinely great-quality piece instead of buying cheap and having to replace it five times. I often hear arguments from my friends that they can’t afford to splurge on one great pair of jeans… then watch as they haul 10 dresses, two pairs of jeans and a random bag for more than the price of the great pair of jeans. And, really, it’s all about the mindset. For me, investing in one clothing item that workers have been fairly paid for, that’s crafted from more sustainable materials, and that is well-made so it’ll last me for years and years, is more worthwhile than spending money on a cheap or more affordable alternative that was made in a poorly run factory, from polyester (plastic), and that will need replacing after two or three goes in the washing machine.
