Is it Painful on that Fence?

Procrastination is one of the biggest killers of dreams! 

I think it's safe to say that we've all got at least one dream lurking in our minds that we'd love to have come true. When the magic of a dream first touches us, we're filled with excitement and inspiration. Hours drift by as we're engrossed in full sensory daydreams, imagining what it will be like to have our dream come true!

The thing about dreams though is that unless you take some action, they simply turn into procrastination. And then you become mentally and emotionally stuck.

Dream sponge! 

When you allow yourself to get sucked into procrastinating for too long, old beliefs about yourself and your life start to surface. 

Your internal chatter shows up, and like a sponge, it starts sucking the life out of your dreams with habitual patterns of thinking like:

• "Maybe one day"
• "People like me don't achieve things like that!"
• "I'll never have enough money to afford that anyway"
• "I don't deserve to have/be/do…"
• "What if I fail and look stupid"

You get the idea!

We've all got our own favourite procrastination tune that we listen to, and then allow ourselves to become hypnotised by the words! But wouldn't it be fun to break the cycle and try something new and upbeat? 

If only…

I can't tell you how many amazing, intelligent, and independent women I've met who say things to me like, "If only I had the money to", "If only I felt confident and safe around money", "If only I understood how to manage money better and stop creating debt!".

Honestly, it's so frustratingly heartbreaking because it just doesn't have to be that way. 

Many of these women come into my world via my Money Quiz. The quiz is a lot of fun and uses 8 Money Archetypes. The archetypes work together to give a clear picture of exactly what's going on in your money DNA. 

There are 8 different money archetypes:

1. The Innocent
2. The Victim
3. The Warrior
4. The Martyr
5. The Fool
6. The Creator/Artist
7. The Tyrant
8. The Magician

Now, it's important to say up front that these archetypes are not your personality. They're characteristics and traits that show up in your money DNA. These traits are often inherited from your parent's beliefs, patterns, and behaviours around money. 

Of all the archetypes, The Innocent and The Victim are the two that are intimately connected with procrastination. And they're also the two that most women initially score high in. The good news, though is that we're in this together, and there's plenty that can be done to lower those scores. 

So, let's look in a little more detail at them…

The Innocent

They might appear happy-go-lucky on the outside, but internally the Innocent is full of anxiety and stress around money! 

Self-sabotage is the name of the game with the Innocent. This is someone who's very trusting and indecisive regarding money. She feels wholly powerless and often represses her feelings and beliefs. The Innocent seeks to be rescued or finds security by being financially dependent on someone else. 

I often call this archetype 'The Ostrich' because she has her head buried firmly in the sand and doesn't know what's going on with her finances. 

Tips to lower your score

It's time to believe in yourself, pull on your big girl pants and connect with your finances – I know you can do this!

The first place to start is by asking yourself these questions and then taking action to get the answers: 

• How much money do you have? 
• How much debt do you have? 
• Do you know what interest rates you pay on your credit cards? 
• Do you know how much is still outstanding on any student loans? 
• When did you last look in your bank account, and how much money is there daily or weekly? 

It's vitally important not to self-sabotage, so be extremely honest with your answers. Whatever you find, connecting with your money by looking at the complete picture is the only way you can start to change things. 

Are you ready to take your head out of the sand and understand exactly what's going on with your money? It's your money and bank account, and it's time to take control! 

The Victim

The Victim is another self-sabotager who seeks to be rescued. They often live in the past, and this shows when people say things like, "When we did X", or "When I had X" or "When I was married", etc. 

The Victim can be very resentful about things that have happened and how something unfolded, which means they can often be very unforgiving. The Victim is very highly emotional, prone to playing the blame game, and thinks that it's other people's fault they are in the situation they're in. 

The victim is financially irresponsible and feels powerless when it comes to their money. They're masterful at creating self-fulfilling prophecies by telling themselves they can't do something or will never be able to make money or reach a particular goal. 

Tips to lower your score

Grab a pen and paper and spend some time reflecting on these questions. Then journal your answers, capturing everything that comes up for you: 

• Who's betrayed you? 

• Is it yourself, others, or both?
• Are you planning but not following through with things? 
• If yes, why? 

Try your hardest not to judge your answers – it takes courage to be truly honest with yourself. There are gifts to be taken and lessons to be learned from the "good" and "bad" of everything, so let it flow – the truth will set you free! 

So, there are our two archetypes – did either of them strike a chord with you? 

What are you procrastinating about? What are you waiting for before you go for it? We're now into the last quarter of the year, and it's time to stop being frozen and get the job done! 

If finishing the year strong and being in a completely different financial situation by the end of it is one of your goals, act NOW! 

Here's your first step: take my Money Quiz to get your archetype scores if you haven't already done it. And then keep the momentum going and book your free follow-up call. To be clear, this is not a sales call – it's a value-packed call where we connect, and I'll share more about the archetypes and what your scores mean and give you some easy actions to help you get started with changing your money story for good. I can't wait to meet you! 

 Ilana Jankowitz is a certified Money Coach born and raised in South Africa and currently residing in Zurich. Her work is all about identifying behavioural patterns around money, transforming negative thinking and moving from a self-destructive mindset to one that is positive and inspiring.

She is passionate about helping women to break free from self-doubt, low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence and move towards financial liberation and she can help you too with her free money quiz.  You can read all about Ilana and her work here or on any of my social pages Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube