The Breakthrough Cont'd

If you did not read yesterdays post from Jim Collins' book "Good To Great" please check it out before you continue with this one.

In that illustration (known as the flywheel concept) you are using a ton of force and only moving it a little at a time however at some point the wheel begins to turn on its own and even goes faster with you doing little to no effort.

I think we all want to be there in our finances. I have stated as a goal of mine, I want my alternative income streams to be greater than my expenses. This to me is true financial freedom. How do I do this? First I MUST understand this concept because it changes strategy on what our plan is.

What would happen if you were pushing that flywheel and you got tired and took a break for just a second (or a month when it comes to personal finance). The momentum would be lost and we would be discouraged to have to start over. Not only that, we would not have as much energy as before. If that happens perpetually we would never get to be to the breakthrough point.

This "stopping factor" can come in many different shapes when it comes to personal finances. It could be that emergency that comes up that we didn't have an emergency fund in place to counteract so we could keep building momentum. It could be the realization that it is hard right now and we want it to be easier immediately, instead of looking to the breakthrough point. Or it might be that you are just focused on results right now and give up because you are not seeing any.

Just like with the flywheel when we start we will put in the most effort and get the least amount of results. But getting to the breakthrough point is worth it and in anything you do and this needs to kept in mind.

Practically for any goal you have with your finances this applies. If you are budgeting for the first time it will take the most effort and you will probably make the most mistakes or be the most frustrated than you ever will. It gets easier, I promise. After a little over a full year of actually living on a budget, I am able to accurately, efficiently, and effectively budget my money in a matter of minutes for the upcoming month.

All it takes is getting through the initial max effort min results stages and looking to the breakthrough point.