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I have a real problem with ignoring anything related to finances. I’m not a disorganized person in general, but my brain shuts down when it comes to money. This has led to big issues with bills being paid on time and other important financial decisions like opening a 401(k). I’ve paid late fees on my credit-card bill countless times, even though I almost always pay it in full when I force myself to look at it.
My finances aren’t that complicated. I’m 28 and single and have a salaried job that offers retirement benefits. I rent my apartment, so I don’t have a mortgage or anything. My student loans are still on pause, so there’s only so much trouble I can get into with those right now. As far as I know, I’m up to date on what I owe, but that’s mostly because I keep things as financially simple as possible since I’m scared of what will happen if I don’t.
I know I need to grow up and figure this stuff out. For example, I should start putting money into my 401(k). I think I might even have money somewhere in a 401(k) from my old job, but I don’t even know where to begin with that. The prospect of trying to find out sounds so torturous that I would prefer to just lose the money, which is ridiculous. My question is, How can I get past this mental block? What’s wrong with me, and what can I do to fix it?
The crux of your problem is not that you’re bad with money. It’s that you’ve decided you’re bad with money. Then every time you encounter something finance related, a trapdoor opens in your brain and you fall into a black hole of how bad you are, embarrassingly bad, the worst.
This is the classic setup for avoidance. Once you develop negative associations with money (how bad you are with it, truly terrible, you suck), then of course you won’t touch it with a ten-foot pole. Unfortunately, ignoring your finances just causes more problems. When you finally take a peek at the …….
