Strengths and weaknesses

No Credit Needed asked his readers to write about their financial strengths and weaknesses. And since I do whatever I'm told (kidding!) here is my version...

I think my financial strengths lie in my planning. I plan everything. I think through every decision and weigh it carefully before I decide. I have always had a budget and I always stick to it. The one time in my life when I had credit card debt I couldn’t pay off in full I worked out a careful plan and followed through. I’m not just a planner in my financial life but in my everyday life as well. I plan my meals, my day, and my life. It’s no surprise that I also enjoy planning my financial future.

My weakness is my conservative nature. I am afraid of risk. I know it will take some risk to get to the next level. Such as starting my own business, or even investing in the stock market outside of my retirement accounts, but the risk makes me very nervous. Once my emergency fund is fully funded I’m going to have to stop putting my monthly savings into my 2% earning savings account and put it someplace with more potential, aka something with more risk. Honestly, I’m kinda dreading it. Again, this trait doesn’t just show itself in my financial life. As I’ve gotten older this trait has become more apparent. I guess I just have more to lose now that I’m older.

I think these two traits go hand in hand. After all, I don’t like risk because I can’t plan the outcome. The greater the risk the less well I can plan for it. And not being able to plan something makes me feel nervous.