Doreen

Are you an underearner? You may be surprised at how many people are. A six-figure salary doesn't exclude you because underearning is defined as the inability to make more money despite your efforts or desire to do otherwise.  

Barbara Stanny is the leading authority on women and money, best selling author and speaker on the financial empowerment of women - and she led a workshop at the Get Radical Women's Conference called Overcoming Underearning. 

This 3- hour session allowed the attendees to gain amazing insight into their relationship with money and how they can determine whether they had an underearner mentality (as it has absolutely nothing to do with how much money you make).

In the workshop, Barbara shared her 5 steps to overcoming underearning and I wanted to share them with all of you.  You can find out more about Barbara at her website.

Five Steps to Overcoming Underearning®

STEP #1. TELL THE TRUTH

Begin by admitting what's not working in your life and analyzing why. There's tremendous power in telling the truth. Clarity alone often generates change. Until you stop denying, or diminishing, your difficulties, you can't possibly do anything differently. Your first peek at the truth may evoke temporary panic. But, rest assured. Situations can rapidly improve once you take off the blindfold.

STEP #2. MAKE A DECISION
Nothing will happen until you make a conscious and committed decision that financial success is a pressing priority. A decision is not the same as a want or even a goal. While a goal denotes the desired destination, a decision implies the determination to reach it. Here's the beauty of this step. You don't need a plan all figured out. All you have to do is decide what you want and do what comes next. Decisions are like magnets. They attract opportunities.

STEP #3. STRETCH
Those opportunities, however, always lie just outside your comfort zone. Success can
only be achieved by stretching beyond what feels comfortable to what may seem
impossible. The stretch looks like this: feel the fear, endure the discomfort, observe the
resistance, and go for it anyway. Keep in mind: the discomfort is short-lived, but the
rewards are life changing.

STEP #4. CREATE COMMUNITY
The people you hang out with radically affect your ability to succeed, or not.
Underearners tend to operate in isolation or gravitate to pessimists, worrywarts, negative
folks who want to hold them back. High-earners, however, surround themselves with
people who cheer them on and inspire them to aim higher. How do you find a supportive
community? One way: join organizations where you'll meet the kind of people you want
to be, not who you've been.

STEP #5. RESPECT AND APPRECIATE MONEY
Overcoming Underearning® isn't limited to pocketing a fatter paycheck, but to achieving
Financial Independence. Financial Independence does not come from what you earn. It
comes from what you do with what you make. There are four rules for respecting money:
1. Spend Less (Only buy what you can easily afford)
2. Save More (Pay yourself first)
3. Invest Wisely (Put money in assets that grow in value over time.)
4. Give Generously (Use your money to make a difference.)

No matter how sizable your salary, unless you adhere to the first three rules, you'll find
that money will exacerbate your stress rather than enhance your well-being. After all, the
whole point of overcoming underearning is not just to earn a good living, but ultimately
to live a good life and help others do the same.