How to pay yourself first?

Many times you think you need to give, sacrifice yourself, help and put everything out there. But then later you feel stressed, overwhelmed, resentful and frustrated. Why? Because your personal cup is empty and neglected.

Paying yourself first is a concept I learned from Robert Kiyosaki who encourages every human being to take personal responsibility and accountability towards their finances.

At the beginning it was hard for me accept this idea because I never prioritized myself. It was always the family, the other person’s problems, the situation and the daily demands.

Then later I realize the long term cost we pay when we engage in paying all the expenses and neglect paying ourselves first. That shows the lack of planning, the lack of long-term vision and the lack of updated prioritizing habits in our financial transactions.

Now you may wonder: Why pay myself first? What is the point? What is the reason? Why it is important? Well this adopts the concept of later gratification. You delay immediate gratification because of the realization of your long term goals. They can be investing in your home, repairing your income and expenses ratio, investing in long-term assets (rentals, lands or company shares).

Others may say: How can I pay myself first if I don’t have the money to do that? Well this is a mindset shift. When you don’t have the money to pay yourself first, this forces you to think outside the mental box of “I don’t have money” to “What can I do to have money to pay myself first?”.

In the financial arena, you find mental blockages that usually prevents you from seeing the truth. They could be: I don’t have money. I can’t do anything. My salary is too small. I can’t afford it. When you are aware of these mental boxes, it would be your call and choice to either stay there or scatter them away and create new ones that serve you best.

So what do you think? What matters and what doesn’t matter in your finances? Where you see your income flowing to? Is there any long-term focus and priority in your finances? Then maybe you might figure it out the need to pay yourself first.