Where are my fellow Stranger Things fans?
Since we’re anxiously waiting on season 4 of Stranger Things for our favorite 80’s teens from Hawkins, Indiana to return… why not unlock 11 money truths from the Upside Down!
If you have no idea what I’m talking about, let me attempt a one sentence summary of a popular sci-fi-horror-mixed-with-comedic-relief series on Netflix.
El (short for Eleven) escapes a government/science lab by using mind-control superpowers and fights evil from the Upside-Down, an alternate dimension with weird creatures who want to eat her friends.
It’s kind of like the birth child sci-fi series of the Goonies meets X-files meets Stephen King but with mind control instead of “slick shoes!”
Why am I associating money with Stranger Things? A couple of reasons…
1. Sometimes people are held back from their true money potential because of upside down beliefs.
2. It’s the most creepy-fun series I’ve watched in a long time. So, why not?
Let’s unlock 11 upside down money beliefs!
1. Demogorgons are evil. Money is not.
Evil money? Money can be used for purposes both bad and good.
By itself, money is a tool used in exchange for time, goods, or services.
How it’s used is the result of the choices a person or business makes with their money.
Associating money with evil or “the enemy” stirs up emotions that keep us focused on money problems rather than money solutions.
Using and thinking of money as a tool is a positive way to focus on solutions.
2. Mind control for money? Yes!
Eleven uses mind control powers to fight the bad guys. While we may not be crushing cans or tossing vehicles in the air, our money mindset is critical for building wealth.
Whatever we set our mind to do with our money, our actions and habits follow.
It literally makes us or breaks us.
I feel so strongly about this aspect of personal finance that I wrote an entire article on having a strong money mindset.
3. In Hawkins, every day results in coming face to face with fear. Money fears hold us back if we let them.
Money fears come in all kinds of different ways… fears of loss vs. success, risk vs. reward, change vs. status quo.
Fears we associate with “money as the root of all evil.”
More than likely these fears are deep rooted in past experiences and beliefs about money.
It’s worth our time to face these fears and decide if they are really true or not.
Most of the time, they are just false beliefs that hold us back from reaching our true potential.
4. We may get knocked down but it’s getting back up again that matters!
Poor Steve, he always finds himself on the losing end of a fight!
Money mistakes will happen. We just have to learn from them and keep moving forward.
Sometimes you will be at the top of your money making-saving-investing game. Sometimes you will make a money mistake.
Either way, it’s learning.
I love the quote from motivational speaker Dr. Adolph Brown “Our past is a place of reference, not of residence.”
Take what you learn from money mistakes in the past, use them for reference and keep moving forward!
5. Leave Eggos in a dropbox in the woods.
El and Hopper form an unbreakable bond despite their differences. Create meaningful relationships.
Relationships win, especially when you can talk money and surround yourself with positive personal finance influencers.
Don’t feel like there’s anyone in your life that understands your money goals right now?
Find them online!
Yes, there are spammer/scammers on the Internet but there are also some of the most genuine, caring people you can find who want you to win with money.
Some awesome people/places/resources across the Internet are:
- Connecting with Vicki and Amy and many other Women Who Money
- Joining the Choose FI Facebook Group for support and advice
- Subscribing to Apex Money Daily for the best money stories around the web sent to your inbox
- Listening to the Side Hustle Nation podcast for inspiring and unique opportunities and ideas
- Reading these personal finance books to increase your knowledge
- Attending a money conference for edu-tainment
Honestly, just hang out with positive people, whether they like to talk money or not. Relationships win!
6. Build a better ham radio.
Dustin (don’t we just love him!?) builds a ham radio to connect with his girlfriend from summer camp. Cue- Neverending Story… that’s all I will say not to give too much away to anyone who is still catching up on the series!
Don’t settle for “good enough” with your finances.
Look for new opportunities. Explore possibilities. Set new goals and take action to achieve them.
Build a better ham radio!!!
7. Lives could depend on knowing planck’s constant.
Your money health depends on knowing your numbers.
If you don’t know how much you spend, you’ll never know the potential of what you can save.
The misconception here is that you have to have a detailed budget and limit yourself or give up your favorite things.
Instead, you just need starting points! Your numbers help create the path to paying off debt, saving more and investing.
8. Escape the lab, a.k.a. rat race!
The rat race keeps us from achieving financial freedom. We literally get nowhere and keep spinning our wheels.
More and bigger ultimately leads to less and smaller. Less time on our terms and smaller returns for our hard work.
It’s usually not worth the temporary gain. There is so much more peace and freedom when we escape the traps of lifestyle inflation.
Which leads to…
9. Don’t max out credit at Starcourt Mall, or any mall.
Fun fact- this mall/filming location is one where my family went shopping in the 80’s so it was like stepping back in time (minus the monsters & Russians!)
Spending on credit is much easier and more fun to do than it is to get rid of it.
Credit card debt stats are hard to believe, but the data shows this type of debt has increased from 660 billion U.S. dollars to 850 billion U.S. dollars from 2014-2019.
Not paying off a credit card balance each month creates a hole that gets bigger and bigger.
The only way to dig out of that hole is to stop using credit and put every extra dollar you can towards paying it off.
Celebrate small wins along the way!
10. Remember Dart? Turned out to be a risk that paid off later (well, almost)
Personal finance rewards usually come with risks. Taking action, asking questions, and exploring new ideas is a way to grow faster.
Otherwise, you are likely to keep getting the same results over and over.
Set big goals and look for opportunities along the way. Sometimes that may mean taking a chance and betting on yourself!
11. Close (and lock) the darn gate already!
Upside-down finances cause so much stress!
The only way to get back on track is to tackle it one step/bill/decision at a time.
Those efforts over time will lead to success and a path to achieving your money goals.
