No, it’s not picking the wrong stock to invest in. (Although I’ve done that too.) My biggest investment mistake lately is that I’m not really following my plan. I was supposed to be contributing $416.67 each month to my IRA, but that hasn’t been happening. Instead, my investing plan has been running in slo-mo.

Of course the portion IS working is the part that happens automatically — my 401(k) contributions are humming along like clockwork. That’s what happens when money comes out of my paycheck without any additional work from me.

Maybe I ought to automate my regular investing as well. I added a recurring event to my Google calendar to remind me to send in money each month to my IRA, so in theory that should be enough. In reality though, when the event arrives I realize that I don’t have the money to invest unless I take it out of savings.

I’ve fallen behind because I have been on such a spending kick.

I’m not just buying things willy-nilly though — most of the money I’ve been spending has gone to a course that’s helping me out. Still, it’ll be nice when I get back on track.

The thing with priorities is, they have to stay the priority in order to be effective. I need to do my investing first.

It’s a wonderful weekend! (Because aren’t they all?)

On a completely unrelated note, should I continue doing my net worth updates? I didn’t do it this month because I kind of feel like they’re all pretty similar — up or down, mostly due to the stock market. I’m not sure they’re beneficial to anyone but me. (I’ll continue doing them for myself on my handy dandy spreadsheet regardless.)

I might be better off just doing spending updates instead, if I can bring myself to admit just how much money I’ve been spending lately. (Mostly from savings.)

Now it’s time for some links:

Small Budget, Big Style has some ideas on organizing your closet without spending money. (Maybe I should use some of these tips to cover up the 1970s contact paper in our closet…)

Single Money Guy has 10 tips for controlling your debt.

Ever thought of doubling your expenses to gain financial independence? Bradd (guest posting at Sound Money Matters) has.

Ultimate Money Blog has some silly “the economy is so bad…” one-liners for you.

You’ve probably heard the expression, “Ready, fire, aim!” before. It makes us laugh a little, because of course we know that’s wrong.

Sadly, the reality is that it’s often “Ready, fire!” — which is at least better than never getting to “fire!” at all.

Of course we all know that “Ready, aim, fire!” gets the best results, but the other scenarios are much more common. So how do you make sure you’re on the right track?

First, set a reasonable goal for yourself. Get an idea of where you would like to go, and then see what would be the reasonable steps toward getting there. Maybe you want to save up a down payment for a house.

In that case, start by doing a little research. Learn what is reasonable for your income, learn what the mortgage options are, and figure out how much of a down payment you might need. This is the “ready” phase.

Next, aim toward where you want to be. Decide when you’d like to have the down payment by, and figure up how much you’ll need to set aside (either from your current income or possibly from an extra job) in order to get there by your deadline. See what’s reasonable and sustainable over the period you have in mind.

Then “fire” by implementing your plan.

When you put in the appropriate amount of preparation time, you’re much more likely to discover potential obstacles ahead of time, take them into account, and follow through to completion.

Have you ever sat and listened to someone explain something, and just had it make zero sense whatsoever?

I’ve had that experience many a time, and given a blank look in return. Sometimes I respond with, “I know you’re speaking English, but I have no idea what you just said.”

It can be frustrating on both ends. As an example, I’ve tried to explain blogging to people that have never even used a computer. My explanation is usually met with a blank look, until I realize that they don’t even really get the concept of the internet and that I may as well be speaking Greek. I have better luck relating blogging to something that they do understand, such as writing articles for a magazine.

Financial terminology can have the same effect on people. If you work with 401(k)s, IRAs, 403(b)s, and 124aZ23Qs every day, they make sense. (Yeah I made that last one up.) If you don’t, you need to be let in on a little of the terminology before what might actually be a very simple concept can make sense.

So the next time you’re met with a bunch of financial gobbledygook, remember that you may just need a little translation first.

Have you thought about the kind of financial legacy you would like to leave?

Financial legacies can be legacies in the old-fashioned sense of an inheritance, but they can also be a legacy in the sense that the way you handle money gets passed down to the next generation.

As anyone who has ever been around a young child knows, kids don’t learn what you tell them to learn. Instead, they learn what they see — and they’re acute observers. (So acute that they see things much easier than we do, especially if there are things we would rather not see about ourselves.)

So what kind of financial legacy do you want to leave? Even if you don’t have kids, there are other loved ones that could benefit from at least a traditional inheritance.

Me, I hope to leave my son with good money habits, and enough money that he doesn’t have to struggle (but can’t coast through life either.) And I hope to leave my husband with a good knowledge of where we stand financially, and no mess to cleanup.

It’s one thing to know you ought to do something, or even to feel unhappy with the way things are and wish things were different. But it’s another thing to actually do something about it.

You have to be sufficiently motivated to change before anything of lasting importance is going to happen.

Sometimes this motivation takes the form of getting fed up. Maybe you’re tired of fights about money or bill collectors calling. Or it may take the form of fear. Maybe you’re terrified that you’ll lose your house if you don’t get things under control soon.

Things don’t always have to be that extreme — you could just wake up one day bound and determined to make a change.

Once you get to that stage, you’ll probably find yourself noticing all sorts of things that can help you. Then you’ll be able to do what it takes to get to where you want to be.

There have been a couple of periods in my life when I was basically in survival mode. I had to be very careful with my money. Careful as in budgeting to the penny, with the slightest unexpected expense putting me over the edge.

Think ramen noodles every night of the week. Something as simple as needing a new pair of cheap Ked-like shoes required scrimping, saving and hoping they would go on sale so I could get them for $3 or so.

Speaking of shoes, the other day my husband mentioned that he needed to get a new pair because the pair he was wearing was starting to get a hole in the sole. Without even thinking about it, I told him he could put some tape on the inside over where the hole was starting.

“No,” he said, “I think I’ll just go buy a new pair of shoes.”

“But you could put the tape on,” I replied. “I used to do that.”

“Yes,” he said, “But aren’t you glad we don’t have to anymore?”

Of course I told him yes. It’s great to be able to just go buy a new pair of shoes when they’re needed! Or even wanted. And I’m happy with the progress we have both made financially over the years.

But the tiniest little part of me felt like I was missing something. There’s one good thing about being in survival mode: you get the sense that every day is a huge accomplishment. I like feeling like I’ve done something huge each day.

But it’s sure not necessary to be in survival mode to feel that way.

It’s ok to let go of those feelings from the past — to not earn every dollar that it’s possible to earn; to savor enoughness; and to enjoy each day and feel accomplished without that stressful feeling of being on the edge.