Recently we paid to be locked in a room so we could try to escape. The concept of Escape Rooms as a business is fascinating. I haven’t spent any time reading about how these came about, but what makes someone think up that idea? And how did they build that idea and get customers to buy into it? I can only imagine that if people that died 20 years ago would come back and read this, they would wonder what the world has come to. I don’t blame them – it sounds like a crazy way to spend my money, but I’ve done it twice. It is an engaging activity – it’s fun to see if you can escape and it’s better than doing something that doesn’t engage my brain. But it still sounds crazy to me. 

Anyway, the first time we did an Escape Room, we escaped with plenty of time left over. But this last time we did one, we didn’t figure out all the clues and tasks in time to escape. We each got a sticker that read, “I almost escaped!” 

The last time we tried to escape an escape room, we had two engineers in our group. They made really good escape artists. I think they were the primary reason we were able to escape. Maybe the last one was just easier – maybe the difficulty level was lower. But I truly think it was because the engineers just see everything as a potential solution.

This time, we kept trying different things to figure out the clues we needed to complete the tasks, but we simply ran out of time. We knew there was a solution, but for tasks we couldn’t figure out, we didn’t know what the objective was. We didn’t know what we were trying to accomplish. It made it difficult to think of what to even try. We were running out of time and getting more and more desperate for a solution. The closer we got to running out of time, the less clearly we thought. The less creative we were.

This is similar to what we typically do with our money. We keep trying different things, but when we’re not sure what we’re trying to accomplish, it makes it tough to achieve the objective. How do we spend our money? How much do we need to earn? What do we need to fund? College? New home? Retirement? Travel? How much in each? What kind of investments?

Financial goals help provide the objective for your money. When you know the objective, it helps you figure out a solution that is suited to your objective. It helps you achieve your objective more quickly. You can focus on what you’re meant to accomplish. 

When you’re not worried about running out of money, you make better financial decisions. You’re more creative about how to achieve your objective. You’re more open to all potential opportunities and solutions.

And you can escape the stress and worry of an uncertain financial future.

Check out my free checklist “4 Ways to Take Control of Your Money” here: http://jillwrightcoaching.com/takecontrol/ and stop trying to escape your money.