Take one small step towards creating a pocket of joy in your personal financial life.
Home decorating made easy with a pocket of joy
My cousin, Tessie, is a home decorator. She describes herself as helping to fill homes with joy. She introduced me to the concept of creating a “pocket of joy” – a little space around your home that is intentionally designed to fill you with a burst of joy every time you see it. Watch her 4 minute video here to get inspired.
Now, I don’t consider myself a big home decorator. If you’ve ever been to my home, you know that I decorate with a throw pillow that hopefully matches the couch, and not much else. However, Tessie’s concept of a small pocket of joy really resonated with me. It is such a small and accessible action to create a little space that you love. It’s not redecorating your whole home with painting, furniture, interior designers and the price tag to match all the complications. It’s not scrolling through Instagram to get ideas for a dream kitchen. It’s not even as overwhelming as updating my son’s room when he grew out of the little kid stage and needed a desk for homework and gaming.
A pocket of joy is a small, achievable action that packs a big emotional punch, even for the home decorating-challenged folks amongst us.
The birthday mug
Earlier this fall, I had a birthday and received an oversized soup mug from my cousin Kiona. What was special about it, though, is that the mug was printed with photos of myself, my sister, and Kiona. You see, the three of us are only 13 months apart in age, and none of us remember a time when we weren’t in each other’s lives. As we grew up, we could have gone in a million different directions, and yet somehow, I am fortunate to still consider them among my closest friends.
The mug is oversized, and I live in a small city home where every item has its place. Where to put the mug? I was inspired to create my own pocket of joy. Tucked next to the cereal bowls, the mug happily greets me every time I open the kitchen cabinet. I feel a little burst of love, joy, and happiness each time I see it.
How does home decorating relate to personal finance?
Which leads me to finances. There are so many emotions we may feel about money – anxiety, pride, fear, gratitude, obligation, relief – and perhaps, joy. We can wallow in the energy-sucking emotions of personal finance, or we can step towards those energy-giving emotions.
Let’s take one step towards energy-giving, light-filled emotions today.
Is there a little thing you can do right now to help create a pocket of joy in your personal financial world? Just one small step that you take right now, to help you along your personal finance journey. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just take a step. Here are a few ideas:
- Enroll in an automatic 1% contribution increase in your 401k.
- Pause for a moment, the next time you pull out your wallet or checkout your online shopping cart: Does this purchase helping to create joy in my life? If so, enjoy that feeling of satisfaction and joy you just created. If not, maybe reconsider the purchase.
- Make an extra debt payment this month.
- Transfer some cash to your Rainy Day Fund. Don’t have a Rainy Day fund yet? Create one.
- Make a contribution to your child’s 529 college savings account. Haven’t set one up yet? Go ahead and set it up – that’s your pocket of joy for today!
- Talk to your partner about something that’s been on your mind about your family’s finances.
Behavioral finance research shows that celebrating small wins can build up resilience and make the next step a little easier. Taking one small action can change your feelings about your personal financial situation. It can provide motivation and a feeling of accomplishment.
You can find joy in creating this small pocket within your personal financial world.
