Divorce rates remain high with money fights as the leading cause for separation. Each spouse thinks they aren’t doing anything wrong, yet neither is going anywhere financially.
Good Housekeeping found 60 percent of married couples partially mix their money, 30 percent keep separate checking accounts, and only 10 percent keep everything together. Is there a correlation or is this causation?
Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Divorce rates remain high with money fights as the leading cause for separation. Each spouse thinks they aren’t doing anything wrong, yet neither is going anywhere financially.
Good Housekeeping found 60 percent of married couples partially mix their money, 30 percent keep separate checking accounts, and only 10 percent keep everything together. Is there a correlation or is this causation?
The best time for a couple to join their accounts is right after the honeymoon. When your accounts are together, everything is out in the open and there are no secrets.
To avoid the frustration of having to discuss every little purchase, couples can have their own “mad money” budget category, and they can deposit an agreed upon amount to that category every month.
Beware the biggest obstacle
The biggest obstacle couples overcome when they beginning to talk about money is sorting through the overload of ideas and opinions about personal finance.
Many of our parents did not do well with money, and because of that, they did not share their any of their money habits with us.
Today, couples are trying to find their way by doing research online, reading books, etc., but there are so many differing opinions.
How do you get a reluctant spouse on board?
The ideal option would be to sit down and ask to talk it through with you, for your sake. When this is done with a humble, loving tone, the reluctant spouse will often go along with it just to please you.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t always work; the reluctant spouse may have to hit rock bottom and suffer some consequences until they realize they need help.
A third party, such as a financial coach, can be a tremendous help in opening up the lines of communication. They can be the mediator when discussions get heated.
One couple had their first money fight on their honeymoon, and for the next 19 years they never got along with each other when it came to the topic of money. After one coaching session, this couple was able to find some common ground, and they learned to communicate in a positive manner about money.
Your Call to Action
If you have a spouse that is reluctant to discuss money issues, set aside some time to bring up this topic. Approach it in a gentle, humble manner.
Could your relationship use some wellness? Consider bringing in a third party, such as Coach Justin from Coach Connections, to help guide the discussion.
Visit http://FinancialWellnessShow.com/FindACoach to find out more.
