How three steps can bring your financial power under control

The newsletter discusses the theme of money and its impact on freelancers. It highlights how money influences decisions and actions, and the financial pressures faced by freelancers. It emphasizes the need to not let money become the center of one's universe and offers three steps to address the issue of financial power: knowing your financial situation, understanding the relationships between your financial figures, and creating a narrative that connects your life and your money. The newsletter promises to provide further insights on these topics in upcoming editions. Hello, Jeremy Deeds here, and welcome to the Financial Common Sense for Freelancers newsletter for April 2024. Now of the many songs written about money, one of my favourites is the Money Song from Cabaret. It is performed outrageously by Joel Grey and Liza Minnelli in the 1972 film, loosely based on Christopher Isherwood's book Goodbye to Berlin, in which Sally Bowles is mentioned just once, but once is enough, if you get it right, to misquote Mae West. The song's refrain is, Money makes the world go round, a deliberate irony given that neither the kick club's MC, Grey, nor its star performer, Sally Bowles, Minnelli, is wealthy. However, Bowles ridicules the idea of sitting alone in a room. In the title song, she encourages her audience to put down the book and the prune and come to the cabaret to taste the wine, hear the band, and presumably use up the financial power they might have. Money does make the world go round, even Bowles's friend Elsie, with whom she shared four solid rooms in Chelsea, and who is not what you call a blushing flower, had to make enough to live by renting by the hour. Your financial power is an ever-present consideration. Suppose you are a freelancer today in the artistic, literary, or media professions, or any other freelance profession for that matter. In that case, you probably recognise the sentiment about money making the world go round, although your approach probably differs from Sally's and Elsie's. Your financial power influences almost every decision and action you take, even if you drop into Starbucks for a coffee, you might opt for a short cafe latte rather than a grande if money is tight. But here's the thing, money may make the world go round, but if it becomes the centre of your universe, you are in hock to your financial power. Letting money become the centre of your universe is undoubtedly an issue for the freelancing community today, where financial pressures continue to mount. For instance, your income may be irregular and unpredictable. You are probably worried about retirement and how unprepared you are. You may well have got through a lot of your savings to keep afloat during the pandemic. You can't get loans or remortgage because of your freelance status. And your clients don't pay you promptly and put a strain on your cash flow. You worry about falling sick or taking holidays, both of which prevent you from working and earning. You are not sure where the next assignment is coming from, not helped by the April 2021 changes to IR35 in the UK. Money pressures also make the liminal space between work and home even more challenging to navigate. As an experienced freelancer, you might also be questioning your purpose in life, possibly thinking about making a difference by having refugees rather than making films. Again, money will have a decisive influence on your considerations. But don't let your financial power shape your universe. So how do you solve the issue of financial power, namely it makes the world go round, but also that making it the centre of your universe will likely damage your spirit, imagination, and vitality. First, know your figures. Work out your income, expenses, assets, and liabilities. It will tell you a lot, which is liberating. The exercise will reduce your anxiety around money. Even if your situation turns out to be bad, at least you know where you stand and can take action. Second, understand your figures. The raw data of your financial statements will provide some clarity, but what brings the figures to life is the relationships between them. You can better understand your situation by calculating your key personal financial ratios. Third, read the story behind your figures. Your figures are cold, hard facts. The magic and power of the figures lie in the story behind the figures. Set down the story of how you got here, the story today, and most importantly, how you will rewrite your story and your numbers going forward. Your numbers are your story. This last step is the all-important connection between your life and your money. It enables you to explore the relationship between your financial power and your life and determine how your money can give you the power to live rather than be controlled by it. So during April, I will be focusing on the power and magic of money and your money story. My insight pace each Sunday will delve deeper into the three stages above of your financial journey, setting out how to make the world go round through your money.