Your Guide To Financial Freedom

Mikaela Messiou

You And Your Financial Freedom

In a world where financial freedom seems to be a utopia of sorts, a battle we cannot win without huge trade-offs, we need a simple guide to help us take the first step towards our financial heaven. Particularly for women who have been silently relegated to being financially restricted, it can be harder to find a way out of the vicious circle of unachievable goals and unattainable dreams.

In this article, I aim to give you a chance to better understand your financial situation and start looking at choices that can lead you to financial stability, which will allow you to achieve even your wildest dreams. Yes, even the craziest ones, those that you do not dare confess to anyone because you worry that they will laugh at you.  

It is finally time to take full responsibility for your financial situation and to take your financial future in your own hands. Your financial freedom does not depend on anyone other than yourself. There are easy steps you can take to move the needle in your financial worth. There are many ways to get into financial heaven. It is time to find out which one is best for you.

Find Your Financial Independence 

Financial independence is one of the things that every human, male or female, wishes to achieve. It refers to your ability to be financially sufficient to do anything you desire, without having to ask anyone to fund it. Financial freedom means having enough savings, financial investments, and cash in hand to afford the kind of life you desire for yourselves and your families. It means having an income that regularly surpasses your expenses and any unplanned or unexpected needs, and savings that enable you to retire or pursue the career you want without being tied to earning a set salary each year. 

To reach financial independence we need to make our money work for us rather than the other way around. The essence of being financially free is encapsulated in the words of best-selling author, Robert Kiyosaki: “Don’t work for money; make money work for you”. You do not need to be a famous actress or an heiress to be able to cater to your needs and wants. You can become financially free, as a regular everyday woman. 

Don’t Call It A Dream. Call It A Plan.

I hear the thoughts in your head. “But how? How am I supposed to do that? That sounds impossible to attain. I do not have the resources or the time, I barely have enough time to sleep. Financial freedom is a dream that I can never reach”. These are the limitations we have been programmed to believe in. I know them very well because I used to think in that very same way. I assure you; it is neither difficult, nor complicated. It just takes a switch in your mindset. It takes a different way of thinking. Once you realize that, you will be able to see opportunity in every corner. You will thrive and be happier in your life as a result.

• Invest In Yourself

The first and most important investment you need to make is in yourself. Educate yourself. You cannot change your financial situation if you do not educate yourself in how money works. Learning does not end when we get out of school. Rather, real learning is what happens after school. We need to make sure we invest in our own minds through lifelong learning, and we need to make sure we understand how money works, no matter what our background or job title is. Whether you are an artist or an engineer, an educator, or a medical doctor, you need to continuously expand your mind, through reading, taking part in webinars or online courses on money matters. This is imperative so that you can be aware of what is happening in the world, to be able to anticipate what is coming and how to be prepared for it. 

• Start Your Own Business

Starting your own business is important in gaining your financial freedom. Identify your passion and pursue it. Start small, as a side business at first, and see where it takes you. Success does not happen overnight. Whatever your chosen field or passion is, first you need to gain experience in selling and marketing. That is fundamental whatever your business. Start a small-scale business that you can run from your home, I would even suggest an on-site business where you decide when to come in and when to clock out. Keep it as a side business in the beginning, without expecting to make any income in the short term. It will take time to build up the foundation to grow.

• Change Your Mindset

The way we think, and our fundamental belief system is often a limiting factor to our success. Many of you might have been raised to believe that certain luxuries are out of reach, that they are for other people and not for you. It is time to stop limiting yourself and what you can achieve. It is time to stop thinking that you cannot afford certain things. Rather, you need to start asking yourself “how can I afford it?” This change in your mindset will help open your eyes to new possibilities. You will begin to see ways of achieving your wants. No dream or desire is too big or unattainable. Just look for the way. There is always one. 

• Set Up Multiple Income Streams

Setting up multiple income streams is essential. Most women rely solely on their salary, and they passively wait for a promotion. This is no longer enough. You need to set up multiple income streams. You can start investing a specific amount from your salary every month. It is important to identify investments that will bring money into your pocket every month, like rental property investments. Gradually, you will not be so dependent on your job, and you might even decide that you want to get out of the so-called ‘rat race’ and have enough passive income to afford to spend your time as you wish. Having an income source that you can call yours is an excellent route to take. 

• Save regularly 

Saving is also important and a task every woman is called to undertake. I am not talking about family savings, but a personal, emergency fund. Something that is yours and, if need be, a secret. Now I am not asking you to keep secrets from your partner, but sometimes having personal financial savings that only you know of could be the security you need for moments that place you in difficulty.

• Start Investing

Investing always seems to be a man’s business and not a woman’s. But again, that is a wrong notion. There are numerous investment opportunities open to you as a woman. This includes shares, stocks, bonds, partnerships. Anything that you can put your saved money into that will give you returns is an investment. There are several ways to invest, and it is important that you learn all about them and start small. Dip your toes in the world of investing and get the feeling of how it works. You will realise it’s not that hard, and once you become more confident you can gradually take more risk. 

Give Yourself Permission To Succeed.

I wish to tell you one more thing. Act now but be patient. And persistent. Great change takes time. Do not give up. If you do not see positive results immediately, it simply means when things do change, it will be amazing. So, give it time. The truth is, you are not in competition with anybody, this is not a running contest. Do not let the hurdles weigh you down. Have faith in your own strengths and virtues and stay focused on your goals and on the bigger picture. Take a leap of faith and allow yourself to be swept up and taken somewhere far over the rainbow to a waiting pot of gold on the other side. You will get there soon enough.

Give yourself permission to succeed. There is nothing stopping you now.

Mikaela Messiou

Read more about reaching your financial heaven in my book “The Goddess In You: A Bible Of Financial Freedom”. You can read more about my story and download my books on: www.mikaelamessiou.com 

About the Author

Mikaela Messiou is an entrepreneur, a writer, an investor, a mother, and a wife. Led by her own passion for achieving an optimum state of health and wellness, she co-founded Damaris Health & Wellness Center with a mission to provide a holistic approach to well-being, by nurturing the mind, body and spirit. She is the author of female empowerment books “The Goddess In You: A Bible of Holistic Wellness” and “The Goddess In You: A Bible of Financial Freedom”.

Mikaela graduated with First Class Honors in Business and French from the University of Reading in the UK. She continued her studies at the Ecole de Commerce de Strasbourg, and she gained a Master’s Degree at the University of Oxford. She founded her first business, in the fashion industry, when she was 25 years old and she continuously produces innovative ideas, if only there was more time to implement them all. Mikaela is managing her family businesses for the past 15 years and she is passionate about helping women feel empowered. Mikaela lives in the Mediterranean island of Cyprus with her husband, and their twin children.