Becoming truly skilled at managing your personal finances takes dedication and intentional effort. People who excel with money share common traits and habits that set them apart. Developing these qualities within yourself is the path to mastering your own financial life.

In this article, we’ll explore the top 12 traits and behaviors that enable people to become very good with their money over time. Read on to learn what it takes to become an expert at managing your finances.  

1. They Embrace Math as the Language of Money 

Let’s face it – math is not everyone’s favorite subject. But the reality is that numbers, percentages and formulas are deeply intertwined with personal finance. To make smart money decisions, you need to be able to calculate interest rates, returns on investments, mortgage points, debt payoff timelines and more. 

People who are truly effective with money take the time to get comfortable with running the numbers. They invest in developing their math skills through courses, books, YouTube tutorials and practice. Understand that avoiding math means avoiding full comprehension of your finances.

Become friendly with calculators, spreadsheets and other tools that make number-crunching easier. Seek out financial mentors who can explain important money math concepts in simple terms. The payoff is the ability to quantify your money situation and make well-informed choices. Math mastery leads to financial mastery.

2. They Cultivate a Growth Mindset Around Money

Psychologist Carol Dweck’s research reveals how our underlying beliefs about learning shape outcomes in education, business, sports and more. People who believe their abilities are fixed have a “fixed mindset.” They avoid challenge and give up easily because they don’t believe they can improve.  

On the flipside, a “growth mindset” holds that talents and skills can be developed through practice and effort. This fuels persistence through obstacles and embracing failures as learning opportunities.

When it comes to money management, a fixed mindset holds you back (“I’m just bad with money and math”), while a growth mindset empowers progress (“I can always improve my money skills with time and learning”). 

Make developing a growth mindset around finances a priority. Stay positive through money setbacks. Be patient with yourself as you build knowledge and skills slowly over time. Small steps forward add up to huge financial gains.

3. They Are Lifelong Learners With Money

Closely tied to having a growth mindset is maintaining beginner’s mind with money topics. People skilled in managing their finances have an insatiable appetite for expanding their financial knowledge continuously over their lifetime.

They understand money mastery is not a destination, but rather an ongoing journey. There are always new skills to add, strategies to learn and ways to optimize managing income, spending, saving, taxes, investing and so much more. 

While dry financial subjects can seem boring at first glance, lifelong learners come to appreciate them once they understand how this knowledge amplifies their wealth. They lean into learning and eventually come to enjoy it.

Make reading money books, taking financial courses and listening to money podcasts a habit. Follow finance experts on social media. Always be on the lookout for tips and perspectives to enhance your own money mindset and habits.

4. They Are Willing to Discuss Money Openly

Cultural taboos often keep money talk off limits, even among close family and friends. Many interpersonal problems can be traced back to poor communication about finances. However, the most financially savvy individuals overcome this hurdle.

They realize that talking about money is key to shared understanding and accountability with spouses, partners and other close relations. Bringing issues into the open and expressing needs and goals leads to stronger alignment and outcomes.

Start by discussing day-to-day finances like income, bills, debts and spending habits. Move to bigger picture topics like financial goals, plans for the future and any concerns. Make money conversations a natural, ongoing habit in your key relationships.  

5. They Have a Trusted Accountability Partner

Sticking to positive financial habits for the long haul is challenging to do solo. People who excel with money often have an accountability partner to share the ups and downs of the journey with. 

For married couples, this accountability happens organically as you communicate about finances daily and keep each other on track. But even singles can benefit greatly from regular check-ins with a trusted friend, family member or money mentor.

Verbalizing your financial goals, actions and challenges to someone else brings them to life. Celebrating wins keeps you motivated while examining hurdles helps you course correct. We all need support on the path to major money victories.

6. They Take Action to Improve Finances 

Many people want to enhance their financial situation but struggle with taking action. They get stuck in analysis paralysis and good intentions without forward momentum. In contrast, those with top money skills turn ideas and advice into real world behavior changes consistently. 

For example, as soon as they learn about the importance of an emergency fund, they set up automatic savings transfers into a dedicated account. When they realize they are losing money to high interest debt, they switch to attack mode and start paying it down fast. 

Small, daily actions compound into huge financial results over time. Always be looking for smart ways to take your money knowledge and turn it into real implemented strategies. Momentum and progress develop from taking action.

7. They Make a Habit of Monitoring Their Money

People highly skilled with finances make it a habit to monitor where their money is going on an ongoing basis. They like to have a solid awareness of their overall cash flow including income, spending, debts, investments and net worth. 

While they don’t track every single dollar, they regularly check in on the big picture financial snapshot. This helps identify issues early before they spiral. You can only manage what you measure.

Tools like budgeting apps and online financial dashboards make money tracking simple. Get in the routine of reviewing transactions, balances and financial aggregates at least monthly, if not weekly. When you follow your money, you gain power to direct it wisely.

8. They Are Willing to Take Calculated Risks

A certain level of risk is inherent to building wealth, whether it’s investing in the stock market, starting a business or making other growth-oriented moves with your money. People effective at managing finances understand risk versus reward and how to balance the two.

They take smart risks to increase their income potential like investing in education, skills and advancing their career. They also invest capital into assets like real estate, stocks and startup businesses that involve risk in pursuit of higher returns.

The key is mitigating unnecessary risk through strategies like diversification, while still stepping outside your comfort zone. Look for financial opportunities where the potential reward justifies the risk level based on your situation.

9. They Avoid Tying Self-Worth to Material Things

It’s perfectly fine to enjoy and appreciate nice possessions. The problem arises when we look to material items to boost our sense of self-worth and validation. People truly skilled with money realize that possessions don’t define who they are.

They focus more of their energy on nurturing non-material aspects of life like connections, values, intellectual pursuits and life purpose. Avoiding the “more is better” trap frees up mental bandwidth to focus on meaningful financial moves.

Pay attention if you ever catch yourself thinking certain clothes, cars or other items will substantially change how you feel about yourself. Recognize that authentic confidence comes from within. prioritize financial health over temporary status symbols.

10. They Manage Emotions Around Spending 

Advertising and social pressure make it very tempting to spend on wants rather than focus spending on true needs. However, people excellent with money are able to tune out the noise and discern between temporary desires and meaningful priorities.

They have strategies to pause and reflect before purchasing to ensure they are acting intentionally based on goals versus reactively. Their spending aligns with priorities rather than impulses. Emotional maturity enables disciplined saving and building lasting wealth.

Train yourself to recognize and manage thoughts and feelings around spending before they turn into regrettable purchases. Keep big financial goals at the forefront to put smaller desires in perspective. Delayed gratification pays off.

11. They Set Specific Financial Goals

People adept with money take time to articulate short and long-term financial goals. This clarifies priorities, creates an action plan and provides motivation to stick to positive habits. Studies show only around 3% of adults have written financial goals, but this small group tends to have higher incomes and net worth.

Put your goals down on paper, whether it’s index cards in your wallet or a one-page document. Post them somewhere you’ll see them daily. Share goals with your accountability partner for encouragement. Revisit and update goals regularly to adapt to life changes while staying focused.

12. They Embrace Automating Finances 

With so many money tasks competing for attention, it’s easy to forget or procrastinate on important actions like saving and investing. People skilled with finances embrace automating their money management as much as possible.

This “set it and forget it” approach removes the effort and guesswork from positive financial habits. Examples include setting up automatic transfers into savings and investment accounts. You can even automate recurring bills to ensure they are always paid on time.

Automation helps enforce good money habits consistently with minimal effort. Look for any routine finance tasks that can be put on autopilot. This eliminates you as the weak link in the process.

In summary, developing deep skill with managing your personal finances is achievable for anyone willing to put in consistent work over time. Adjusting mindsets, acquiring knowledge and implementing positive habits cumulatively build financial mastery. 

Focus on adopting the essential traits of money masters – from growth mindset to emotional control – that enable success. Which of these financial traits resonates most with you? What’s one new money habit you will start today? Consistency and patience are key on the rewarding path to financial excellence.