Do you have financially smart friends?

Friendships bring joy. And if you have friends who are smart about managing their money, then it shall bring you riches too.

Friends are the family we choose. Our friends have major influence on how we think, what we do and the way we lead our life in general. So does it mean that the way your friends think about finances influences your financial decisions too? Read on to know.

The influence of friends on our life cannot be ignored. Right from childhood, we pick up habits and learn different things from our friends. This is carried on in adult life as well. The way our friends spend money, their investing and saving habits invariably rub on to us. Now a positive influence in the money management area really matters. Let's see how financially smart friends can help.

1. Smart spending

Imagine hangout with people who want to dine at expensive places every weekend and pick high end brands to flaunt at those places. What are the chances that you will not give in to peer pressure and follow suit? Bleak, right?

We are all social animals and want to be accepted by our social groups. And if fitting in, as in the case here, means spending money on pointless activities, then that is not a great idea. You need to be around people who will have a positive influence on your spending habits.

2. Ambitious and creative about making money

Considering the time and age in which we are living, relying on a job to achieve all your financial goals is not a wise thing to do. One needs to be open to new things and eager to experiment. Being surrounded by ambitious people whose thoughts run in that direction will provide you with exposure to this thought process. That in turn will push you to think creatively and contribute to the peer idea pool. Having friends who are happily snuggled up in their 9-5 will shut doors to possibilities for making more money.

3. Updated about money matters

Many financial advisors are associated with finance companies and are entitled to commissions when clients signup for their products. Hence, relying entirely on the financial advisors advice is not a smart thing to do. Take advice only when your own knowledge and logic supports what is being told to you. Smart friends come to rescue at this point. Well informed and updated friends can help you with their knowledge which will help in taking the right financial decisions.

4. Planned approach and good money habits

We are all creatures of habits and most of them, we pick up from our surroundings. Having friends who plan huge expenses in advance, save money every month and don't rush around in January for tax planning, influences in a positive way.

When we see people dear to us doing things and reaping benefits from those activities the motivation to adopt similar practices is high. Having friends who have a planned approach and good money habits works in your favour. This will also have a positive impact on your credit history and CIBIL report.

5. Being humble and money values

We are naturally gravitated towards people with whom we share similar values. Be it the sense of humour, honesty, kindness and any other values which matter to us. However, we also pick up values from people we associate with. Though those values may not be what we carried with us, it definitely rubs off.

Being proud about the amount of money in the bank account, flaunting it, going in for expensive purchases just to prove a point are not values we would want to pick up. Hence, it is important to have friends who value money and are humble about it because they recognise the hard work that went behind it.

6. It's not only about money honey!

Hold on! Money matters are very important but what is even more important is perspective. Having the right perspective towards money will help in leading a balanced life. We need to work hard, earn and invest but we also need to enjoy the fruits of our labour.

Friends who believe in this ideology will help you with putting things in perspective from time to time. Planning mini vacations, evening outings or visits to the park builds memories, enriches lives and don't cost a bomb. These experiences fill up the voids in our lives which money never can.

Friendships bring joy. And if you have friends who are smart about managing their money, then it shall bring you riches too. The power of influence of friendships in our life should not be underestimated. Be smart and think wisely when it comes to saving plans, investment decisions and picking friends. Three cheers for fabulous friendships and happy wallets!

Photograph: Hrishikesh Karanjikar/Creative Commons

The author is Co-founder and Director Credit Vidya.