Today, we invite you to look beyond the Disney's clichés. Beyond Prince Charming and the princesses. If you stop to look carefully, you'll find messages that can serve as divine signs, or perhaps you can take them as a little push that life is giving you.
This time, we paid attention to the financial lessons that Disney has shared with us in their movies. We are sure that they can help you improve your numbers and yourself.
You desperately need an emergency fund
Movie: Up.
We should all learn from the intro of Up. After Carl and Eli get married, they arrive at their new house, start remodeling it and build together their love nest.
Their hobbies are organizing picnics in the park and reading (two activities that cost little money).
Together, they set the goal to visit Paradise Falls and begin to save everything they can in a jar. That "piggy bank money" gets burned out because a car tire goes flat, then Carl gets his leg in a cast and a storm knocks down a tree on the roof of their house. This is how all their savings for Paradise Falls goes to emergency expenses.
Lesson Learned: Learn to differentiate between an emergency fund and a savings fund.
The emergency fund is just to spend that money in unexpected cases (losing your job, illness, accident, etc.)
To have a savings fund, you must first set a goal and then save as much money as you can to achieve your goal (but above all, do not touch that money… at all).
Hug the planet. It needs it.
Movie: Wall-e.
It turns out that in the year 2800, the Earth is devastated and lifeless. Wall-e (a cute and friendly robot) sets out to clean the planet of garbage and repair the damage done by humans.
Lesson Learned: Collect things that no longer serve you and reuse them; the planet and your economy will thank you. We're in time to make a positive change in our consumption habits, think about your future self and those who will remain after you. Let's practice awareness.
Debts will drive you crazy.
Movie: Tangled.
Flynn Rider is a handsome thief who falls in love with Rapunzel. He outsmarts the security guards and sneaks into the castle to steal a highly valuable crown. His finances are in tatters, and he thinks that stealing can get him out of his debts and needs.
Lesson Learned: Avoid making your debts unpayable. Save a good amount of money to live in peace and don't steal, hehe.
Do you really need a prince charming?
Movie: Cinderella.
In the classic Disney tale, Cinderella's stepmother wants to marry off her daughters (Griselda and Anastasia) with rich men to improve her economic status.
Lesson Learned: You can't depend on someone to secure your future. It's your responsibility to create the life you want. Get it together and get to work.
Crisis vs Opportunity
Movie: Monsters Inc.
James Sullivan (the blue monster) is a potential entrepreneur. The company Monsters Inc goes bankrupt because the CEO of the company had tricky businesses, but Sullivan buys the shares of Monsters Inc Corporation and creates a prestigious power generation company.
Lesson Learned: Learn from crises and take advantage of them. I mean, always be sharp.
Don't pretend to be someone you're not
Movie: Aladdin.
Let us remember that Aladdin did not have a single dollar in his wallet, but that he was a good-hearted boy. When he meets the genie of the wonderful lamp, he asks him to put together a grand entrance to surprise Princess Jasmine, but he doesn't realize that she is sick of the same shows and clichés to woo her. She isn't interested in meeting a billionaire prince, she just wanted to meet a real person.
Lesson Learned: There's something beyond pretensions, show yourself the way you are.
