You want to be financially independent, but you just can’t seem to get there despite your best intentions. What are you doing wrong?

Here are some of the ways you might be hurting your finances without even realizing it.

Procrastination

If you think of a lot of ways to improve your finances, but always procrastinate when it comes to taking action, you might as well not even have that knowledge to begin with. Knowledge only helps you if you’re willing to use it.

If you know you should join your company’s 401k program, but you keep procrastinating, you’re not making any headway. It’s the same no matter which situation you are facing – doing a balance transfer, setting up automatic deposits to your savings account, or other things. If you’re not taking action, you’re procrastinating. And you’ll never get anywhere by doing that.

Laziness

If you’re in debt, laziness can be your worse enemy. It can cause you to turn down overtime that could greatly help your finances. If can stop you from even addressing your problem to begin with – you could be too lazy to take a hard, long look at your finances to see the mess you’ve gotten yourself into.

If you know you’re prone to laziness, it’s time to give yourself a pep talk. Convince yourself of all the reasons why you need to find some inner motivation. And then use your newfound motivation to make a real difference in your life. It might take a few months of hard work, but you’ll be glad when it’s over.

Impulsiveness

Impulsive urges can lead to some of our worst financial mistakes we make. Window shopping can lead to all kinds of trouble for our bank accounts. And unfortunately, it’s easier than ever to window shop now. We can do it whenever we want from the confines of our own home. And there are countless sites for us to spend our hard-earned money on.

If you know you’re the impulsive sort, you’re going to have to work extra hard to fight those tendencies if you want to improve your finances. One bad decision can bankrupt your whole savings account. If you really have trouble, you need to institute a hard rule that you never break – you’re not allowed to make a big purchase without taking a week to think about what it could do to your finances.

That should stop a lot of your urges to spend mindlessly.

Jealousy

Being jealous of our friends, family, co-workers, or neighbors can get us to overspend in the blink of an eye. If a neighbor gets a pool, suddenly everyone on the block is considering whether they can afford to do the same, even if they previously thought a pool was a waste of money.

It’s natural to want what others have. But you have to remember that true happiness and satisfaction doesn’t come from things – it comes from within. And financial security can bring you great peace of mind and happiness because you won’t have the stresses that other people do.

Think about that the next time you’re contemplating buying something just to keep up with your neighbors.