<ol><li>They Maintain a Positive Outlook Toward Their Finances </li><li> </li></ol>“My attitude has always been, if you fall flat on your face, at least you’re moving forward. All you have to do is get back up and try again.” – Richard Branson Mentally strong people subscribe to Branson’s notion that a positive attitude puts them in a position of control over their circumstances. They also apply this same principle toward their finances. In fact, research has shown that positivity is a hallmark of nearly all financially well-off individuals. You can follow in their footsteps too. Start by affirming out loud your financial goals for 2017. Remember, be specific and confident (for example, “I will successfully save at least 10% of my income.”). <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.forbes.com%2Fsites%2Fwinniesun%2F2017%2F01%2F30%2Fthe-6-financial-habits-of-mentally-strong-people-that-you-can-and-should-adopt-now%2F&amp;text=Voicing%20your%20goals%20with%20confidence%20is%20proven%20to%20help%20you%20better%20ingrain%20positivity%20into%20your%20brain%20%40SunGroupWP%20%40Forbes">Voicing your goals with confidence is proven to help you better ingrain positivity into your brain and follow through on your plans. </a> Once you have those positive vibes flowing, write down your goals, so that you can monitor your progress throughout the year.

<ol><li>They Surround Themselves with Others Sharing Their Vision for Financial Success </li></ol>“Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.” – Oprah Winfrey As the saying goes, “you are who you surround yourself with.” This is especially true for the mentally strong. People associating themselves with others who are trustworthy, motivated and share their vision for financial success, naturally develop mental toughness. Why? Because they expand their financial horizons by collaborating with like-minded people and end up being that much more confident with their money. Still not convinced? Read Thomas Corley’s Rich Habits: The Daily Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals . You might be surprised to find that over 85% of the rich in his study made a habit of associating themselves with other goal-oriented, success-hungry people.

<ol><li>They Dedicate Themselves to Lifelong Financial Learning </li></ol>“I really had a lot of dreams when I was a kid, and I think a great deal of that grew out of the fact that I had a chance to read a lot.” – Bill Gates <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.forbes.com%2Fsites%2Fwinniesun%2F2017%2F01%2F30%2Fthe-6-financial-habits-of-mentally-strong-people-that-you-can-and-should-adopt-now%2F&amp;text=Mentally%20strong%20people%20are%20voracious%20learners.%20%40Sungroupwp%20%40Forbes%20%23motivation%20%23wealth">Mentally strong people are voracious learners. </a> That’s because they’re constantly hungry for knowledge and self-improvement. They actively strive to be better than the person that they were yesterday, and this translates into self-confidence and mental toughness. The same goes without saying for bettering themselves financially. Mentally tough people are always seeking ways to have their money work for them, not the other way around. Whether that takes shape in creating multiple streams of income or diversifying their portfolios, the mentally strong are relentless in honing their financial savvy. According to Corley’s research, 88% of the rich devote at least 30 minutes per day to self-education or self-improvement reading. You can join them too. Start flexing those mental muscles and get ready to learn!

<ol><li>They Keep Their Emotions Separate from Their Financial Decisions </li></ol>“If you cannot control your emotions, you cannot control your money.” – Warren Buffett We’re all human. Which means that it’s only natural that our emotions influence our decision-making process. Even though it’s impossible to completely separate our emotions from the decisions that we make, the mentally strong take to heart Buffett’s advice. One of the ways they’re able to do that is by summoning the counsel of trusted financial and investment experts, with whom they have established strong relationships (which refers back to my second point!). They understand that their financial mentors can help them limit risk, leverage turnkey solutions to realize their financial goals faster and help them prevent their emotions from getting a hold of themselves before making important financial decisions.

<ol><li>They Live Below Their Means </li></ol>“Living below your means has always been a go-to strategy of mentally strong people. They know they have money to splurge with but aren’t spendthrifts in their daily lives, they still want value for their money.” – Marsha Collier, best-selling author of 48 books, freelance author at <a href="http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/Section/index.html">John Wiley and Sons </a><a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.forbes.com%2Fsites%2Fwinniesun%2F2017%2F01%2F30%2Fthe-6-financial-habits-of-mentally-strong-people-that-you-can-and-should-adopt-now%2F&amp;text=Mentally%20strong%20people%20have%20the%20financial%20discipline%20to%20hold%20off%20on%20buying%20%40Sungroupwp%20%40Forbes">Mentally strong people have the financial discipline to hold off on buying </a> the latest luxury vehicle and not going on compulsive shopping rampages. It also means that they’re thinking long-term with their finances. By living below their means, mentally strong people are confident with what they have now and are able to envision the financial future that they are working towards on a daily basis.

<ol><li>They Pay Themselves First </li></ol>“In order to be rich, you must have the self-discipline to pay yourself first. By this, I simply mean using your income to invest in cash-flowing assets before you pay your bills or buy anything fun. This, in turn, will create more income that you can use to invest in more, cash-flowing assets. Do that and you’ll have more money than you k now what to do with.” – Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad author <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.forbes.com%2Fsites%2Fwinniesun%2F2017%2F01%2F30%2Fthe-6-financial-habits-of-mentally-strong-people-that-you-can-and-should-adopt-now%2F&amp;text=Paying%20yourself%20first%20is%20one%20of%20the%20most%20crucial%20pillars%20of%20personal%20finance.%20%40Sungroupwp%20%40Forbes">Paying yourself first is one of the most crucial pillars of personal finance. </a> And mentally strong people abide by it. Before buying groceries, paying the electric bill or spending on anything else, they set aside money for their future. They do this because they know that an investment in themselves is a gateway to a secure financial future and are mentally tough enough to abstain from making unnecessary purchases that may “feel good” in the now. Some tangible ways that they pay themselves first are by funding their 401(k) accounts to the max and making it a habit to not only save a portion of their income but also invest that income into a well-researched portfolio that continues to grow as time passes.

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The 6 Financial Habits Of Mentally Strong People That You Can (And Should) Adopt Now

Let your partners talk about themselves A study by several Harvard researchers found that talking about yourself is a pleasure akin to eating. As in, people love it. Study participants went as far as to give up money for the opportunity to talk about themselves. What this means is that letting people talk about themselves will help them enjoy the conversation and can make you more likable. The best way to facilitate that?

Ask this type of question As you move through your conversation, instead of responding to your partner’s story with a relatable anecdote, focus on really listening and asking follow-up questions. A <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28447835">study </a>last year revealed that this simple step actually made people more likable. We all ask questions. But prioritizing them can make a real difference.

Be careful about how personal you go I took French throughout my schooling, and something I heard again and again over the years was not to ask a French person what their job is. In France and around Europe, it’s considered an overly personal question, and topics like politics are considered a more neutral — and intellectual — conversation space. This probably comes out of the fact that in Europe, where class has a longer and perhaps more complicated history, your profession has historically been deeply attached to your social status, and your social status has been trenchantly difficult to change. Asking a profession, then, amounts to asking, “what’s your social status?” In America, where we like to think of class as something changeable and thus less defining, and where work has less historically inscribed relationship to class, we don’t lend the question so much weight.

Be honest It can be tempting to slip into platitudes and white lies in an attempt to stay likable — a <a href="https://www.thriveglobal.com/stories/44243-being-honest-isn-t-as-scary-as-you-think">new study </a>has shown that we associate a lot of fear with being honest, because we expect a negative reaction (and perhaps dislike) from our conversation partners as a result. But these fears are actually largely unfounded: People don’t usually have the negative reactions to honesty that we expect, and we end up feeling really great, too, after speaking up honestly.The study notes two main kinds of honest talk that you can draw on for this: Give honest feedback (at work, this might mean some constructive criticism about a colleague’s performance), and answer personal questions honestly — if someone at a party asks you how you’re doing, answer with how you’re really feeling, even if that means saying something like, “Actually, I’m feeling really overwhelmed right now.” Then use the opportunity to follow up with a question about your conversation partner: “Have you ever felt like you were struggling to keep up with everything? How do you cope when you do?”

Leverage your body language Smiling, making eye contact, and leaning in towards the person you are talking to all signify, without words, that you feel compassion and interest for what someone has to say. And as much as you want to be liked, the person you are speaking with wants to be liked as well. Making them feel special and heard will make them like and appreciate you, as well. We’ve all been in conversation with that disconcertingly charismatic person who looks at us so intently, so deeply, that we think we’re the only person who matters. You can use that person’s often wordless techniques. You may even find that you are that person yourself!

Small-talk anxiety can’t conquer you if you’ve got these tools in hand. 

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5 Conversation Habits of Truly Likable People

I don’t care if you’ve been single for several decades or several days. It can be easy to get down on yourself over the “odds” finding that perfect partner. Don’t let yourself buy into the ridiculous myths like “It’s more likely to get abducted by an alien than it is to get married after 40.” Remember, anything and everything is possible. You just need to get out of your own way and start believing that.

I can’t tell you how many people I know who just “settle” because they hate being alone. If that’s you, why do you hate being alone so much? Don’t you like yourself? You should! You should love being alone because you’re such a cool person. You need to have the mindset that anyone who doesn’t want you is a fool and you wouldn’t want them anyway.

Often, people use being with others as an escape—an escape from themselves. If you’re with others, then the focus is on them, not you. But how well do you really know yourself? Being single is a precious time that can be used to really get to know and love yourself. So spend the time getting to know you. Discover new things. Work on personal growth.

And I mean it. Don’t even think about it ! If they have to be chased, then they don’t want you. And if they don’t want you, then you shouldn’t want them (see #2). As Maya Angelou says, “When people show you who they are, believe them the first time.” If someone is showing you that they would rather not date you, believe them. Shrug your shoulders and move on. It’s their loss, not yours. No, really—it is.

Jerry McGuire had it wrong. Don’t look for someone to “complete you.” If you need someone to complete you, then you aren’t whole to begin with. Re-read #2 and #3 as often as you need to in order to get that lesson. You want someone to think “Wow! This person is dating ME?!?! I’m the luckiest guy/girl on the planet!” And the right person will.

You’re awesome! You’re cool! If you don’t believe me, then you are wrong. Everyone is perfect in their own way. The problem is, many people—especially single people—don’t believe it. It’s okay to spend a Saturday night alone with yourself and a movie and a glass of wine. As you do, you should say to yourself what my mother always says, “I wonder what the peasants are doing?” In other words, the “peasants” are anyone who’s not you—because you’re having such a good time by yourself that you don’t need anyone else.

Again, don’t buy into the myths that “all the good ones are taken.” Hogwash! You’re not taken, right? Well, I rest my case! If you’re single and available, then not all the good ones are taken. So you just need to get out of your own head and stop believing those lies that society tells you. There are plenty of good eligible singles out there for you to match up with.

One of the things that singles don’t like is that they can’t predict the future. Or control it. They think, “Will I be alone forever? Will I be an old maid? Where should I go to meet people?” Lots of people don’t like uncertainty and unanswered questions. But uncertainty brings a ton of opportunity. Your options are endless!! And that’s a good thing! You just need to believe that it is, too.

This is rule #1 of the Law of Attraction. If you’re not familiar with it, I suggest you read about it. When you focus on the negativity of being single, you are only putting negative vibrations out there to everyone. They will pick up on it. Focus on your great job, wonderful friends, your health, your car, food on your table—you name it. When you focus on the good things, your vibration will change to being positive. Other people will pick up on it and want to be around you even more than they already do.

Do you like running? Join a running group! Do you love to read? Join a book club! Do you like to go to happy hour with your friends? Do it! The more you keep busy, the less you’ll focus on the negatives of being single (but there really aren’t any negatives—only what you think are negatives). Keep busy and have fun. And who knows who you will meet in the process?

If you have been nasty to your partners in past relationships, re-think that! If you’re being nasty to yourself, stop doing that! Love yourself! Treat yourself with kindness and respect. If you want a quality relationship with a person who will treat you well, you need to start doing it yourself.

Maybe you’re feeling down on yourself or you’re feeling lonely because haven’t been on a date for a long time. Then try giving back! Volunteer at a homeless shelter or a center for abused women. It always feels good to help others. The more you help others, the better you’ll feel about yourself. And it will also help you not focus on what you “don’t have” quite as much.

Perfection takes time! Rome wasn’t built in a day. The Great Pyramids weren’t even built in a century. So if you want greatness, you need to be willing to wait it out! Don’t just settle for whatever comes your way. Make sure that when you choose a partner, that he/she is who really you want. You two should be a good match. If not, you might find yourself having to repeat the process of being single once again. So decide what you want, and have confidence that in time, you will definitely find “the one.”

Are you single and unhappy? Don't worry—it won't be forever. Here are 13 things that will cheer you up and give you hope again.

The 6 Financial Habits Of Mentally Strong People That You Can (And Should) Adopt Now

5 Conversation Habits of Truly Likable People

13 Things I Want To Tell The Single And Unhappy Ones

Sa'ad Ahmed