10 steps to boost your financial health that you can do in a day Your Money and Your Mind
Transcriber:
We all know you should take a sick day
or a mental health day
or even a personal day.
But a financial day is just as important.
[Your Money and Your Mind
with Wendy De La Rosa]
You deserve to take time
to get your life in order
when you aren’t on edge
and under pressure.
Employers, if you’re watching this:
you should also think about
giving your employees
a financial health day.
Throughout this series,
I’ve shared ways that you can
change your environment
so you can spend less and save more.
But the secret ingredient
for each tip has been time:
calling your credit card company
to change your interest rate takes time;
deleting an app off your phone takes time.
And if you haven’t had time
to put these changes into action,
this is your chance.
Mark a day on your calendar right now
to devote to reorganizing your finances.
Really commit to this day
and make that day
as productive as possible.
But here are the big headlines
that are the most important to cover,
both from earlier episodes and beyond.
So first I want you to focus
on your fixed expenses.
Take the day to evaluate your bills.
Can you truly afford your housing payment?
Is it time to start looking
for a cheaper place?
Do you need to switch
to a low-cost cell phone provider?
Do you need to trade in your car
for something else?
This is the day where
I really want you to think about
those large fixed expenses
and make that one-time change.
Number two: sign up for the
boring-but-necessary stuff.
Do you have life insurance?
No? Sign up now.
Are you enrolled in your company’s 401(k)?
No? Sign up now.
Are you contributing enough
to that 401(k)?
No? Edit your contribution rate right now.
Number three: if you haven’t already,
talk to your significant
other about money.
Get on the same page; it matters.
Visit the link below
for a list of questions
to help get you started.
Number four: create
a singular savings goal.
You can start by setting up
an automatic plan
so that a portion of every paycheck
goes directly into your savings account.
Number five: start paying
off your debt every week,
not just every month.
Maybe it’s your credit card debt
or your mortgage debt
or whatever you have,
you’ll end up reducing more of your debt
over the course of a year
if you pay that debt more often.
Number six: renegotiate
your credit card interest rate
and change your payment due date.
Get on the phone,
call your credit card company
and make your credit card
company work for you.
Number seven: use technology
to your advantage.
Redesign your online environment
by unsubscribing from all
your shopping newsletters
and install an ad blocker.
You can’t spend on what you can’t see.
Number eight: delete
those distracting delivery apps.
Number nine:
now, my tips are not all
about cutting back spending.
I want you to spend on things
that increase your happiness.
So focus on experiences,
on spending time with others
and on expenditures
that help save you time,
like hiring someone to clean your house
or mow your lawn.
That will save you time
and boost your happiness.
Number 10: last but certainly not least,
schedule another financial health day
for a few weeks later.
Chances are, you’ll need to revisit
some of the things
you started today.
I know all of this may seem
tedious or boring,
but it’s better to make
these vital changes
when you have the time
to think about them,
and not under the stressful conditions
when we usually make
these very important decisions.
Not every day can be a spa day,
but I think a financial day
will leave you feeling
soothed and pampered.