Are financial problems a constant niggling worry in the back of your mind? No matter how much you earn, there’s always that concern that you may be unable to cover your monthly bills or settle your debts.
If yes, perhaps it is time for you to re-evaluate your financial health.
Financial health is the state of your personal monetary affairs.
How much do you have saved up? How much are you putting away for retirement? How much of your income are you spending on fixed or non-discretionary expenses? All these things play a crucial role in your financial health.
Typical indicators of solid financial health include a reliable source of income, a good rate of return on any investments made, a consistently growing cash balance, and infrequent changes in expenses.
Assessing your financial health is important as it is the first step to managing your finances better. Making your financial health, a priority means taking stock of your spending or saving money and making improvements wherever possible.
Like your physical health, maintaining good financial health requires consistency and upkeep. This is because the value and liquidity of your assets are constantly changing by the fluctuation of the price of goods and services.
For instance, your salary may remain constant while food, petrol and rent costs increase. Despite the initial stable state of your financial health, if you do not manage your expenses in line with the rise in the cost of goods, you may struggle to make ends meet.
Create a budget
Before creating a budget, you must know how you spend your money. The easiest way to do that is to take note of every expenditure you make for an entire month. Once the month ends, look at how you’ve handled your expenses. Are there things that you can cut back on? Are the things that you’ve been spending your money on necessities? Determine your “needs” versus your “wants”, and allocate the appropriate amount of funds to fulfil what you deem necessary.
Following models such as the 50/30/20 or the 70/20/10 budget rule can be a good starting point if you’re starting to budget. The 50/30/20 rule is a budgeting strategy where you spend 50% of your income on essential needs, 30% on wants, and 20% on necessities, while the 70/20/10 sees that you spend 70% of your income on crucial needs, 20% on wants and 10% on needs.
Once you grow more accustomed to taking better care of your finances, you can decide how you would like to allocate your budget according to your means and lifestyle and set different rules for yourself.
Set up an emergency fund
Experts recommend putting aside as much as six months’ expenses for a rainy day.
A month of expenses equates to how much you spend in a single month on things you can’t go without, such as food, rent, and utilities. It does not include discretionary expenses such as meals out or luxury items. After calculating how much a month’s worth of expenses is, multiply that number by six. There’s your target amount for your emergency fund.
Your financial circumstances may warrant a smaller or larger emergency fund. While setting aside more for a rainy day is recommended, factors such as job stability, the number of people who are financially dependent on you, and your monthly income determine how much you should set aside. Ultimately, it is up to you to make that decision.
And if the total amount looks daunting at first, do not worry. What’s essential is consistently putting aside money in your emergency fund, even if it’s only a little each month.
Settle any outstanding debts you owe
Delaying debt repayment will cause your financial health to suffer in the long run. Also, debt has been proven to negatively affect both mental and physical health and create increasing strain in households.
While there are several strategies for debt repayments, the best course you take will depend on your circumstances. A financial planner is the best person to offer a professional assessment of the course you should take.
Financial planners can help you map out a plan to manage your expenses better and deal with any outstanding debt you may have accumulated.
What matters most is your reason for wanting to be financially healthy. While having more money and more leeway to spend it however we want is undoubtedly appealing, saving money to accumulate it can only motivate you so far.
Is it to pay off your student loans? To settle the mortgage on your house? To provide for your children or family?
Having a goal in mind helps you to be consistent with your savings.
This article was brought to you by Naluri’s Financial Coaches. Naluri empowers you to develop healthy lifestyle habits, achieve meaningful health outcomes, and be healthier and happier through personalised coaching, structured programmes, self-guided lessons, and health tools and devices. Download the Naluri App today or contact hello@naluri.life for more information on utilising digital health coaching and therapy to become a happier, healthier you.