One of the best things we can do for ourselves is taking care of our health. Sleeping well, eating a nutritious diet, and working out provide three essential pillars for this. But while this can help improve our mental and physical health like nothing else, this process is hardly the only one that affects our lives for the better.
Often, practicing excellent financial management – even if that just means enacting a little more discipline within our habits, can help, too. After all, while many of us loathe saying this, financial health defines our lives much more than we may expect. In fact, our financial situation is often the realistic basis from which we define our living capabilities, including what events we look forward to, our standard of living, and what concessions we must make such as paying off debts.
But what are the hallmarks of healthy financial fitness? In this post, we’ll discuss this with the same motivated mindset you use to prepare for that run in the morning. This way, you can move forward not with obligation, but confidence:
Regular Tracking & Charting
We need to keep disciplined with how we track our finances, so that little problems do not add up or little expenditures do not catch us unaware when we come to make the more important financial decisions. By using a budgeting tool such as a notepad like Evernote or a more comprehensive financial planning tool such as You Need A Budget, you can more easily track your savings, debts, contributions, expenses, and interest payments as required. Over time, this will help you gain a crystal-clear understanding of how much you’re spending, why you’re spending it, and in the long run, what you should spend on.
Financial Security & Safety
No discussion about financial health should be exempt from discussions about financial security. Making sure all of your secret passwords are updated regularly, that you never give out your information, that unrecognized charges are disputed and that you vet every service you give card information to is key. Also, make sure that you utterly trust those to who you lend money privately – but even in cases of family, be very cautious about doing so. Use trusted banks and make sure that your deposits are protected through the appropriate scheme. Keep diligent and vigilant. It will make a big difference.
Prioritize As Necessary
When we exercise, we need to make sure we prioritize what movements, warmups, exercises and training regimens we stick to. We do this knowing we need to focus on a small number of specialisms. In our financial life, a similar set of principles can help us. For instance, consolidating our debts and working on paying them off over time, as well as making sure our larger priority payments, such as those we use compare credit to get the best deals on, can enable our proper cash flow as we move from month to month, is key. This way, we can set gradations of priorities to our spending – ensuring that we don’t indulge too soon, or that we enter into any contract without the ability to make repayments.
With this advice, you’re certain to develop and utilize the hallmarks of healthy financial fitness.
