Your financial well-being is similar to your physical health—there are no quick fixes to years of bad habits and unhealthy decisions. The only way to improve your health is to implement a new, life long nutrition and exercise regimen. Similarly years of over-spending, incurring debt and neglecting savings can’t be turned around overnight. However, once you state your money goals and commit to making better choices, gradually you’ll begin to see improvement to your financial health.
I have always practiced yoga– just not consistently. Recently I committed to a morning practice so for the last few weeks each morning I do several rounds of Sun Salutations. What I can tell you that I’m not as flexible as I’d like to be but I continue every morning. Although my goal is seven repetitions, right now I’m at four. I’m sure that as I continue my stamina and flexibility will improve. It was the same when I began my own road to self-sufficiency. My first baby step was opening my bills and bank statements and thoroughly reviewing them each month. Gradually I progressed to harder tasks such addressing my credit card debt and saving money.
Many women fail to get their financial houses in order because they are overwhelmed with information and advice. Frequently they don’t know where to begin. Other women fail to manage their money because they’ve become bogged down in the guilt and shame of their past financial choices. Our financial health, like our physical health can be renewed, revitalized by focusing on new decisions and new actions.
In coaching women to become self-sufficient I’ve outlined action steps that I find critical to helping them to create and build wealth.
I call them the 7 Building Blocks to Your Financial Renewal.
1.Get to the Truth about Your Personal Finances
The only way to improve your financial well being is to assess where you currently are. This means knowing in detail: what you earn; what you own; what you owe; and what you spend.
2. Determine What You Want To Do With Your Money
Women tend to pay more attention to their finances when they’ve earmarked the money for a particular purpose with a need-by date e.g. buying a home, taking a trip, starting a business, paying for their kid’s education.
3. Create a Financial Cushion
Financial security is a major concern for most women, so having an emergency fund to deal with unexpected expenses or a job loss is important to create peace of mind.
4. Pay Down Your Credit Debt (and Don’t Incur More)
Learning how to use credit cards wisely and paying-off existing credit card debt is a key component to achieving financial security.
5. Protect Yourself, Your loved ones and Your assets
Women need to make sure that they have adequate personal, home and business insurance. Additionally they must make sure to execute necessary legal documents such as a power of attorney, letters of legal guardianship for minor children and health care directives.
6. Develop a Conscious Spending Plan
Using your actual monthly expenses as a baseline, conscious spending allows you to allocate your money of items that matter to you most that month.
7. Learn to Stop Underearning
Millions of women are consistently not earning enough to meet their monthly expenses. Learning how to earn more money through better salary negotiation, raising fees and transitioning to higher paying industries helps accelerate your ability to reduce debt and build wealth.
Step into your greatness today,
Yvonne
