Learning how to manage your personal finances efficiently can be time-consuming because in order to get an overview of the top money tips for 2016 you might have to gather thorough research, do a lot of reading and filtering between certain strategies and categories which can be quite daunting.
Before you make any major decisions about managing your money or setting goals, try to mentally prepare first and know your situation with your money.
You need to ask yourself certain questions before heading onto any major decisions and setting goals in order to progress with your money managing.
Do you have credits to pay back? Are you in debt? Do you owe other people? Have you clearly thought through your incoming earnings relative to your outgoing costs? Are you a spender or a saver?
You must come up with a realistic conclusion as to what type of financial situation you are currently in and what you’re expecting to happen in the future.
How your money affects your life not only reflects a lot about your personality but it can seriously define your days, weeks, months and technically the rest of your life.
That’s why it’s a good idea to consider your personal finances wisely and take the time to plan and adopt the following money tips for this year if you wish to control your finances better.
1. Schedule an appointment with a financial advisor
It’s never too late to see an expert in the financial field. Don’t be shy to ask for help and turn to an advisor, because they really know their job. And even if it takes time and not all of the options work for you, the time spent on considering the following options will be worth your while.
Financial advisors can help you to start off with the money managing by looking at the following:
- Your credit rating
- Insurances such as health or home insurance
- Debt repayments
- Checking out deals for your mortgage
- Personal assets, wages and earnings
- Considering interest rates
- Pension and retirement savings
2. Get into budgeting
Having an idea of where your money is regularly going, controlling it and building up a necessary plan are all vital to filter through anything that you don’t actually need in your life. This can be simply achieved by keeping a constant budget, because by doing so you can see where you’re money is going and where you’re money should be going such as:
- Debt payments
- Savings accounts
- Future investments
The financial expert Whitney Johnson who co-funded the investment company called Rose Park Advisors thinks that smart proactive money making is important because it teaches you to work properly, to earn the money you deserve for the work and to save up from it because you’ve learned to value it.
3. Make a living out of doing a job you love
At times, you will get into the situation when the job you do will not satisfy you nor earn you a good deal of money. It might not be the dream job and believe it or not, most people start with jobs where they don’t necessary feel happy, but because of simple survival and needs, you always have to be humble and work hard in order to earn your living.
However, the point often arrives at which you question yourself whether you’re happy with what you’re doing, how you’re earning your living and how it is affecting your life. Are you going to keep chasing your dreams forever or be brave and give a shot to a job that would make you satisfied in your life? There is no better feeling than earning money with a job that makes you truly happy in life.
4. Start saving for your retirement
Pension savings should be a financial priority because it’s going to cost you a lot of money sooner or later if you ignore thinking about it. Having a comfortable and secure life in your elderly years is going to make your future finances much easier for you and allow for greater financial independence. Besides, every cent you plan to save is a good cause that you’re making for your future self.
5. It’s all about perspective
If you want to be independent with your money you need to shift your mindset first. Being mindful and calm is highly important because at harder times finance can be difficult and may dispirit you. However, remaining positive and having an optimistic take on life can always help to keep a good and realistic perspective and weigh between the positive and negative things that affect your financial situation.
6. Have a plan
Creating a certain “emergency plan” for your finances by putting cash aside, is a smart way to manage your money because it allows you to reach for your reserves in the future.
Additionally, you should always keep your financial goals in your mind and make steps to reach your goals. If it helps, write them down and make a long-term plan and devise it in a way so that you will surely know how you will achieve those goals.