3 Practices That Significantly Improve Your Financial Health

With the economy in its current uncertain state, money is a primary concern for many people. What could we be doing to improve and secure our financial health?

We could follow the example of financially healthy people. Frost Research discovered three practices of financially healthy people that delivered significant advantages.

Frost learned:

“Their financial health is likely to increase 7x over, they experience 145 fewer days of financial stress and are much more likely to recover from a financial setback.”

What are these practices, and can anyone implement them?

Talk About Money

The first of the three is to talk about money. Talking about money has been deemed taboo, but people with healthy finances get comfortable having money discussions. They discuss finances with family and experts. So, electing for open communication with our partner about financial goals and priorities can improve financial health. We must also learn to consult reliable experts about our financial planning. We can all do this by simply having a conversation with our spouse or significant other about the current state of your finances and where you want to be. The next step could be calling the bank and discussing better options for your checking, savings, and investment accounts that suit your needs.

Aim For Progress, Not Perfection

The second practice is to aim for progress and not perfection. This means we must learn the power of incremental improvements in our finances. We must embrace failure when we don’t succeed and celebrate every win every time.

The fear of failure can lead to a paralytic state resulting in people becoming stagnant. Big dreams and goals are crucial to your financial succes, but attempting to reach it all in one step can overwhelm. When you break your big goal down into smaller milestones that align with your big goal, it will all be more manageable.

When you choose advancement over perfection and celebrate the small successes, you’re more likely to reach your financial aspirations. This is good practice for any goals. We set small goals that will ultimately lead to you reaching the larger goal. For example, if you want to increase your income, set goals for incremental increases. Ask yourself, how can I increase my income by only 3% this week or month, then build on it. Or maybe you are building a business. Then your mini goals could be the completion of actionable tasks crucial to the business

Be Prepared for The Unexpected

The third practice is to prepare for a rainy day. Financial setbacks are normal and happen to all of us, but we must learn to leverage the obstacles that do come as opportunities to learn and be better prepared for the next time. Feeling financially secure can have a huge psychological impact.

When you’re prepared, you become less fearful of the future. You will be clear-headed, free to make better decisions and continue taking productive, money-making actions.

We can start setting money aside for a rainy day. We can start with as little as 10% every pay day. Most people have areas they can save in there budget, it may require some sacrifice. If you don’t want to sacrifice, set out to increase your increase. Save your increases and continue to live on your original income.

These are 3 simple practices that most of us can start today for better financial health.

-Frost Article

 
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The First Step in Building Wealth Is Discipline