Digging yourself out of that financial hole…

Almost everyone has had a moment of looking at their bank account and realising suddenly that their finances aren’t in as good a position as they’d previously thought. It’s something that we’re all afraid of experiencing, but it’s easier than you might think to accidentally dig yourself into a financial hole that you’re worried about managing to climb out of. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help yourself get back on your feet…

How Did It Happen?

Figure out what exactly led you into this difficult situation – maybe you accidentally got into some credit card debt, or you don’t keep your spending within your means, or you pay out too much money on convenience food when you should probably start buying fresh food and learning to cook from scratch. A lot of people get into further debt thanks to having to pay interest on debt that they already have, and others simply don’t keep track of their financial situation as carefully as they should.

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What Do You Really Need?

Start to figure out what in your life you really need. Cutting down on things that aren’t necessities is the number one way to easily save yourself some money. If you have a gym membership that you really don’t use very often, that’s something that you can cut out. If you want to figure out a way to stay fit at home then why not consider Couch To 5K? This time of year as the weather gets better, it’s much more pleasant to get fit outside. You could start taking your lunch to work instead of buying it, you could quit smoking and drinking alcohol, you could start walking more or even get rid of your car if you live in an area with good public transport. Figuring out what you really need will help you figure out what you can easily stand to get rid of.

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What Can You Change?

Consider your finances and start to figure out exactly how you can make changes. Talk to your bank manager about how you could start to consolidate your debt and consider making a debt management plan so that you can work out how to pay it back without going into even more debt. Sticking your head in the sand and trying to pretend it isn’t happening is very tempting but in the long run we all know that it isn’t a good idea. It’s important to tackle your debt and your financial problems as quickly as you can to stop them getting out of control.

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How Can You Make Sure It Doesn’t Happen Again?

Finally, it’s important to figure out how exactly you can make sure that you don’t make the same financial errors again. Maybe you need to start saving some money every time you get paid so you have a financial cushion to fall back on, or maybe you need to start looking for a job that pays you more. Considering the constructive changes you can make to your life is the best way to stop the same thing happening again.

*this is a collaborative post*
Posted in Everything else and tagged money & finances.