Four Stress Strategies To Manage Financial Worry
Desjardin Financial reported that 61% of people cited personal finances as their #1 source of stress. And just like physical, emotional and environmental stress, financial stress can become overwhelming. It is estimated that employees with debt are spending 1 hour per day dealing with money at work.
According to a Mayo Clinic report, there are 4 strategies to deal with personal stress. These four strategies can also be exercised to prevent financial stress.
The 4 strategies are AVOID, ALTER, ACCEPT and ADAPT.
1. AVOID
Avoiding money issues is not the best solution because avoidance just delays and worsens your financial state of affairs. However, there are steps you can take to avoid having to cope with difficult monetary situations.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS:
- set up equal billing for utilities
- have 1 credit card only
- plan for major purchases
- learn to say “no”
2. ALTER
You can review your situation, take an inventory and attempt to change.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS:
- track your expenses
- plan a budget
3. ACCEPT
Accept your current financial status and adjust your goals accordingly.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS:
- talk with a credit counsellor and set priorities
- redefine success
- learn from life lessons about money (past mistakes) and move forward with new money management awareness
- get a copy of your credit rating and find out your true financial picture
4. ADAPT
Along with changing your standards and expectations about money, change your habits around managing your finances in order to deal with stress.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS:
- try to reduce your interest rate on cards and pay down your high interest accounts first
- consolidate your loans
- get rid of high interest debt by paying more than the minimum payment
- use cash only, not your debit or credit cards
