by Our household finances can quickly become a ball and chain for us. If we allow ourselves to become passengers rather than drivers, and if we don’t take active steps to keep our finances under control they can quickly become a quagmire of debt. Many households around the world struggle with finding financial freedom and let’s face it, our consumer capitalist society is not conducive to helping them achieve it. But if you remain disciplined and stick the path, you can right your household finances and keep your bank balance in the black. Follow these 5 avenues and you’ll arrive at financial freedom faster than you think.
Learning
It’s all too easy to fall into a rhythm with our job and our career. Before we know it, we’re treading water wondering where the last 10 years went and why we haven’t seen a pay rise for 8 of them. Learning is the most effective way out of this stagnant career swamp. Whether it’s studying an online degree in public safety, empowering yourself with new transferrable skills or simply seeking out extra duties at work. Knowledge is power and empowerment, and can help you shatter even the sturdiest of glass ceilings.
Budgeting
Often the simplest methods are the most effective and there’s no simpler and more effective way of managing your household finances than budgeting. The trouble is that budgeting only works when combined with discipline and frugality. If you can find a great household budgeting template and stick to it, that’s half the battle won.
Saving
Everyone, no matter what your income, no matter what your outgoings, should be saving. Contributing regularly to your savings is a great habit to get into. After a while you won’t miss the money going into your savings account but you’ll appreciate that it’s there when you have need of it. Just don’t entrust your savings to a high street savings account with a sub 1% interest rate. Choose an online savings account, instead. As online providers have fewer overhead costs they’re able to pass the savings onto you.
Effective debt management
Debt can be a constant drain on even the best managed household finances. As interest rates climb your monthly repayments can come to mean less and less. Instead of juggling multiple debts and throwing away a fortune on interest, consolidate all of your existing debts into a single monthly repayment. Your debts will be far easier to manage and you’ll even improve your credit score too.
And finally… Restraint
The trouble with our contemporary consumerist world is that it’s lured us into perpetuating a series of bad habits. We’ve developed an unhealthy mindset, that of; “I want it, I should have it”. And the financial services industry has done its best to capitalize on this urge, giving us easy access to credit that can mire us in debt for years and years.
Sometimes the best line of defense for your household finances is your restraint and frugality. Stop treating shopping as a leisure activity, stop paying top dollar for things you’re not even sure you want and stop looking to consumer purchases to bring you fulfillment.
Sure, you may get the fleeting thrill of a new purchase, but at a cost of your household’s financial stability.
