No one wants to struggle financially in life, but it can happen. It can certainly be very stressful and emotional when it comes to money problems, and it can often feel like there’s no way out of the mess you’re in. Especially now in today’s COVID era, I know that things can be tough. Many of us are furloughed, laid off, have had our hours cut and all of us are probably somewhat stressed about money. In these tough times, it’s important to remember that all situations can be resolved in some way, so here are some tips to help when struggling financially.

Identify The Problem Areas

Firstly, it’s important to find the problem areas when it comes to your finances. There might be one particular area that’s causing the problem, or it could be multiple. When you’re in a tough spot, it can be tough to clearly know what the issue is, and so it’s important to take time to pause and identify what really is the issue. Maybe it’s not as bad as it seems, maybe it’s not an issue at all, or maybe it is, but by identifying what’s actually going on, you can start making a plan.

Perhaps it’s overspending when you’re out and about socializing, or it could be racking up credit card debt due to spending on your home or lifestyle and going too far. Maybe it’s the fact that you’ve been laid off and don’t have much of an emergency fund to fall back on. It’s often the case that we don’t realize how bad we have it until we’re in it. Identifying the problems are the first steps to solving these problems and tackling them head-on. When it comes to finding these issues, you can then look at how you can best solve them or make them better. There are likely going to be problems that you can solve pretty easily, and some might not be as simple to do.

Ask For Help

Asking for help isn’t a bad thing, but when it comes to your finances, a lot of people can tend to feel shame towards it. It’s difficult to admit to someone, whether you know them or not, that you’re struggling financially. However, it can be helpful in lifting that weight off your mind and to gain support where it’s needed. An outside party can be an unbiased opinion and give you some advice on what to do. There might be certain scenarios where you have to consider a trustee in bankruptcy. Bankruptcy is a terrifying word, but in some cases, it can be an ideal solution to a problem you’re having, and that doesn’t look as if it can be solved. There’s also different types of bankruptcy that you can file that vary from liquidating all your assets to repayment schemes where you can pay off your debts over a certain amount of years but still hold onto your major assets like your home. Definitely a last case resort with bankruptcy, hopefully asking for advice yields some more practical tips!

Try To Remain Positive

It’s important to remain positive when it comes to negative situations like this. As much as it can be difficult to have to go through something like this, it’s important to focus on what you do have. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel, and when it comes to your finances, it’s not the most important thing in life. It’s your health, your family and friends, and the life experiences you’ve made so far. Money can always come from somewhere, so no matter how tough you might be struggling with it at the moment, there’s always a way of resolving it.

Take Small Steps

When you’re struggling financially, it’s important to take small steps in getting back to your new version of normal. It might start by identifying the problem areas and then cutting down on the expenditures that might be stopping you from saving money. You might not be in a lot of debt, but the struggle might be in the money you’re earning in comparison to your lifestyle. You might want to look at your career path and figure out if there’s any progression for you to earn more money. There’s always an option of moving elsewhere or perhaps even attempting a side business or hustle to earn some extra cash. Take it a step at a time and try to forget about any feelings of pressure.

Learn From Bad Financial Decisions

We all make bad decisions in life. We all do things that we might regret, but we learn from these experiences and grow from them. It’s important to learn from bad financial decisions so that you’re not making the same mistake twice. You’ll likely find that things you did financially could have been avoided, or you might have noticed were wrong at the time. However, it’s not something that you can always stop yourself from doing, and so you shouldn’t feel bad that mistakes were made. It’s what you do with your future that counts and how you learn from them and ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Struggling financially is something that no one wants to go through but it’s one thing that might happen once or twice in your lifetime. It’s important to manage your money as best that you can create budgets to help you stay on track and to save your money where you can.

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