In this episode of "Tiffany's Take", Tiffany Grant delves into practical strategies to manage financial goals amidst economic uncertainties. A listener's question sparks an in-depth conversation on balancing budgeting, saving for emergencies, and investing for the future, even when expenses are high.

Check out the full show notes: https://moneytalkwitht.com/financial-planning/get-help/stability-in-economic-uncertainty/

Key Takeaways

Prioritizing Financial Goals

• List your financial goals according to urgency and importance.
• Focus on what's critical first—be it building an emergency fund, paying off debt, or investing.
• Resource: Goal Podcast Series

Creating a Flexible Budget

• Start with essentials like housing and utilities, then work down to other expenses.
• Implement the 50/30/20 rule or adjust percentages as needed.
• Resource: Budget Spreadsheet/Budgeting Blog Post

Automating Savings and Investments

• Set up automatic transfers to make consistent contributions without temptation.
• Pay yourself first, a principle even small amounts can embody.

Utilizing Financial Tools and Apps

• Budgeting apps like Mint, YNAB, or EveryDollar.
• Investment platforms such as Acorns for incremental investing.
• Resource: YNAB Affiliate Link

Staying Informed and Educated

• Stay updated on economic trends to adjust strategies.
• Example: Impact of changes in the Fed Funds Rate.
• Resource: Fed Funds Rate Explanation

Building an Emergency Fund

• Aim for 3-6 months of living expenses, but smaller incremental goals are also beneficial.
• Understand the peace of mind savings accounts offer.

Diversifying Investments

• Spread investments across different asset classes for risk mitigation and potential returns.

Staying Motivated

• Break down goals into manageable tasks and celebrate small victories.
• Practice mindfulness and stress relief techniques to combat financial anxiety.

Seeking Professional Guidance

• Consider consulting a financial counselor for personalized advice.
• Confidentiality in handling financial situations.

Actionable Tips

• Start listing and prioritizing financial goals today.
• Use available tools and automation to simplify your financial management.
• Stay aware of economic changes and adjust your strategies accordingly.

Resources Mentioned

• Goal Series Episodes/Blog Posts: https://player.captivate.fm/collection/f541b716-4e97-4d19-b6da-a1e4d833877d
• Budget Spreadsheet/Budgeting Blog Post: https://moneytalkwitht.com/blog/budgeting-basics/
• Budgeting Apps:
• Mint, YNAB (Affiliate Link), EveryDollar
• Investment Platforms: Acorns (Affiliate Link)
• Fed Funds Rate Explanation: https://youtube.com/live/P199rWAm-Zc
• Consultation Link: https://academy.moneytalkwitht.com/offers/fLvy7qQx/checkout

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Visit moneytalkwitht.com for more resources and to subscribe to the newsletter.

Connect with Tiffany

• Website: MoneyTalkWithT.com
• Social Media: @MoneyTalkWithT on all platforms

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Copyright 2024 Tiffany Grant

You know what it is. That's right. It's time to talk money with your money

nerd and financial coach. Now tighten those purse strings

and open those ears. It's the money talk with Tiff

podcast.

Hey, everyone, and welcome to another episode of Tiffany's Take, where

I answer your money questions right here on the podcast. So if you'd like your

question answered, go to

www.moneytalkwitht.com

askTiffany, and I'll be more than happy to answer. So for today's

episode, I have a question from a listener, and it says, hi,

Tiffany. With the current economic uncertainties, I'm finding it challenging

to stick to my budget while also trying to save for emergencies and

invest for the future. What are some practical strategies I can use

to balance these financial goals without feeling

overwhelmed? Now, you might be thinking, shoot,

that sound like me. Sounds like a lot of people right now,

honestly, even myself. Like, I'm like,

expenses are so high. Trying to get your

savings up, trying to invest for your future self, so much going

on. How can we tackle all of these things? How can we

do. And instead of. Or so, that's what I wanted to talk to you about

today. So, first and foremost, let's hop right in.

Prioritize your financial goals. So if you are listening

and you're a client, if you've ever worked with me, you know that we start

with goals first. Like, that is the first thing we talk about,

because we have to figure out what's important to us and where

we're going. So always, always, always start

by listing your financial goals. Is it savings? Is it emergency fund? Is it

investments? Is it trying to survive? Is it paying off debt?

Whatever it is, list them according to urgency

and importance. For instance, if building an emergency

fund might take precedence over other investments in

unpredictable times. So you want to make sure that when you're

listing out your financial goals, you're listing them out in order

for most important to least important. And that's usually what I do

with my clients. We do our top three. And, you know, it doesn't

matter if it's short, medium, or long term for now, because

you can always dial it in later. So just start writing

down your financial goals. Get a notebook or get a word

document, and just start jotting it down. Then you can start

moving them around to prioritize. So once you have that, then you have

a clear direction. Okay, well, for me, paying off debt is

more important than investing for the future. Cool.

Or maybe you're like, well, I really don't have any savings. So savings is more

important for me right now than paying off debt. That's cool too. There's

really no right or wrong answer or right or wrong way to do this,

but just make sure that you get it down and I'll make sure I'll put

some resources in the show notes where I talked about goals. I did a whole

goal series, I think it was earlier this year or last year,

but I'll make sure I'll link to that in the show notes next. Make sure

you create a flexible budget. And honestly, all budgets are

flexible. And that's one thing that I tell my clients as well. I'm like,

even though we jot this stuff down, we make a budget. It's

all movable. Everything in the budget is changeable,

so make sure you go in and change it if things arise.

But still, you want to start with your essentials first,

such as your housing, your utilities, groceries, etcetera. The things that you need

to live, and then work your way down from there. So the

budget spreadsheet that I have, I'll make sure I put a link in the show

notes for that as well. It actually takes

you from most important to least important for

you. So all you have to do is go through and put in the numbers

of how much you actually spend on these things, but it's already

allocated for that. Then you want to make sure

that if savings or investments is important to

you, treat them as a non negotiable. Like

for instance, with me, I have a certain amount that goes into my

investment account every month on autopilot because that's something

that's important to me. Now, it may not be a ton of money, it's just

a little bit matter of fact. I'll be real with y'all, it's dollar 25,

but it's something that goes towards it every single month

off the top. And I don't have to do any extra to do that because

I want to make sure I'm putting something in while I'm working on these other

goals. So treat it as a non negotiable. My grandpa,

my late grandpa always said, pay yourself first

and putting in investments and doing savings and all that stuff,

that is paying yourself first. So I definitely live by

that. Another thing you can consider is maybe the

50 30 20 budget. So 50% for needs, 30% for

wants, and 20% for savings and debt repayment. I go

into that in my budgeting blog post as well. I'll make sure I'll link to

that, but you can adjust these percentages to better suit your current

financial situation or what's important to you. Maybe you're like,

okay, I need 60 for needs, 20 for

wants, and 20 for savings. That's perfectly okay.

Mind you, like I said, there's no right or wrong. And don't feel

pressured by all these quote unquote financial gurus, even me. If

you consider me a financial guru to

stipulate how your life works, you make these plans

how you want to make them, okay? Number three, automate your

savings and investments. I kind of already touched on this in the previous one.

Use automation to your advantage. Set up automatic transfers to your savings

and investment accounts so that way you ensure consistent contributions

without the temptation to spend. Take it right off the top and then you don't

even have to worry about it. For utilize financial tools and

apps I use a lot of financial tools and

apps, and I'll link to some of my favorites in the show notes as

well. But explore budgeting apps like Mint or Ynab or

every dollar, and that can help you track your spending and adjust

the budget in real time. Personally, I love ynab. I'll make sure I

put my affiliate link in the show notes if you all want to check it

out. That has been my go to

budgeting tool for like two or three years now, and

I love it. Also, you can look at investment platforms like

Acorns, so that allow you to invest spare change from

daily purchases, making it easier to grow your investment portfolio.

I have a few clients that do like those

incremental savings or incremental investing

options. And you look, after a while you're like,

oh shoot, I got $500, or oh shoot, I got $1,000. It

really adds up over time. So if you feel like you're the type

of person where you're like, well, Tiffany, I

can't just do this on my own. I need something to do it for me.

Then check out platforms like that that can help you out.

Use technology to your advantage, y'all. I know I do.

All right, so number five, stay informed and educated. So

keep abreast of economic trends and financial news. This is stuff that

I was thinking about bringing back my finance Friday live. So

that way you all can be abreast of what

economic developments or things are going on to help you

make informed decisions and adjust your strategies as you go.

Because depending on what the situation is like, for instance, not too long

ago, the Fed just decreased

the Fed funds rate by 50 basis points, which is

0.50%. I'll have links to me

explaining all of these concepts I just said, so that way you

can check that out. If what I just said sounds like

gibberish, just check out the show notes. I'll make sure I have some links there

for some resources on going into depth on what those things mean.

But for the purposes of this episode, with that

decrease, that makes savings

a little less attractive because it'll affect the

savings interest rates, but it may make

borrowing more attractive because now interest rates are going to go down

some. So that's why I said, thinking about the whole

economy can really help you. And staying abreast of what's going on

can help you adjust your strategies as you go. Six,

focus on building an emergency fund. So the goal, of course, is to

save three to six months worth of living expenses at the minimum.

But I know it's hard for people, so at least try to get

to 1000 and then you can work your way up from there. I always tell

people, when you're doing your goals, do small goals. That way

you're able to hit it and then go on to the next right. So

if your goal is to save three months, maybe save 1000 for

now, then 2000, then 3000, and the next thing you know,

you'll be like, oh shoot, I'm already at three months. So,

you know, if building an emergency fund is important to you,

then make sure you do that. Now that acts as a financial cushion, so

it provides you peace of mind and stability during unexpected events.

I remember a little bit ago, people were like, why would you put money in

a savings account when you can invest it and get more return? Because of that

peace of mind. That's why. Because with investment

accounts, you know, it does take you a few days or whatever to get your

money. You have to, if you fully invested in stocks and stuff,

you have to sell those stocks. You have to wait till they clear. Then you

can pull your money out with an emergency fund is right there when you

need it. And so that's why I tell people have

investments, but also have that savings just sitting there too. You need

it now. How much you put in that savings is completely up

to you. Some people are like, I'm cool with one

month of emergency fund and I want to invest the rest. That's

fine. Like I said, your journey is your journey. So

even if a financial guru tells you one thing, it doesn't matter.

You have to control what you do with your money.

Number seven, diversify investments. So diversification

is key. Spread your investments across different asset classes to mitigate

that risk. And increase the potential for returns. So, for

instance, some people might have real estate, or

they might invest in real estate on the stock market because you don't

actually have to have physical real estate to invest in real estate. That's another topic

for another day. Anywho, some people may have real estate, some people may

have bonds. Some people may have stocks. Some people may have cds. Some people

may have high yield savings account. Whatever the case may be,

just make sure that you diversify so you have different buckets you can pull from

if the time arises that you need it. Number eight.

Most importantly, stay motivated and avoid being overwhelmed.

So break down your financial goals, like I said, into small manageable

tasks, smaller manageable tasks. And celebrate those small

victories to stay motivated. When I get on a call with my

clients, we always do an update. And if I hear

any small victory, it could be something as simple as, oh,

I looked at my budget before I went to the store

today. Let's celebrate. Let's take a moment and let's celebrate that,

because that's important. It's important to keep you motivated. And

we all know how positive reinforcement really

dictates our behavior. So make sure you keep yourself

positive and avoid that overwhelm. Also,

y'all know me. I'm very woo woo. Practice mindfulness and stress

relief techniques to prevent financial anxiety from overwhelming

you. I love practicing mindfulness. I

love, you know, reading the Bible, looking at

quotes, listening to calming music. So

many things that I do to make sure that I keep my stress levels

low and I'm able to reduce

that anxiety. And number nine, last but not least, seek professional

guidance. You know, if you're feeling uncertain, consider consulting with

someone like me, a financial counselor, and we can offer

personalized advice and help you navigate complex financial decisions.

I like to tell people, look, I've seen some of everything. If

you think you have a lot of debt, I've probably seen somebody with more. If

you think you don't have any savings, I've probably seen somebody with less. So

don't feel bad for reaching out. I can

help you. And everything stays confidential so you don't have to worry

about me telling people your business.

Finances are a very intimate topic for a lot of

people to get into, so we treat it as such. So I'll make sure I

have a link in the show notes for that as well. If you're like Tiffany,

I just need help getting my life in order, getting back on the right track.

I got you. Just check out the show notes and I'll have a link there.

So by implementing these strategies, you can effectively balance your

financial objectives, maintain stability, and work towards financial

growth even amidst economic uncertainties. I

feel like one of the most important things is to just stay in the loop.

That's why you're here, right? The key is to stay flexible

and proactive in managing your finances. So that's what these

nine tips can do for you, and I hope that answered your question and

anybody else listening that had the same question. So thank you so much

listening to the podcast today. If you enjoyed

it, definitely share with someone you know. And don't forget to rate,

subscribe, review all of those good things so that way more

people can find out about us. And until next week, I hope

you all have a wonderful rest of your week. Be sure to subscribe to

the newsletter if you don't already do so. And check out

moneytalkwitht.com where I have blog posts and all types of stuff

I'm releasing. So I hope that

this is calming for you and I gave you some tools that you can

utilize moving forward. And until next time, have a good day.

Bye. Thank you for listening, joining and

being a part of the Money Talk with TIFF podcast this week. You can check

TIFF out every Thursday for a new Money Talk podcast, but if you

just can't wait until next week, you can listen to previous podcast

episodes at Moneytalk with tea or

follow TIFF on all social media platforms at

moneytalkwitht. Until next time, spend wise

by spending less than you make a word to the money wise is

always sufficient.