9 Pieces of Wisdom to Follow
First off: Don’t Buy A Car
Don’t buy a car…yet. If you can, wait as long as possible before getting a car or replacing the one you have. Continue to leverage your current car, friend, family, public transportation, or other resources (eg Uber), so you can keep your expenses as low as possible.
Second Off: Don’t Get Your Own Place
You’re tired of roommates, tired of living with family, or tired of even staying in extended stay hotels. Whatever the case may be, if you can emotionally and mentally tolerate it and it’s safe…continue staying with roommates, living with family, or using hotels / Airbnbs instead of running to get your own place.
Housing is one of the largest financial costs. If you can keep this cost as low as possible for as long as possible, you grant your wealth to grow at an accelerated rate.
Third Off: Don’t Start Living Large
Avoid shopping, excessive eating out, constant travel, and spending. This is the time to get back on track financially by keeping your cost low and modest.
Fourth Off: Run The Numbers
If you don’t have the data you’re flying blind. Once you’re committed to living a certain way — temporarily — while you recalibrate, run all the numbers to capture the full snapshot of your debts, expenses, net worth, and income projections.
Once you have the data, you move forward with clear information on your best next steps.
Fifth Off: Maintain Second, Third, Fourth, Or More Income Streams
Don’t settle on just your new gig. Continue adding or keeping other part-time or side work you kept before, so you can expand your income instead of relying only on one.
Sixth Off: Invest Like Your Life Depends On It
It can be easy to think, “OH, I should not prioritize or start investing because I have debt or I need to build savings” but this is prime time to start. And here’s why, even if you have interest debt, the clock is still ticking, which means every day you delay investing, is another dollar that could have been working extremely hard for you.
Seventh Off: Tell As Few People As Possible
If you tell people your earnings or about your new opportunities, some will be happy for you and go about their business. Others will be happy for you, and see it as an opportunity to see how you could help them.
During this delicate time of rebuilding your financial picture, it’s actually important to be selfish. Still give and help others within your boundaries, but avoid over giving and prioritizing others’ well-being so much that you forget about your own.
Eighth off: Wait A Year Before Any Large Purchases
This includes car purchases, extensive furniture, or even adding housing. If you can wait at least a year before you buy anything significant, you will not only experience much less financial pressure, but you will also accelerate your wealth.
Ninth Off: Build Your Emergency Fund
A reason people easily end up back in debt or “financial struggle” status is because they don’t stay prepared when things shift economically for them personally or globally.
Stay financially prepared by building a six month (or more) emergency fund.
This will essentially prevent relapse.
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This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any significant financial decisions.