Financial Fitness

If you’re on our site, we’re guessing you probably eat well (well, most of the time) and train regularly, and you probably like Kombucha and have a wardrobe packed full of activewear… but how’s your financial health? Are you fighting fit, or a little soft around the edges? Is your financial fitness in need of a little TLC?

And if your answer is yes, where do you start? Well, we spoke to Sydney-based financial coach Jane Walters to find out how to get our finances in the best shape they’ve ever been.

Financial health

STEP 1: Do a financial check up
It’s important to work out what your starting point is in order to know exactly where you want to go and what areas you need to put the most work into. You know how you should check with a doctor before starting a new exercise? Well, this is the same thing, except you don’t need a doctor to test these vitals. All you need to do is to write down the following four figures: Earn, Spend, Own, Owe  
Once you know these you need to ensure that your Income figure (Earn) is higher than your Expenses figure (Spend) and that your Assets figure (Own) is higher than your Liabilities figure (Owe). If not, resolving that should become priority.

STEP 2: Set your goals
The next step after you’ve worked out your vitals is to set meaningful financial goals. What area needs the most work? Do you want to increase your income? Do you need to reduce your debt? Are there areas of your life that you want to invest in and other things you want to deprioritise spending on? The most important thing about setting your financial goals is first getting clear on your core values, then understand whether your current spending aligns with those priorities. Once you’ve worked out your 3-5 most important goals, write them down and get specific about what you want to achieve. For more info on setting financial goals, see this article.

STEP 3: Manage your mindset
Elite athletes know that a positive mindset is vital to perform at your best. But sometimes setting and working towards your goals can bring up some pretty negative mental chatter. As a coach I see this all the time. That little voice in your head may be saying things like: “You’re never going to be able to do that” or “You don’t know anything about finances”. Those little voices of self-doubt are not a sign that you shouldn’t be pursuing your goals, in fact they are a sign that you’re heading in the right direction. Every time you feel that resistance, you need to push on through. Remember that being brave isn’t about being fearless, but feeling the fear and taking action anyway.

STEP 4: Take Action
Ok, you’ve set your goals, now it’s time to put in those reps! As they say, dreams don’t work unless you do. Set that budget, go for that pay rise, pay off that credit card. It isn’t always going to be easy, but it will be worth it.

STEP 5: Get Support
Whether your goal is fitness or finance related, maintaining form, discipline and accountability will increase your chances of success. There are lots of great resources, coaches and other professionals that can help you on your journey – you don’t have to do it alone.

For more tips and tricks on managing your money and mindset visit janekwalters.com

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