Taking Care of Yourself: 10 Days of Financial Self-Care
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Welcome to Be Your Own Date - a supportive space dedicated to all things self-care and wellbeing. If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to take a look at my other posts; I hope you’ll like them and find them useful too! I am building a collection of thought-provoking articles, tips and resources to uplift you and get you thinking. This month is dedicated to 30 Days of Self-Care.
💙 30 days of self-care
I am sharing simple and accessible self-care ideas with you in a three-post series, so don’t forget to come back and read all of them.
Join me for 30 Days of Self-Care in September (and beyond). Connect with me on Instagram and Facebook (@beyourowndate) to follow my self-care and wellbeing journey. You don’t want to miss this!
Let's talk financial self-care and money
In this post, I will explore what 10 days of financial self-care could look like to support you in taking care of yourself, with a focus on managing your personal finances. Are you up for the challenge?
I believe that financial self-care is an important part of a holistic approach to our self-care, which includes normalising conversations about money, taking the time to build our financial confidence and resilience and, ultimately, manage our personal finances better. Does this resonate with you?
I was inspired to write this series because I am often asked about how I practice self-care and what it means to me. I am also struck by the growing attention on self-care - and rightly so - but sometimes the ideas and actionable steps are few and far between. In response, this is a practical guide to keep and refer to at any time.
📣 Bookmark this page for when you need some inspiration and motivation to continue with your self-care plan or routine, which is most effective when personalised to your needs and interests.
Individual self-care support
Let me support you to prioritise your self-care, including your financial wellbeing and money goals, as your Wellbeing Coach. Simply click the button below to register your interest and book a free discovery call with me. Let’s talk money!
When it comes to taking good care of yourself, I suggest taking the time to shape the self-care ideas that really resonate with you, to fit your own schedule and way of doing things. Unfortunately, it’s rarely as simple as ‘copy and paste’. I would also encourage you to do some independent research; whilst these are simple ideas, they may not always be easy to implement and may require some additional reading. Do the work. Your future self will be very thankful!
Whilst preparing for the best way to present 30 Days of Self-Care and what to write about, I thought about how self-care applies to the different areas of our lives as well as the things that we often overlook, so you may well find some surprises. Be Your Own Date is a space to get you thinking after all! So, take one day at a time (or more if you need it) because at the end of the day, there’s no rush and the only competition is yourself.
I have categorised 30 different ways to practice self-care under three themes, though you will notice that there are some overlaps:
☀️ Self-care in the workplace (days 11 - 20)
☀️ Financial self-care (days 21 - 30)
Taking care of yourself: 10 days of financial self-care
Flourish financially 🌱
Here are 10 financial self-care ideas for you to consider. I got you!
Day 21. F.I.R.E.
Day 22. Set one financial goal
Day 23. I don't want to hustle
Day 24. Personal finance reads
Day 25. Start a budget plan
Day 26. Conscious spending
Day 27. Save regularly
Day 28. Invest
Day 29. Different streams of income
Day 30. Money talks
Day 21. ⚡F.I.R.E.⚡
Have you heard of the F.I.R.E. movement?
This stands for:
Financial
Independence
Retire
Early
Learning about this approach to life and personal finance was a lightbulb moment for me.
According to the literature, you have reached financial independence when you have accumulated enough wealth that working becomes optional, enabling you to use your time differently if you choose to. Your Financial Independence number is often calculated as x25 your salary or how much you would feel comfortable living on, so it is personal to you and your lifestyle. The premise is to reduce your spending whilst saving and investing consistently. You can research what F.I.R.E. may look like for you and whether this approach aligns with your financial goals.
Day 22. ⚡Set one financial goal⚡
Whenever I have a financial goal in mind, I find it helpful to break it down into smaller milestones with the SMART goal principle in mind (Day 3).
For example, in order to save £300 to spend over the Christmas period, you could save in small increments: £50 in September, £100 in October + £150 in November.
Once you reach one goal, set another goal…and another…and another. Or maybe have a few goals running at the same time if you can manage it. Do what works for you, it is a personal goal after all.
Oh, and don’t be put off by pursuing your longer term financial goals - it can be tricky to maintain enthusiasm and momentum sometimes; hang on in there!
Day 23. ⚡I don't want to hustle⚡️
I don’t want to hustle. Just sayin'.
I respect "the hustle", side hustles and the desire to earn extra income but let's not burn out in the process.
I do want to work smarter, not harder!
Day 24. ⚡Personal finance reads⚡️
Consider reading a personal finance book or listening to an audiobook.
📸 This is my personal favourite - ‘Your Money Or Your Life’ by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez - and it really got me thinking about my own relationship with money. What's your favourite finance read?
🌈 Don't worry if you are unable to budget for books at the moment, check out the fabulous array of options at your local library.
In need of some more book recommendations? Take a look at my My Personal Finance Gems or scroll to the bottom of this post.
Knowledge is power. Stay curious.
Day 25. ⚡Start a budget plan⚡
A budget plan is a tool to facilitate how to spend your money, now and in the future. That is, allocating where your hard-earned money will go before spending it. Consider it a mindful approach to taking care of your personal finances.
I monitor my budget regularly and consistently make time to adjust it on a monthly basis. Choose a schedule that works for you, whether weekly, fortnightly or monthly…
FYI - Budgeting works regardless of whether you have a regular or irregular earning pattern, so embrace this positive money mindset.
Not only is budgeting a core money management skill, but it is also an important life skill too - no matter how much you earn. As your Wellbeing Coach, this is something that I can support you with to enhance your financial self-care.
Have a read of my Budgeting Checklist to get started.
Day 26. ⚡Conscious spending⚡
Curious to know more?
Well, conscious spending is all about raising awareness of how much I spend, what I spend my money on and being more intentional with my spending for greater financial success. All of which is supported by planning ahead as much as possible. Perhaps you'll also benefit from this mindful approach to spending and, by extension, your personal finances?!
Like budgeting, not only is conscious spending a core money management skill, it is an important life skill too.
You may also enjoy reading my post on how to reduce spending money online.
Day 27. ⚡Save regularly⚡
Do you save money regularly?
Having a specific goal(s) in mind helps us to stay motivated. You got this!
Saving is also a core money management skill, regardless of how much you earn because developing this habit is what really counts. Discover more top tips in my Saving Checklist.
If it is too much of a stretch to save at the moment, plan for when you might be in a position to be able to do so and be clear on how much you intend to save, even if it is a small amount of money to start with. Use your budget plan (Day 25) to assist you.
Day 28. ⚡Invest⚡
🌻 🌷 Invest consistently and watch your money grow like a beautiful, vibrant flower.
Investing is a method to grow your hard-earned money and to build wealth, such as investing in the stock market or in property. Again, you can devote a line to saving and investing in your budget plan (Day 25) to help you stay on track.
This includes contributing to your pension (a long-term investment) whether employed (enquire about your company scheme) or self-employed. Think of your pension as your future salary upon retiring, affording you a good quality of life independent of any state benefits that you may (or may not) be entitled to.
Research the best ways to invest, suited to your own financial goals and risk tolerance because the value of your investments can go up 📈 and they can also go down 📉
Day 29. ⚡️Different streams of income⚡
I love streams - it's no secret that to be by the water is my happy place.
I also love the idea of creating different streams of income, which can help to build financial resilience and stability by not relying on one source of income. This makes total sense to me.
For example, selling unwanted items on eBay (other platforms also available) or charging for something that you're good at, and ideally enjoy doing, such as haircare, cooking or making crafty things. Get creative!
This, in turn, may help you to pay down debts, save (Day 27) and invest (Day 28) to build wealth, as well as accelerate your journey to F.I.R.E. (Day 21).
Day 30. ⚡Money talks⚡
As I mentioned at the start of this post, it’s time to have meaningful money talks with yourself and your loved ones. How do you feel about having such conversations?
Talking about money and getting rid of the taboo around it can be particularly liberating for those of us who didn’t talk about money much or learn how to take care of our personal finances growing up. Our attitudes and relationship with money, underpinned by our unconscious beliefs, are sometimes referred to as ‘money scripts’.
Money problems can be a source of emotional distress, affecting the way we think, feel and behave. Talking about the things that are playing on our minds, rather than bottling it up, can be a relief (that feeling of a weight lifting from our shoulders) and a chance to face the issues that we are grappling with.
Tip: Read all the blog posts in this informative three-part series, which will take you on a self-care journey over 30 days, rooted in taking care of yourself.
Tell me, which ideas resonate with you most on your financial self-care journey? Let me know in the Comments section below and connect with me on your socials.
💎 My Personal Finance Gems
These resources have proved invaluable in my personal finance journey:
Books
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
I Will Teach You To Be Rich (2nd Edition) by Ramit Sethi
Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez
Unf*ck Your Finances by Melissa Browne
Money School by Lacey Filipich
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Research
Financial literacy research by Professor Annamaria Lusardi
Save money online
I use TopCashback when shopping online. It's a free service enabling you to gain cashback from a variety of shops and you can sign up to the website using my referral code, at no extra cost to you
1:1 Wellbeing Coaching ☀️
I am delighted to share that I can support you with your life and work transitions through 1:1 Wellbeing Coaching.
Curious to know more? Read about my unique approach, personalised coaching programme and what to expect while we work together.
When you are ready to get in touch, submit your interest in personal coaching sessions or pass on this information if you think it might benefit a loved one.
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Feel better about your finances. Be kind to yourself. Be Your Own Date.
~ Amy-Jo ☀️
Disclaimer: I want you to feel better about your finances, but I am not a Financial Adviser. The content of this blog is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
