Nicole

Dealing with debt is one of the most important tasks when managing your money. While it’s very common to be in debt, there are several different scenarios that can arise when you owe money. If your debt level is increasing, or you’re finding it more difficult to keep up with repayments, here are some steps to take today. 

Picture credit

Analyzing your finances

It can be tough to keep track of your accounts when you have multiple direct debits set up, you can tap a card to pay, and you purchase items at the touch of a button. If you tend to spend money without really thinking about it, or your balance is usually lower than expected when you look at your mobile banking app, it’s wise to take a good look at your statements. Check your balances for every account, review transactions, and take stock of your financial situation. Write down how much money you owe in total and note down the details for each individual payment. 

Draw up a budget

Budgeting is one of the most effective ways to take control of your money. It is particularly beneficial to monitor spending and set limits if you are trying to clear debts and prevent further borrowing. Your budget should contain figures for your income, your regular outgoings and one-off payments you need to make in the month ahead. Once you have all the data in front of you, you can work out how much you can afford to either save or put towards debt repayments. 

Repay your debts

There are two scenarios to consider when talking about debt. The first is manageable debt. If you’re paying a mortgage or a loan and you’re on top of the repayments, you don’t need to worry. If you can afford to pay back your debt, keep going as you are. The second scenario is more precarious. If you have debts that you’re struggling to repay, you are borrowing more money or you’re paying more in interest every month, it’s important to take action. There are multiple avenues to explore. 

If you have high-interest debts, it’s worth trying to bring the value down as quickly as possible to save you money. You could do this by using any savings you have, you could sell an annuity or you could look into a debt consolidation loan. This type of loan is designed to help you pay off all your debts and start again with a single monthly repayment. The best thing to do if you are worried about your debts is to seek expert advice. Financial advisers can recommend products and make suggestions based on your individual circumstances. 

Ask for help

Money worries are among the most common sources of stress, and during the pandemic, more and more people have found themselves struggling to repay debts. If you have concerns about your financial situation, or you don’t know how to go about trying to clear debts, reach out. Contact financial advisers, charities and nonprofits that offer free advice and helplines and research online. There is help and support available, and there are always options, no matter how bad things get. 

Photo Source

Debts can spiral out of control, and it’s always wise to try and maintain a firm grip on your finances. If you’re keen to start tackling your debts, take these steps today.

Whether you are looking to hone your skills in a specific career or just seeking to climb the education ladder, several options are available. Unfortunately, not every option available will look attractive, especially if you’re working with a tight budget. It is an undeniable fact that those with better education or academic qualifications mostly earn more. For example, people with college degrees earn over 50% more over their lifetime. 

Unfortunately, for any adult, the higher you seek to climb on the academic ladder, the more you can expect to pay. And this situation has caused loads of people to postpone or abandon higher education. But getting further education doesn’t have to be expensive. So, are you looking for ways to continue your education without going into debt? Here are a few budget-friendly ideas you can use. 

Leverage on low-cost and free online training; learn at an Ivy league 

Image Credit

The internet has made it possible for billions of people to further their education, with online courses available in almost any field of studies. An Ivy League education has a lot of prestige associated with it, mainly because of its years of offering unmatched higher education quality. But you don’t need to study in an Ivy League school, as many individuals have succeeded in smaller known institutions. Plus, it sounds great to learn something from an Ivy League school without paying for it. 

Through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC), you have the opportunity to learn from Ivy League professors right from home. Today, you can find a rapidly growing movement of MOOCs offering various people an opportunity to advance their studies. For example, you’ll find options like Udemy, Khan Academy, Code Academy, Fluent U, Alison, etc. Khan Academy and Alison are popular for most people, as they offer free studying resources, study videos, assessments, and assignments in various fields. They cover various professional disciplines, including the humanities, science, and math. Udemy, Code Academy, and Fluent U offer law courses at low costs, ranging from as little as $20 to as much as $200.

Opt for an adult education program for the basics

Perhaps you could not complete your high school education, and you’re interested in getting your GED done. In that case, there are several opportunities available for you as an adult to go back and complete those basics. Most of these adult education centers offer very low-cost and budget-friendly education. Indeed, some of these options are also free or covered financially by different nonprofit organizations. 

What about the paid options?

Image Credit

If you prefer to pursue a certificate course or opt for a degree course, these options will probably cost some money. However, they provide greater returns. One option is to sign up for an online certification course from a reputable higher learning institution that offers low-cost education. Today, no matter what you’re looking for, you’ll find options available online, from an online master’s degree in nursing to even law courses. All you need to do is find low-cost alternatives that’ll fit easily in your budget.

Credit (CC0 License)

A salary is extremely important as it’s what someone gets paid for a living. This is the money that ends up in your bank account for doing a job, and you need to have a big enough salary to cope with all the various expenses in life. Speaking of which, one of the biggest problems people have is that they need a better salary. They aren’t getting paid enough by their employers, so they want to take action.

There’s an issue for employers as well! They know that salaries are crucial, but they’re also managing a budget. It becomes a question of trying to pay your employees what they deserve without spending too much.

On the topic of salaries, we’re going to go over a few things that both employees & employers can learn from the world of professional sports. Pro sports is arguably the most expensive industry in the world, but it’s also one where salaries are made public. When you look at this world, you start to see that there are a few things we can maybe adopt in the normal world…

Demanding new contracts

You will see that a lot of professional athletes flat-out demand new contracts when they think they deserve to be paid more. This happens a lot when young players break into a team, start performing really well, but are still stuck on a youth contract. They’re being paid way less than people in other teams who perform worse than them. So, they make it widely known that they want a better contract or they’ll leave. 

It’s an ultimatum that puts the employer on the spot. They need to decide if they’re willing to give them a raise or lose a valuable team member. The same can apply in your workplace. If you think you’re being paid less than you deserve, make a fuss about it. Give your boss an ultimatum, then alert any other companies about the situation. If you’re good at your job, you will be snapped up by a rival company in no time. This is further encouragement for the employer to act fast and give in to your demands, increasing your wages. 

Going above and beyond to reward loyalty

If you are an employer with a small business, one lesson you can take from pro sports is to go above and beyond to reward your loyal employees. We can look at a couple of instances where this has been shown, so let’s look at the NHL for an example. In 2018, Drew Doughty signed an 8-year contract worth $88 million for the LA Kings. It followed many impressive performances for the team, and they rewarded him with a long-term contract that saw him as one of the top-paid athletes in the division. 

Patrick Mahomes in the NFL is another great example. Again, his excellent play and loyalty were rewarded with a 7-year contract worth $150 million in 2020. In both of these cases, you see the employer doesn’t just reward them financially, they also ensure they’re locked in for a long time. As an employer, this is something to consider when setting salaries. Give them a contract that includes a salary for many years, making them feel financially secure at their job. It helps you retain employees, which is great for business!

Constantly providing raises

It is incredibly rare that any athlete will play for a sports team and not get a raise when signing a new contract. In the real world without million-dollar contracts, raises are harder to come by. It seems that businesses are less inclined to give them out, but it’s something they should start doing. If you employ people, raising their salary is the easiest way to give back and show appreciation for what they’ve done. 

From an employee’s perspective, you should learn from this as well. It’s a case of knowing your worth and knowing when you deserve a raise. So many people will stay at the same job for years without a raise, purely because they don’t think they deserve one, or are maybe resigned to the idea that raises are rarely given. Learn from sports; good performance deserves rewards. Ask for raises if you think you deserve one!

Obviously, there are huge differences between pro sports and most of our jobs! The money involved is completely different, so you can’t expect huge raises of million-dollar contracts. Nevertheless, there are certainly ways of doing things that you see in pro sports that can be applied to normal jobs. If you have salary issues at work, this post should give you a few things to mull over.