Improving Your Finances at Any Age

Anyone can find themselves making some financial blunder at some point. Whether it is racking up a mortgage or making a bad investment choice, a lot of us make some major financial mistakes along the way. All's not lost, however, and you may just dig yourself out of that money hole whether you’re an old boot or a young buck. You can improve the state of your personal finances whether you’re in your 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, or beyond.
The key to financial improvement is developing good financial habits; and, it is almost never too late to start doing so.

Save Up!

There’s really no two ways about this step. You need a nest egg in your old age so you need to accumulate a good sized sum over the years. Hence, the best time to start?…now. The longer you wait to grow that egg, the less you will have.
Decide how much of your income you need to set aside after calculating your goal savings. Make a habit of squirrelling this particular sum every payday in a separate account which you assign a strict “Don’t-touch-until-I’m-too-old-to work” rule. You’ll be surprised by how much your savings can grow over the years.
Help your saving habit by:

• availing of an auto transfer of your savings from your payroll account to your designated personal savings account. This way savings becomes automatic, something you don’t actually have to think about.
• scaling back on spending and living frugally. Curb impulse spending. Those absolutely must-haves may not really be necessary. In fact, you don’t actually need that adorable handbag since your other adorables still work your outfit, don’t they?
• Being aware of your [Latte Factor] (http://www.becomingminimalist.com/latte-factor/). The little things you think are too small to put a financial dent do add up to eat into your potential savings. It’s that daily latte from your favourite café. That cup-o’-java can be switched to a home brew to save those extra dollars. Other latte factors can include the magazines you buy, those two dollars-a-pop tracks from iTunes, and the cable subscription you barely even use.

To know your where your money seems to evaporate into thin air, list down the little purchases you make...the ones you think nothing of... for a month or two. See how much you cumulatively spend on these. If you could save this much in a month, isn’t it worth cutting down on these and looking for cheaper alternatives? For example, you may be able to get similar information on fashion trends from the internet without having to buy magazines. You can even cut that cable subscription and opt for a cheaper alternative movie and TV provider through the net. Whatever your decisions may be, remember that your goal is to increase your savings per month so you can reward yourself with a good sized nest egg when you really need it most.

Pay off Debts (There’s No Getting Away from This)

Any debt you have is like a Sword of Damocles hanging over your head. Debts balloon over time especially with an ongoing interest rate on unpaid portions. Formulate an aggressive strategy to pay off any debt, may they be credit card loans or otherwise. One strategy is to list all debts from smallest to the largest. Focus on the smallest, pay it off as soon as you can, and cross it off your list. You’ll feel better after you’ve taken one burden, no matter how light, off your shoulders. Now that you’re on the roll, tackle the next largest one by paying the minimum plus adding an extra. For instance, if the minimum amount due is AU$50.00, adding an extra AU$30.00 for a total payment of AU$80.00 every month would speed up eliminating this debt. Go through the list with same strategy until you’ve paid every cent.
Although in most cases it may take years to pay, you just need to keep doggedly on to be able to live a debt free life. Not only is it necessary to pay off loans, a decreasing debt total or ideally, a life of zero debt, is crucial for financial stress relief.

Considering Working Past Retirement Age

Working past retirement age is a growing trend among seniors still in good health. When the new 50s phenomenon includes having looks and well-being of a 40-year old, and the new 60s equate to 50s, and so forth, retirement has steadily been relegated to the backburner for the truly golden years. Presently, many seniors opt to keep working, often in new fields. If you belong to the “oldies but not yet mouldies” group, why not consider getting further education in your field or in other related fields? Investing in more training and certifications before the company’s official retirement age may go a long way to furthering your employment aptness and marketability.

Educate Yourself

There are more money tips out there to educate yourself on if you truly want better financial stability in the coming years. Together with your newfound financial management knowledge, keep the basic foundation of practicing good money habits such as saving and avoiding debts as personal tenets so that “Thou shalt not want” in your golden years.