Good Money Habits in 17 Minutes Per Day

By Harry N. Stout

The pandemic has caused most households to have dramatically increased levels of stress and anxiety about money matters. A major reason contributing to this situation is that most Americans have had no formal personal finance or money management training or education to deal with their affairs. In fact, they have been mandated to take more training to get their driver's license than to manage their money. In short, most Americans suffer from financial illiteracy. They have learned what they know about money through trial and error. The root cause of their money failures is that they don't have the basic financial knowledge they need. They lack good money habits.

Research has also shown that most households only spend one hour per month or about two minutes per day on their financial affairs. At the same time most adults under age 65 spend over two hours per day on social media. It is time to correct this imbalance and devote more attention to money matters.

Good Money Habits in 17 Minutes Per Day has been written to fill in the basic money knowledge gap most people have and put them on journey of lifelong financial improvement by allocating 17 minutes per day or two hours per week to learning about and understanding money matters. The book has been designed to be read in about two hours and to serve as a continuing reference for the reader to improve their financial situations. It addresses the expected financial challenges and opportunities individuals face in life and what to expect along the way. The book covers the following subjects.

Chapter 1 – The Pandemic Reset

• Overview
• Changes in Our Financial Lives
• The New Money Principles
• Why Personal Finance is More Important Than Ever Before

Chapter 2 – The Three Stages of Your Financial Life

• Adulting
• Striving
• Fulfilling

Chapter 3 – The Must-Do Actions of Each Life Stage

• Adulting
• Striving
• Fulfilling

Chapter 4 – The Six Building Blocks to Financial Security

• Determine Where You Stand
• Rethink Your Financial Values
• Improve Your Financial Knowledge
• Focus Your Money Mindset
• Develop Your Cash Plan
• Improve Your Money Habits

Chapter 5 – Determine Where You Stand

• Why Create a Financial Inventory?
• How to Create a Financial Inventory

Chapter 6 – Rethink Your Financial Values

• What Are Your Financial Values?
• Sample Questions You Might Ask Yourself About Money

Chapter 7 – Improve Your Financial Knowledge

• Today's Realities
• Your Imperfect Financial Education
• The Annual Cost of Financial Illiteracy
• What is Financial Literacy
• Moneytime – You Need More
• Spend2 – Two Hours Per Week
• Resources That Can Help

Chapter 8 – Focus Your Money Mindset

• What is Your Money Mindset?
• What Has Gone Into Creating Your Money Mindset of Today?
• Your Money Beliefs
• How to Break The Cycle of Money Mindset Negativity
• Positive Thoughts Drive Action

Chapter 9 – Develop Your Cash Plan

• Planning
• Tracking
• Taking Action

Chapter 10 – Improve Your Money Habits

• What is a Money Habit?
• 10 Good Money Habits for A Well-Lived Financial Life
• Summary

If there is one personal finance book to read, this is it. The book identifies the good habits that need to be developed to address life's key financial issues and of

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Sep 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098369293

Book preview

The Pandemic Reset

To many of us 2020 was a bad dream or even a life-threatening nightmare. What could go wrong went wrong. A few cases of an unknown virus turned into the worst pandemic we have experienced in the US since the Spanish flu of 1918. The pandemic resulted in significant job loss, economic uncertainty, societal change and a rapid revamping of our economy. I wrote in my first book that technological change was going to result in massive job loss over the next five years. In reality the 2020 pandemic brought about this change and others forward in 90 days. The impacts of COVID-19 have reset how people look at their financial situations. Let’s take a quick look at the major impacts of the pandemic. You need to understand them as you look to improve your money knowledge and habits.

Overview

Do you know anyone who was not financially touched by the 2020 pandemic? I have seriously thought about this and my answer is a resounding No. It was, in many ways, just like the Great Depression of the 1930s in that we were all impacted. I thought it would be of value to highlight the major changes we are seeing and what they mean for your money.

At the height of the pandemic, when our economy was fully shut down, we saw nearly 50 million Americans lose their jobs. As the economy reopened, we saw over 80% of those impacted called back to work. There were industries, however, where job loss was found to be permanent for thousands of workers. This included mostly people employed in the travel, entertainment, restaurant and retail industries. COVID-19 exposed weak business models, lack of competitiveness, businesses without a robust digital platform and businesses with tenuous financial situations. Many household names such as JC Penney, Lord & Taylor and Brooks Brothers all declared bankruptcy and were forced to reorganize. After the dust settled, as of December 2020, roughly 10.7 million workers were unemployed and needed to find a new employer. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, some needed to transition and find a new profession altogether. Many economic observers are now writing that it may take up to ten years for our economy to recover from the shock of the pandemic.

Changes in Our Financial Lives

In my opinion, the changes the pandemic has brought about are a reset to how we approach money and will be with us for the long term. They are not just challenges to deal with in the next few years. What we have and will see are seismic impacts to our economy and how we need to manage our money. Here are the areas that I think hit home the most for individuals.

Joblessness and Underemployment

Many people, particularly those with direct customer-facing responsibilities, are experiencing job losses or cuts in their salaries or available work hours. As surveyed by Motley Fool’s Ascent, in mid-2020 18% of salaried workers reported an income loss while over 27% of hourly workers completely lost all employment income.

For some who have lost their jobs, they may have to reskill and transition to a new company or new profession. In particular, these changes have hit women and lower earners the hardest. Employment uncertainty will be with us for a long time. The importance of keeping your skills up to high levels will take on new importance.

Bankruptcies and Downsizings

We are seeing companies of all types downsize or cease operations with some declaring bankruptcy. This includes retailers, travel, restaurants and energy-related businesses. As these companies go through these changes, their employees are experiencing job loss or pay cuts. All of this is increasing the number of individuals who have exhausted all of their financial assets and borrowing power. They have no other option than to reorganize and seek a fresh