Coping with Money Stress | The Do's and Dont's

Spotting the signs of money stress can be fairly straightforward, but what about managing it?

In the UK alone, 39% of adults (20.3 million!) don’t feel confident managing their money, whilst nearly nine million are in serious debt - with only a third receiving help for this*.

In this week’s blog post, we’re following on from last week’s theme of the importance of opening up about money with the best ways of coping with money stress.

Keep reading for our most important do’s and don’t of handling stress that arises from all things money.

1) DO create a budget - DON’T avoid it!

You’ll hear us repeating this again and again in our various blog posts on budgeting and social media feed, but it really is that important!

Creating a clear budget and making a habit of tracking your spending frequently can help you prioritise your spending and give you a greater understanding of where your money is actually going month by month.

As tempting as it can be to bury your head in the sand and try to ignore the big financial problems staring right back at you, DON’T avoid dealing with your finances. This will only build up into a much bigger problem!

Need help getting started with a budget? Read our blog post on three methods of budgeting your money.

2) DO break down your goals - DON’T overwhelm yourself

We understand it can be incredibly overwhelming the minute you finally sit down to deal with your finances. Make it a positive experience by setting yourself some goals, e.g. be debt-free by the time you’re thirty, or finally save up enough money to pay the deposit on your dream house.

However, you’ll want to make sure you break down those big goals into smaller, more achievable tasks so that you don’t completely overwhelm yourself and give up before you’ve even started.

For example, how much money will you set aside every week or month to pay towards your goal? What spends could you cut back on to get there faster?

3) DO ask for help - DON’T neglect self-care

Financial self-care is a necessity - not a luxury!

As we detailed in last week’s blog, opening up about money can bring about a lot of negative feelings - including shame and embarrassment.

However, there’s no need to be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Fortunately, money is becoming less taboo and people are getting the help they need by reaching out to others and contacting debt advice organisations to start the journey.

Taking care of your finances is one of the biggest forms of self-care, so don’t neglect it and remember to take care of your body and mind in other ways during this stressful time.

Meditation, exercise, and sleeping well can all help you feel more able to cope with the money stress you’re experiencing.

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If you’re ready to tackle your finances for the better, a prepaid card could help you budget your money and ensure you’re not giving yourself more stress with fees and interest from overdrafts and credit cards.

Find out more in our blog post on how a prepaid card can help you budget, and tap the button below to download ImageNPay today.

Make sure to also follow us on Instagram, where we share tips and advice regarding money stress and handling your money safely.

FIND OUT MORE

*Statistics from UK financial capability

• Money Advice Service - Call them on 0800 138 7777 for free and impartial money advice;

• Step Change - Available on 0300 303 2469, Step Change offer expert advice on debt;

• National Debt Line - Get free advice for dealing with your debt on 0800 808 4000;

• Citizen's Advice - Call Citizen's Advice for free on 0800 144 8848 to get general money advice.