It is rightly said that personal finance is 80% behaviour and 20% knowledge. Financial behaviour is how much one spends or invests.  In a nutshell, personal finance is about what one does with their money. 

When it comes to personal finances, habitual behaviors can either be a blessing or a curse. Good habits help one to manage their budget and quickly respond to any financial challenges or make quick decisions in regard to paying an unforeseen bill. Speaking of those things one pays for and quickly add up, good spending habit impulse buys. All-in-all, good spending habits are about the way one spends during both sunny days and uncertain times. 

One begins to develop spending habits from adolescence, these habits even influence financial decisions in adulthood. One may easily fall into impulse buys or keep up with the latest fashion trends, which isn’t necessarily bad but can impact long-term goals and the potential to save. 

Here are 5 behavioral habits that will help you boost your personal finance – 

1) Assessing your monthly transaction: 

It is important to assess one’s transactions. This helps to control overspending and increase overall savings. There are multiple money management or expense tracking apps available like Mint, Expensify, NerdWallet, etc. One can even track their spending on paper, using a calculator or adding machine, if retro is their thing. 

2) Improving personal financial literacy:

There are many ways to improve one’s financial literacy like listening to financial podcasts, reading personal finance blogs, or registering for a personal finance Masterclass.  A good idea might be consulting with S9 – we help others get their finances in order.

3) Planning your financial goals:

One must plan for the big things, marriage, education, a vacation, or retirement. Setting these goals allows one to create an investing or saving strategy. This may be as simple as saying “no” to impulse buys or something more detailed, like creating an investing strategy that includes stocks and bonds.

4) Staying away from the debt trap: 

There is a difference between buying luxuries on EMI and paying EMI for a home loan, both hurt, but ensuring one has a roof over their head is a long-term solution for the world’s oldest problem, where to sleep. All things considered, it may not be wise to live on credit, if one is doing so, one may want to reconsider their personal finance strategy, regroup and set long-term goals.

5) Manage your financial risk: 

It is said that when it rains, it pours. To avoid getting wet, one may want to have 6 months’ salary in their bank account, a small contingency fund. Along with company insurance, a contingency plan helps one keep afloat in a flood. These days, everyone has become accustomed to floods, it’s just wise to do as the chipmunk and hide away a small nest egg.

These 5 steps may be hard to climb and that’s OK. We are here to help you on the way up. Contact us any time for financial planning.