This Week: June 12th
Read
One of the things we been reminded of over the past few months is that we don’t know when the next economic down turn will be, why it will happen, or how severe it will be. With the financial stress of the COVID-19 pandemic is still on our minds I think it’s a good practice to think ahead for how we can prepare for when this happens again.
More and more companies are seeing the value in adding financial wellness programs to their benefits package. This Forbes article explains how companies can benefit from providing a financial wellness program to their employees.
If you could benefit from a program like this check with your HR department to see if something already exists. If not, advocate for yourself and your coworkers and encourage them to look in to adding this.
What I took away:
According to a study done by Salary Finance, businesses are losing $500 billion annually due to the financial stress of their employees. This can be from distracted work, tardiness, missed work days. While $500 billion is a staggering number it really show how invasive financial stress can be.
Traditional 401(k) providers are not addressing these issues. While 401(k) providers offer a tremendous benefit for retirement they do not address the day to day money issues facing so many employees. It’s important that HR directors and business owners understand this gap in coverage.
Financial stress is rarely an isolated phenomenon. Please take care of yourself emotionally and physically. When you start taking care of yourself in one area it typically impacts other areas of your life.
Watched
I am a huge fan of these guys. Brian and Bo are financial planners in the Nashville area and have a podcast and YouTube channel called The Money Guy. They do a great job of explaining things in a clear and concise way and give really practical advice.
This video is titled “Financial Pitfalls to Avoid During a Pandemic In Your 30s!”. If you aren’t in your 30’s its still a great video but they also have a video for people in their 20s, 40s, and 50-60s.
What I took away:
Covering the basics of risk management; life insurance, disability, estate planning. These are easy topics to look at as a young adult and think, “oh, I don’t need that yet.” Don’t fail to take care of your family because you feel like you don’t need these. Take an honest look at your circumstances and see what responsibilities you have and be sure to protect them.
The risk of prioritizing kids college planning over your own retirement savings. As a parent you obviously want to the best for your children. However, if you sacrifice your retirement savings for their education expenses that could cause bigger issues down the road. If paying for your kid’s college education is a top priority use that as a motivator to get the rest of your finances in order so you can begin saving for them.
If you are financially stable right now continue to invest, especially if you’re in your 30s. The power of compound interest is still extremely powerful at your age, don’t miss this opportunity!
Listened
How I Built This is one of my favorite podcasts of all time, I always make sure I have several downloaded for any road trip I go on. This episode is with Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard. His views on business and how one should operate is fascinating.
What I took away:
He takes action…fast: “If I get an idea I immediately take a step forward” When he saw a product that he felt could be made better, he didn’t just talk about it, he taught himself how to improve it and made a better product. Example: he taught himself blacksmithing so he could improve the climbing gear he and his friends would use.
“If you wait for the customer to tell you what to do you’re too late”. Yvon and his team made products based on their own experience and thoughts on how to innovate - they were their own customers. I think this highlight their passion and expertise in what they were doing.
Slowing growth, telling customers not to buy new clothes or owning multiple jackets when you can get by with one, own fewer things, think twice before buying anything new. This is so counterintuitive to what you hear from most businesses and our consumer culture. His views on simplicity and thoughtfulness is really inspiring.