With National Financial Awareness Day coming up on August 14, we celebrate business owners, consumers, and investors who aspire to inch closer to financial independence by learning how to make solid financial decisions year after year. Financial awareness maximizes your success whether you are a small business owner or a CEO of a fortune 500 firm.
It is important to make it a habit to educate yourself throughout your lifetime on how to navigate through a financially driven world. On National Financial Awareness day, you can take a look in-depth at your financial literacy and how well you manage your finances while seeking ways to constantly improve. Here are a few tips I will share so that you can establish better money habits and build a successful financial future:
- Improve your credit
If you happen to apply for a business loan and get declined, you will soon realize the important of credit score and history. Paying all of your bills on time, getting a secured credit card, and paying off your credit balances each month will boost your credit score and build a solid credit history over time
- Reduce debt
To keep your spending under control, you can transfer balances to consolidate debt or get a fixed payment loan. Try and pay off one debt at a time and control spending so that debt doesn’t overtake your finances and well being.
- Create a budget
The best way to control spending is by setting up a budget and make sure your income exceeds expenses. If it is your first time setting up a budget, it’s good practice to go back one year and enter your expenses and income. This will allow you to be financially aware of the inflows and outflows of your money.
- Make investments in yourself/your business
If you are a business owner who wants to get serious about growing your business, you should allocate cash towards investments. These investments could go towards purchasing equipment, hiring new employees, marketing your products or services, etc. When this added cost generates a positive return on investment without your working capital decreasing, you will be in a better position.
For individuals, there are many investments to make to grow your wealth depending on your risk tolerance. Investments such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, index funds, real estate, Certificates of deposit, and even a high interest savings account allow you to accumulate wealth over time.