YOUR FINANCIAL WELLNESS A great way to help you have a better relationship with your money.

SKILLS AND STRATEGIES - WAYS TO HELP YOURSELF BE MORE CARFUL WITH YOUR MONEY Knowing how to manage your money Use credit cards wisely Staying out of debt Meeting your financial obligations Having long-range financial plans Emotional relationship with money Learn to budget Using self-discipline to live with your means saving

LEARN TO BUDGET A budget is a way of tracking where your money goes and making sure you’re spending it on the things that are most important to you. - Record your daily spending with anything that's handy, whether it's with a pen and paper or an app on your smartphone. -Plan for next month's expenses and income so you don't get taken by surprise.... -Look for ways to spend less. -Spend on what you want or need only if it doesn't go over budget.

HOW TO BUDGET Step 1. Assess your financial situation. It's a lot easier to budget when you have actual money to budget with. Take this simple approach to help keep a little more in your wallet. WAYS MONEY COMES IN - Your paycheck, Family and friends, Savings and Other (alimony, child support, etc.) WAYS MONEY GOES OUT - Rent or mortgage, Food, Utilities, Clothing, Transportation, Insurance, Student loans, payments, Other debts, Miscellaneous expenses, and Savings

HOW TO BUDGET Step 2. Identify needs vs. wants. Take a look at what you have or want and determine what you can't live without. As hard as it is, you may need to give some things up. NEEDS -Food, Clothing, Shelter, Medical/dental visit, Prescriptions, etc. WANTS - Computer, internet, Car, Cell phone, Cable television, Movies, entertainment, Pets, etc.

HOW TO BUDGET Step 3. Understand your financial behaviors. Only by identifying your spending habits can you find budgeting strategies that work for you. Financial Behavior - Impulse buying, Buying name-brand, Not knowing where the money goes, Spending your entire paycheck Budgeting Strategy - Put yourself on an allowance, Keep track of your spending, Use direct deposit to save

HOW TO BUDGET Step 4. Create your budget. Creating a budget is nothing more than simple math. Once you deduct your expenses from your income, you'll know how much you have left to spend on your "wants."

BE WARY OF CREDIT CARDS - WAYS TO HELP YOU BE CAREFUL WITH CREDIT CARDS Just have one credit card Spend within your means It is vital that you understand the following terms: Grace period (the number of days you have to pay your bill before interest, late fees, or other penalties are charged). Minimum payment (the smallest payment your creditor will accept each month). Credit Cards can lead you to being in debt. You must be careful with credit cards when it comes to buying.

GET OUT OF DEBT - WAYS TO STAY OUT OF DEBT Stop using your credit cards when you already owe too much Try to pay more than just the minimum of monthly payments Keep track of your money every time you pay with credit Understand the interest of monthly payments Save money for other important uses Cut back on spending habits Being in “debt” means owing someone money. Usually, when people talk about being "in debt" they are referring to the state of owing somebody money over a period of time - such as a mortgage or a car loan. Then there is being "seriously in debt" which is the state of having payments that bump up against or exceed your disposable income.

START SAVING - WAYS TO SAVE Why is saving important? - We save, basically, because we can't predict the future. If we could, we would know precisely know how much money we would need for the things that we want and need in the future. But because we can't do this, the need to save money for the future is vital. Cut back on spending habits Set up a Savings account with your bank Put in a minimum amount of money into your savings soon after you get paid from your job. Keep track of your purchases and keep the receipts after a purchase When saving you can set up plans like retirement, vacation, hobbies etc..

BECOMING FINANCIALLY LITERATE This means understanding everything from basics like balancing a checkbook to more sophisticated endeavors like developing a long term financial plan.

DIFFERENCES OF FINANCIAL WELLNESS EDUCATED PEOPLE Have more opportunities and open doors. Make more money Having an education allows you to work in a field that you enjoy More knowledge Successful NON-EDUCATED PEOPLE May struggle financially Less money Likely to be poor with communication Less successful Not very many opportunities and advantages May have a job you dislike

REFRENCES budget.shtml budget.shtml credit-cards-fico-score-mortgage-1581.php credit-cards-fico-score-mortgage-1581.php RDG 990 TEXTBOOK Section 9.2 Noel Lopez, Jonathan Lopez, Kimberly Ann Mostacero and Eva Palacios