Money Management During The Pandemic

Managing money is already hard enough for most people. So when Covid-19 hit, it made things ridiculously worse. Most of us do not learn any money management skills while growing up. Not in school and definitely not from our folks.

Did you know that 1 in 6 Canadians have more money going out (Expenses), then coming in (Income). This is according to the government of Canada’s 2019 survey. Isn’t that something? That's why most get easy online loans.

While 1 in 4 Canadians actually have to borrow money to pay for their groceries and regular bills. Especially if you are earning less than 40k a month. These stats are absolutely horrendous. What’s more scary is this is all before the pandemic ever happened.

Right now, things are pretty dire for most Canadians. Especially those who fall in this 40K annual tax bracket. If you had issues with managing your money before, we encourage you to see the pandemic as an opportunity to really get your finance game on point.

Here are two simple things you can do and really start owning your finances. Let's start with the most basic thing:

Building Your Savings

StatCan recently reported that the average Canadian savings account has about $842 dollars in it. No matter what part of Canada you are from, whether it’s Ontario or Manitoba, that’s just incredibly low.

Guess you can’t blame us. As most Canadians are notorious for spending a good chunk of their paychecks on the exact same day they receive them.

If we do happen to receive it on a Friday, then . . . watch out world.

However, this was all pre-Covid. Now most of us don’t have jobs and the lack of savings has hit us all harder than ever.

If you are not working at the moment, we hope you find work soon. Or we can help you borrow some funds as well. If you are, it’s time to start money management 101 and it all starts with savings. So whether you are working or not, at least start saving a chunk of your CERB money right away, even if it’s your only income source right now. Whether it’s 10% or more, you start putting that money aside right away.

Since this will be a new habit for you, try saving for three months straight. Without touching this new fund of yours. If three months is too long, go with 30 days. If that’s too long, then go without using these funds for a period of time that seems doable for you.

When it comes to money, it all starts with savings. If you can’t hold on to your money, it will continue to have power over you. You have to realize that you are the source of your money.

You create it by offering valuable skills and services to other people. It’s not the other way around. That’s how you did it before the pandemic, remember?

So if you are struggling with savings, maybe you should use this time for some deep inner exploration. Perhaps some meditation may reveal things to you that may be “mentally” blocking you from starting to save money in the first place. Perhaps you are afraid of long term thinking and it’s something that just doesn’t register.

So use this time to really think things through.

Bottom line though, when it comes to money, it all starts with good savings. As an additional precaution, always exercise your common sense . Especially when it comes to using banks, etc. After all, it's the digital age and fraud can happen quite often.

Focus on Stability

Once you have a few thousand dollars saved up, your own relationship with money will begin to transform. You’ll feel more confident and more in control. It’s not because you finally have money saved up, but it’s you who saved all that money. Big difference.

Hopefully, during this time, if you pick up a part time or full time job, then stick with it for a while. At least during the pandemic. If you can. Don't try to start a business or invest into stocks unless you are sure.

The whole idea here is to create stability. Now you have an income source during the worst financial time in human history.

So just focus on keeping it and increasing your savings.

It doesn’t have to be some fancy job. If you can get one that’s great, but you can always work as an Amazon warehouse rep or do clerical duties at your local grocery store. Both are busier than ever by the way and would love to have someone help them out.

Once you start generating income again, especially during Covid, just keep saving most of it and try to live a little more modestly than before. Whatever that may be for you. Which is definitely not hard to do right now as there is literally nowhere to go. It’s actually a great time to save money if you are making some.

If you are kind of depressed like many Canadians are during this time, remind yourself that the vaccine is already out and it’s only a matter of time. Covid-19 is a temporary situation. So please hang in there.

We all just need to be patient, bit the bullet as they say and wait it out. It's definitely not easy but now it truly is just a matter of time.

So if you follow these two simple steps, you’ll be up and running in no time.

Plus when the pandemic finally ends, this time, you’ll be ready to conquer the world with real-life money management skills. Something that will dramatically improve your life for the better from here on out.