10 Things Every Family Should Do To Live Comfortably

You want the best for your family, and that means ensuring you are all able to live comfortably. This doesn’t mean just having a bunch of nice things – having nice things is great, but if you’re paying for those nice things with money you haven’t got, then you could easily end up not so comfortable later on down the line. If you want to make sure that you have your finances handled for the whole family (and even help your kids to get better with money) then read on for some ideas: 

1)Come Up With A Meal Plan For The Week Ahead

Start by taking some time to come up with meal plans for the week ahead. You could even go as far as eating the same things (or similar things) each week – this way, food won’t go to waste, you’ll get into a good routine when shopping, and you’ll save time and money. You can also ensure the whole family is getting a balanced diet. There are many benefits to planning your meals, and even to prepping things in advance if you can. For example, you could batch cook and freeze some healthy lunches for days when you all might be a bit busier! 

2)Have Regular Money Meetings

Regular money meetings involving the whole family are great. They encourage an open and honest dialogue, and help to teach kids valuable lessons surrounding money. You can use these meetings to discuss whether your family budget is working, the things you have coming up so you can prepare in advance, and anything else you see fit. Doing this regularly not only encourages honest communication, but it encourages kids to get to grips with money and ask questions. It shows them the importance of planning things in advance and how to budget properly. If money is a mystery to them growing up, then they will likely struggle to manage it when they finally get a job. Just make sure you do the following:

*Decide on a time for your money meeting and stick to it. Once a month could be a good idea. 

*Don’t use negative language surrounding money. This can have a huge impact on the mindset of your children – if they see money as a negative, they likely won’t have a good relationship with it. Try not to get stressed out, or express anything other than gratitude that you get to pay a bill. Showing them that you’re grateful you have money to pay for these things will encourage a positive mindset. 

image

3)Figure Out How To Invest

Investing could help you to ensure you’re building wealth and making the most of compound interest. Working, especially if you love your job, is great. However, it won’t necessarily leave you with a lot of money to spare. Investing is about playing the long game, but it could do wonders for the money you have put away. You could look into the IRA LLC process to get a feel for how you can start doing this right away. If you’d like to make it super easy, you could use an app that rounds off your purchases and invests for you. Whatever you do, don’t wait until you have ‘more money’. Invest whatever small amount you can. It will add up over time! 

4)Avoid Lifestyle Inflation

Lifestyle inflation is something many families deal with and they don’t even realize it. It’s so easy to allow your expenses to creep up. You think you need a bigger house, a better car, a bigger TV, a better TV package, and more. Before you know it., your bills are through the roof. Try to keep your expenses as low as possible by staying sensible. 

5)Try The Envelope Method

The envelope method can be a good way of managing your money. You simply allocate an amount that works for you to your food shopping, entertainment, and anything else you spend money on. You put the money into an envelope, and you’re only allowed to use the money for the original thing it was allocated to. You can’t put money in other envelopes, or spend the money when there’s some left over. You simply top up the envelope if you don’t spend it all. This is a great way to encourage more sensible spending, and the act of handing over cash should make you think twice before spending money on something you don’t need. 

6)Improve Your Money Mindset

We’ve already touched on the money mindset, but it’s important to acknowledge just how important it is. Making sure you have a positive money mindset will improve your relationship with money and help you to manage it better. Most people have negative connotations when it comes to money because of how they were brought up. You can’t help this, but you can change it. Examine your beliefs, where they come from, and why they are not true. 

7)Put Money Away For A Rainy Day

Make sure you have an emergency fund. This should cover you if you have to take a pay cut, replace an appliance, or do something else unexpected. Money experts recommend having at least 3 months living expenses to tide you over. 

8)Encourage Smart Spending 

Make sure you encourage smart spending from your kids. When they have money they can get excited, but don’t let them spend it all on sweets. Encourage them to think about saving some, investing some, and thinking to the future. If they wanted a Nintendo Switch, how much would they need to put away each week to buy it in 6 months? This can be a tough lesson to teach them, but they will be so much more satisfied when they can save and buy these things themselves. It’s a great lesson for the future, too! 

Image

9)Pay Off Debts (And Stay Out Of It)

It’s too easy to get into debt, and this is why having an emergency fund is key. If you are in debt now, work to aggressively pay it off and avoid saving or investing until you have done this. It’ll be worth it when you’re debt free. To stay out of it, you absolutely need to put a focus on changing your money mindset! 

10)Eat Out Less

Eating out as a family can cost a small fortune. Really limit the amount you do this – one day out probably could have purchased your food from the supermarket for a week.