With the UK officially on lockdown and staying home is mandatory, it’s time to find ways to fill your day.
Why not use this opportunity to improve your financial literacy? Our entitled ‘How to Regain Control of Your Finances, Fast’ stresses that financial security is something people are always going to want to strive for, but the problem is they don’t know where to start.
Aside from making sure all your bills and loans are looked after during this time, here are a few other ways to become more financially savvy while staying at home.
Create a feasible financial plan
Most of us are comfortable enough with setting monthly budgets, but just how many of us have taken the time to plan out where we want our finances to be years from now? The Telegraph highlights how financial advisers can be instrumental in this process, but seeing as everyone’s stuck at home you might have to do a bit of work on your end first. To start, you’ll want to take stock of all your financial documents in order really analyse where you want to be a year or two from now. You can also start digging around for reputable financial advisers you could reach out to remotely.
Understand your credit rating
If you’re still unfamiliar as to what a credit rating actually is, Investopedia breaks it down into your number of open accounts, total levels of debt, and payment records. The higher your credit score, the more trustworthy you are to financial institutions. Now that you have these factors before you, go back through your records once more and see where you stand. All UK lenders have their own record scores, so it’s important not to stress out over getting a specific number: it’s good enough to just know where you are right now.
Learn about cryptocurrency
One of the benefits of cryptocurrency is that it’s decentralised, so anyone can try their hand at trading crypto. If you’ve never traded cryptocurrency before, trading experts Plus500 recommend choosing a platform that helps mitigate your losses. Although cryptocurrency is known to be volatile, setting alerts for any sudden price hikes and drops allows even the most novice trader to get to grips with the market. As a general rule of thumb, you’ll want to start investing small to get a feel of the market before diving in and investing a significant portion of your hard-earned savings.
Study the basics of the stock market
Speaking of investing, it’s worth taking a day or two to understand how to responsibly invest in the stock market. With financial insiders predicting a global recession thanks to the coronavirus, it’s perhaps not the best time to invest in stocks. That said, this situation means that you can brush up on your stock market knowledge without fear that you’ll miss on any sudden price hikes. Arming yourself with this knowledge will allow you to dive in and invest once the market returns to normal.
Read up on finance blogs
Last but not least, use this time to read up on personal finance blogs. Frugality Magazine’s list some of the top finance blogs that focus on making financial talk extremely accessible to the ordinary person, minus all the jargon. While everyone has a different path towards financial success, following a personal finance blog or two can help you navigate some of the more mundane (but still very pressing) situations that you might find yourself in.
Weathering this coming storm is going to prove difficult, and there’s something to be said for taking the time to process the situation. However, it’s equally important to keep yourself busy and make your stay at home as meaningful as possible.
