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Things are uncertain right now, so I wanted to share some non-medical advice for how to handle the CoronaVirus.
1. Pause your debt snowball if you’re concerned about losing income.
Pausing means, you continue to pay your minimums but anything extra goes into savings until things settle down.
2. Use your emergency fund if you need to.
This is exactly what an emergency fund is for. Obviously don’t go blow it on crap, but if you truly need to stock up on groceries or you’re out of work…THIS is why we have an emergency fund...so it’s okay to use it. We personally pulled out a few hundred to go towards extra groceries + filling up on fuel.
3. Take it one day at a time.
For those of us who are planners this uncertainty is pure tourture. How long will this last? How much should we budget for groceries? Can we count on the next paycheck? -- I wish I could answer all of those questions for you. Do the best you can with what you’re given TODAY.
4. Try to not be wasteful.
One good thing that could come from this is that we’re all learning to not waste food, toilet paper, or any other disposable products. I’ve stashed all of our paper towels to be used as back-up toilet paper, leaving us cleaning + drying our hands with only reusable towels. I’ve been saving every bit of leftover food, to cut down on waste and unnecessary trips to the store. Imagine if we were always this aware of waste!
5. Invest while the market is down.
Obviously, this is no time to drain your savings and buy up all of the stocks, BUT if you’re in a strong financial place this could be a good time to jump in while stocks are “on sale”.
For us, being debt-free and having about a year worth of expenses in savings, I decided to try my hand at buying a few stocks. I don’t have any fancy insider stock tips for you…I’m a complete newbie at this…but I bought 2 shares of United Airlines + 2 shared of Delta Airlines, because they’re currently sitting at about half of their value from a year ago. I’ve only invested about $150, so not a huge risk, but I figured now was the time to learn about all of this.
6. Use grocery pickup or delivery.
If you haven’t tried Walmart Grocery Pickup/Delivery now is a better time than ever to give it a shot. Pickup is free and delivery ranges from $7.95-$9.95 (in our area).
>> Save $10 off your first order by using my referral code.
Or, if you already have an Amazon Prime account, take advantage of it for things like laundry soap, dog food, and other non-food items.
7. Speak your gratitude.
Practicing gratitude is always important, but now more than ever. Fear and scarcity are everywhere and the only things stronger are love and gratitude. Love your people extra hard, find beauty in the little things, and focus on the positivity whenever you can.
8. Center your heart.
Let’s use this time to do a little soul work. Let’s hang out with our kids. Let’s read more, blast some good tunes, dig into a hobby or a decluttering project.
9. Reach out to your people.
We’re all scared, nervous, and uncertain right now. Text, call, or video-chat with a friend today. Check on them, remind them that they’re not alone, share a moment of “togetherness” through this scary time.
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HEY I'M SAMI WOMACK
I'm the wife to my high school sweetheart, Daniel, + homeschooling momma to our 3 girls. I'm the Budgeting Coach + Motivational Speaker behind
A Sunny Side Up Life.
My family used to be in $490k of debt + living paycheck-to-paycheck, but after we hit rock bottom everything changed for us!
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