The last couple of years have been rough for many Americans. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns forced a lot of people to dip into their savings or completely wipe it out.

According to the Federal Reserve, 200,000 more businesses closed than the number that shut their doors in a normal year. Similar to the Great Recession, Americans are struggling to get back on their feet.

If you’re one of the millions of people who are struggling to recover from the pandemic, don’t stress. There are small steps you can take to get back on a solid financial path. So, take a deep breath, grab your coffee and make a plan.

Get Rid of Your Debt

Getting rid of your debt seems like a no-brainer, but it can feel like you’re drowning if you have a lot of it. Oftentimes, when people go through financial troubles, they’ll use their credit cards to survive. Many Americans only have the cards for emergencies.

The problem with using credit cards to survive is the fees quickly add up. The lender might charge you interest and then compound interest. If you’re trying to get your finances in order, speaking to a professional to get strategic debt solutions is one of the first steps you want to take. An expert will tell you where you stand and help you develop a strategy to pay it off quickly. To ensure you have money left at the end of the month to pay down your debt, you will want to create a budget.

Create a Budget

Budgets sound awful, but once you get the hang of documenting your spending, it starts to become second nature. Creating a budget can seem like a scary task, but it’s really quite easy. You can use free programs to help you do this, or you can create a spreadsheet using Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.

Once you choose a program, list all of your expenses for the month. This is the most important part, so even if you spend $5 on a cup of coffee on Tuesday mornings, add that to your list. List some goals on your sheet as well. For example, if you want to start contributing to a vacation fund, put that on the list.

After you’ve listed all of your expenses, add up the total amount of money you spend. Then, on a separate line, place your monthly income on the sheet. Then subtract your expenses from your income. If your number is negative, meaning you owe more than you bring home, then it’s time to start cutting your expenses.

Start by eliminating unnecessary spending. If you haven’t used a subscription in more than a month, get rid of it. You want to at least break even.

Save for Retirement

One day you’re going to retire. When you do, you want to be in a comfortable position. Social Security is available to you, but remember, that should supplement your retirement savings. The earlier you start saving for your retirement, the better.

If you are in your early 20s and just getting your career off of the ground, that’s okay, you can save as little as $20 a week. Tuck it away in an interest-bearing account and forget it exists. That money should be completely separate from your regular savings account.

If your employer offers 401(k), join the plan and contribute to it every time you’re paid. Often employers will match what you contribute, basically giving you free money. Who doesn’t like that?

Once you take some steps toward financial freedom, you’ll feel so much better. Just remember, it can be difficult at first, but soon your changes will become second nature.

Financial security is one of the most significant factors increasing a person’s quality of life. It’s pretty obvious that money is important; you need money to afford basic necessities like food and shelter, but you should also be able to afford some of the pleasures in life.

Hobbies and comforts shouldn’t have to be luxuries that you sacrifice in order to make ends meet. There are a variety of ways you can earn more money, from increasing your value as an employee to making smart investments to accumulate assets, but one of the best steps you can take to increase your quality of life and become more financially secure is switching to a more viable career path.

Not only can switching careers allow you greater upward mobility and a higher salary in the long run, but it can also improve your quality of life in many other ways. A survey conducted by Joblist found that 77% of people felt happier afterward, while 75% were more satisfied. In addition, 69% reported feeling more fulfilled and 65% said they felt less stressed.

Switching careers can allow you to free up more time to spend with loved ones and doing things you like. Most importantly, a career change can help you to feel more free and in control of your own life, rather than trapped in a job that no longer works for you. So, if you’re thinking about changing careers, here are five tips to make the process easier for you.

Think About Why You Want To Switch Careers

One of the most important things you should do when deciding what career switch you want to pursue is sit down and think about why you want to switch careers in the first place. What about your current job is unsatisfying? Do you dislike long hours working in front of a computer? Are you not suited for repetitive work? Do you feel like you’re being underpaid or that there’s not enough opportunity for advancement?

All these questions are important because they can help you to pick a career for the next stage in your life that won’t have you feeling the way you are now in ten years. Remember, you made a choice about your career once before; if you want to switch careers now, it’s important that you learn from that choice in order to make a better one.

Choose a Career That’s a Better Fit for You

Once you’ve figured out why your current job doesn’t work for you, it’s time to explore your options and see what careers would be a better fit for you and your skills. When researching different jobs, it’s a great idea to reach out to someone currently working in the field and ask them about their experience with the job firsthand.

A lot of careers, especially those commonly depicted in popular media, aren’t really well understood by people outside of them. Figuring out what a job actually entails is crucial to deciding whether or not that job is right for you. You can also take advantage of a career counselor, who can help you to find a career path that checks off as many of your boxes as possible for what you want out of your next job.

Go Back to School and Upgrade Your Skills

After you decide on what career you want to pursue, you’ll most likely have to obtain additional training, degrees, or qualifications in order to enter that field. It’s important to do your research and understand what your next steps for transitioning to your new career are. For example, if you wanted to go into nursing, you’d need to complete a nurse practitioner program.

If you’re looking to make more money at your next job, you’ll probably have to go back to school for a period of time. Not only does this mean you’ll have to go through a little while without a full-time job, but it also means you’ll need to find funding for tuition. If your savings don’t cover it, consider researching to see if your government or bank offers financial aid for older individuals looking to obtain additional training for a career change.

Be Prepared To Take Risks

Before you begin the process of switching careers, it’s vitally important that you understand what you’re doing. By resigning from your current job to go for training or back to school, you’re taking a risk and sacrificing your current employment and relevant experience, likely to start from scratch again.

Although there’s a lot to gain from it, you’re still taking a gamble, and you’ll have to be prepared to take bold risks in order to make a career change successfully. You must be willing to go all the way; if you quit or decide it’s not worth the risk midway through the process, you’ll just have ended up wasting a lot of time and money for nothing. You may end up needing to move, whether it is to somewhere less glamourous like the Midwest for a high rated position at a company of your choice or maybe the opposite and you move to Southern California or Florida but sacrifice pay to start lower at a company in your dream destination or industry.

Make Sure You Have a Fallback Plan

Although a career change is inherently risky, it helps a lot to have some sort of fallback plan, just in case things don’t work out the way you want them to. Leaving on amicable terms from your current job and maintaining good relations with contacts and colleagues in your old line of work is a good idea just in case you end up needing to go back. While you should never plan to give up, it’s always smart to plan for the worst, just in case.

No doubt, changing careers is a scary prospect, and it can make anyone feel anxious. However, it’s also an incredible opportunity and an exciting beginning to a new (and hopefully better!) chapter of your life. With these five tips, hopefully you can put yourself on a better path — leading to a more fulfilling, happier, and richer life ahead of you!

For many people, managing money and running a business is stressful. Does it feel like that to you?

Once we are living on our own we might dream of having a life without limits or bounds. But it doesn’t really work like that. In actual fact, we have to manage more aspects of our life—and make it work. Not just a little bit. But fully, all the way, all year long.

If you’ve been dreaming of starting your own business, it’s a smart idea. Basically, by working for yourself, you can have the most freedom to express your unique ideas. You won’t be tied down by a boss, a corporate structure, or a bunch of stuffy policy rules.

You’ll have freedom to work like you want, when you want, on what you want.

At least, that’s the marketing pitch.

The reality can be a little, or a lot different.

Whether you’re starting out as an entrepreneur, or have been at it for some time, here is the nitty-gritty truth.

You’ll Work More

It’s usually not the 4-hour workweek, as popular author, Tim Ferris suggests. It’s usually more like 60 or 80 hours a week.

It isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always fun. You might like to be playing with your mates. You might want to be heading to the beach for a sunny day.

But, more often than not, you’ll have projects to do, people to contact, and dreams to realize. When you recognize this fact, you can find a certain sense of calmness. You have a sense of purpose and meaning.

You’ll Be Alone

Your friends and family won’t know the ins-and-outs of your business. They won’t truly know what you’re struggling with—or what is driving you. In essence, you will be alone.

Sure, your close friends and good mates will come by to see your progress, share a cup of tea, and get a sense of what you’re up to. But, will they get it? If you’re fortunate, one or two will understand.

You’ll Need Support

No one can really build a business on their own. Not entirely. You’ll want to get help, reassurance, and encouragement. You’ll want to get support from people who have the experience and skills that you don’t have yet.

This is why it’s so helpful to talk with a counselor or coach. Check out the services in your community, city, and state. Perhaps there is a business mentorship program or council in your area.

SCORE is a volunteer organization made up of executives who have been-there-and-done that. They have the miles of experience to share with you. When you talk with a SCORE mentor, you’ll feel a sense of relief. Finally, someone understands what you’re talking about and why you’re so excited.

You’ll Do Nitty-Gritty Calculations

Once you realize the fact that being in business is a combination of art and science, you’ll dive into the numbers. You’ll look at what you’re spending in fixed costs like rent, electricity, water, and Internet.

You’ll look at what you’re spending on variable costs such as shipping, marketing, and advertising. According to recent statistics, 9 out of 10 shippers overspend. This is contributing to your fixed costs, overhead, and business expenses. You could save as much as 30% with parcel contract negotiation.

You’ll Keep On Learning

No one said that going into business would be easy. No one promised you that you wouldn’t need to learn a thing. If someone did give you those promises, I hate to break it to you. They lied. At the very least, they embellished.

Every successful entrepreneur is a passionate learner. It just goes with the territory. When you want to achieve your dreams, you get really good at recognizing your weaknesses.

Sounds funny, right? Not really. When you identify your weaknesses, you can do something about them. You can learn new skills. You can take some online training classes. You can work with a coach or mentor.

Sum Up

By harnessing your sense of purpose, you’ll have a compass for staying on course. You will be more comfortable getting help from experienced professionals, investigating finances, and staying on a swift path of learning. With these skills, you’re on a path for success and doing more—with less.