Getting your finances in order is rarely top of mind, especially during the summer, when there are beaches to recline on produce-laden farmer’s markets to browse and vacation plans on which to splurge.
But right now, while your schedule may be more flexible, is a fine time to think about your financial well-being — and we’re making it easy, with Your 7-Day Money Challenge.
Each day for a week, we’ll send you a simple task that you can typically accomplish in under an hour, and usually in mere minutes. This challenge contains tasks that cover the basic components of a successful financial life. So you won’t find any tips on risky bets like short-selling stocks or trading Bitcoin.
The bedrock tenets of sound personal finance, in fact, can fit on a small index card. Harold Pollack, a professor at the University of Chicago, even created a handful of cards (which grew into a book), with maxims like “Save 20 percent of your money” and “Pay your credit card balance in full every month.” For most people, the not-so-secret secret to successful money management is to start early, and keep it simple. (If you’re no longer young, you can still try the simple part.)
Take the 7-Day Money Challenge
Let us help you work through the essentials of your financial to-do list. Tackle a simple money task each day for a week to strengthen your financial well-being.
The daily assignments in Your 7-Day Money Challenge offer a fresh approach to the greatest hits of personal money management, like creating a rainy-day fund. Many Americans would be hard-pressed to handle an emergency expense of just $400, the Federal Reserve has reported. Getting started with even a small savings account can help smooth out life’s inevitable bumps.
On other days, you’ll tackle tasks like identifying your priorities, trimming wasteful spending, bolstering your credit score, saving for retirement, finding the best credit card for the way you spend and updating insurance coverage. We walk you through how to get yourself on the right financial path, and offer advice for staying there.
Once you’ve finished our challenge, you’re good to go for another year. So you can relax, and enjoy your down time.
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