While the economic sky is falling, it’s still possible to make sure that your financial status is steady. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been even more focused on the steps I’m taking to improve my personal finances. I’ve found a few actions that probably won’t make you a millionaire — but they will ensure that a rocky economy doesn’t have too much of an effect on your wallet.
1. Pay Down Debt
When in doubt on your finances, paying down debt is always a good option. The simple fact of the matter is that it’s easier to get more credit down the road if you pay off debt now. I realize that many financial gurus say that an emergency fund is the best place to start. Well, from my own experiences in a rough economy when interest rates can do all sorts of crazy things, paying down debt can be a better plan. If an emergency comes up, you may need to take on more debt to cover it — but you’ll be better equipped to handle it.
2. Polish Your Resume
Even if you aren’t in a field that’s currently experiencing a high rate of turnover, you should pull out your resume and polish it. If you’ve already got a good-looking resume in place, you’ve got a head start on all sorts of things: job-hunting, applying for a second job, freelancing and more. It may not be worth hiring a resume coach or other professional, but it’s definitely worthwhile to find a few examples of good resumes and compare yours.
3. Take a Close Look at Your Retirement Plan
401(k)s remain the popular retirement plan and, if you have one, it’s time to take a close look. The same goes for IRAs and any other assets you’ve purchased on your own. The market is very volatile now — it may be possible to pick up some impressive stocks on the cheap and it may be possible to watch the prices of the stocks in your 401(k) tumble downwards. As long as you aren’t retiring in the next few years, you can probably afford to ride this economic down turn out. The only stock-picking advice I can offer — and this applies to other assets as well — is that diversity is your friend. If your money is spread out, at least over a variety of stocks if not a variety of investment instruments, then a problem in a particular company or industry won’t wipe you out.
4. Buy Stuff Now
If you’ve got a big purchase coming up that you really do need to make, it’s better to make the purchase now rather than later. The U.S. dollar has already experienced significant inflation; it’s only going to get worse. That basically means your money is worth more now that it will be in a few months. You’ll get more bang for your buck if you can buy now. It’s a little counter-intuitive, I admit, and there are plenty of exceptions to this step. Shopping, however, can be good for your wallet in the long run. You get the added bonus of knowing that you’re improving the economy with every cent you spend.
5. Educate Yourself
I think we’ve all gotten a crash course in terms like ‘MBS’ lately, although we may not know exactly what they mean. It’s time to start seriously studying your personal finance vocab though, up to and including economic terms. The U.S. government offers plenty of free resources that are perfect for teaching yourself more about personal finance. You’ll have to custom fit your educational plan to your own finances: a really great starting point, I think, is reading through my latest bank statement and checking up on all the things I don’t understand, down to calling up and asking a teller about specific fees.
6. Invest in Your Future
If you’re having some trouble in the working world, now might be the perfect time to head back to school and get that degree you always wanted. You can get bigger loans with better terms to live on for a few years — hopefully getting you through the worst parts of our current economic problems before going back on the job market. Brushing up on your skills (and learning new ones) can also be the difference between making enough money to make it through economic problems comfortably and having to take a job for which you are overqualified. You don’t have to go all out and enlist back in school. In some cases, reading a book is more than enough effort to improve your career situation.
7. Ignore the News
The news media seems pretty much obsessed with each economic crisis, but you really can’t do much about the Dow Jones slipping or a bank failing. I recommend skipping the nightly news entirely, but muting just the business news might be enough. Some specialized news is, of course, worth paying attention to — if you’re invested in the stock market, it’s probably a good idea to read the stock reports. That’s really about it, though. Most of us have effectively no affect on any economic or business news: I know that even if I send a letter to my Congressman about the bailout package, I’m probably not going to affect his final decision. It’s just not worth paying attention to all that depressing news.
Thursday Bram is a freelance journalist of over five years experience. She studied Communications at the University of Tulsa and is currently working on her MA in Communication Design. Her work has focused primarily on entrepreneurial topics. More information about Thursday is available at thursdaybram.com.
译文:
七种做法可使你免受经济动荡的侵扰
尽管经济之天已摇摇欲坠，保持个人的经济状况稳定亦非不可能之事。过去两周，我更加努力地埋头思考应对良策以改善我自身的财政状况。现已找到的如下新措施或许不会使您一夜暴富，但至少能你在变化无常的经济环境中不致遭受经济损失。
1. 及时还清债务
如果对自己的财政安全存有疑虑，此时付清所欠债务绝对是明智之选。道理很简单：现在付清了债务，你就为将来获得更多贷款铺平了道路。我意识到这样一个问题，许多金融专家都认为投资紧急救助基金是开始介入该行业的首选。然而，根据我自己的经验，在一个利率几乎无所不能经济艰难时期，及时还清债务不失为一种较明智的规划。危机一旦来临，你或许要承担更多的债务才能渡过难关。但如果预先做些准备，便可应付自如。
2. 润色个人简历
即使你所处的行业目前并未出现高失业现象，你仍需找出自己的简历并润色一番以备不时之需。如已有一份完善的简历在手了，那就一切从零开始：重新寻找工作，申请第二份工作，从事自由职业，或想点其它什么招儿。为润色简历而特意聘请教师或专家倒是没有必要，但找一份出色的简历样板并将自己的简历对照修改一下还是值得的。
3. 密切关注自己的退休计划
401（k）目前仍是一种较为普遍的退休金计划。如果你有这种帐户，就应当多花点时间关照一下。你购买的IRA等其它资产也应给予同样的关注。当前市场状况瞬息万变——你可能以较低的价格就能买到优势股票，也可能眼睁睁看着投在401（k）中的股票价格持续下跌。只要今后几年中你还不会退休，就可能具备足够的经济实力渡过经济滑坡这一难关。在选择股票方面，我唯一可以提出的建议（该建议也适用于其它资产选择）是：多样化投资更有利。如果将钱分别投资在不同领域（即使投资手段单一，也要多买几种股票），这样，即使某家公司或某一行业出现问题，也不致让你赔得倾家荡产。
4. 现在就去购物
如果你目前的确需要实施一项采购计划，就马上付诸行动吧，不要推迟到以后再说。美元出现了严重的通货膨胀问题，而且它的状况只会越来越糟糕。这基本意味着你的钱几个月后会更加贬值。如果现在购买，便可花最少的钱办最多的事。但我承认，这样说多少有些掩人耳目之嫌，且并且其中还有许多例外情况。然而，从长远看购物可以为你节省开支。另外，你还会有一种收获，你可以意识到自己在通过花钱为经济状况的改善做着自己的贡献。
5. 培训自己
我认为，最近我们每个人都参加了一个学习“MBS”（按揭证券）等术语的“速成班”，尽管我们可能还不太清楚这些术语的真正内涵是什么。现在是你认真研究一下自己掌握的金融词汇（其中主要涉及并包括经济术语）的时候了。美国政府提供的大量免费资源能帮助我们更好地了解自身的资金状况。你应为自己的资金状况定制一套适合的教育方案：我认为首先应该从头到尾细读一遍自己的最新银行对账单并核实一下自己不懂的项目，然后给出纳打电话询问具体费用等细节问题。
6. 投资未来
当前，你如果在职场中遇到了一些挫折，那么目前正是你返回学校攻读你素来梦寐以求的学位的最佳时机。上学期间，你可以借助给学生提供的更优惠的条件获取较大金额的贷款，借以维持自己今后几年的生活——或许能帮助你在回到职场之前便渡过了当前经济萧条的最艰难岁月。在技能方面充一下电（并学习一下新的技能）或许也是决定你“挣足够的钱以轻松克服经济问题”还是“必须找一份对你来说勉为其难的工作”的关键因素。你不必全力以赴地获取学校的录取资格。在某些情况下，读书并不仅仅意味着你已做出充分努力改善当前的职业状况，除此之外还有更加深远的意义。
7. 不去关注新闻内容
新闻媒体似乎非常热衷于报道经济危机的情况，但实际上你能够为道琼斯指数下滑或银行破产等情况所做的努力微乎其微。我建议完全忽略掉晚间新闻的内容，但只忽略其中的商业新闻已经做够了。当然，一些专业新闻也值得我们去关注——如果你已将钱投资在股票领域，读一读股票方面的报道或许是一种不错的选择。不过这的确需要你认真去做才行。我们中许多人并未有效地影响经济或商业新闻：我深知，即使我给我的国会议员写信谈论有关救市法案的问题，我也未必会影响到他的最终决定。因此，关注所有令人丧气的新闻根本不值得。