How To Thrive In An Economic Crisis
There is a lot happening in the world right now. We have viruses, we have stock market crashes, people stockpiling on groceries until there’s no food left, and social media is riddled with fearful posts about what could happen.
I see it too. I’m choosing not to fall into it and I’m choosing not to panic.
First, I’m reminding myself that we have had it WAY worse in history and still made it through.
In the 1930’s we had a depression that lasted 11 years! We’ve only had it bad for like 4 weeks. Even then, people survived and even thrived. I’d like to consider that I can be one of those people.
Right now the reality is we have quarantines apparently because of a virus.
We have a stock market that crashed because large corporations decided to over inflate their share prices and then sell for a profit, dump the losses on the American consumer, and then ask for a bail out.
We have people who are not working and not earning incomes.
We have grocery store food shortages.
It seems like things couldn’t be worse and that everything is just toppling around us. What’s next right?
Well here is the thing…none of those things actually matter. Do they have an impact? Sure. But they can’t control my or your destiny and they certainly don’t take responsibility away from me or lessen my ability to be at cause instead of effect.
The truth of the matter is this
If I’m panicking right now it is because I wasn’t prepared. Bottom line. If I’m struggling because my work slowed down and I can’t cover my bills, that is 100% because when times were good I wasn’t responsible and didn’t plan ahead.
If I’m freaked out that my 401k just lost hundreds of thousands of dollars, that is simply because I was a naive investor who trusted without researching and didn’t ensure I was invested to protect against loss prior to those losses happening.
If I’m worried about catching a virus, it probably means I wasn’t taking the preventative measures to remain healthy and keep my immune system strong before there ever was a virus.
Bubbles Pop
We’ve all heard this phrase “bubble” relating to finances right?
A bubble is when something inflates to a price, value, or condition that isn’t backed by anything and is out of control.
Then an incident happens that upsets the bubble and it pops, causing financial losses and crisis.
Well I have to look at where I was in a bubble.
Were my finances in a bubble where I wasn’t saving, wasn’t earning enough, and wasn’t taking care of my debt and investments? If so, all of this probably popped my bubble and caused me to be in a personal crisis.
This would apply to my health, my job, my personal sanity, and even my social media habits.
So what’s the solution?
Well first, I need to take full responsibility for putting myself in a position to be at risk. It’s not a fun thing to have to realize, but the habits and behaviors of my life made me vulnerable to whatever is happening to me right now. It’s nobody else’s fault.
Once I’ve done that I need to take a few key steps to ensure that my emergency doesn’t turn into a dangerous situation.
First increase my income
I cannot express just how important this is. I need to make sure my income INCREASES during this period.
This means I need to me like a hungry dog chasing a meat truck! This is survival. It doesn’t mean I need to rip anyone off or hurt people to do it either.
There is a certain intensity that needs to go with this. Life or death almost.
My focus and work outpoint needs to go into overdrive.
I can sell my junk. I can sell other people’s junk. I can get a sales job. I can make money online. It really doesn’t matter and where there is a will there is a way.
Second I need to stop doing the things that put me in this position
If I lost money in my 401k, I need to stop investing in it.
If I was laid off from my job, I need to find employment I can have more control over.
If I am bumming around because I didn’t have enough money saved or I’m having to charge up my credit cards, I need to stop immediately and go make some money so I can save.
I would literally make a checklist of all the recent actions I’ve been taking and probably do the opposite of all of them. Because those actions got me HERE and if HERE isn’t a good place, then those actions weren’t right.
Thirdly I am cutting my unproductive expenses
I know I see posts about how we can all fight this by spending local. I understand the sentiment behind that, but I’m not going to subsidize someone else’s lack of financial foresight by spending money unnecessarily to save them.
Also this problem is a lot bigger than buying a few gift cards from my favorite restaurant until they are open again. Our economy is literally hanging by a thread. The financial infrastructure that the United States operates on is so damaged that the easiest way to fix it is to let it crash and reset it. Buying local isn’t going to help reverse that even a small bit.
I need to cover myself and my family first.
This means I will be going through all of my transactions and rating them on a 1–5 scale.
1 = DUMB. I don’t need this item at all. I will return it and get a refund.
2 = Bad timing. I don’t need this item right now. I will return it and get a refund.
3 = Maybe. This is a decision I need to make on if I’m keeping this item or sending it back. The worse my situation, the more likely I am returning it.
4 = Vital for survival. Food, shelter, clothing, transportation, and personal health. I never return a 4 and I never doubt myself for spending money on it.
5 = Income producing and tax reducing. I never return a 5. If it makes me money and lowers my taxes I want more of them.
Fourth is to build up my savings and credit
I need to have a few months worth of money saved. My target right now should be to save more money than I ever have. This is counter to what you’ll hear people say. They are going to tell me to spend my money to help the economy. But here is the thing, I don’t want to spend my money. I want to invest it. And I want to invest it when things are on sale. So why would I get rid of it by spending it in order to boost the economy and prevent assets from going on sale? I’m going to stack cash like I never have before.
I also want to take advantage of the low interest rates on debt. If I’m not credit worthy, that’s not a bad investment to make. My company will help you repair your credit for a one time fee of $500. This makes it so that lenders will look at me for loans.
My goal is to have a maximal amount of cash on hand and credit available for emergencies and opportunities.
Fifth and last is STICK TO THE PLAN
This is full out emergency survival mode. Not survival like I’m in fear, but survival like I’m in a dangerous environment and I’m taking the steps to walk out prosperous.
The plan isn’t to panic and freak out on social media. That doesn’t help me.
The plan isn’t to go buy stocks “on sale”. That definitely doesn’t help me.
The plan isn’t to turn into a doomsday prepper and buy everything the grocery store has to offer. That also doesn’t help me and causes people in my community not to like me.
The plan is the prior steps. Stick to the prior steps.
Any news or media that causes fear or doubt needs to be turned off.
I’m only going to be communicating with people who encourage, help, and produce.
The result is expansion.
Any time a situation like this occurs I can come out of it larger or smaller.
Nobody is going to stay the same.
If I want to come out larger, I need to follow these steps.
If I want to come out smaller, I need to realize that is the choice I am making and at that point I can keep doing what I’ve been doing or follow the masses.
My personal goal is to help as many people as I can
come out of this hysteria in a better financial condition.
Right now, if you need help and would like a free blueprint on how to navigate these times click here. I won’t charge you a dime to help and I’ll make sure you understand where you are and where you need to be.
Own Your Potential,
Jerry Fetta
Jerry Fetta helps create financially educated and wealthy families who navigate their economic futures with certainty and help build prosperous communities around them. If you’d like to experience this for yourself and your family, then get more information about Jerry Fetta and Wealth DynamX by going to Membership.JerryFetta.com
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