Financial Wellness defines everyone’s financial decision-making process. Whether consciously or not, the concept of financial wellness shapes important considerations such as where to invest, how to manage retirement, and how much to save moving people to act with the notion that a specific decision will improve or work towards improving their overall economic stability. However, at its core, what is financial wellness?
In a nutshell, financial wellness is the current and future health of a person’s general finances. It means taking inventory of every aspect of your financial life and understanding a) where things stand now; b) where does the person want to be in 3-5 years or more; and c) how do they get there. The road towards financial wellness does not follow a straight and narrow path; it will change consistently and be based on the vision and interests of each individual. This means that, all together, people instinctively understand and implement financial wellness as part of their typical financial routine, correct?
Unfortunately, no. Statistics show that 78 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck while 61 percent cannot cover an emergency beyond $1,000. If these numbers hold when the economy is “normal,” they certainly grew exponentially during the current global pandemic. Furthermore, the effects this instability causes reaches far beyond the individual workers themselves. About 48 percent of U.S. adults lose sleep over their finances, and, in turn, 42 percent feel distracted by these worries causing a decline in productivity that represents an annual company loss of $1 million for midsized employers and $19 million for large employers.
The cascading effect of being financially unwell is evident. How to resolve the issue is incumbent upon companies willing to promote financial wellness in the workplace, individuals being open to the idea of retraining how they care for their finances, and financial professionals preparing to tackle the problem not simply as advisors but rather lifelong partners.
About Associated Investor Services
Associated Financial Consultants & Investor Services is an independent, financial services firm that launched in South Florida in 1972. Over the past 40 years, the firm has been building a leading reputation in wealth management, investments, employer-sponsored retirement plans, employee benefit plans, and insurance.
In addition to wealth management, the firm has become a major player in the design, administration, and implementation of both employer-sponsored retirement plans and employee benefit plans. The firm consists of an in-house third-party administrator. For more information, visit www.AFC-AIS.com