Own it, Fix it, Grow it
If you missed week 1 you can access it here:
28 Day Financial Fitness Challenge – Week 1
Own it - Week 2
Day 8 - Review your Will
| Task: | Complete the "Will" section of the black box pdf. If you do not have a will in place or are not sure whether your existing one is adequate don't worry we will be covering this next week. For now just list the details of any Wills you currently have in place. |
| Key Takeaway: | Having a valid will in place is important for two reasons:
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| Time Required: | 10 mins |
| Click to play: |  |
| Resources | The HMRC website has a handy interactive tool which will tell you how your estate will be distributed, based on your circumstances, if you die without a will. |
Day 9 - Review your income
| Task: | Complete the "Income & Benefits" section of the black box pdf. You should list all your income (e.g salary) and any other income from benefits that you receive (including child benefit). |
| Key Takeaway: | In order to achieve your financial goals an important first step is to have a detailed understanding of your income. |
| Time Required: | 10 mins |
Day 10 - Review your outgoings
| Task: | 1 - If you have online access to your bank accounts and credit cards the next task is to register with a budgeting app that syncs up with your accounts and analyses your spending. Two of my favourites are Money Dashboard and Emma. Once you have registered with one of these apps you will be able to quickly see all of your outgoings and how you typically spend your money.
2 - Complete the "Outgoings" section of the black box pdf. You should list all your bills, standing orders and other regular financial commitments, which will be easy if you have completed today's first task. If some of these are annual or quarterly bills then just calculate the monthly equivalent amount and enter it into the table. This will help us build a monthly budget next week. |
| Key Takeaway: | In order to achieve your financial goals an important is to have a detailed understanding of ALL your bills, standing orders and other regular financial commitments. |
| Time Required: | 30 mins |
| Click to play: |  |
| Additional Reading: | The best budgeting apps in the UK: How to budget without trying |
Day 11 - Building a budget
| Task: | Download the free Budget Planner Spreadsheet and complete the sections with the information you gathered over the past two days. The below video explains how to use the free MTTM budgeting spreadsheet. |
| Key Takeaway: | Budgeting isn’t just for people who are struggling to make ends meet, it is for everyone. It helps ensure that you are making the most of your money.
More importantly when it comes to money, if you can’t quantify it you can't control it. Budgeting helps to quantify your money. |
| Time Required: | 30 mins |
| Click to play: |  |
| Additional Reading: | Free Budget Planner Spreadsheet (Excel) |
Day 12 - Take Damien's Money MOT
| Task: | Complete Damien's FREE Money MOT.
Damien's Money MOT is a simple tool that in just two minutes will give users a detailed breakdown of how their finances shape up. By answering just a few questions (no registration or paperwork required) you receive a Money MOT grade (from A to E) and we provide you with a detailed breakdown of the areas of your finances that may need attention (including everything from bills to wills).
Damien's Money MOT will also tell you how you measure up against the thousands of others who have already completed an MOT. Finally, and perhaps most crucially, you can sign up to receive my free action plan. This plan is delivered via a series of emails (either daily or weekly - you choose) that details the steps you need to take to improve your MOT ratings. The best bit is that the plan is personally tailored to you. |
| Time Required: | 2 mins |
| Click to play: |  |
| Additional Reading: | Damien's Money MOT |
Day 13 & 14 - Rest Days
| Task: | Use the next two days to have a break or to finish off any Week 2 tasks that you may not have had time to complete this week.
It would also be a good time to look at the items that you have placed in the "Discretionary (Wants)" section of your Budget Planner Spreadsheet and think about ways of reducing the amount you spend on them or whether you could live without them entirely. |
Now that you have completed Week 2 of the 28 Day Financial Fitness Challenge, make sure to continue with Week 3.
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