In the world of personal finance, there tends to be a bit of a hyperfocus on what to do when you’re short on cash. While some concerning data like that released by Bankrate indicating that 76% of Americans lack emergency savings certainly substantiates why such stories demand the media coverage, money matters aren’t about doom and gloom.
In fact, when you do manage to pay down debt, and climb “into the black,” there’s a world of opportunity to build wealth. When you consider that all it really takes is one baby step (repeated many times over) to increase your retirement savings, and establish financial security in the form of emergency savings and investments, managing money becomes far less daunting.
Because I feel that there’s an inspiring message to spread in the form of encouraging people to seize the opportunities money can offer your life versus coming from a place of fear and bad news, I was excited to write a piece for Citi’s Women & Co site called “How to Manage a Financial Windfall.”
I personally experienced a windfall as a result of some land in the hills of Kentucky someone in my lineage purchased more than 100 years ago. It was passed down to me at some point, and eventually my family got an offer from a natural gas company to buy and mine the land. It wasn’t a ton of money, but I can tell you firsthand that receiving a windfall of any amount is really exciting! (For the record, I paid off the auto loan I had at that time for the car I still drive, and took a trip to Europe with my best friend).
If you find yourself wondering what to do with your own windfall, heed the advice in the article, put your money to good use, and say a little “thanks–” for your windfall, and the fact that you’ve just made in investment in bettering your financial life.
