If you’ve checked your 401K or IRA balance lately I am sure you will be witness to what many are witnessing- you are losing money at a rapid rate.  Now if you are young this isn’t as much of a problem as someone who is in the fifties, but nonetheless if you are like me you hate to see your money vanish.

Historically speaking any year with a Presidential election generally equates to a rocky stock market. Add on top of that a shaky real estate market driven by the sub-prime mess and top it all off with higher than normal gas prices and it looks to be a year filled with extremes that we have not seen in our lifetime.

What does this all mean to you? It certainly has an immediate impact on your budget given higher gas prices and higher costs of goods. If you’ve been to the grocery lately you certainly will have noticed that prices are on the rise.

However there are three good strategies to practice during these chaotic times to help provide you with a bit of financial security, regardless of the economy.

Make Yourself Indispensable At Your Job: there are very few companies who have not experienced their round of layoffs this year. If you’ve been looking for a job you may have noticed that many companies are using the wait-and-see approach to hiring new people. Everyone is nervous.

To make yourself indispensable at your current job look for ways to emphasize your unique skills and value that you bring. Learn the new software that no one wants to learn, come up with a new marketing idea, or find a way to cut costs so more jobs won’t be lost.  Be creative… even if your idea is not worshiped by upper management. They will remember your effort!

Cut Your Expenses: If you don’t use a budget, start. This is a surefire way to cut your expenses by examining all your costs during a given month. Be cautious about big expenses, but watch your small expenses as well. They add up! If your spending is out of control and your budget is in chaos meet with a financial advisor who can provide you with some direction and strategies for success.

If you buy your lunch every day at work and spend $10/day, over a year you will have spent $2,600.00! Can you cut that in half? Can you bring your own drink- that would save you $520.00 on average per year? Be Creative!

Always Pay Your Bills: It is tempting to let your bills slide or to avoid paying more than the minimums on your credit cards. This is disastrous to your credit score and piles interest upon interest. If you are in this situation contact your credit card or other debt owing companies and explain your situation.

If you owe $5,000 on a credit card with a 12% interest rate and pay only the min. amount ($25.00) it will take you 10 years to pay it off and you would have paid $2,269.00 in interest.

The best way to weather a chaotic economy is to hold on tight and protect what you have while reducing your expenses. Economic downturns are normal and happen in cycles which could mean that an upturn could be right around the corner. But remember if you can maintain good financial sense when times are tough it is certain that you will flourish financially when times are good.

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