Financial Wellness is having an understanding of your financial situation and dealing with it so you are prepared for financial changes.  It truly is balance between where the money is coming from and where it is going. Our attitudes and relationship with money have a significant effect on our overall health.  President Heber J. Grant said, "If there is any one thing that will bring peace and contentment into the human heart, and into the family, it is to live within our means.  And if there is any one thing that is grinding and discouraging and disheartening, it is to have debts and obligations that one cannot meet." If we are to live happily and abundantly then we must live within our means through thoughtful financial management.  Education is key, learn to use your money wisely, be self disciplined and use a budget to stay out of debt. N. Eldon Tanner says as you strive for financial wellness: "It is not the amount of money an individual earns that brings peace of mind; it is having control of his money." The first step to having control over your money, is to control your day-to-day finances and this is done by setting a budget and following it. o Get all of your financial statements together including bank statements and utility bills.  Create a monthly average. o Document all of your sources of income. o Create a list of monthly expenses.  Include groceries, car insurance, mortgage or rent, credit card payments and all out goings.  Include how much you spend on gas and eating out. o Break expenses in to fixed and variable.  Fixed expenses stay relatively the same each month such as your mortgage.  Variable expensive do change from month-to-month and this includes gas, groceries and entertainment. o Total your monthly income and monthly expenses.  If you have more income than expenses, you are doing well.  Think about putting the extra in a savings account or putting it towards paying your debts off faster.  If you are spending more than your income, then changes will need to happen. o Make adjustment to expenses.  The goal is to have more incoming than outgoing.  This means you can put the excess to good use.  But if your expenses are higher than your income you need to look at your variable expenses to find areas decrease out goings. o Review your budget on a monthly basis. 10 tips to help you to save o Which bank do you use?  Consider all options.  You might get more for your money at a different bank o Turn off the TV.  Less exposure to guilt-inducing advertising. o Quit buying your meals out.  Save a significant amount of money by making your food at home, and reduce your waistline too. o Thirty day rule.  Want to buy an unnecessary purchase?  Wait 30 days and see if you still "need" it. o Write a shopping list.  And stick to it! o Wait for 10 seconds in the food store.  Before adding an item to your trolley reflect for 10 seconds, do you really need it? o Use saving stamps in the food store. o Clean out your closet.  Have a yard sale, you might even find things that you forgot you had. o Give up expensive habits.  Smoking, alcohol and drugs cause money to flow away from you.  Get help if you need to. o Turn off the lights when you leave a room.  A little adds to a lot.   n Anita Cates RN, is a community nurse specialist practitioner, and certified diabetes educator.

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