Nobody likes to run into financial problems of any kind. They cause immense hardships by disrupting lifestyle followed for years and causes unhappiness. Financial difficulties also come loaded with social problems: people shun those facing financial hardships fearing the person may borrow money.
Instead of empathizing with the person, the society frowns upon the unfortunate victim. People mock at those facing financial hardships and far from helping, try to run down the person’s self-esteem and social standing. Women and men facing financial problems also become subject to unhealthy gossip.
However, overcoming financial problems and difficulties they pose is quite easy and can be achieved by anyone with some effort and ingenuity. To understand how to overcome financial problems, it is essential to comprehend the difference between poverty and lack of money.
Broke v/s Poor
Renowned American motivational speaker and author, Robert Kiyosaki describes financial problems in a different way. “Broke is temporary, poor is eternal,” he writes in his bestseller novel, ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad.’ Kiyosaki aptly implies that financial problems or being ‘broke’ is a temporary situation and can be easily overcome. However, poverty is a choice. People remain poor because they choose to, he states.
The quote makes it clear that everyone has opportunities to overcome financial problems and prosper once again. Therefore, we look at eight kinds of financial problems with how to overcome them easily.
Problem-1: Death of Breadwinner
This is a nightmarish scenario that thousands of families around the world face every day. The sole breadwinner of the family dies of illness, accident or crime. In addition to inconsolable grief, it leaves the spouse and kids as well as other dependents in the lurch over their wellbeing and financial security. Often, survivors can get saddled with large debts taken for buying a home or medical treatment.
If the deceased person is insured, the family can expect some financial relief in the form of payouts. Often, these may not be adequate to cover debts and secure a proper lifestyle. However, it does buy time for a bereaved family to overcome the grief and get finances back on track.
In such scenarios, the spouse and other dependents can open a small home-based business. Widows and dependents without any known source of income can seek assistance from Self Help Groups, community organizations or avail various schemes of the Indian government to finance a small home-based business. This helps them gradually recover from grief while staving off financial problems
Problem-2: Death of Earning Spouse
Nowadays, it is common for both spouses to work and contribute towards household spending. This helps them afford a better lifestyle for themselves and children and buy expensive stuff.
This also includes joint loans and investments. Death of one earning spouse puts a strain on the income of the survivor. Other than paying loans and maintaining investments, there is also the burden of maintaining the lifestyle and shielding children from the loss of a parent.
Once again, insurance payouts do help a bit but not fully. Insurance payouts are one-off. Unless it is properly utilized, the family can reel under financial problems. Taking part-time jobs deprives children of much needed time with the sole surviving parent.
The best way to come out of financial problems and difficulties caused by the death of an earning spouse is to take a freelance online job from home. Nowadays, freelance jobs for all skills are easily available online.
You can spend an hour or two of these freelance jobs to earn extra income. Working on crowd-sourced projects also earns lucrative money and helps overcome financial hardships and difficulties.
Problem-3: Addictions
With social stigmas attached to the consumption of alcohol vanishing rapidly, increasing number of Indian women and men are falling prey to alcoholism. Others become victims of drug abuse.
There is also a section of people who fall into trap of non-substance addictions such as gambling and satisfying unhealthy sexual desires. Regardless of their nature, every addiction invariably leads to financial bankruptcy.
Addicts of all sorts find it very difficult to regain control over their emotional attachment to alcohol, drugs and other vices. World Health Organization (WHO) describes addictions as the disease that has no known cure but can be arrested.
Should you face financial problems and difficulties due to addictions, it is highly recommended to seek professional treatment through any good rehabilitation center. Generally, rehabs also provide employment to recovering addicts. Salary from a rehab may not be very lucrative. Yet, working there keeps you away from addictions and helps get you back on feet, physically, mentally and financially. You can work part-time as a counselor from home to make extra money.
Problem-4: Calamities
Calamities strike a person or families without warning. They can be anything such as the home being destroyed in a fire or collapsing due to weak or old construction. In extreme cases, people lose everything due to earthquakes, floods, draught, tsunami, terrorism or even burglaries. Any of these disasters shatters an individual or family financially. Though your source of income remains intact, you have to spend on setting up a new life from scratch.
There are various funds and schemes offered by the government for survivors of different types of calamities. Unfortunately, not every survivor is eligible for this since some disasters like a house burning down or collapsing are outside the ambit of these schemes.
Bouncing back to normal can prove difficult for a few months or a couple of years. However, you can always buy a new house and lead a happy life by launching a home-based family run business. Utilize you and your spouse’s skills to open such a business. Thanks to various free resources available online, you can promote this business and get customers easily.
Problem-5: Loss of Employment
We live in a very competitive world where every job depends upon our skills and their usefulness to the employer. An employee’s productivity is measured against Cost-to-Company.
With over half a million people graduating in various streams every year, employers are spoilt for choice when it comes to recruitment. They are assured of finding replacements easily and hence, will not hesitate to terminate your services should you prove expensive for the organization.
In most circumstances, an employed person would have sufficient savings to lead the existing lifestyle sans interruption for two to three months. However, it becomes imperative to find another good job at the earliest. Other employers will try and manipulate an unemployed jobseeker by offering lesser pay.
Instead of being deterred by such scenario, you should welcome it. Any employer who terminates a skilled and experienced worker is not serious about the business and is thinking of short-term gains.
Utilize your skills to find excellent freelance and work-from-home jobs while you await responses to your job applications. Working from home allows you to complete projects for multiple companies and boosts your income. It also helps upgrade skills and acquire newer ones. These skills can be used to leverage a better salary with the new employer or to enhance your work-from-home business.
Problem-6: Chronic Sickness
Chronic illness comes loaded with expenses and poses financial problems and difficulties. Often, it leaves the victim unable to focus on work and perform optimally.
In extreme cases, the person may be forced to stay at home due to inability to attend office or business. The problem is further aggravated by colossal bills of specialized medical treatment.
Psychological studies have proven that family members of a chronically ill person experience a drop in quality of life. This is due to heavy expense of medical treatment and reducing income since the person will no longer be considered for promotions and increment.
At best, an employer will retain a chronically sick person on purely humanitarian considerations.
Suffering from chronic sickness does not mean you have to continue suffering financial problems and difficulties. There are several support groups for patients with different types of chronic disease.
Joining these support groups helps alleviate miseries of the disease. Additionally, you will stumble upon opportunities where you can augment income and help other victims of the disease.
Problem-7: Forced Destitution
Under Indian laws, forcing a person young or old to leave home without providing adequate support is a criminal offense. Those who force a person into destitution are liable to face prosecution and lengthy jail terms.
Unfortunately, the practice continues due to family squabbles and disagreements. Those who are weak and without support get thrown out of homes and forced to live on streets.
But living on streets is a choice. Anyone forced into destitution has recourse to protection under Indian laws. Those responsible can be brought to justice and penalized under Indian Penal Code. However, you have to file a proper police complaint against such perpetrators.
There are several Non-Government Organizations and charities that care for persons forced into destitution. They provide basic necessities like food, clothing, and shelter in exchange for using your skills. These organizations also help destitute find proper jobs and help rehabilitate them into mainstream society.
Problem-8: Permanent Disability
A perfectly healthy person can become disabled for any reason such as accident or illness. This can cause loss of employment and worse, forced destitution by family members who view the person as a burden.
Nobody invites permanent disability. However, if you do suffer from the scenario, there is nothing to worry about. You can easily counter financial problems and difficulties.
The key to overcoming financial problems and difficulties caused by permanent disability such as loss of limbs or vision lies in one simple axiom: not indulging in self-pity. Instead, of brooding over the disability, find ways and means to overcome the handicap and bounce back financially.
Cooperative credit societies, NGOs, religious organizations, SHGs and myriad other lenders offer small loans to entrepreneurs afflicted by permanent disabilities. Avail these loans and credits to launch your home-based business.
You can also open a consultancy of your trade and skills from home. Millions of Indians with visual and physical impairment are living financially stable and healthy lives by utilizing their skills to run a small business or working from home.
In Conclusion
As we highlight, overcoming financial problems and difficulties is something everyone can do. It only depends on how you decide to handle the adverse situation. You can either spend time feeling sorry for yourself and brooding how things could have been better while cursing misfortune. Or, you can tighten your belt and decide to bounce back with full force. We conclude by reminding you: “Broke is temporary, poor is eternal.”
