We hope you are well, safe, and taking good care of yourselves. Our mission is to help bring clarity and confidence to your financial life. A big part of that commitment is to keep you up to date with important educational information and more importantly to provide perspective to help keep you healthy, calm and positive during these unsettling times. This week’s newsletter is filled with ideas to consider as you have downtime at home. We share lists of financial and non-financial ideas to help you keep a healthy and balanced lifestyle.

Make a List

One positive of having more time at home is it presents an opportunity to work on the items you may have put off. We all have those items that are “on the list” but never seem to get done. We suggest you make a list of the household items you may have put off. Maybe it is a thorough spring cleaning or project in your garage. In the spirit of creating a list, we put together a short list of financial items that you might consider.

1. Get Your Financial House in Order- Most people want to be financially organized. We created Life in a Book® as a simple framework to help you start the process. Consider taking the next week or two to organize your financial life. Once complete, we promise it will help you in all areas of your life. Contact us for a copy of Life in a Book®.

2. Know Where You Stand- Do you know where your money goes every month? Consider taking time to review your monthly cash flow and where you spend your money. Contact us for a copy of the Know Where You Stand workbook to start the process here.

3. Consider a Refi- With all the news about lower interest rates, you may be wondering if now is the time to refinance? Consider talking to a mortgage banker to assess whether it makes sense for you to consider a refinance. If you have additional questions, please contact us anytime.

Take Care of Your Mind, Body, and Spirit

Eating well is crucial to healthy living and even more important during this stressful time. Equally important is exercise and doing activities for a healthy mind that keep your spirit positive and uplifted. Sleep and rest are also crucial components to helping you to stay healthy and lower your stress levels. Below are some great apps and ideas to help you.

1. Keep a daily routine- The UCLA Longevity Center put out the attached which offers a long list of activities to stay healthy. A major takeaway for us was the importance of keeping a routine. You can view the list here.

2. Meditate- You can go to youtube and search for meditations or here is a great article with a summary and link to 5 great apps. Click here.

3. The best home workout apps 2020- This article lists several apps for getting a great workout at home. You can view the article here.

4. The Best Books to Elevate Your Reading List in 2020- Are you ready to get lost in a new book? This article from Esquire, highlights the best reads for 2020. Click here to view the article.

5. Yoga | Down Dog- This app allows you to do yoga at home. With Down Dog you get a brand-new yoga practice every time you come to your mat or chair. Unlike following pre-recorded videos, Down Dog won’t make you do the same workout repeatedly. With over 60,000 different configurations, Down Dog gives you the power to build a yoga practice you love! Click here to learn more. Even if you’ve never tried yoga and don’t think it’s for you, it’s worth giving it a try to see if you might just like it and benefit from its many positive effects.

6. Sleep- Make sure you get extra sleep. Sleeping is necessary for a healthy mind and body and can help greatly in reducing stress. Click here for a great article on the benefits of sleep.

7. Limit social media- Social media can be a great outlet to keep in touch with friends but right now it is filled with fear, misleading and even non-factual opinions that can cause excessive stress and anxiety.

8. Laugh- Laughter is the greatest medicine. Try searching on YouTube "funny videos" or "videos to make you laugh" to get the giggles going!

9. And don’t forget jigsaw puzzles! Click here for free online puzzles.

We Are Here for You

Thankfully, this past week we saw the markets stabilize! With that said we are likely in for continued volatility as these events continue to unfold. We are here for you! If you would like to review your financial plan or portfolio, please contact us anytime.

Please feel free to contact us to discuss your financial situation or any of the topics discussed above. We are here to help!