I had lunch with some old coworkers last week and it became apparent, that I live in a bubble. Of course, I still see the news, but I don’t have the day-to-day discussions with people about how the economy is impacting individuals.
I’m aware of job cuts, the stock market hitting 12 year lows, and the tanking housing market.
But what I really want to know, is what worries you the most? I’d like to hear about your personal financial worries. And beyond your finances, how is it impacting you emotionally?
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I think that my single biggest fear along with other people is losing my job and not being able to find another where I can make a similar income. There is no much competition here in NYC with lots of well educated people being laid off that it is taking quite a long time for people to find work. When they do it is often well below what they were making before.
I am trying hard to reduce the minimum amount of money that I need for essentials and find new income streams that are not job dependent but it is very hard. I look to your blog for inspiration though.
TriciaI’ve been “personal financing” for about 18 months. My $1000 emergency fund is in place and most of my credit card debt has been “snowballed” away.
Things are going well… I’m “in the zone” and my real life reflects my budget in a good way.
I fear my progress would come to a screeching halt if I lost my job.
My mindset is this: I just do my best to make it easy for them to keep me. Other than that, having my resume ready, thinking positively, and staying with my currently-working financial plan is all I can do.
One note – I have slowed my version of the snowball down by steering some of it into my savings account instead.
PhilI think I worry most that we will over-react and cause the economy to limp along until someone with some free-market common sense can direct our efforts into real job creation, real investment into capital resources, and who really believes that the American people know better how to spend their own money than any bureaucrat. I also worry that our health-care system will become just another county general or VA type health system, that viable treatments will be deemed too expensive by a bureaucrat sitting behind a desk.
And to those who say we can substitute “insurance executive” for “bureaucrat,” I ask “has the government ever done anything more efficiently than the private sector?” Remember $600 hammers? How ’bout my friend who had the wrong kidney removed at the VA?
We’re writing checks our economy and our children won’t be able to cash as it is. The current economic situation is, in my opinion, turning people into sheep, blindly following their shepherd.
That’s what worries me.
Ron@TheWisdomJournalI’m worried that fundamental problems of the economy will not be addressed, just like after the dot-come bubble – the problem of productivity and value creation. And we’ll ride out this bear market by relying on government pumping money into the economy, have a superficial recovery, a quick build-up to a bubble, then a pre-longed bear market again.
DanaDana and Ron – smart people! Keep spreading that good word!
I’m expecting to see increased crime, home invasion, and widespread civil disobedience. I’m really looking forward to the latter though!
There will be huge disappointment among the masses who slowly realize that the government cannot save them, and in fact only hurts them.
Stephen WaitsI’m worried that our neighbors might start losing their jobs and homes, and then we would be stuck in a declining neighborhood.
staciI also worry, that my husbands donation dependent work at his nonprofit corporation could eventually be in jeopardy.
I worry because even though we, and his wokr may have been responsible, we might suffer because of th estupid mistakes that other people have made. And there isn’t anything we can do to fix it.
I am mostly concerned about how long this might last and how deep it might get. If the economy bounces back by the end of the year, then this will just be a speed bump for most of us. If it hangs on for 24 or 36 months, then we are going to all see some real pain from it.
I’m hoping it will be short!
Jeff@MySuperChargedLifeI worry that as someone who works in a company with a lot of sedentary people, I will have to pay more and more in health care costs because I am one of the thinner, younger folks in an older, fatter, eating more fried food risk pool.
I worry that in America, if you do get laid off and this coincides with a health crisis, your entire personal financial picture can be completely destroyed.
TedI am not worried at all. Actually I am excited to get out of this recession. We (the USA) are in a great position for future prosperity as long as we don’t forget the lessons this recession taught us all.
1. Real Estate values CAN NOT GO UP INDEFINITLY. This also means you can’t base lending standards or metrics on future expected values of homes.
2. Allowing financial insitutions to leavage at such high levels (x40) is ridiculous. Glass Seagul act!!!
3. Companies (and the people that run them) do not always have the companies long term interests at heart, or their own clients. (Alan Greenspan was mystified by this one)
All will be well soon. Just buy some cheap stocks and enjoy the low interest rates, you won’t reget it.
SeansonfireActually, I’m barely worried at all. Of course I live in Canada and in a city (Winnipeg) that is exceptionally safe (though not immune) to recessions. Did you know that no Canadian banks have failed and that our banking system is rated the healthiest in the world? Our housing prices are dropping slightly, but nowhere near what’s happening to our neighbors to the south.
MarkI feel anxious at times but I wouldn’t call it worry. I can’t change the reality right now and I have to go through this like everyone else. Its creates humility.
Like Seasonfire, I think there is a lot of good that can come out of this. This is also a test of faith – I’m trying not to get off track.
Neal FrankleHaving a glass half-full attitude has gotten us through many bumps over the years, but this economy in this rapid-information age is something that scares me. If the media (and I am one of them), would brighten up, I believe a large majority of Americans would also. The more doom and gloom we hear in the first of every day’s headlines, the more people’s attitudes become daunted and negative. America’s old-money fortunes were built on great ideas and hard work. Let’s get back to what gave us a great foundation, stop listening to the griping, and enjoy the fruits of our OWN labors. I am worried that we are giving too much of our economy away to foreigners. Our country is very young compared to others. We would do well to live by the original blueprint that started with American Pride, Hard Work and Individual Responsibility.
ShellieOverall, my personal finances are ok. The only things I worry about are the things I cannot control.
I can almost feel it each time my home loses value or I cringe when I look at my 401k statement.
SingleGuyMoney