3 min read
If you have ever thought about how desperate you are to keep your lifestyle after your divorce is final, you are not alone. Read below to find out tips on how to stay on the right financial path after divorce.
Divorced Females take care of themself
This is going to be hard to hear but it needs to be said. The first financial thing to do post divorce is to make sure you are taking care of yourself. Take care of yourself, even if that means spending a little more money that you do not think you have. Go to a yoga class on a Sunday morning. Randomly go out by yourself and find the best smelling candle you can and purchase it without second guessing yourself. Make the change to the color of the walls in your favorite room. Go to the juice shop and buy the expensive juice you know you could make at home. Take a break and go get a pedicure. These small purchases are not extravagant but have a lot to do with your self worth and getting past the stages of emotions you are currently in post divorce. This will allow you to have the fuel in your life to drive you to be a better parent and move on to the next adventure in your life.
Wealth Women Take Inventory
During the first few months post divorce, you should also have a night once a week where you grab the glass of wine and take an inventory of where you are at financially. This may be something you never did in your relationship and are dreading and continuously putting off. The longer you pretend it is not there, the worse off it is going to be once you do face it. Trust me, the 15 minutes of reviewing your finances a week is going to set you up for success in the long run. Go over your new bills. What do you need to start paying? Can these be set on autopay so you can truly forget about it? Go over your assets (home, investment accounts, retirement accounts). What did you get in the divorce? Have you listed that number on paper? The point of this 15 minute exercise is just to get it down. You do not have to do anything with it at this point. You need to face the fear and understand that you have a new life. You have new bills, new accounts and just looking at it for a few weeks and writing it out is the first and easy step. Now remember to keep this to 15 minutes. I give you permission for a second glass when the 15 minutes are up!
Women use their Resources
The last tip is to use your resources. Online searches may be great but will eventually overwhelm you with the amount of different opinions and advice and financial information. At this time, do not worry so much about what is going on with the market or what you read online or on the news about the best next investment. You are trying to maintain your lifestyle, not make a fortune one day and lose it the next. Do not ask neighbors or friends what they have done, as every divorce is different. That is like asking what did they get done at the dermatologist. You are not going to get the same thing done! Go to the expert. Once you take care of yourself emotionally and physically and have an idea of your bills and net worth, make sure to have your team around you during this time. Have a Certified Financial Planner (who is a Fiduciary) and an accountant (preferably someone other than who you worked with before your divorce, if your ex is still working with the CPA) and a therapist. Another recommendation is working with a financial coach or someone who is trained to help during this financial change.
Written by Olivia Summerhill, CFP®, CDFA® of Summerhill Wealth Management. She is a Divorce Financial Planner helping high net worth women maintain their lifestyle and build wealth during and post divorce.
Schedule a conversation with her and see what she can do for you by clicking here.