By Leo Babauta

It’s a fact: our finances are one of the things in our lives that
stress us out the most. If we’re trying for a stress-free life — with
stress-free productivity, working and living environments, waking
early, morning routines and the like — then we need to address our finances and find routines that will keep the stress of money to a minimum.

First, identify the financial stressors in your life. For many
people, these include: worries about debt, paying bills late, not
having a financial security net, not having a sense of control over
your finances, and arguments over finances.

Let’s address these each with some simple solutions:

• Get out of debt. This is often the first necessary step. But how do you do this? First, monitor your impulse spending urges to stop the bleeding. Use a debt snowball as a plan to get out of debt. Also see: How I save, How to stop living from paycheck-to-paycheck, and How I ended my affair with the credit card.

• Pay your bills as soon as they come in. This is
  one of the easiest ways to eliminate stress over bills. When you get
  your power bill, write a check, put it in an envelope, and mail it the
  next day. Or if you bank online (and you should), go to your computer,
  log in, and send your electronic payment. To do this, you’ll need to
  develop a bit of a cushion in your bank account, so you always have
  enough to pay the bills as they come in.

• Make your payments automatic. I’ve covered this
  before … it’s an great alternative to the above method. Instead of
  paying bills as they come in, you can set up automatic payments and
  automatic savings payments online, so that as soon as your paycheck
  comes in, your bills get send out and a certain amount is transferred
  to savings (or investments). Either method works great.

• Develop a financial security net. This is
  something you should also do right away. First, if you are married or
  have any dependents, you should get life insurance right away. Do your
  research and make sure you’re getting the right policy for your needs.
  Don’t get whole life insurance — it’s not the smartest investment.
  Second, look at your other insurance to see if it meets your needs,
  from auto to homeowners to renters and more. Third, make sure you have
  a will — this might not seem necessary if you are young, but if you
  have any dependents, this is a must. Fourth, develop an emergency fund
  — right away. I know, it’s something that everyone advises, but if you
  don’t have at least a small emergency fund, you will never have
  financial peace of mind. Build it up to 3-6 months worth, or whatever
  you need to feel secure.

• Review your finances at least weekly. To get a
  sense of control over your finances, you have to monitor them. Be sure
  you’re balancing your checkbook at least once a week, to ensure that
  you don’t have bounced checks or debit transactions. Even if your bills
  are automatic, you’ll still want to make sure they’re going out. Take
  the 10-20 minutes every week that’s necessary to look at your budget,
  your expenses, your income, and make sure you’ve got everything under
  control. If you’ve got a partner, do this together.

• Talk about money with your partner. Money can be a
  huge stressor on a relationship. It’s important that you talk about
  money on a regular basis in a non-emotional way, as hard as that may
  sound. It’s crucial, in fact, to the survival of your relationship. You
  both have to be on the same page, or you will eventually argue and have
  major crises about your finances. You need to talk about your financial
  dreams and goals, your spending patterns, your budget, your income,
  your savings, debt, financial security, bills and the like. If you
  don’t already do this, it may take awhile in the beginning, and be
  difficult. But try to do it as a team, and not accuse each other of
  anything, don’t blame, and try to be positive and constructive. Over
  time, it will get easier. At the minimum, devote 10-20 minutes each
  week to reviewing your finances together, reviewing your goals, and
  making sure that you’re together and seeing eye-to-eye. It will make a
  major difference in your relationship and in your stress level.