Financial Crisis
Management Counseling
Facing the challenges of
reduced income
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Loss of income spawns many challenges
Financial counselors can help
Human tragedies precipitate income loss
Loss of income causes loss of hope
Women bear the brunt
Rebuilding the strength to
move forward
 Recovery requires positive readjustment
 Professional help is advised
 Positive thoughts can produce positive
action
 Positive interaction helps rebuild
emotional strength
Positive communication
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Sincere interest
Compassion
Compliments
Challenges
Expectations
 Words do motivate!!
Developing plans for
financial recovery
 Notify creditors
 Sit down with members of household and list all
expenses – determine which can be reduced or
eliminated
 Develop revised written budgets, control spending
 Use new credit only for absolute necessities that
cannot be delayed
 Take steps to regain employment
 Make use of community resources
 Take care of yourself
Family
Values, Traditions, Goals
Values & Traditions
 What are family values?
 What are family traditions?
Why set
Goals?
Goals
 Ends toward which effort is directed
 Short term goals
 Specific behaviors and outcomes to
accomplish in a relatively short time
 Long-term goals
 Broad statements giving overall direction to
one’s life
Rules
 Make sure it is a goal that you want
 A goal can not contradict any of the other
goals
 Develop goals in the six areas of your life
 Write goals in a positive instead of a
negative
 Write goals in complete detail
 Set goals high enough
 Write them down
Now What?
 Sharing you goals with others?
 Review goals daily
 For each decision, ask yourself
 Does it take me close to, or further from my
goal
6 areas to define goals
 Family and home
 Financial and career
 Spiritual and ethical
 Physical and health
 Social and cultural
 Mental and educational
Family and Home
Family Time
 What do I want my kids to remember
most from this year?
 How can we spend meaningful time
together?
 Are there specific issues in sibling
relationships on which I would like to
work?
 Is there a child or a parent who will need
greater support from the rest of the family
this year?
Children’s Development
 What are my child’s greatest strengths?
 What brings my child the greatest joy?
 Who are my child’s closest friends, and how can I help nurture those
relationships?
 Who in my extended family is my child closest to, and how can I
arrange time for them together?
 What kind of growth and challenges can I anticipate for my child in the
following areas: intellectual, athletic, personal, and social?
 How does my child feel about his or her child-care situation or school,
and what changes might be anticipated or needed?
 What kinds of activities would be best for my child for this upcoming
year?
 How will my child spend next summer, and what do I most hope for in
that experience?
 In what areas, and at when times, do I think my child might need the
greatest support?
 How can each family member support this year of growth and
development for each of us?
Partner
 What goals do my partner and I
share?
 How can my partner and I
ensure that we have special time
together?
 How can my partner and I share
child-care duties?
Extended Family and Close Family
Friends
 With which long-distance family
members and friends do I want to keep
in touch?
 With which family members and
friends do I want to plan get-togethers?
 Which actions must I take to make a
get-together or visit a reality?
Home Related Projects
 What major project(s) do I hope to accomplish this
year?
 What kind of personal and financial resources will
this project take to be successful?
 When is the best time to start this project?
 How long can I anticipate it will take to complete
the project?
 What responsibilities will family members have for
this project, and how will it affect us as a group?
Financial and Career
Professional Goals
 What do I hope to accomplish professionally this
year?
 How will meeting these goals affect my family?
 Are there specific times during the next year that
will be most demanding at work?
 What kind of support will I need from family
members in order to accomplish my professional
goals?
Personal Goals
 What do I, as an individual, want to
accomplish this year?
 How can I tailor these goals to be least
disruptive to my family?
 What kind of support do I need from
family members to accomplish these
goals?
Calendar Issues
 What major events must I plan around, i.e.
birthdays, holidays, school vacations?
 What are this years’ school vacations, early
release dates, and other school-related
events?
 What upcoming special family days and
holiday commitments do I anticipate?
 What are this year’s vacation plans, if any?
Family Resources
 What major expenses do I anticipate this
coming year?
 What will our major sources of income be?
 What are our saving goals and plan for
saving?
 How much money should be set aside for
each of my children’s future education?
 Who will assume responsibility for
implementing this plan?
 What must we do as a family to make this
effort successful?
Spiritual and Ethical
Spiritual and Ethical
 Do I want to start attending a church?
 Do I want to be more active in religious
practices?
 Are there things I have been doing that I
don’t feel quite right about and should I
change that?
Physical and Health
Health
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What athletic goals do I want to achieve?
Am I satisfied with my weight?
Do I eat healthy?
Am I satisfied with my eating habits?
Social and Cultural
Social and Cultural
 Do I want to make the world a better
place by your existence? If so, how?
 How do I want to enjoy yourself?
Mental and Educational
Mental and Educational
 Do I want to seek a degree?
 Do I desire to learn more?
 Do I challenge my brain on a daily basis?
How to start to achieve
goals
 Determine long-term and short-term goals
 Start with the big picture (long-term goals)
and develop short term goals to achieve
long-term goals
 Set a daily to-do list to work towards the
lifetime goals.
 Review your plan on a regular basis
Setting Goals Effectively
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State each goal as a positive statement
Be precise
Set priorities
Write goals down
Keep operational goals small
Set performance goals, not outcome goals
Set realistic goals
Do not set goals too low
Achieving Goals
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Once achieved, take time to enjoy it!
If it was significant, reward yourself
Learn from achieving this goal
Failure to reach a goal does not matter
as long as you learn from it.
Developing plans for
financial recovery