Budgeting and fiscal responsibility are difficult during the good times, but even more challenging during a crisis. The Coronavirus has impacted millions of people across the world in a variety of ways. Many aspects of life are out of our control, the one thing we can control is our fiscal responsibility and become disciplined on our personal and small business budgets.

Recommendations on Budgeting & Fiscal Responsibility:

1.     Budget, Budget, Budget:  We all have time to review our finances during the continued month of social distancing and remote work. Take the time to review where your money is being spent and how much is being spent per day. It is never a fun process to undertake, but one that is necessary to truly understand.

2.     Making Hard Choices: Where can you make cuts? If your gym has not stopped charging you for the monthly membership, it might be time to cancel the membership for a while. Is there any opportunity to reduce your monthly cellphone bill? Does your organization offer a discount you have never taken advantage of? What about an online defensive driving course to reduce your car insurance payments? Is there opportunity to renegotiate interest rates on car, mortgage, credit cards? Look for creative opportunities to cut costs, when it starts to hurt, cut more. Not a bad time to look for coupons and other discount options.

3.     Food & Grocery Lists: Shop for only the necessities and find ways to reduce costs in the grocery stores. Healthier options are more expensive; however, we should be focusing on physical wellness as well. Look for discount options and only shop once per week if possible. Make a list and stick to only what is on that list.

4.     Student Loans: The federal government has suspended payments and interest accrual on all federally backed student loans through the end of September 2020. Now is the time to check with private lenders to ask about suspended payments during the same time period. Remember one thing, payments are not going away, and they will be due in the future. I recommend paying down as much as possible when no interest is accruing if you can afford to pay.

5.     Retirement & Savings: If you can maintain the match contribution for retirement, I highly encourage anyone to do so. Do not leave free money on the table, if the organization is matching, ensure you maxing out the match. Liquid savings is there for situations such as this. If you do not need to use the savings, do not touch it. If you can make contributions to savings, as little as it might be, continue to save. Look for high interest online accounts, it makes it hard to dip into the savings account, which maintains fiscal discipline.

6.     Ask for Help: Setup time with your financial advisor or retirement planner. Most retirement providers are offering virtual sessions. Look for additional resources, aps, webinars, tools, budget spreadsheets, etc.

Set challenging goals and reward yourself when you do meet one of these goals. Thoroughly understand need versus want during. Do you really need, or do you just want it? Once you embrace this mindset, you can make significant changes in your financial health. Financial discipline is something I have practiced for many years. Embrace the challenge and evolve your thinking about finances. Look for opportunities to reduce waste and change to a lean approach to budgeting, both personally and professionally.

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Published by Mathew W. Burr, MJ-LEL, MBA, MHRIR, GPHR, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, CPHR-INT, Chartered CIPD

Mathew W. Burr, MJ-LEL, MBA, MHRIR, GPHR, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, CPHR-INT, Chartered MCIPD Lean Six Sigma Black Belt ABOUT: Matthew Burr has over 18-years of experience working in the human resources field, starting his career as an Industrial Relations Intern at Kennedy Valve Manufacturing to most recently founding and managing a human resource consulting company; Burr Consulting, LLC, Talentscape, LLC and Co-Owner of Labor Love, a Labor, and Employment Law poster printing company. Prior to founding the consulting firm, the majority of his career was heavy industry manufacturing and healthcare. He specializes in compliance auditing, training labor and employment law, conflict resolution, performance management, labor, and employment relations. Matthew has a generalist background in HR and operations, while providing strategic HR and operational solutions to his clients, focusing on small and medium sized organizations. He works as an Adjunct at Alfred State University, Tompkins Cortland Community College, and Montgomery Community College. He successfully designed an HR Concentration in the business management major that aligned with both SHRM and HRCI certifications, providing opportunities for students to sit for both the SHRM-CP and aPHR certifications upon completion of the degree, concentration, and internship hours as an Assistant Professor of Management at Elmira College (Retired January 2022). Matthew is also the SHRM Certification Exam Instructor, with a current pass rate of 92% on the SHRM-SCP and 83% pass rate on the SHRM-CP and a combined 88% on both exams over a 7-year period of instructing the course (Elmira College, Collin College & The College of St. Rose). Matthew works as a trainer at Tompkins Cortland Community College, Corning Community College, Broome Community College, and HR Instructor for Certification Preparation for the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). He also acts as an On-Call Mediator and Factfinder through the Public Employment Relations Board in New York State, working with public sector employers and labor unions. PUBLICATIONS: Matthew has over 70+ publications including, American Bar Association (ABA) Experience Magazine, Cornell HR Review, Business Insider, New York State Bar Association (NYSBA), PayScale, Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), and Expert 360 (in Australia). In early 2017, he published his first book, “$74,000 in 24 Months: How I killed my student loans (and you can too!),” proceeded by his second book, which was published in January 2021, “Slay the Student Loan Dragon: Tips and Tricks on How to Conquer the Student Loan Game” and his most recent book, “Unbox Your HR Career” in July 2023. VOLUNTEER WORK: Matthew is currently the New York State Society of Human Resource Management (NYSSHRM) District-Director. EDUCATION & TRAINING: Additional Training & Development:  SHRM Workplace Coaching and Mentoring Recertification Program, 2020  SHRM Foundation Employing Abilities @Work Certificate, 2020  SHRM Foundation Veterans at Work Certificate Program, 2018  Delta County Chamber of Commerce: Delta Force Leadership Program, 2013 FEATURED IN & ON: Matthew was featured on CNN Money, Fast Company, Fits Small Business, Fox News, Magnify Money, Monster.com, My Twin Tiers, Namely, Student Loan Hero, Smart Sheet and CEO Blog Nation, Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI), Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM). Burr Consulting, LLC Capabilities Statement General Information: Burr Consulting, LLC Owner: Matthew W. Burr Mission Statement: “Strategically Aligning HR as a Partner for the Success of Your Business” Contact Information: Burr Consulting, LLC What's New in HR Blog Talentscape, LLC Labor Love, LLC (Labor Posters) The HR Support Center The Upstate HR Podcast (607)227-4386 Matthew@Burrconsultingllc.com Facebook: Burr Consulting, LLC LinkedIn: Burr Consulting, LLC Twitter: @Burrconsulting Online Certification Verification: Credibly Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) Number: 080776443 NAICS Codes: 541612, 923130, 54161, 541611, 541613, 611430, 541618, 561312, 561311 SIC: 8742, 8748, 9441, 8748001, 8748026 Our Services HR MANAGEMENT New Hire Orientation; Temporary HR Support; Recruiting and Application Tracking; HR Compliance (ADA, FMLA); Employee Handbook; Policy and Procedure; HRIS; HR Audits; Job Profile Design and Revision; HR Key Performance Indicators; EEO Reporting and Classification; State Unemployment Insurance Services TRAINING & TRAINING DEVELOPMENT Organizational Development; Employee Relations; Workplace Violence; Harassment & Sexual Harassment; Union Awareness; Managerial EMPLOYEE & LABOR RELATIONS Employee Relations Training; Conflict Resolution; Mentoring; Workplace Investigations; Labor Contract Costing; Mediation & Arbitration Prep; Fact-Finding; Workplace Investigations; Coaching & Counseling; Performance Reviews; Contingency Plan Development; Contingency Plan Training; State of New York Public Employment Relations Board (PERB)PERB Mediation and Fact-Finding Panels (Albany, NY covering the Elmira, NY Area) HIRING & RECRUITMENT Applicant Tracking Systems; Metric Development; Interview Training; Workforce Planning; Recruitment; Interviews; Job Offers; New Hire Process POLICY & COMPENSATION Group Plans – Healthcare, Dental, Vision, Group Life, Short- and Long-Term Disability; Retirement – 401(k), Profit Sharing, Roth; Workers Compensation; Total Compensation Design and Strategy; Deferred Compensation Plans; Salary Surveys; Reward Systems; Online Payroll; Customized Payroll Processing; Employee Self Service; Customized Reporting HR COMPLIANCE MATERIALS Burr Consulting, LLC is excited to announce a new partnership with Labor Love LLC, expanding our services to include HR printed materials compliant with industry standards.

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