4 Steps to Your Financial Makeover - An Overlooked Aspect of Self-Care for Social Workers

by Dr. Veronica L. Hardy, LCSW

     A motivational show I enjoy watching is about home makeovers. To witness a house transition from years of dilapidation to a beautiful, airy space filled with bright colors and eye-catching landscaping is inspiring. Over time, the house evolves from mere aspiration to manifested reality. I often relate this to self-care and social work. After periods of career-related exhaustion (e.g., burnout), self-care processes may help you develop refreshed energy and invigorating ideas. This form of personal and professional management is intended to aid social workers in delivering competent and trustworthy services – so much so that as of June 1, 2021, self-care was integrated within the NASW Code of Ethics. These updates convey the significance of self-care processes in the lives of social workers. However, what self-care methods can help promote sustainable change in the lives of social work professionals? The answer is it all depends on the individual, work-environment, and unique life circumstances (e.g., support system, race-based factors, health, and wellness).

     Oftentimes, recognizable self-care methods include mental health days, mindfulness techniques, individual counseling, or a relaxing walk in the park as a pitstop on the way home from work. While all of these are critically beneficial, there is an area that is relatable to many social workers and often unrecognized in self-care discussions – financial well-being. The COVID-19 pandemic has left many, including multiple social workers, in financial hardship that is due to layoffs or job loss. Financial challenges can significantly impact our overall wellness in addition to work performance and career motivation. As a result, it is important to assess your relationship with finances and take proactive steps toward healthy money management. If financial challenges are a source of stress, here are four steps to start you on your way to a financial makeover.

     An initial step is to enhance your financial literacy. In other words, strengthening your knowledge about finances, including financial language. There are many ways to do so, including obtaining financial mentorship, taking a personal finance course, or visiting financial literacy websites such as the U.S. Department of Treasury – Financial Literacy and Education Commission. Enhancing your financial literacy is a source of empowerment that may help to strengthen the financial dimension of your life.

     Next, analyze your personal finance history. As social workers, we often perform assessments in our work environments to determine what action plan would best meet the needs of those we serve. Why not apply this same idea to assessing your personal finance history? Ask yourself the following questions:

  1. What do I want my finances to look like?
  2. When assessing my financial history, what patterns do I see?
  3. Are those patterns healthy and beneficial, or unbeneficial?
  4. What have I learned about the financial aspect of my life from the patterns I observed?

     These questions will help increase your awareness about how you use your finances and possible areas that could be strengthened.

     Once you have enhanced your financial literacy and analyzed your financial history, take some time to identify your financial priorities. Determine “why” you want to make over your finances. Understanding your “why” provides clarity about your intention and underlying motivation. Financial priorities are unique to the individual and can range anywhere from paying off debt to building savings, or even seeking financial freedom to engage in activities you enjoy.

     The remaining step is to create a plan for financial change. At this point, be flexible with yourself, as unexpected situations may occur that require you to use your finances differently than you had planned. However, seek not to be discouraged and determine ways to keep moving forward toward your goal. In creating a plan for financial change, determine:

  1. What activities would move you toward your financial goal?
  2. In what ways would you need to organize or structure your life to reach your goals?

     Let us broaden our perspective of self-care, what it encompasses, and efforts that would meet each of our unique needs. Seek to be intentional and consistent, as much as possible, about targeting areas of your life that may need self-care interventions. Overall, acknowledge the importance of your well-being and the ways you add value to your workplace and broader society. Self-care, in all the various forms, is a necessity.

Dr. Veronica L. Hardy, LCSW, is a Professor of Social Work at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Dr. Hardy is a social justice advocate, professional consultant, author, and mentor to new social workers and junior faculty members. She is the creator of The Social Work Lounge, a mentorship group facilitated via Facebook.