Unexpected Changes

One of the themes I often enjoy exploring in this space are the unexpected consequences of actions when it comes to finances. And this isn’t done to point any fingers at people making mistakes. It is more about how things can happen outside of our control that can affect our personal situations and make some changes necessary.

This hit me again recently when reading a CNN article about how AI could be making electricity bills higher – and how this is a trend that could continue into the future. It’s not as if this is a giant surprise, as there are enough stories out there about how new technologies, like AI and cryptocurrency, are using huge amounts of energy. This may not have been something you ever imagined could reach into your household and affect your personal finances, though.

​We shouldn’t forget the across-the-board inflation that came with the COVID pandemic, as well. This still isn’t a situation where we can point and convict any one culprit of the crime, but many forces happening far away from anyone personally combined into something that changed how many had to handle household budgets.

Things like this feel so big, because there is little we can do to combat it. To a large degree, the amount of your electric bill is just the amount of your electric bill. Granted, there are programs that can help those in need with those bills and there can be budget programs that can even out your payments to help combat higher payments in critical months. But even with those, if your bill is going up, it is going up.

With that inflation season, as well, we felt it each time we went to the grocery store. And of course you could alter what you were buying to try to get to a budget-friendly final number, but it’s not as if you could stop feeding your family.

With this, I wanted to give the advice to be sure you have wiggle room when planning any budgets. Without it, you can find yourself falling into a spot where there is little you can do because of something you couldn’t do anything about. If you’ve budgeted things down to the penny, you have no extra pennies. This is where the importance of savings can come in. It’s not only good for the future but also gives you a shield against a changing world.

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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