People Don't Usually Save Up For These 27 Things And Face Financial Shock When They Occur

The art of managing personal finances in the turbulent contemporary world is not an easy task. It’s not for nothing that today you can find literally hundreds and thousands of master classes on this issue - and hardly a few percent of them will be truly wholesome and effective. In fact, it is unrealistic to calculate what unexpected problems may affect our financial condition, but it is quite possible to minimize their negative effect.

“Economics is actually a pretty simple science - especially when we talk about personal finance,” says Olga Kopylova, Ph.D., associate professor of economics at Odessa National Maritime University, with whom Bored Panda got in touch for a comment here. "By and large, we are talking here about the ability to balance income and expenses, as well as proper timing for some really big expenses."

“You know, this kind of monetary logistics is to understand at what point you can afford to go into the red and when not. The ability to connect cash flows in space and time. And, of course, a clear understanding of what expenses we can afford, and which ones we can't. True, this will require not only certain knowledge, but also rational thinking, not overestimating one’s strengths and capabilities - but this is not always achievable, unfortunately," Olga summarizes.

And, of course, we always need to take into account the possibility of so-called “black swans” - events that always come unexpectedly, have significant consequences, and then, in retrospect, rational explanations can be found for each - but only in hindsight. The concept, introduced by the writer and financier Nassim Taleb, of course, relates mainly to the macroeconomic level - of states and large corporations, but it can be extrapolated to the personal level as well.

For example, a sudden illness that will require long-term and expensive treatment also occurs suddenly, has really serious consequences, and then we'll definitely provide quite a logical basis for it - for example, “I should have quit smoking earlier!” Thus, the impact of “black swans” on our personal finances cannot be calculated, but it is possible to create a certain financial “safety cushion” to avoid the main consequences.

We sincerely hope that you, our dear readers, will not find yourself in an unpleasant situation when your personal budget is leaking and there are no additional funds to replenish it. And if this collection of thoughts and opinions ever saves you from an unpleasant financial case - well, then our efforts were not in vain!