If you ask just about anyone over 30 about the millennial generation, they will likely have, at the very least, a small list of daily stressors. One thing the majority of millennials can agree on is that the number one thing millennials stress out about most is finances.

 Many are living at home with their parents, even into their late 20s and early 30s. They often find that the demands of life are greater than any generation prior. Yes, the economy is strengthening, but not everyone finds that “dream position” in terms of employment and financial stability.

Then, there is the fact that we live in a time of immediate gratification. There is little to no waiting period on almost anything. While that can be a great thing, it also means having to deliver results just as quickly which ultimately can be stressful.

Now We’re Stressed Out

According to the American Psychological Association, those who are between the ages of 18 to 35 are more stressed-out than any generation before them. This is why they have become known as “generation stress.”

Unfortunately, there are some legitimate concerns. This generation has to compete in the job market, a market that is no longer limited to those in their specific location.

Now, because of the advancement of technology, the millennial generation finds itself competing with people all across the globe.

Telecommuting enables people to work wherever they live, sometimes making it more difficult for a person to find a job.

This leads to a lot of anxiety, both for men and women, and is driving up the stress levels of the millennial generation.

Millennial Finances 

While this is a major concern, it is only a symptom of the overall issue that is most concerning to the millennial generation – financial concerns. The majority of people graduating from college now have $75,000 or more in student loan debt.

Finding a job is a huge challenge, adding to the stress of having such a large amount of student loan debt. Being in a financial crisis and being unemployed is a recipe for high stress. 

Financial Competition

The Millennials generation experiences increasing competition to do something epic. Your good friend is getting married?

This is a totally a reason to drop $2k in Miami on a bachelorette party right? You’re turning 30? So, of course, you have to rent out the VIP area even if you have to put it on your card and pay it in installments. Wrong! 

Women Are Affected Most By Stress

Sadly, women are more affected by this crisis more than men. It used to be that men were far more stressed than women, but since 2007 the trend has been going the other way.

Women are finding themselves far more stressed psychologically than men are, and this is leading to ill effects for both.

This anxiety can lead to weight gain or loss, decreased physical health, anxiety, depression, and much more. It has even led many women to become unable to carry children because of their stress level.

How To Manage Financial Stress

As always, let’s discuss some solutions. The truth is that the best stress management method is to create a plan to manage that stress.

Creating a plan of what you intend to do with your life is the number one way to decrease stress levels.

Listen, we can go back and forth forever and say is this my golden opportunity? Do I want to stay on this path and receive a degree in this area or take this particular job?

The truth is who knows yet if it is a mistake until you try it out, move up the ladder and see how far you go? 

Many people back out from a career in which they’ve made progress because they are scared. They say ya know what? Let me start on a new path before I finish this one, because maybe it was a mistake. That is a big maybe.

Unless you truly feel with every fiber of your being that you’re meant to go on a new path, stay still!

Slow down and climb the next ladder rung. If you get where you wanted to go in your current path, you’ve established confidence and made some headway, now you can truly say, “Wow I can’t believe I’m established in this field!”, or “Holy crap! this is not for me.”

Set Goals 

A goal can be any objective that you set and push yourself to achieve. Sometimes that goal may be small (like going for a run three days a week) and sometimes it may be larger (like earning a promotion).

Setting attainable goals is also important. Committing to a career path and making progress towards this path, step by step, will help to alleviate stress.

Why not think of a small goal you want to set right now, personal or professional. To make your goal S.M.A.R.T., it needs to conform to the following criteria: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.

S.M.A.R.T. goal setting: Specific

What exactly do you want to achieve? The more specific your description, the bigger the chance you’ll get exactly that. S.M.A.R.T. Goal setting clarifies the difference between “I want to be a millionaire” and “I want to get paid a salary fitting for my career area.”

Questions you may ask yourself when setting your goals and objectives are:

• What exactly do I want to achieve?
• Where?
• How?
• When?
• With whom?
• What are the conditions and limitations?
• Why exactly do I want to reach this goal
• What are the possible alternative ways of achieving the same?

The goal must clearly state what is to be achieved, by whom, where, and when it is to be achieved. Sometimes it may even state why that goal is important.

For example, rather than saying “I want to lose weight” you could say “I want to lose ten pounds by this summer”.

S.M.A.R.T. goal setting: Measurable

Measurable goals mean identifying exactly what it is you will see, hear, and feel when you reach your goal.

Measurable goals mean breaking down goals into measurable elements. You’ll need concrete evidence. For instance, “I want to save $5,000 a year for the next five years.” This can be measured by the dollar amount and  amount of years.

S.M.A.R.T. goal setting: Attainable

Is your goal attainable? That means investigating whether the goal is realistic for you. So rather than starting with “I will win a Pulitzer,” Maybe the goal can be “I will write five articles in the next month and try to submit one to an online journal within the next three months.”

S.M.A.R.T. goal setting: Relevant

Is reaching your goal relevant to you? Do you want to run a marathon? Or maybe it is more important for you to focus on getting a job that fits within the degree you obtained.

S.M.A.R.T. goal setting: Timely

Time is money! Make a tentative plan of everything you do. Maintain deadlines and keep them realistic and flexible.

It is not only about making decisions, but it is also about sticking to those decisions.

There is something so settling about creating a plan and sticking with it!

The Takeaway

Make smart decisions about what you want to do with your life, and you will quickly find that your stress levels will decrease and become more manageable.

Will there be a divine certainty from up above telling us we are on the right path?

No, but that would be nice.

Trust yourself and trust that you are moving forward. Sometimes, this is better than staying still or starting new, before you’ve given yourself a chance to succeed.

When I was a little girl I always said I was going to become a teacher and get married and have children at the age of 25. What a cute, naive little dreamer. I couldn’t have known, nor would a five-year-old care, that my generation was facing one of the biggest financial hardships since the Great Depression. Debt would be a way of life for many millennials.

Stress and finances go hand in hand for a majority of people.

I mentioned on my homepage that the number one stressor for millennials is finances. Millennial debt is staggering compared to generations in the past. We are the lucky ones who have inherited mistakes of the past.

How much money we have, or don’t have, occupies our mind every day. If you are part of the “don’t have” side of things, it is often not your fault as there is so much we are up against.

Let’s be honest, some of you out there are making decisions you know are not financially sound. Stress due to financial issues is an everyday worry for you.

Financial burdens can include student loan debt, auto loans, hefty credit card balances, and not securing your future by contributing toward retirement. 

Millennials born between 1982 and 2004, have 300 percent more student loan debt on average than their parents, and one in five live in poverty, HuffPost reported.  

One big issue is leaving it up to us to do our homework on how to be smart when we applying for a loan.

Sure, to an extent, this is our responsibility.

But, if you ask me, managing finances is really something that should be taught in college, if not high school, as a regular part of the curriculum.

Perhaps the worst part of millennial debt is the crippling repercussions for our future. Financial difficulties delay us from starting our life the way we always imagined.

Some millennials put off getting married and having kids because they haven’t “made it yet” in their field. They are still trying to dig their way out of debt, despite obtaining a job. Sometimes, what you get paid isn’t enough to make a dent in your dent.

This is depressing and downright stressful dammit! Let’s move on to what we can do about it.

After all, stressing less is all about pursuing solutions to our problems and not allowing them to get bigger.

Here are some suggestions for digging your way out of debt and securing your finances for now and the future.

Keep in mind, I do not claim to be a financial expert by any means. These are merely suggestions and things that have worked for me.

With this in mind, I suggest listening to podcasts about investing in your future, purchasing a book to educate yourself on financially sound decisions and doing your own research on financial decisions that are best for you.  

Any way you can, learn about dwindling your debt. Start with what debt is most crippling for you and tackle each hurdle one at a time.

Like I said, I am not a financial expert. Instead, I’m going to link you to some websites with very useful tips on getting your finances in order.

Contribute To Your Retirement

Contributing to your retirement is perhaps one of the most important financial decisions to make.

Check out this article on how to get the most out of your 401K. If contribute toward your retirement it will leave you with less money in the present. Some people let this dictate their decision to pay towards their 401K because they’d rather buy what they want now.

But, consider this, when you’re over 65 years old, would you like to keep working? Without, income later on, you may even have to take a part-time job with low pay to support yourself.

This would likely happen if you buy whatever makes you happy when you are younger without a game plan for later.

It will be 100% worth it when 65 year old you is sitting on a fishing dock at 11:00am on a Tuesday without a care!

Monitor Your Credit Report

The next step is to check your credit score and look for patterns of poor spending and repayment.

I love using credit karma. It’s really helpful because its free and….well, they say it better:

“The first thing we do is give you free access to your credit scores, reports and monitoring. Once you know where you stand, we help you figure out your next move.

Maybe you need to dispute an error on your credit report. We could help with that. Maybe you’re paying too much in interest.

We could help with that too.We want you to feel good about your options and make informed financial decisions. That means giving you the right information at the right time so you can zero in on what’s important.”

You will get your credit rating from each of the three credit bureaus that report on most consumer credit—Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

Once you have the report and identify the accounts that are bringing your score down, be sure to rectify your mistakes.

Do this one day at a time. Only put out one credit ruining fire at a time, or you will feel overwhelmed.

Once you get a handle on what you need to do more or less of to raise your credit score, it becomes addicting to watch your credit score rise!

Look Into a Free Debt Counselor

 A free debt counselor can help you develop a budget that fits your lifestyle.

A debt counselor will provide many helpful tips and make sure that you’re on the right track with your repayment plans.

They could be really helpful in laying out all of your potential options. Stress and finances do not have to go hand in hand.

Prioritize Loans With the Highest Interest Rates

Prioritize loans with the highest interest rates and other helpful information. This way, you won’t be paying back more interest than you need to overtime. 

And a bit of my own advice…

If you don’t have the money to pay back your credit card in full at the end of the month, you have no business charging it!

 Is wearing the latest fashion trends and buying designer coffee, that’s slowly killing you due to all that sugar and whip cream, really worth dwindling your bank account?

Stay On Top Of Your Credit Card Payments

It’s really easy to ruin your credit score if you continuously miss payments. This will make it more difficult for you to have a competitive credit score when you’d like to buy a car or home in the future.

Stay on top of paying things like your credit card bills and medical bills each month. Go ahead and put a monthly reminder on your phone so you can pay these things right away.

A sure way to ensure you don’t forget to pay pulls is signing up for auto-payments so you don’t risk forgetting to pay a bill and further damage your credit score.

Freeing yourself from the burden of financial stress is very challenging for millennials these days. Take it one step at a time and be realistic with what you are buying.

Only purchase what is in your budget and you won’t have a pile of debt to dig your way out of. Getting your finances in order is an important consideration for stressing less every day.

Stress and finances can part ways amicably if you follow these tips to dig your way out of financial stress.

Grab a shovel and start digging! It may seem impossible, but once you make progress you won’t want to stop and you’ll never look back.