Preparing for the Unexpected: My 2025 Financial Goals
I’ve spent years building and refining my financial strategies, but I realized recently that I wasn’t prepared for a major financial emergency. Dealing with unexpected challenges like natural disasters, pandemics, health issues, or other crises could seriously destabilize my finances. Now that I’m a mother, it’s even more critical that I create financial resilience – not just for myself, but to protect my child.
That’s why my main financial goal for 2025 is comprehensive emergency preparedness. Here are the five key steps I’m taking to build a financial safety net and prepare for worst-case scenarios.
1. Rebuilding My Emergency Fund
In my early 30s, I worked diligently to create an emergency fund from scratch. My target was three to six months of living expenses, which would have been a critical cushion to mitigate the inherent income volatility of my freelance work.
When the pandemic hit, many of my work opportunities vanished, and I had to dip into that emergency fund. I haven’t been able to replenish that high-yield savings account in over three years.
Given the nature of my income and its vulnerability to world events or personal health challenges, maintaining a robust emergency fund is essential. I’ve set a goal to contribute $500 per month to this account as I work to get back on track.
2. Securing Life Insurance
My husband and I have discussed life insurance for some time, but it kept getting pushed down our to-do list until now. As parents, we now recognize this as a non-negotiable. We need policies in place to ensure the financial stability and continued well-being of our daughter in case of a tragedy.
One point of discussion has been the type of policy. I favor whole life insurance, while my husband prefers term life insurance. We’ve decided that we don’t have to have the same type of plans and are arranging a meeting with an insurance agent to learn more about our options.
3. Cultivating Passive Income Streams
Since 2016, I have worked as a solopreneur and a freelancer. The amount I earn directly correlates to how many hours a week I can work and the number of new projects or clients I can book. In recent years, I’ve taken on more childcare responsibilities, which has caused me to halve my work hours.
This was a conscious decision to save $3,000-$4,000 per month on childcare expenses, however, it’s also cut down on how much I can contribute to our overall financial goals. In an effort to boost my income, I’ve decided to focus on expanding upon three passive income streams to create dependable revenue sources that don’t require my daily attention or direct, in-person service.
For instance, I recently launched a suite of AI speech- and vow-writing tools for my wedding business, as well as a spin-off eulogy writing tool. These tools take a few hours a month to maintain and have brought in several thousand dollars in monthly income.
4. Acquiring Disability Insurance
A significant financial risk I’ve taken over the last decade as a solopreneur is the lack of disability insurance.
If I were to become ill or injured and could not work, a disability insurance policy would provide a monthly income to replace the lost earnings.
5. Drafting an Estate Plan
After becoming a mother two years ago, I understood the importance of having an estate plan. However, my husband and I had simply not made the time to work with a lawyer to complete one.
An estate plan protects and ensures asset distribution, which avoids having to involve the courts and potentially triggering a lengthy, costly process, if one or both of us were to pass away. The estate plan would also provide instructions for how to manage and distribute assets to our daughter while she is still a minor.
Jen Glantz is the founder of Bridesmaid for Hire, a 3x author, the host of the “You’re Not Getting Any Younger” podcast, and the creator of the Pick-Me-Up and Odd Jobs newsletter. Follow her adventures on Instagram: @jenglantx.
