Teaching Brave
As a parent, our lives are busy! We barely have enough time to fit in fun, let alone all the life admin!
Unfortunately, life admin is a necessary evil, and if we don’t ensure certain boring tasks are taken care of, it can mean things are much more difficult for us further down the line.
Here are 10 boring life admin jobs that every parent needs to take care of:
ONE- Your will
Sometimes these are straightforward, and sometimes they can be a little more complex but this will depend on your individual family circumstances.
You will need to detail guardianship details, name an executor and beneficiaries and appoint power of attorney/s if necessary.
The cost of preparing a will can vary a LOT so figure out if you think yours will be complex or not and shop around for a solicitor who can prepare it for a reasonable price, or you can always do a Will kit from the post office which may be free, or may only cost you less than $100.
If you have children, a will is something you don’t want to keep putting off forever.
TWO – Take care of your super
Do you know where all of your super is?
Is it all in the one fund?
Do you know your super balance?
Is your employer paying your super regularly?
Do you know HOW your super is invested?
You should know the answer to all of these questions if you want to take good care of your money and your financial future.
Your superannuation is a big wealth building tool and if you have super in multiple funds, you’re paying multiple fund fees, and if it’s not invested correctly as per your age and risk tolerance, you could be missing out on big bucks over the long term.
THREE – Tax
Are you submitting your tax return on time each year?
Are you paying a tax accountant to maximise your returns and add all deductions that are applicable?
Doing your tax by yourself is free, but may not maximise returns.
It can be worth it to pay a tax accountant, depending on how complex your tax return is.
It’s worth it to do your tax on time each year and look at all deductions possible.
Keep those receipts!
FOUR – Insurances
Do you have all necessary insurances in place?
Are you paying for insurance you don’t need?
This can be a very tricky thing to sort out but there are also lots of resources out there to help you.
Try free podcasts, blog posts and articles with info on how insurances can save you or be a big waste of your money.
This will be very individual depending on your own circumstances but some key insurances that you don’t want to be without may be:
- Car insurance (at least third party property)
- Health insurance
- Home and contents insurance (depending on the value of your contents)
- Income protection insurance (through your super maybe)
- Travel insurance (when on holiday)
There are HEAPS of other kinds of insurances including pet insurance, life insurance, trauma insurance and many others which may or may not be necessary for you.
If you have built up a decent sized emergency fund, you may be able to self insure, saving you paying these premiums on a regular basis.
Do your own research and decide what is best for you and your family but it’s worth looking closely at your insurances to determine if you are properly covered or if you are wasting money.
FIVE – Review and audit all your bills
When a bill arrives, by email or post, do you just blindly pay it or leave it to be debited, or are you closely examining bills, researching what other providers can offer and asking for better prices?
Sure, there are certain bills you won’t be able to change or haggle, such as your council rates, water bill and things like most subscription based services.
However, there are many bills where you can change providers for better prices, or simply ask your current provider for a better price.
I have done this on many occasions, particularly with car insurance, phone bills, internet providers and even my home loan interest rate.
If you don’t audit and you don’t ask, you’ll never know how much you could have saved!
SIX – Health appointments
They may not be fun and you may procrastinate on making and going to necessary health check appointments, but these checks can provide peace of mind and help to ensure things don’t get worse for you later on.
Consider:
- Dentist appointments
- Pap smears
- Breast checks
- Skin checks
- Basic blood tests
You’ll feel good once they’re done, and it can mean getting on top of your health needs so they don’t worsen.
SEVEN – Minimising and decluttering
Do you regularly minimise and declutter, or are you constantly bringing new things into your household, without getting rid of the items you no longer need or want?
This is a cycle and I think it’s no more evident, how much we unnecessarily accumulate and store, than when it’s time for us to move house.
It can be very cleansing to have a good clean out now and then, sell or give away the things that no longer serve you and make yourself some cash and some space in the meantime!
EIGHT – Car maintenance
Do you have your car booked in for a service on a regular basis?
Do you know how to do basic car maintenance jobs yourself?
There will be many jobs that only a licensed mechanic can do, but do you know how to fill your fluids if necessary, change a tyre, put air in your tyres, and keep an eye on your dash warning lights?
A simple YouTube search can help you with many of these basic tasks but it is vital to make sure your car is being regularly maintained to prevent major issues arising and to keep your car running as smoothly and safely as possible.
NINE – Applying sunscreen every day
It’s such a simple one that can literally save your life.
I have had 2 melanomas removed from my skin and I’ve been extremely lucky that both of these were caught early enough and removed with clear margins.
I was exposed to too much sun as a child and I didn’t wear sunscreen on a daily basis until my mid 30’s.
I now wear 50+ sunscreen every day, and there are heaps of different brands and types to suit all different skin types.
TEN – Good money management
This one can be difficult for many, yet can also be very simple with some basic financial literacy and a bit of good control.
As a guide, you might want to consider the following, for good general money management:
- Build up a decent-sized emergency fund so you can manage life’s financial emergencies that WILL pop up. A good guide is at least 3-6 months worth of living expenses.
- As mentioned above, audit your bills and examine exactly how much is coming in versus how much is going out. Analyse where you can cut costs or how you can make more money.
- Be on top of your taxes, your insurance and your super, for good money management.
- Get rid of all bad debt ASAP (credit cards, car loans and personal loans) that are charging you high interest.
- Educate yourself! Read books and blogs, and listen to podcasts while walking or in the car, on general personal finance and money tips. I have learned A LOT in the last few years and I want to keep learning. It’s amazing how many free resources are out there to help you with this too.
So, are they boring or not?
Necessary though?
I think most people, particularly most parents would agree that the above ten things are a necessary evil if you want to call it that, and hopefully this has been a good prompt or a good reminder, now at the start of a fresh new year, to get on top of these things!
Liz Michelle is a Single mum and Early Childhood Teacher with more than 20 years of experience in the industry. Liz has 15 years of experience as a Child care Director and Area Manager, leading child care centres to a status of ‘Exceeding’ the National Quality Standards, and is now primary school teaching on a casual basis while enjoying writing, learning about online business and building up the Teaching Brave blog as well as working from home on website management and raising her 13-year-old son, Andy.
The TeachingBrave blog has more than 140 articles on single parenting, saving money, early childhood and general parenting tips including School Readiness, Toilet training, Frugal Living and ‘Bucket Filling’.
Liz enjoys connecting with her readers and followers and is very responsive on socials (Facebook and Instagram).
