5 ways to protect your wealth

Did you know that it's not just cash in the bank and investments that make you wealthy? Things like your health and your education also form part of your wealth!  We’ve got top tips to help you protect your wealth, so you can create generational wealth for your family. The great news is that many of them are free, and some you may be doing already such as taking care of your car, sticking to a healthy lifestyle and being a good money role model for your family!

Protecting your wealth

You don’t want to lose your wealth, but unless you take steps to protect it, you could!

Protect your financial wealth

Okay, so the main idea with your financial wealth, your savings and investments, is that you grow it! But you might have heard of a friend, or friend of a friend, a colleague, perhaps even a family member who has lost some or all of their financial wealth! Sometimes this is just a bad investment, or bad investment advice, or worse, a fraudster! You can protect your financial wealth by:

• Becoming financially literate and building your investment knowledge, such as by taking a free financial education course from Truth About Money, a 1Life Insurance initiative.
• Getting good advice from a licensed financial adviser or certified financial planner, who will help you save and invest so you can achieve your financial goals.
• Having an emergency fund and topping it up when you use it! If you have an emergency and you need to dip into retirement savings or take on debt, your financial wealth takes more than a few steps back, which are difficult to recover from! An emergency fund is a must.

Protect your health

Good health is worth everything! You can enjoy life and different activities, you have energy to spend with family and care for your kids, and you have low healthcare costs. Plus, with more energy you can find ways to earn extra income such as starting your own side hustle, which can grow your family's wealth! There are many ways that you can take care of your health, and they don’t have to cost you a lot either: 

• Eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly – you know the drill!
• Having regular check-ups to detect any problems early, when they are easier to treat
• Taking care of your mental health. For example, did you know that when you are tired and stressed, known as being depleted, you make poor money decisions?
• Following treatment plans and care recommended and prescribed by your healthcare professionals

Protect your education

Upskilling isn’t just an over-used word! It is a real need to ensure your skills stay current and give you the best chance to earn an income and grow your wealth! Protect your education by:

• Taking courses your employer offers or subsidises
• Keeping updated on your chosen profession and upskilling. Take time to become an expert in your field so you know the latest trends, techniques and what will be required in the future by staying curious, reading and also furthering your studies, such as post graduate courses and degrees. Bonus: These always look good on performance and salary reviews as well as CVs!

Protect your generational wealth

You really want to leave your loved ones a lasting legacy! Protect your generational wealth and your family will be the one that inherits and grows wealth! Your heirs, and their heirs, all need to know how important generational wealth is and how it can change lives. Building and protecting your generational wealth might sound daunting. Why not start with just one or two of these top tips. And, bonus point, most of them won’t cost you anything.

• Instilling good money values in your family. Share your money values, how you manage money and why and your loved ones will appreciate the value of money too.
• Be a good money role model! Children will do what they see, not what they hear, adults too. Live your money values and talk to your family and involve them in your money management decisions, explain what works well and why, and what to avoid.
• Make sure your family are financially literate! Take courses with your kids, such as Mad Money Skillz, a free online course especially for tweens. Read personal finance blogs, such as the monthly blogs from Truth About Money, and listen to the financial news and podcasts. And then talk about what you learned, read and listened to.
• Having a valid will to ensure your loved ones inherit your assets! Truth About Money's Wills and Estate benefit will help you draft and update a will, and assist with winding up your estate.
• Estate planning: Your will prescribes how your heirs inherit your assets, and your estate plan ensures your will can be implemented as prescribed and that costs and taxes don't reduce the value of those assets, such as by ensuring there is liquidity (cash on hand) to pay those costs and taxes. 1Life Wills and Estate Plan covers cash shortfalls in your estate and provides for a valid, signed and retrievable will.

Protect your assets

Your car and your home, and any other property you own, are assets, and perhaps you are lucky enough to have a family heirloom or a valuable item of jewellery. Your ability to earn an income is also an asset – a very valuable one! All these assets need protecting for future generations, which you can do by:

• Insuring them! Vehicle insurance and household and content insurance protect against theft, damage and other events. You can also insure individual valuable items against theft and damage, such as phones, laptops and jewellery.
• Taking care of them. Regular car and home maintenance ensure your assets retain their value, sometimes even increase in value. Plus, your assets will look good, and you’ll know you are leaving a lasting legacy for your loved ones by ensuring they are in good condition!

Empower yourself and future generations today

Protecting your assets not only ensures that your generational wealth lasts for your lifetime, it also allows future generations to benefit and grow their wealth!  What steps are you taking to protect your loved ones’ wealth? Why not start today with our free tips and tools and you'll be taking great strides to care for your family!