With 68% of adults believing that they have or are currently experiencing financial trauma, according to a study published by Experian, it’s safe to say that the ties between financial management and mental health go beyond day-to-day spending or the occasional splurge.
With over a decade of experience, Anthony Williams, CFP, has been providing financial advice and strategy with Northwestern Mutual. His years of expertise have afforded him a unique perspective, deepening his understanding of the best ways to support African American professionals and families as they work towards healthy financial practices. Here are 10 financial tips to help improve your mental health.
It Starts with Clarity, not Perfection
With many things in life, ensuring that you’ve outlined your intentions and steps towards a specific goal helps you to be able to achieve things more strategically–the same applies to your finances. “You gotta get crystal clear on what you want, where you want to go, and who you want to do it with, and once you have that clarity, then you can say ‘okay cool,’ that’s one less stressful thing you have to worry about because now you know where you want to go,” Williams told EBONY. By identifying your goals in a specific, measurable way, you can begin working towards financial management that doesn’t feel stressful.
Become Knowledgeable to Overcome Anxiety
The first step people don’t focus on when trying to improve their finances is doing their own research. Financial wellness not only takes patience but also intentionality to truly be effective. By leveraging resources such as digital courses, personal finance books, and professional guidance, you can educate yourself and soothe mental health strain. Williams believes that knowledge can help you to make more informed financial decisions. This knowledge can also deepen awareness, producing comfort in tense financial situations and even lessening mental health strain over time.
Open a Retirement Account as Early as Possible
Many people tend to focus on the bills and expenses they have in front of them versus putting money away for the future. Opening a retirement account lets you enjoy your money now and later by choosing a recurring contribution amount to a pool you use at the end of your career. Williams believes that proactiveness when opening a retirement account can help build more wealth over time versus waiting until later in life. Account types such as a 401K and Roth IRA allow you flexibility with actionable financial goals that you can reach based on the elected amount of money you choose to contribute to the fund. These accounts are often offered by your employer, but can also be created independently through wealth management firms.
Tackle Financial Uncertainty Before it Impacts Your Mental Health
It’s no secret that financial issues impact your mental health, but waiting until a circumstance worsens doesn’t make things any better. Whether it’s uncertainty through paying off credit card debt or uncertainty from job security, addressing financial uncertainty before it intensifies saves you additional mental health strain in the long run. Williams referenced Northwestern Mutual’s 2025 Planning and Progress study which revealed that 7 in 10 Americans have said that financial uncertainty has made them feel depressed and anxious. This data among others highlighted in the study prove the impact that finances can have on your mental health. Even more so, the importance of being proactive in combatting uncertainty before it gets to a point of deeper severity.
Pay Attention to How Money Stress Impacts Your Sleep
With 63% of people saying that financial stress keeps them up at night (2025 Planning & Progress Study), we can tie the impact of stress to more than just decision-making. Sleep is one of the primary methods to refuel the body and give yourself the necessary breaks you need to fully step into daily responsibilities. “Creating a financial plan is actually putting you one step closer to getting better sleep,” Williams noted when responding to the study and the correlation that exists between financial stress and sleep patterns.
Give Yourself Permission to Budget for Self-Care
When navigating financial stress, your default response might be to zero in on cutting all ties with additional expenses. However, these additional expenses might be what’s helping to keep your stress levels at bay. “It’s okay to spend money on getting massages, it’s okay to spend money on therapy, it’s okay to spend money on fitness and training, but do it within reason. Don’t go into debt or go broke over it. If you have to delay other material goals, such as buying a house or buying a car, investing in yourself is the most important investment you can make,” Williams explained when speaking more on his stance with prioritizing self-care.
Know Your Options When it Comes to Mental Health Care
Beyond recognizing when there’s mental health strain apparent in your life, it is equally important to understand the methods you have available to you to combat them. “From a financial perspective, understand what’s at your job, like what mental health benefits do you have. Sometimes companies offer free sessions through your work benefits. You could take advantage of an HSA (health savings account), which can be used towards therapy expenses,” Williams continued to explain that intentional budgeting and fitting in where self-care expenses are, where you can make a difference in your overall health, especially when offered at a discounted rate through an employer.
Setting up a Trust Helps to Protect your Legacy
The stress of future planning is a phenomenon that weighs heavily on the African American community due to avoidance in creating space for conversations and not wanting to address the realities that come with preparing for the death of yourself or a loved one. However, by avoiding this, this can also lead to additional stress that can be avoidable. Williams believes that setting up a trust not only helps to protect your legacy, but it helps you get your assets to the right people at the right time, without hassle. The burden of end of life planning can already be heavy, give your family one less thing to worry about financially by acting proactively with a trust.
Build More than One Stream of Income if You Can
In an era where almost everyone has a side hustle, having more than one stream of income available to you can almost feel like the norm. Whether you’re making just enough money to make ends meet or making a large amount that covers all your expenses, the cushion that additional streams of income provide you is worth looking into. Williams believes that having multiple streams of income can help to lower stress levels in some instances by providing financial flexibility.
Don’t Carry the Money Stress by Yourself
76% of Americans who work with a financial advisor describe their finances as “strong” in comparison to 44% of Americans who gave the same response without a financial advisor (2025 Planning & Progress Study). With the support of a financial advisor, mentor, or other trusted professional, you could be positioning yourself for support and to work through things more effectively. One of the biggest misconceptions in seeking financial advice is that you have to make a certain amount of money, and that couldn’t be further from the truth. If anything, leaning on financial management while you make a lower amount of money allows you to build healthier spending habits that can be just as effective when you begin to earn more money. Seeking help from a financial advisor allows you to leverage a dedicated space with someone who has expertise in the circumstances you may be facing.