Money can be a big cause of stress for anyone, and it is understandable for some people to get overwhelmed by this. Financial stress is a serious problem, and no one should ever be ashamed of going through this burden. It can be draining to anyone experiencing it, and unfortunately, it has caused some people to fall into a depression or to have anxiety. Although quite troubling indeed, it is best to know how you can properly handle and overcome this stress and properly manage your finances not to have to go through the same issues again.

Continue reading “Finances And Mental Health”

As an individual, I think it is one’s nature to hope and dream for a better future – literally a better career. One will always dream of landing in a better job with high salaries. We always aim to reach the stars as an individual. But what about having a family? Will it ever occur in one’s mind the idea of raising a family in the future? Is anyone up for the challenge of having children and rearing them for a brighter generation to come?

Continue reading “Building A Family And Managing Finances”

If people have been comparing the coronavirus pandemic to the plague that swept nations in 1918, financial experts have been saying in the beginning that the economic crisis might be as bad as what happened in 2008. The latter was not dubbed as the Great Recession for no reason, after all. That’s when millions of companies let their employees go because the businesses were not getting enough sales. And when there’s no work, the citizens lose their buying power, which is also bad for them.

Well, the same thing seems to be happening now due to COVID-19. People have been forced to stay at home because the naked eye cannot see the enemy. Countries are already in lockdown for months, thus preventing businesses from operating fully. Worse, since it is a health crisis, it does not seem like we can hold anyone accountable for the pandemic.

This lack of control makes me recall the olden days when Iceland managed to put nine bankers behind bars, who were said to cause the Great Recession in their country.

What Happened Back Then?

Iceland had been under the world spotlight for doing something that even the American and European countries had never done – convict the top members of a vast international bank and send them to prison. 

The initial investigation in April 2015 linked a total of nine bankers – all of which were from the Kaupthing Bank – to the tremendous economic downfall that almost broke the country’s strong stature. They were being tried for allegedly manipulating and deceiving everyone by making it appear like there was a unique demand for share purchases. 

The defendants had been prosecuted for over a year. Then, the Icelandic Supreme Court announced that these key players in the world of bank and finance would be behind the cold bars for precisely 46 years. Even the jail sentence for Hreiðar Már Sigurðsson, Kaupthing Bank’s ex-director who was already in prison since 2015 for the same case, had been extended for six months.

This news received mixed reviews from various nations, with most of them on the negative side. To be specific, the Europeans got infuriated upon hearing that the banking executives went through the same trial process that regular law offenders experienced. If you take a glance at the history, it is evident that the American and British governments, for instance, have not and will not ever allow their high-profile financiers to be imprisoned and stay for decades in a cell. If the money laundering or market manipulation allegations have been thrown to the bank leaders in the said countries, they will only need to post bail or reimburse a lump sum of money as a fine for the damages they have caused. However, after that, they can return to their old life once again.

The Icelandic government responded to these comments, on the other hand, by saying that they did it to provide justice to their countrymen who suffered due to the wrongdoings of one bank’s executives. Although Iceland managed to get back on its feet, economic-wise, and recover some of the losses incurred from the misleading acts of a few people, they wanted to be fair in the eyes of everyone affected by the situation. After all, where else would the misused money come out of if not from the individuals who held personal or business accounts in the Kaupthing Bank?

Final Thoughts

Some world leaders continue to look for someone to blame for the coronavirus outbreak up to this day. Kudos to them if they can do that, just like how Iceland made sure that the lawbreakers would get punished for their 2008 economic downfall. Wanting to gain control over the issue is understandable; however, it may be more ideal to find a vaccine than to point fingers at others. That’s the only way to handle the situation.

Stay at home, everyone!

 

I am not an expert in finances and businesses or anything like that, but I can say that at this time, it is not safe to release a big amount for business expansion. We are in a pandemic, and that limits our physical contact to the outside world. Most businesses need their patrons on-site, and right now, we cannot do that because of social distancing. The tourism business is down. No planes and flights in and out of almost all countries for an indefinite period. Restaurants can only cater five to ten patrons at any given time. Salons are still closed, and offices are limited. It is that restricted.

Continue reading “Business Must Go On Even With This Pandemic”

We have come to the age where we don’t know life without innovation. We were born in it, got used to it, and gradually, our advancement is the main reason why our home is slowly dying. People have discovered all the things possible, from machines to construction to food to clothing to almost everything. We have used all the materials we can think of, and we have exhausted Mother Nature.

Continue reading “The Advantages Of Eco-Friendly Products”

Stress has been seen as a stubborn problem among bank managers. If you are a bank manager, read on and learn some helpful steps you can take to be able to manage your anxiety and stress.

Create A Solid And Meaningful Perspective. In reality, a lot of the things that stress us in the workplace, such as in a bank, are not as overwhelming as we think of them. Most often, there is no one hurt, dying, or sick that would pass as a dilemma. In fact, it won’t be necessary to take the problem to the next level, despite our negative feelings that we need to. You must have that solid perspective and keep work situations at a reasonable level to keep stress under control.

When you don’t find outlets for stress during a challenging time, you are bottling up what is weighing you down. Think of yourself as “content under pressure.” — Marni Amsellem, PhD

Have Down Time With Employees. As a manager, this can be often unlikely, but you can spend some enjoyable time with your employees as a form of relaxation for you and them as well. Don’t sit in your office the whole day, making phone calls and signing documents. Take time to know your people, talk with them, and get to know them. You’ll come to understand the challenges they face daily and be able to handle them easily. This is a constructive way to waste a little bit of time in the workplace.

Have A Strict “Me Time.” Being a manager becomes more stressful when you spend the whole day working on multiple tasks and don’t even spend a few minutes for yourself. It is wise to always set a ‘me time’ every day. It doesn’t have to be spent at a spa or a mall so you can shop and relax. You can have it in your office, especially if your schedule is tight. Ask your secretary not to disturb you for at least 30 minutes. You can listen to some music or do meditation from your smartphone. These strategies are beneficial in reducing stress and encouraging more positive energy to become more productive at work.

With an uncertain economy continually looming over our heads, most Americans understandably are feeling stressed about money, so spending a ton of it to combat stress is probably not going to help the situation. — Sherrie Bourg Carter Psy.D.

Get Physical. This is so cliché, but it doesn’t mean it’s ineffective. In fact, it’s a very effective way to distress and be healthy while doing an office job. Some bank managers are lucky to have some kind of a fitness facility at their rooftops or perhaps near the bank, so it won’t be hard to exercise every day if possible. The only thing left to do is to decide to spare some time to exercise. If you’re not very eager to go to the gym, you can always go for a run after working hours, or do some abdominals during lunch break. It doesn’t matter what time. What’s important is that after physical activity, you are energized and ready to face new challenges. Getting physical IS indeed a great stress-reliever.

Get Support. Undeniably, a bank manager is often surrounded by people from all walks of life – and different sizes. These can all be sources of stress – clients, employees, family, friends, and significant others. If you are not capable of handling yourself, you might be overwhelmed and in the end, develop a mental health issue. Before this happens, it would be helpful to have a support system who can be there for you or people you can run to who know how to help you in a professional way. It can be a counselor, a therapist, or a support group of professionals who have similar stories as you. Check out BetterHelp.com in case you happen to need one. You can also check out their Facebook page for more options.

There is stress because of unsatisfactory job conditions; fear of losing the unsatisfactory job; insecurity because of the difficulty of finding another unsatisfactory job after losing the first one; marital discord; troubled relations with children, siblings or parents; addictions of various kinds; financial problems; medical problems including those affecting loved ones; discord in the world at large ranging from economic crisis to political strife and violence; the list is endless. — Srikumar Rao Ph.D.

Conclusion

Stress is an inevitable part of being a bank manager – or a manager in general. Hopefully, you can learn from these constructive tips mentioned above so you can handle your stress triggers in no time. Remember, the only way you can secure your overall health is by putting an effort and working on it.

 

 

 

Have you worked in the financial services area? Then you most likely experienced spending stressful days and nights. The working hours are terrible, the responsibilities are quite heavy, and the pressure can be overwhelming. But who’s had worse? Here is a list of five of the most stressful jobs in the banking and finance industry, beginning from the most to the least job description.

1. Mergers And Acquisitions Marketing Professional

The job of the investment banker or the marketing professional is at the top of the list on Wall Street and the whole financial sector in general. This is because investment bankers have to face stress triggers regularly. One is the difficulty of their job and second is the amount of work they do every day of their lives. In their world, they fight to survive and thrive as there are a lot of them climbing to the top at the same time. It’s not uncommon for them to not be able to eat and do their exercises because of how crushed they are at the end of the day.

 

2. Risk Management And Compliance Professionals

The banking sector is full of scams and scandals these days, and pacifying headlines like this is one of the more stress-triggering tasks that risk management and compliance professionals are burdened with. What’s more, their enemies are not only press but their colleagues as well – especially those who are looking to land an official transaction desperately. Most professionals working in this department say that compliance is not a very likable job at all. It’s not empowering to collect money but lose your principles in doing so.

 

3. Bank Traders

Luckily, traders don’t work as many hours as the compliance or the acquisitions professionals. However, they experience a more sudden and acute type of stress. According to trading coaches, there’s so much in the daily tasks that they don’t have full control of, which is quite difficult for them to manage. You sit in your position, and you wait and cross your fingers hoping that the market will favor you, but sometimes it doesn’t, and in the end, other people will doubt if trading with you is the right decision.

 

4. Financial Advisors Or Asset Managers

Asset managers are among the most sought-after professionals in the banking and finance industry, yet they are also the easiest to fire. If their clients don’t get what they want, then they’re terminated from their job just like that. One asset manager said that within his five years of employment, he lost 30 colleagues who decided just to leave the job without second thoughts. It’s a sales industry, and the first clients are usually family and friends, which make the pressure even greater. Your salary is barely on the minimum, and you work your ass off to remain on your position. Now, that’s quite stressful.

 

5. Management Consulting Professionals

Is being a management consultant stressful? Most consultants say yes, it is, if you’re working in a company like BCG and you don’t have the opportunity to travel because you live close to home (this means it is quite stressful!) Management consultants usually travel on overnight or even weekly trips, even monthly sometimes. Consultants who were interviewed said that often they travel very far from their homes but try their best to visit their families on the weekends.

 

A research done on the working situations of top consulting firms a few years back found that managing consultants who were successful – meaning that they worked 15 hours a day and slept less than 5 hours a night – that success was possible only if they sacrificed much of one’s time to do more work. Fortunately, consultants now have better ways of managing their stressors. Learn more about it from BetterHelp.com. Check out their Facebook and LinkedIn updates as well.

 

 

Businessmen and investors across the world have a lot of questions that run through their minds before they make a solid investment. “Should I invest in the bank? Which bank? Will I be able to benefit from the investment? The relevance of the banking and finance sector can be seen in the nine bank stocks that are listed in the NIFTY 50. Also, it is almost unbelievable to aim for economic improvement or recovery without an investment in the bank. Because of these options, the banking department still is the main choice of investors.

However, despite this fact, investors and other individuals who wish to improve their finances are advised to remain cautious and read through the pros and cons before making the decision of finally investing your money in bank stocks because these are sensitive to the ups and downs of the economy compared to other departments.

Without trust, people won’t invest in the stock market. This impacts participation in retirement programs at work and owning mutual funds, as well as direct ownership of stocks. — John Nofsinger Ph.D.

Advantages

• The Government Is Eager To Open More Accounts. Governments have an active role in improving the country’s finances by opening more bank accounts. Some of these accounts may not contain money, but their value continues to rise. The more banks are opened, the more there is an increase in the stock prices.

• Banks Merge To Help Each Other. When small banks aren’t doing so well, the government allows them to join the bigger banks that are performing effectively, helping the banking sector survive, as well as the whole economy. For example, if you have bought some shares from a major bank and three smaller banks merge with it, the merger will most likely increase your shares from the original bank, which is why it makes sense to invest in the bank.

The outcry about excessive bonuses, following the crisis of 2008, especially for firms that had been bailed out by the government, led to increased scrutiny and regulation. But banks also tend to lock in their people, tying them down when the business climate is volatile and varied. — Ken Eisold Ph.D.

Disadvantages

• Increasing Competition Among Banks. More and more banks are opening every year. While this will undoubtedly help improve the country’s financial situation, this also restricts the complete function of the bank shares. All banks, old and new, will find their means of pulling new clients through various plans or funds. There might also be a competition in taking the other banks’ shares, which can be among the biggest reasons for not investing in the bank.

 

• Non-Performing Assets. These have existed and continue to become a growing problem in the banking and finance sector. NPAs are loan payments that have been overdue for 90 days or more. If these increase, then the banks might be even more careful when approving loans. That is why if you plan to purchase more bank stocks, then you must ensure that your NPA is low or at least manageable.

• Increase In Borrowing Options. There are still many people who prefer to get a loan from Non-Banking Financial Companies, which are financial companies or businesses that don’t have a banking license. A reason why these NBFCs are so popular these days is that borrowers are placed at a much lower risk compared to when they borrow from the bank. When the NBFC has higher growth potential, more people will choose to invest here.

The Decision Is Yours

So what now? Have you decided to invest in the banking department finally?

There is no problem trying out your luck and putting in money in the banking sector as long as you remember not to overbuy. Experts agree that the future of the banks is bright and positive, and it is advantageous to invest here if you plan to make long-term investment. The foundations of the bank are strong and reliable. However, if you want to make a short-term investment initially, you may do so first in the NBFCs.

Immerse yourself in an activity to take your mind off of your stress. Dedicate some time to yourself to do something you enjoy. — Marni Amsellem, PhD

 

If you’re working in the banking sector, you must have dreamed of dealing with the ups at Wall Street where it’s common to hear about exposure to subprime borrowers. These are individuals who have taken loans but are not able to pay simply because they couldn’t afford to do so. They may have purchased a very expensive house, and they used an adjustable-rate mortgage. Maybe they had a negative amortization, which happens when their loan principal balance is still continuously increasing even though they’re paying their monthly loan payment.

How Do Banks Operate?

Banks receive deposits from clients or depositors that create savings accounts, checking accounts, deposit certificates, and more. The bank can lend these funds to other clients who apply for personal or business loans, mortgages, and other plans they may have.

Interest expense is the money that the bank gives to the depositor, while the resultant interest that it makes on the loans made by the depositor is called the interest income. The difference between these two is referred to as the net interest income. Years ago, banks were primarily reliant on the interest income to produce profit for future bank expansions as well as for the bank owners as well. However, the modern banks now have a combined setup that enables them to produce 50% more of their profits from the bank fees, like bank trust sectors, mutual funds, credit card handling, merchant payments, and more – almost any fee that you can think of, they can get profit from.

When a loan has been instigated officially on the books, the money is then paid out to the borrower, and an asset is then established. What the bank will do next is that it will create a company-wide reserve on the bank’s list of loans to determine the losses. If they decide, for instance, that 1% of the loans will go wrong, they will create an accounting reserve that decreases the value of the borrower’s loan on the balance sheet. If, in the long run, the loan does go bad, the reported earnings won’t be damaged as they already have a buffer on the sheet to counter the loss.

Importance Of Sufficient Reserves

An adequate amount of accounting reserves are crucial to the bank’s health and productivity. If, for instance, the 1% loss becomes 4%, the shareholders would be distressed, as they had only anticipated a 1% loss. There will be large amounts of income statement losses. Different economic situations can cause bank investors to be anxious and stressed, particularly situations in the housing market. If there are few home sales, this means that less fee income is coming in. But some large-scale investors like Warren Buffett still invest in shares in certain banks.

Is It All About Bank Stocks?

Stocks are among the vital foundations of the bank, but ultimately a good stock is dependent on the quality of the loans in the bank’s list. Most investors agree that it is hard to recruit people who can produce earnings with the wave of the hand when the market is great, and loans look pretty good.

The possibility for you to get better returns when you invest in bank stocks can be improved if your stock is placed in a tax-advantaged account like a traditional IRA or Roth IRA. If you still don’t understand bank procedures or where to even begin, then you can compare the losses in other banks. If something’s out of line, then that should worry you.