Are You a Financial Marathon Runner?
Posted on 26 December, 2010 at 21:32 by Peter Kelly
With the Olympic games just around the corner, have you ever pondered which type of athlete you are most like when it comes to your finances? … Well Scottish Widows have conducted a survey which tells us exactly that.
Everyone deals with their finances in a different manner, and there are six types of ‘financial athletes’ which have been identified. Which one are you?:
- Sprinter – Save up quickly but spends it just as fast.
- Marathon runner – In it for the longer term, diligent and thrifty with their money.
- Javelin thrower – Only save when there’s a windfall but also spends lots of money in one go.
- Hurdler – Lurch from one financial crisis to the next one.
- High jumper – Never save and are happy to run financial risks.
- Long jumper – Only save for specific things, such as a car.
When it comes to our finances, Brits can most commonly identify themselves with ‘marathon runners’ (32%) who are careful with money in the long term, which is great news as the credit crunch means that there is less disposable income so acting in this manner should reduce the risk of getting into unaffordable debt.
The athlete that we are the least likely to be are ‘high jumpers’ meaning that we not likely to take risks with our money and not contribute to our savings.
Mike Hoban, Customer & Brand Marketing Director of Scottish Widows, says: “It’s important to prepare financially for the future, and it’s great news that people are really seeing that commitment now can mean seeing big benefits when you’re older.”