Illinois Money Wellness Messages
Thank you for participating in our Illinois Money Wellness text campaign! Over the last year, you’ve received messages with financial wellness information and tips that encourage good money habits. You can review all of the text messages you received on this page.
Taking care of your money, saving and having good credit all take work. Remember that you are doing a great job and that building good money habits is a journey. Keep going!
What have you learned about managing your money? You can email us at ask@ndi-inc.org to share your success.
Message 1
Every week, you will receive tips related to money and budgeting to help you improve your overall financial wellness. Please share texts that help you with your family and friends. This campaign is supported by the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities.
Message 2
Today, let’s think about what you use money for. Whether you use money on your own to pay for things or someone else takes care of it for you…where does your money go? Think of 3 things your money is spent on by you or by others for you.
Message 3
#ILMoneyWellness: If someone else takes care of your money for you, you may think it is not important to learn about money. But it is important for ALL individuals to learn about financial wellness. To learn about financial wellness, check out this blog.
Message 4
#ILMoneyWellness: What are different ways you get the money you need to live? Examples might be: from a job, from Social Security benefits or from family. Make a list of ways you get money.
Message 5
#ILMoneyWellness: Many people get money from their job. If you want help with finding a job to earn money, visit your local American Job Center (AJC). Find an AJC near you.
Message 6
#ILMoneyWellness: Do you use your money only on needs or do you also use it on wants? Let’s talk about needs… Needs are things like the home you live in and the food you eat. Make a list of your needs.
Message 7
#ILMoneyWellness: This week, let’s think about wants. Wants are things that you don’t need to live but are fun to have… Things like movies, games and vacations. Make a list of your wants.
Message 8
#ILMoneyWellness: This week, look at your list of things that you spend money on that are “needs” and “wants.” What items are on these lists? You can reply to this message and share some of your needs vs. wants.
Message 9
#ILMoneyWellness: If you track your money, you may be surprised at how much you spend. A great way to see your spending patterns is to keep a spending diary for a week. Write down everything you spend money on for each day of the week. Here is a link to a spending diary.
Message 10
#ILMoneyWellness: How did you do keeping your spending diary for a week? Look at your spending diary and circle the items that were “needs” and those that were “wants.” Try keeping a spending diary for one more week and decreasing the amount of money you spend on wants.
Message 11
#ILMoneyWellness: Paying attention to where your money comes from and where it goes takes time and effort…Nice job keeping a spending diary! This will help you create a spending plan. Have you created a spending plan or budget before? Text back “yes” or “no”
Message 12
#ILMoneyWellness: Making a spending plan helps you know how much money you need to pay your bills. A spending plan also shows if you have money to save for the things you want and dream about. Watch this video on how to create your spending plan.
Message 13
#ILMoneyWellness: You can visit this link for a spending plan worksheet.
Use the worksheet to create a spending plan for yourself this week.
Message 14
#ILMoneyWellness: We all have dreams and goals. What are yours? What dreams and goals can you make real by saving money? This week, write down your goals and dreams. Text us your Number 1 goal.
Message 15
#ILMoneyWellness: Look at your goals and dreams from last week and use your spending plan worksheet to see how much money you can save towards reaching those goals and dreams. How much can you save per month?
Message 16
#ILMoneyWellness: Did you create a savings goal to help you reach your goals and dreams? Text back and let us know if you did. What is your goal?
Message 16
#ILMoneyWellness: Did you create a savings goal to help you reach your goals and dreams? Text back and let us know if you did. What is your goal?
This campaign is supported by:
This campaign is supported in part by grant number CFDA 93.630 from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.
