Fidelity: Here’s How To Recession-Proof Your Life
- May 13, 2025
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Millions of Americans are braced for a recession, and they have good reason to be. In early April, J.P. Morgan Research raised the likelihood of a recession in 2025 to 60%, up from 40%. The primary force driving the probability of a recession is trade tension ignited by President Donald Trump’s administration’s tariffs, which have triggered stock market volatility.
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Though everyone’s financial situation is unique, there are general moves we can all make, no matter our wealth status, to protect ourselves to the best extent possible from the harshest effects of an economic downturn. A new report by Fidelity discussed how to “recession-proof” your life. Let’s dig into five key ways.
Practice Mindfulness
Financial advice doesn’t often speak to the power of mindfulness. We hear about that more in conversations about mental health and wellness, but there’s a place for mindfulness in money matters, too. Tapping into it enables you to stay emotionally detached from your financial situation and keep your reactivity under control.
“Some people disengage from their finances in down markets because they feel anxiety at the thought of knowing how bad their situation might be,” said Brianna Middlewood, PhD, a director of behavioral research at Fidelity. “Others, meanwhile, engage more in down markets, spurred by feelings of fear into behaviors like panic selling.”
To practice mindfulness, you can meditate, do body scans to pinpoint areas of tension or simply be intentionally aware throughout the most mundane tasks of the day. The idea is to be present and get grounded.
Find Out: Trump Isn’t Ruling Out a Recession This Year — What Could That Mean for Your Wallet?
Stress-Test Your Financial Plan
What sort of financial plan do you adhere to? How are you progressing toward financial freedom ? We all need to be organized and goal-oriented here, but we also need to know that our plans are resilient and can weather a recession. Fidelity recommended stress-testing your financial plan by calculating how much savings you need to have set aside if you get hit by a recession (for example, you lose your job).
“The thing I worry about are the big shocks to the system — like a recession and being laid off. You want to try to ensure you have enough liquidity to get through those periods,” said David Peterson, head of wealth planning at Fidelity. “With a plan in place, you can play around with estimates.”