Every fall an email lands with a subject line like "Open enrollment is here," and most of us click renew on whatever we picked last year. I get it. The portal is confusing, the deadline is two weeks out, and nobody in our families ever sat us down and explained a deductible.
Your benefits are part of your pay, and nobody at orientation says that out loud. Picking them on autopilot hands someone else the decision on how a few thousand dollars of your salary gets spent. So block thirty minutes, pour a cafecito, and run these five checks.
1. Am I getting the whole match?
If your job offers a retirement match, find the exact formula in the benefits guide. It usually reads something like "we match X percent of your contribution up to Y percent of your salary." Whatever Y is, contribute at least that much. A match you leave on the table is pay you earned and never collected.
While you are in there, check whether you have raised your contribution since last year. If you got a raise, moving even one more percent into retirement before the bigger check hits your account is the least painful way to save there is.
2. Does my health plan fit the year I am actually going to have?
Pull up what you spent on care this year: visits, prescriptions, the urgent care trip. Then compare the plans on total cost, which is the premium for the year plus what you would realistically pay out of pocket. A low premium plan with a high deductible can be the cheaper choice for a healthy year and the expensive one for a year with a baby, a surgery or a new prescription. Plan for the year in front of you.
3. If I pick a high deductible plan, am I using the HSA?
A health savings account lets you set money aside before taxes for medical costs, and the money stays yours even if you leave the job. Some employers put money in for you. Check this year's contribution limit on the IRS or your benefits page, since it changes, and at minimum grab anything your employer is offering for free.
4. What else is hiding in the guide?
This section is where the good stuff hides. Commuter benefits, dependent care accounts, tuition help, a free financial counseling line, a gym stipend, life and disability insurance at group rates, an employee assistance program. Read the table of contents once. A lot of it is already part of your compensation, so use it.
5. Who are my beneficiaries?
Open your retirement account and your life insurance and look at who is listed. New baby, new partner, a breakup, a loss in the family: if any of that happened since you last looked, update it today. It takes five minutes and it is one of the most loving pieces of paperwork you will ever do.
Do it on a money date
Put the thirty minutes on your calendar a full week before the deadline. Bring last year's spending, your benefits guide and something warm to drink.
If you are also eyeing a raise or a new role this year, the Career Glow-Up Kit is free and has the prep I would want you to have before that conversation: https://mail.therichhermana.com/products/the-rich-hermana-career-glow-up-kit
One thing before Friday: find your match formula and confirm you are getting every dollar of it. Then come tell us what surprise perk you found in Hermana HQ, the free community where the 9 to 5 crowd swaps notes on exactly this kind of thing: https://mail.therichhermana.com/community
Con amor, Ixamar 🌺
This is education from my own experience, never personalized financial, tax or insurance advice. Your plan documents and HR team have the final word on your options.