There’s no about it, life comes at us awfully fast. It seems like just yesterday we graduated from school, now were married and expecting our first child.
At time’s, life can be so overwhelming and we’re so bogged down by day to day life that we fail to look at the big picture! We all need to have our ducks
in a row for when we send our kids off to college, when we retire or even more so if we became ill – we still must be able to provide for our loved ones.
Are you living financially stable; are you prepared for your future?
If you are anything like me, I am constantly setting new goals and working hard to achieve them. But I’ve always thought to my self “Am I prepared for what’s next?”
It is most important when we’re in our younger years that we create a life plan and stick to it. This will ensure you are covered during emergencies, as well as
once we finally retire and enjoy our “Golden Years.”
Financial Stability
1.) We need to learn at a young age to be disciplined about our money, we work so hard for our earnings! It all boils down to learning good financial habits.
Saving a certain amount that you are comfortable with from each paycheck, this is the first step to success. Savings means saving! We learn to put it away and
we don’t touch it unless it is an absolute emergency. Once you get into this habit, we will quickly see how fast your money is growing. A good habit to get into is
making a deposit to your savings account before paying any other bills. This amount is an amount you can comfortably afford, never skip paying a bill to pay
into your savings account.
2.) Be rigid with yourself and review your monthly budget. Do you find that you are spending a lot of wasted money on unnecessary items such as fast food?
It’s amazing how much money people waste per month on fast food! Cut it back, maybe treat you only once per week instead of several times per week – watch
your savings account grow! Learning to live more frugally will defiantly be beneficial to your future!
3.) It’s so important to invest at a young age into your future. Why put planning for retirement off till later when you can do it now? You will be amazed to
see the growth of your investments over time. This is especially beneficial if you start doing this in your early 20’s.
4.) We always must keep our family secure, so it is always necessary to have an emergency fund set aside. There is so much that pops up in life and it all
costs money to fix or repair, so it’s always best to be prepared for these emergencies.
5.) Learn to avoid debt, or at least eliminate it altogether! This is credit cards, personal loans etc. My philosophy is if I can’t pay for it with cash, then I need to save
for it till I’m able to buy with cash. Why pay all this extra interest to major banks and allow them to make money off your purchases on plastic? If you must use
credit cards, always learn to make a good habit of paying them off monthly so you’re not paying outrageous money in interest. Also keep in mind that each card
you carry typically comes with a yearly membership fee just to own the card! Keep credit cards to a minimum and only use in dire emergencies.
6.) It is also important to get into the habit of paying your bills at the beginning of the month, this way it’s taken care of. Most companies now charge their customers
for late payments, don’t allow this to happen. If you follow your budget and are in control of your finances, there is no reason you should be paying late fees to
your creditors.
7.) Learn about your net worth and do what ever you can to improve this. Improving your net worth is easily done by reducing your debt, increasing your
savings, increasing your income etc. If you learn to calculate your net worth each month, you will see it grow and that feels awesome!
The key is to remain in control of what is coming in each month and what is going out each month. Learn to make a budget and stick with it. When we start doing
this in our younger years, it is so beneficial to you when your become older. Most of the younger generation doesn’t look at the big picture, everything we do to
better our future starts with what we are contributing to our lives each and everyday.