Many of our clients ask for financial books and other resources they can share with their loved ones to improve their financial literacy. When young people are armed with financial knowledge they make smarter financial decisions that will ultimately pay off in the long run.
When young adults are just getting started, financial information is best shared in bite-sized pieces which makes a 30-minute podcast the ideal medium for potentially life-changing financial tips.
If you know of someone who is a recent graduate from college and embark on their journey into the adult world, this is the episode for them. They’ll learn how to make the best financial decisions they can with their new paychecks. Please make sure to share this episode with the young people in your life.
Now is the time to start making smart financial decisions
The financial decisions you make today will impact your future and lead you to the life you want.
Making smart money decisions will give you stability and peace of mind and increase your options when you get older.
It can be difficult to delay gratification since it’s easier to say yes to spending money. However, if you can resist lifestyle creep from a young age you’ll be setting yourself up for a life with more flexibility.
Financial tips for starting your life off right
Following these tips will help you improve your financial stability and get your life started off on the right foot.
- Invest in yourself – Whether it is through networking, mentors, or certifications, investing in yourself is a way to increase your salary over time. Personal investments like these will compound just like finances.
- Avoid credit card debt – You’ve (hopefully) heard this before, but credit card debt compounds at higher interest rates and can quickly grow out of control. Pay off your credit card balance in full each month. Listen in to learn why it is a good idea to automate your credit card payments.
- Set up an emergency fund – Many people suggest having 3 to 6 months of savings set aside, but this amount can seem daunting at first. Instead, start saving until you have one month of expenses set aside. When you have this under your belt, later you can work on upping that amount to 3-6 months. Having this in place will increase your peace of mind and be an excellent buffer against the desire to turn to credit cards in an emergency.
- Automate what you can – The less you have to think about your finances the better you’ll do. Automate your utility, credit card, loans, and car payments in addition to saving in your 401K, Roth IRA, and other savings vehicles.
- Spend more on experiences and less on stuff – Experiences will give you more bang for your buck.
- Improve your credit score – Automating your payments will help ensure that you don’t miss any payment due dates. A higher credit score could save you thousands of dollars in interest over your life.
- Get the company match – Make sure that you are taking full advantage of any company match in your employer-sponsored 401K.
- Open a Roth IRA – The Roth IRA is the Swiss Army knife of retirement accounts. It is flexible and grows tax-free. Listen in to learn how much you can contribute each year.
- Understand how taxes work – Learning how the tax system will help you plan your deductions.
- Understand how inflation works – It’s important to understand that your purchasing power decreases through inflation. You can fight it, but you’ll need to know how.
Listening to content like this will help you focus on what you can control rather than what you can’t. Mony takes time to grow but what you do today will add up over time—press play and learn how to make the most of your earning power.
Outline of This Episode
- [3:09] Making good financial decisions now will help you in your future
- [5:45] Avoid credit card debt
- [9:15] Automate what you can
- [11:35] Spend more on experiences
- [14:30] Improve your credit score
- [15:54] Get the company match
- [25:44 Never stop learning
Resources & People Mentioned
- BOOK – Happy Money by Elizabeth Dunn
- How I Invest My Money YouTube video
- The Humble Dollar blog
- The College Investor
- BOOK – Saving for Retirement by Ben Carlson
- BOOK – I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
- BOOK – How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
- BOOK – Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley and William Danko
- NAPFA – find fee-only financial advisors
- XY Planning Network – more fee-only financial advisors
- Let the Compounding Commence!
