A Personal finance blog for saving money and earning more and thus having a better life
Are you moving to the US for work? I moved here in 2005 from India on a work visa. In this post, I’ll write about things to do in initial days.
How financial system in the US looks like and what you should do protect your family and property, invest your money and most importantly, how can you save money in this expensive country?
I was ever willing to write this post , I spent hours researching for it. This topic is what I was searching forever since I landed in this country.
Just like any other goal, financial success requires the practice of good financial habits. If you want to finally eliminate debt, increase your personal savings, and achieve financial security for yourself and your family, you need to take a good look at your current spending. Assess which ones are truly necessary, and start making changes to the way you budget and spend your money.
To me, being financially stable and having a lot of money are not synonymous. You may have a large income but, it doesn’t always mean you’re financially stable. Financial stability ensures that you are capable enough to hold on to the wealth, even during difficult times. So, irrespective of your financial situation, you should strive to become financially stable and develop the habits of a financially stable person.
When I was younger I was in the Boy Scouts. Like many, I started in grade school with the Cub Scouts and moved up the ranks. Ultimately, I fell short of the Eagle rank by one level, but the lessons learned over my scouting career have stuck with me through the years. Looking back on it now through the eyes of someone who must manage bills, work and family, I think the scouts helped me build a solid framework for future money management skills.
I’d like to take you on a journey through my five favorite parts of the Boy Scout Law and demonstrate how each has had an impact on me when it comes to managing my finances. Hopefully, by the end of this post you too will be prepared to go out and be a good scout with your money.
When I first started earning money it was 2000, I was in India. I straightaway jumped for stocks and within a year my invested amount lost half of its value. Poor stock picking coupled with the burst of the dot-com bubble taught me what not to do with money when you are a beginner. Since then I committed many mistakes, at the same time, I did things that worked very well for me.
A few of the mutual funds I bought between 2003 and 2005 got almost tripled its value before I sold them off. I had mentored people towards their first investing since then, A little disclaimer, I am not a financial expert and don’t take my advice for granted, consult with someone you trust before taking any of the steps I mentioned below. The following ideas are lessons I learned with my life and lives of the people (at work and within the family) who came to me for advice.
When we were young we had the capacity to dream – and we had big dreams. I remember that I wanted to be the aeronautical engineer and a neurosurgeon at the same time, and I actually wanted to become a bird at a time? However, as we grow older, the realities of life set in and we have to specialize and pick a job out of the many jobs that interest us. People build careers in different fields such as education, business, technology, healthcare, sports, and arts among other things.
Irrespective of the career path you chose, you’d still need to make a number of financial decisions at different stages in your life; folks who do not have a background in finance are often at a disadvantage in the crossroad of making financial decisions.
Stoicism is a school of Greek philosophy founded in Athens whose followers practice a way of life that focuses not on what a person says but on how they act. To live a good life, one has to understand the rules of human behavior since Stoic lessons teach that everything happening around you is rooted in your own mind.
What does this have to do with financial success?
Let’s take a look at five Stoic principles that should form the bedrock of your own financial success.
We have some beliefs around money, which we cultivate since our childhood. Sometimes they are the beliefs shared to us by our parents. Sometimes we assume on our own. Do you have some time to think about those beliefs? You should take some time out and relfect on those beliefs.
You never know how many of money concepts we have are actually not true. Some beliefs are limiting, some are no longer valid in our generation. Some are partially applicable to our lives. Let’s discuss 10 most prominent money beliefs that you should avoid, as those might hinder not only your financial life but your life in general
Personal finance can be seen as personal or it can be treated as a small business, whatever works for you to give it your first priority. I see it as a set of personal goals. At the same time, I do tend to think sometimes that as I am the only bread earner, I am the CEO of this company and my wife and son are the employees.
Which means our little family is a small business and I got to take care of the business and my employees.
The sole purpose of drawing similarity between a personal finance and small business is that for some of you who would love to work with this imaginary scenario in order to succeed.
When it comes to money, making more of it does not necessarily mean you have more to spend. Even people bringing in six or seven-figure incomes can run into financial problems if they don’t have basic budgeting management skills in place. The way you spend and save money on an everyday basis impacts your overall financial health, both in the short- and long-term.
Not sure where to begin? Take a look at seven ways to get your finances in better shape.
If you have high-interest credit card debt, now is the time to pay it off (and not rack any more up). In late 2015, the Federal Reserve announced the first rate hike in over a decade. Several more are expected over the next few years and this interest could add up quickly, depending on your balance.
There are two kinds of people, one who manage their finances and the other who do not have any clue about their finances. Even those who manage their finances are not very regular. One excuse – “I have no time to go over my finances, regularly”. In this post, I’ll discuss steps that can help you to get motivated to go over your finances, regularly. Checking on your financial health periodically is an essential aspect of managing your personal finance.
Are you ever bored with your finances? Honestly, who really wants to review their saving and spending every month (aside from us personal finance nerds that do it weekly, just for fun)? For many, tracking income and expenses is on the same excitement level as paying bills. However, if you go about it the right way, tracking your money can actually be kind of fun for almost anybody.
