Dollars and Cents

I ended up getting that car and it felt great to award myself with such a prestigious gift at a young age. The car I finally ended choosing was a 2000 Volkswagen Jetta. Soon after purchasing it I pimped it out with a myriad of accessories not taking into account how much my expenses were going to rise, but I never stopped saving.

In retrospect, I made a bad decision with the brand of car because I wanted to be different not knowing how costly a car like that was going to be service wise. During that time frame everybody my age had Honda’s or Toyota’s and I wanted to set myself apart from the norm. This post is not about a car or the aspects about buying new or used. What is this post about that can possibly teach you about money?

Smart Money Tips
1. Plan before making huge purchases –  I regretted the purchase later because I did not look into consumer reports to see how reliable this car brand actually was back then. If I would have known the amount of money I was looking at spending service wise I would have bought another brand.

2. Make goals specific to achieve them – This explains itself to the Tee. Misguided money does not grow point blank.

3. Never stop saving – This is how business owners and millionaires achieve financial freedom status. When in doubt save those dimes.

4. Always invest in your future – Also a given you do not just want your money hidden in a paltry .25 % savings account. Look for alternative ways to at least match or surpass the 3% inflation rate.

Saving for specific goals almost always makes a goal likely attainable than not having a goal. Also young people with so many opportunities to make it rain in the clubs, can and should save a few bucks for their future. Why must I keep running into this new generation of college grads who do not care to set aside a dime or two?

On top of this, investing to them is so out of their realm that most of them run from it like a plague. People, you can easily dollar cost average any stock investment with only 50 dollars a month and reduce your risk than going all in with 5 grand. Only $50 dollars a paycheck and you can have 100 shares of GE in a year and a few months. I think that is totally doable for somebody working full time or part time. This by no means is a rant against younger generations, but an eye opening event for the up and coming generation to be better prepared with financial sense. I hope now you have been enriched with a few common dollar and cents advice anyone can easily follow.

Always look for ways to watch your money!