We’re well into the Awesome Finances challenge, and some of you might be feeling like this is all a lot of trouble. I get that — most people aren’t overjoyed to be thinking about finances.
But it’s definitely worth the trouble.
Whether you’re doing fine but want to automate and simplify your investments, or especially if you’re in debt trouble … taking a little time to sort our your finances and get on track for a better place is well worth the time investment. Just a month of daily sessions can turn things around for life, if you put in some effort.
Lend me your ears for just a minute, and I’ll tell you why it’s worth your trouble.
If You’re in Debt
If the amount of debt you have is at all a stressor to you, then you’re in a bit of trouble. I think of it as a critical situation … but one that you can get out of if you take some strong measures.
Why is it critical? Because you are in danger of drowning in debt, and not being able to get out. Because you’re wasting a lot of your income on interest (and maybe late penalties if you’re not on time).
For example, let’s say you spent $1,000 on a computer … and you put it on your credit card. You decide to just pay the minimum on the card … not only does it take you forever to pay off the bill, because of interest, that $1,000 computer ends up costing you $2,000! That means you’re paying double for that computer, because of interest. You also pay double the amount for your car if you get a loan, and perhaps triple the value of your house because of a mortgage.
Interest is often like giving your money away, or taking a really bad deal on your purchases. It also squeezes your finances tighter, so you don’t have room to breathe.
Consider these reasons why it’s worth the trouble to do this module:
- If you can relieve some of your financial stress, this will be a big burden lifted off your mind. All the time.
- If you have an emergency, it’s possible you don’t have the financial security to deal with it right now. If you start to fix that, your financial security increases.
- You’ll stop wasting so much of your income on interest.
- You’ll start to make interest on savings instead, or get your investments make even more money for you.
- Automating your finances means you don’t have to worry about the little payments and transfers all the time.
- The habits you build this month will compound over time, so that in a decade or two, with only a little effort this month, you’ll be in an incredible financial place.
- You’ll gain a sense of control over your life that you might not have right now.
Those are only some of the reasons, of course, but they’re good ones. I don’t guarantee all these results, and again, I’m not a certified financial planner … but what we’ll be doing this month are learning some common-sense financial lessons, and most importantly forming the habits that will get them implemented.
If You Want to Invest
If you’re not struggling with debt, you’re in a better place … but perhaps you’ve been putting off coming up with an investment strategy because you don’t know much about it or haven’t had time to think about it.
Now’s the time to put in the effort! It’s probably easier than you think.
Here’s why it’s worth it:
- Instead of paying interest on debt, you can make your money grow over time with savings interest, and better yet, earnings on investment.
- If you start now, over the years this will grow and grow into a mountain of cash. Beautiful!
- Automating the investments means you make a few simple choices now, and don’t worry about it.
- If you’re paying a financial manager now, you should subtract his/her fees from any earnings you make, which means you’re probably not making anything. Same goes with a fund that has a manager (they all charge fees). So if you learn to go with low-cost funds, you will be doing more with your money.
- If you take charge of your finances, you’ll have a sense of control and security you didn’t before.
- It’s easy! You’re in the easy track of this course, to be honest. Just find an extra amount to save and invest, make a few simple choices, and automate it!
This is why you should get going this month, and see your money start to be put to good use. Again, I’m not a financial planner, but I have put a lot of very good advice from others into action, and it’s working very well for me. I’ll show you what I’ve learned.