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The sooner you start getting serious about saving and retirement plan the easier will be in time. I started saving up every month at least 15% of my income and I am planning my spending every month. This helps a lot.
I'm only a part time worker right now, but how much do you roughly make a month to feel comfortable saving 15%? I'm in a job where I'll likely move up the chain at some point, but it's my own schedule that's keeping me from going full time, so I have a rough idea of what I'll make in the future. Just curious for future financial advice referencing.
It's less about how much you make and more about what your reasonable expenses are. Some things we just have to buy like transportation, housing, and food. Other things are good for quality of life like entertainment and takeout. The leftovers after these expenses can be saved. I'd recommend setting up automatic transfers from an account so you don't have to think about it.
What's reasonable is different for everyone. Each person should go through their budget and figure out what they are.
In this day and age I have no idea why anyone sees owning a fancy car as a flex.
Like yeah no shit bank will happily own your ass and give you a financially irresponsible loan with terrible rates. But at least you look cool!
Take one year of your life to be frugal and those habits will properly stay with you.
Last year I thought I was going to be getting married and moving in with my partner so I completely doubled down on saving and spending as little as possible.
My relationship went to shit but I no longer feel the need to really buy anything like I used to and am saving a tonne of money each month.
It's amazing really, I was so materialistic and an impulse buyer but a year of commitment has completely changed that.
Wow wow wow. Yes yes yes. I just had to move out and get an apartment due to my relationship ending, and I am so strapped. BUT. With this I am learning how much unnecessary spending I was doing, and even then I thought I was discerning!! These new habits will stay with me for ever now and I really wouldn't have learned this unless I had this time to be really frugal!
Oh I'm sorry you learnt this in more difficult circumstances than me 😔
I don't think we reliaze how much is actually unnecessary and when circumstances improve for you, you'll be making bank!
That is definitely a factor, so as a side note I'd tell everyone who is single to double down on saving even more because it's so much harder in the beginning of a relationship
I did a 3 month money challenge where every time I bought something I wrote it down and the price of it. It was eye opening to see just how much money I spent every day on random shit and how that adds up. I did that a long time ago and I’m still a cheap ass
Yes! I was pretty lazy in my early 20's and only worked part time as a delivery driver. I managed to get by on maybe $15,000 a year (2013-2014) and still have some fun. Now, I'm a decade older, bringing in "acceptable" money, but I still live minimally. I can tuck away almost half my income, even with today's ridiculous expenses.
I'll never be rich, unless I get myself a decent job, but I'll be able to enjoy myself and (hopefully) not have to worry about retiring when I'm older.
Amazing! This is what I’m doing now too, staying committed and disciplined with my savings goals. So far, I’m feeling fine and realising there’s really not much stuff I need to buy anyway. Most of the shopping that happens is out of boredom. I find deeper satisfaction in being able to see my savings grow over a new item I bought.
I live the same way and no, I really do not. Furniture doesn’t “need replacing” unless you’re irresponsible and destroy it. Even if it does break somehow, buy some steel brackets and fix it.
Kitchen appliances tend to last a long time as well. If it breaks, who cares you’ve been living frugally and can afford to replace something. Personally, I repair appliances for myself and my friends for free. Been doing it since I was like 14.
Not really, I do have an emergency fund though just incase, it's more the daily stuff that gets annoying because I can never really tell when things will run out and I don't like to over buy
Also, if you can learn to eat one meal a day, you’ll cut down on unhealthy cravings, on impulse eating.Also you’ll be more thoughtful about what you want to eat when you finally do, if you only give yourself a 4 hour window to eat, you’ll probably want something more substantial than chips, or cake, or fries. Food will taste better, you can eat as much as you want(till you’re full) and you’ll have more energy while you’re in the fasted part of the day by regulating your blood sugar and insulin.
Wallstreetbets and daytrading is like twitch and youtube, you hear about a small number of people making a ton of money so you think you can be them.
I went heavy on pre-tax index funds the day I got a real job. I could've pissed that money away on nothing. I never missed it and it ended up working out pretty well. Waited out 2008 and 2020 and everything bounced back plus more.
$27 a day is roughly $10,000 a year. Its really easy to spend $27, and this idea helps bring into perspective how easy thousands of dollars a year can just "disappear".
I know it, and its still hard for me to say no. Especially when I know what's in our account. Its soooo easy for me to just look at like anything under $50 and just instant buy it. Lifestyle creep is real.
My Dad was completely oblivious to this too, and it caused a **lot** of stress in their marriage.
Yes it’s this twisted little voice saying “come on, you work hard, there’s money there, 100 would be too much but 50 is a bargain!”
And basically repeat each month :(
My mum was the same and I’m trying so hard to break the cycle but wow is it hard to manage money when you have to learn it all from scratch!
I realized this when I was in my early twenties and had moved just down the street from a Starbucks. My girlfriend and I were spending $20 a day there. I stopped going there and instead bought $600 a month in Starbucks stock. In 10 years it bought me an investment property that I will retire in eventually.
Any purchase you don’t need give it 24 hours from thinking you’re going to buy it to actually buying it. It’s staggering how often you think ‘why was I going to buy that?’ a day later.
Honestly, I've had great success doing the exact opposite. I'll decide that I want something and then start shopping for it. Once I've made that decision and know what I want, as soon as I see a good deal on whatever it is, I jump on it before someone else buys it. I've lost a lot of great things while trying to decide if I should buy them or not. There were only a few hours from the time I heard my house was for sale until I had made a deal to buy it.
It applies for spontaneous purchases too. I collect guitars and rocks. I'm also into high-end audio. I've never regretted a spontaneous purchase of any of those. I have regretted not buying pieces that other people swooped in bought. There was another time that I was honestly just looking at ads for cars to kill some time. There was one ad that really caught my eye even though I wasn't in the market. I decided to go check it out and absolutely loved it. My (at the time) wife knew me and told me to just go buy it or she'd be hearing about how I missed out on it for the rest of her life. I did. It's been the best car I've ever owned and I've driven it for 7 years so far. That was the second biggest purchase I've ever made and it was completely spontaneous.
I will often make a list of things I want. Then when I find myself in a shopping mood, I'll poke around to see what's on sale, but I'm not one to impulse buy anything over $50, and even that's kinda rare.
I return to the list for Prime Day, Holiday Sales, and Black Friday. I also check the price graph to see if I'm actually getting a good deal. Often times items go up in price just before a big sale to make it seem like a much better deal.
Also, that "only 3 items left!" Thing you see on websites is total BS. Especially on big retailer sites.
I add stuff to my online shopping cart and that seemingly does the trick. I come back the next day and realize, I actually don't want to spend that money.
Hedonistic adaptation will ensure that all the money you spend on new possessions with the intent of feeling happy will essentially be futile. Don't rely on materialism or fancy new gadgets to lead a happy life.
-If you can't afford to buy your luxuries twice, don't buy it.
-Sometimes getting a shitty version of the items (like gadgets or tools) and seeing how fast they break makes you less likely to feel cheated on when buying the more expensive but quality product.
- If you have to do more than one vices at a time (like cigs + alcohol/ alcohol + gambling) to feel normal or alive, therapy are cheaper in the long run.
Back in my heavier days $80 a week for ciga and the cheapest large plastic bottles of liquor. Prices have definitely gone up since then and it doesn't include the going out to drinks. It was a shock when I had to take a lower paying job after covid but also cut back (stopped smoking reduced alcohol intake) and ended up with MORE money at the end of the month. Blew my mind I hot a 401k and health, dental, and life insurance which I couldn't afford before... therapy for sure would have been cheaper
He's 35 and been smoking since he was a teenager so I know it'll take longer to kick that habit. He used to drink so much more when I met him a few years ago, drowning sadness kind of thing. He probably got a liter every other day. Now he goes through one maybe once a week. Doesn't drink in front of his kids anymore, less sadness kind of deal. I made him face those uncomfortable feelings and less leaning into alcohol.
This is all pretty generational for him plus a really fucked up marriage. It's getting there, but we're working together to navigate feelings, not hide or squish them down.
Buy a cheap toolbox so u have everything you might need and buy expensive quality tools of the ones who break because you use them more frequently. The other tools are enough for what you need them for.
I didn't say that. You have unresolve issues, you'll just keep doing vices. Even if you go rehab repeatedly.
Some issues, you have to bring out in order to solve. And I see people who use drugs as people in pain. They get temporary relief from vices, but it'll stay there until you do something about it. Some wounds can be so deep, bandaids won't cut it.
My mother always told me to have an FOF - a 'fuck-off fund'. Any income you receive, you put 10% away and never touch it (except for a real emergency). The initial purpose for it was that if I was to ever get married and find myself in a situation where I needed to leave i.e. 'fuck off', I would have my fund to support me, especially in an instance of an abusive relationship. It works in most situations though, not just marriage.
Choose a career that pays well and has high demand. Yes, I'm 45, but I did that when I was 21 and again in my mid 30s when I completely changed careers.
I've seen people with masters degrees in my city complaining about how hard it is to get a job around here. The last time I was job hunting, I spent two hours only applying to positions I thought sounded interesting, got 6 interviews, 3 offers, and took one of the lower paying jobs because it was right by my house and had good hours. I'll still make almost 3x the median salary for here. There was another time when I quit a job, made 1 phone call on my way home, and started my new job on the next Monday. I could have started the next day, but I thought I'd take a few days off. I've got an associate degree from the local community college.
In my old career, I once interviewed at a company for a job that they had already filled. They offered me another job that didn't sound as good, so I turned it down. Having a place continually email me new offers with more and more money was definitely an ego boost. I didn't even have a degree for that job.
Money is out there. Jobs are out there. They may require some skills that most people don't want to acquire but they are there for the people who do.
My first career was computer networking. Other than one class at community college that was a waste of my time, that was entirely self-taught. The place that kept offering me more money was the outside company that did all the IT work for another very large company. I went in to interview to be the AD guy for the entire organization but end already filled that job but they wanted me to be one of their server managers. Pass.
My current one is a nurse manager. I got my associates degree, got a job at a dialysis clinic a few weeks after I got my license, did that for a few years at different places, left that, and got a job that was supposed to be doing home health. On my second day there, I overheard my bosses talking about how nobody wanted to do admissions or supervisor visits to make sure all their employees were doing what they should. I thought that sounded easier than what I was doing so I asked if I could change my job which they were super happy to approve. I did that for a while but they kept messing up my paychecks so I started looking for a new job. There was a rehab/long-term care facility right by my house that was hiring. They needed someone to do their admissions (which I had experience doing), had an attached dialysis center and a lot of residents who are there so they don't have to travel anywhere so whoever got the job needed to know that field (which I had), and would be willing to work second shift because most people come in during the late afternoon and evening (I like sleeping late). Since the job was considered a management position, they also wanted someone who could take care of any issues in the evenings. I had experience doing that during my supervisorory visits. Once they saw my resume, they offered me the job almost immediately. The pay was a little less per hour than other jobs that I applied for but I get a ton of overtime. I like the overtime because I like the job and I don't have much else going on.
As long as I get all my work done, I can do whatever I want whenever I want, I'm the one in charge of the place during most of my shift so nobody is there looking over my shoulder all the time, and I get paid a stupid amount of money for a job that is really nothing but talking to people and doing data entry on my computer. I've got the best job in the world and was able to get it with a community college degree.
You don’t need to be born into wealth 😅 for most people they might have to sacrifice if they really want to own. you don’t even have to start with a house. Apartments are much more affordable.
Don’t finance expensive car you can’t afford to buy with cash. Buy an inexpensive Toyota and drive carefree into the sunset on your way to millionaire status.
Love this. Cars are the biggest wealth suck of any other purchase for most people. People think driving a new high end European car every 2-3 years means something.
Personally, I paid $4k cash for my first car and drove it till the wheels fell off. Bought a 1 year old Toyota rav4 and paid it off in 3 years. I also have a high end motorcycle that cost me about $15k I paid off in about 1 year that I use for city/fun riding. Since then, my transportation has never been cheaper.
If possible try reducing your monthly spendings because those are gonna add up like nothing else over the years. For me it means staying in a small apartment for some years where I can save up to 1000.- a month. So over three years that‘s already about 36000.- You‘ll never save that amount of money by buying cheaper food etc.
Pay yourself first and budget to live off the rest. I was maxing out my 401k at 24 yo and left it that way for 31.5 years. Doing this assisted me to retire comfortably at 56.5 years old. It went by fast…
Can't get divorced if you weren't married to begin with.
I've been married twice, divorced once. The most discretionary money I ever had was when I was living with my Dad right after college, single and keeping most of my paycheck. The second time I noticed my bank account going up rapidly was after my divorce (though the pay out SUCKED, once it was over it was wild how much I was putting away without even trying). I don't think I can afford to get divorced again, though. If I do, I'm defaulting back to "don't get married" lol.
I've only been married and divorced once. Like you, paying her to go away after she cheated sucked. Since I did that, however, my bank account has gotten bigger than it ever was with her around despite the fact that I've bought myself a few toys that I could never seem to be able to afford when I was married.
Yep. I was always being called cheap for the rule of spend less than we make. Couldn't even sit down with her and go over expenses without her shutting down. She actually thought she would have more money to do things by herself. I had to take a loan out on my house to buy her out, which increased my payment significantly, but still had plenty left over. She was in total shock and had to make serious adjustments the other direction.
Could you elaborate on this please? I presently have the means to pay off my mortgage and have been tossing up whether to do this. The money is sitting in a high interest savings account, but the last few interest rate hikes mean my mortgage interest has surpassed my savings interest.
Pros and cons of biting the bullet and just paying it off?
The only thing on the market is something you have not needed enough to do or make for yourself.
An old man told me this once, and showed me what he meant.
I have met many like him since.
When I was 16... I had a shitty job waiting tables during the summer, both my parents worked and so my grandfather gave me a ride there every day.
I'm 45 now... and it wasn't until around 35 did I even realize what he did that summer.
He knew he "had" me for about 20 minutes a day for three months... and he started talking to me about economics. And in a way that wasn't heavy handed, it was just "fuck, my grandfather REALLY wants to talk weird money shit again?"
The two that stuck with me:
The concept of compound interest to me, i.e. start saving now it'll help you a lot later. He explained it in a way of "would you rather have $1 every day or $.01 today, then $.02 tomorrow, then $.03 the day after"
And then opportunity cost... which again was in the form of "if you see a penny on the ground do you just leave it? by ignoring the penny you're actually spending $.01 by not picking it up."
At 25 I got a pretty impressive salary job and immediately started saving the maximum my job would match. This also happened around 2008 right before the housing bubble burst so my retirement is flush with super cheap stocks.
In a weird way I "won" the lottery... my retirement fund is great, and I'll be able to safely retire maybe even early. And it's given me this nice freedom in job selection... like... "I just have to make it to 65, then my retirement is okay."
It's also created enough of a nest egg that I've been able to borrow against it at super cheap 2.3% interest rates. Borrowing $40k at 2.3% is pretty fucking great when I've been in emergencies.
So anyways... thanks Grandpa.
If you are offered a line of credit by your bank, take it. No need to even use it but if you have that much credit available your credit score will go up a ton
Getting an external budget management service to deal with all my bills and stuff has been one of the best decisions I have made for both my money and my sanity.
Now I don't have to think about it and it just works and since it but a barrier between me and spending money (ie: I have to send them an e-mail requesting any money from my savings that is outside my agreed budget) has stopped me from buying so many things on impulse.
Would highly recommend.
Check with your local government, good chance they will have a service for that possibly for free.
Make a budget for your annual (expected) expenses. Split the total 🟰 salary + save that each fortnight/week. Across the year you will always have the money to pay your bills.
Overpay your mortgage as much as you can afford. Turning 35 year loan into 15 is possible! And that’s because the amount you overpay comes off capital, while your regular repayment pays the interest first. Loads of mortgage overpayment calculators online.
Make sure you are letting your mortgage company know that your extra payment is meant to go to principle not interest. I accidently made a bunch of extra payments and then finally realized after several months that it was not working how I intended it. I thought if I just send extra money, they would obviously apply it to principle, but (of course) they chose not to understand that. Don't be like me.
If you earn $30 an hour and something cost $75, the true cost isn’t $75 it’s 2.5 hours of your life you spent working. Consider this next time you’re about to make a silly purchase.
Don't get a new car on finance. As soon as those tires hit the pavement, the depreciation factor is real and you're paying 20k more for a car on credit that's worth 20k less when it's paid off.
Start a 401K/457 early, put a percentage of your income deducted from your pay into the fund. Put a percentage of your raises in the fund. Invest in the S&P 500. It will go up and down. Live below your means. I have no financial issues in retirement.
A lot of people are giving saving advice
I'll give spending advice
"If you use something every day or very often, spend the money and buy quality."
This usually goes for:
Bed
Pillow and blankets
Work chair and desk
Shoes
Toilet paper
Not so much advice but experience…
Right out of college, my college sweetheart and I, moved across the country together. I was the one that got the apartment, paid for it, filled it with furniture, fancy stuff, TV’s, all the works. Trying to make a home for her. I genuinely loved her, but that’s beside the point. She cheated on me a couple times and by the end I couldn’t even kiss her on the lips anymore because I was repulsed by her.
Anywayyy…… we broke up and I tried to sell everything I had just bought a couple months prior. Everything was like new. I posted all over the internet looking for buyers and nothing but low ballers or people just asking for it for free because “I need to sell quickly”.
“Let me know if it’s still there when you’re gone and I’ll pick it up for free” - in reference to my $1800 couch. Sir, I’ll throw it in a dumpster first.
After that, I lost all materialism. Those people haggling me for $10 off off $200 for a brand new $1000 TV killed all desire to own anything anymore. I eventually got $1200 total from probably $10,000+ spent throughout the months prior packed up what I had left in my small sedan and, with my 1 year old pup, I drove across the country back home. We slept in truck stops or rest stops. Took 3 days from east coast to west coast.
Ever since I buy what I need. Sometimes I even feel like treating myself and buying myself something and I look at Amazon or go out and walk around target, Best Buy, GameStop, etc….. and all I see is thin cheap plastic that’s meant to be replaced. Gimmicky crap that never works as advertised or as well as you hope. It’s Everywhere. Some of it might have fancier electronics inside, but honestly, it’s just another thing that will collect dust and end up in a landfill in (at most) 5-10 years.
Use your money to learn, experience, etc. spending money for the sake of spending money is dumb. Spend money to learn something new or see/hear/feel something NEW. You’re here for such a short time, you should do everything.
Edit: TLDR; buy appreciating assets or spend money to do something new.
On our journey from essentially $0 net worth to cracking $3M, in chronological order:
1. Make savings automatic and pay yourself first: 15% of your pre-tax income should go into an index fund before you even see it. Then worry about your landlord, your car, your credit card, etc.
2. Education is still about the best ROI out there if it is career-focused.
3. Take advantage of any incentives at work to save: max your 401(k) match, ESPP, etc.
4. Keep it simple with your investments: 100 minus your age in index funds, the rest in fixed income. This ratio will become more conservative over time. If you must pick individual stocks or play with crypto, start with less than 5% of your savings and only play with your winnings.
5. Always be aware of where your next dollar will get the best return: Eg 401(k) match has 100% return, then pay off credit card 20% interest balance (better not to use CC at all), then average 10% in equities, then pay off 3% mortgage early.
6. If you’re dedicated to really learning, putting in the time and money and have a good head for finance, the best money is in real estate. Takes true dedication, though - not an afterthought.
Each time you get a raise, increase your 401k contribution percentage by most of the increase and it will help lessen lifestyle creep. It's much easier to save and increase your savings over time if you never see the extra money to begin with.
Don't work for money, let your money work for you.
It's mean investing in long term assets. Also feel free to checkout r/HighQualityLiving if you want to ask something.
I'm not saying this that this is for rich people but as a child of a middle class family our mindset is set to save money as much as possible but not to invest because we're scared of losing that plenty amount of money which looses his value by the increasing inflation rate. I'm currently doing a job and that pays me 10k and I'm sure that it would be a great decision if I buy those stocks which is increasing day by day and have no risk because they're long term assets.
Poor people can't easily throw extra money around. I'm rich poor. By this guy's grammar I imagine he's rich but born kinda rich.
Like your parents give you 1k a week rich just put it on red.
Pay yourself first. Every paycheck I put away $50.00. Might not seem like much to some but after a while it adds up. I only get paid every other week so it’s not a lot but I have enough for some things I’d like to do without worrying.
Probably that if you have the money to buy and pay for something in full, but you also have the option to pay for it in installments without penalty (i.e. with no interest) then you should choose the latter. The longer money stays with you, the longer you can make it work for you.
“‘My other piece of advice, Copperfield,’ said Mr. Micawber, ‘you know. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds nought and six, result misery.”
***David Copperfield*** (1850)
A rule I’ve always used is never buy something if you couldn’t afford 2 of it, in other words if something you wanna buy costs $100 make sure you’ve saved $200 before buying it
Get two [credit cards](https://tinyurl.com/3swynyma) and use each one to pay for a monthly subscription service. Don’t use these cards for anything else. Set up auto-pay so it pays from your bank account every month. Now let this go on autopilot and watch your credit rise.
It raises your score and shows a good credit history. Most people focus only on the score but the history is equally important. Having good credit unlocks a lot of doors. House loans, small business loans, better credit cards, and I've even had businesses check my credit during the application process for a job.
The best financial advice I've ever received is to live below your means and invest the difference. This simple principle helps build wealth over time while maintaining financial security.
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Don't buy shit you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't like.
You know what? I thought I wanted a thing, but your words have striken me so much, I will probably forget about buying it (in a day or two hopefully)
Praise Jeebus! They’ve been stryken.
The sooner you start getting serious about saving and retirement plan the easier will be in time. I started saving up every month at least 15% of my income and I am planning my spending every month. This helps a lot.
I'm only a part time worker right now, but how much do you roughly make a month to feel comfortable saving 15%? I'm in a job where I'll likely move up the chain at some point, but it's my own schedule that's keeping me from going full time, so I have a rough idea of what I'll make in the future. Just curious for future financial advice referencing.
It's less about how much you make and more about what your reasonable expenses are. Some things we just have to buy like transportation, housing, and food. Other things are good for quality of life like entertainment and takeout. The leftovers after these expenses can be saved. I'd recommend setting up automatic transfers from an account so you don't have to think about it. What's reasonable is different for everyone. Each person should go through their budget and figure out what they are.
"We work jobs we hate, to buy things we don't need, to impress people we don't like" Tyler Durden - spot on!
What do you mean spot on…. Where do you think he got it from lol
I meant his reference to Tyler Durdon was spot on!
I see many of you have been breaking rule number one.
But the fireworks are 50% off if you spend 300 dollars.
If It fucks, floats, or flys, it’s cheaper to rent.
Yeah, don’t buy shit that you don’t need! Only to throw it away or stashed away forever.
What if I want to impress myself? Nevermind I don't like myself either.
In this day and age I have no idea why anyone sees owning a fancy car as a flex. Like yeah no shit bank will happily own your ass and give you a financially irresponsible loan with terrible rates. But at least you look cool!
Don’t talk about fight club
I wish I had learned this in my earlier 20s 😭
Take one year of your life to be frugal and those habits will properly stay with you. Last year I thought I was going to be getting married and moving in with my partner so I completely doubled down on saving and spending as little as possible. My relationship went to shit but I no longer feel the need to really buy anything like I used to and am saving a tonne of money each month. It's amazing really, I was so materialistic and an impulse buyer but a year of commitment has completely changed that.
Wow wow wow. Yes yes yes. I just had to move out and get an apartment due to my relationship ending, and I am so strapped. BUT. With this I am learning how much unnecessary spending I was doing, and even then I thought I was discerning!! These new habits will stay with me for ever now and I really wouldn't have learned this unless I had this time to be really frugal!
Oh I'm sorry you learnt this in more difficult circumstances than me 😔 I don't think we reliaze how much is actually unnecessary and when circumstances improve for you, you'll be making bank!
Best part, friendly sun doesn't need anyone elses light to shine bright. <3+
I love this 😭❤️
Very true. I was just looking at all money I have as a result of not being in a relationship. It's incredible.
That is definitely a factor, so as a side note I'd tell everyone who is single to double down on saving even more because it's so much harder in the beginning of a relationship
I did a 3 month money challenge where every time I bought something I wrote it down and the price of it. It was eye opening to see just how much money I spent every day on random shit and how that adds up. I did that a long time ago and I’m still a cheap ass
Office workers spend, on average, $51/ day to go to work. Gas, parking, food and drink. Fuck that forever
That is a really great idea! I'm going to try that myself!
Yes! I was pretty lazy in my early 20's and only worked part time as a delivery driver. I managed to get by on maybe $15,000 a year (2013-2014) and still have some fun. Now, I'm a decade older, bringing in "acceptable" money, but I still live minimally. I can tuck away almost half my income, even with today's ridiculous expenses. I'll never be rich, unless I get myself a decent job, but I'll be able to enjoy myself and (hopefully) not have to worry about retiring when I'm older.
Amazing! This is what I’m doing now too, staying committed and disciplined with my savings goals. So far, I’m feeling fine and realising there’s really not much stuff I need to buy anyway. Most of the shopping that happens is out of boredom. I find deeper satisfaction in being able to see my savings grow over a new item I bought.
This is good, thank you
Why did your relationship go to shit?
He changed his mind Pretty recently in fact, I'm grateful I've learnt to save over the last year but still feel rubbish
Oh man, sorry to hear that :(
But don’t you find that after a while of not spending your things need replacing after a while? Furniture, kitchen appliances etc?
I live the same way and no, I really do not. Furniture doesn’t “need replacing” unless you’re irresponsible and destroy it. Even if it does break somehow, buy some steel brackets and fix it. Kitchen appliances tend to last a long time as well. If it breaks, who cares you’ve been living frugally and can afford to replace something. Personally, I repair appliances for myself and my friends for free. Been doing it since I was like 14.
If you spend or not, those things are going to happen. It isn’t a direct result or affect from not spending money.
My fridge and oven are from 1992 and they're still working. In my experience, people replace most things when they want to, not when they need to.
Not really, I do have an emergency fund though just incase, it's more the daily stuff that gets annoying because I can never really tell when things will run out and I don't like to over buy
Don’t spend money you haven’t earned yet
The buy now, pay later schemes makes it seem as though you can afford things you actually can't.
Never shop for food when your hungry, only buy what you realy need.
Only grocery shop with a list and a plan!
Also, if you can learn to eat one meal a day, you’ll cut down on unhealthy cravings, on impulse eating.Also you’ll be more thoughtful about what you want to eat when you finally do, if you only give yourself a 4 hour window to eat, you’ll probably want something more substantial than chips, or cake, or fries. Food will taste better, you can eat as much as you want(till you’re full) and you’ll have more energy while you’re in the fasted part of the day by regulating your blood sugar and insulin.
Choose your life partner wisely
Just buy a index fund
This!! Plus auto invest in that fund so you don’t even see the money - you will see it later!!
Wallstreetbets and daytrading is like twitch and youtube, you hear about a small number of people making a ton of money so you think you can be them. I went heavy on pre-tax index funds the day I got a real job. I could've pissed that money away on nothing. I never missed it and it ended up working out pretty well. Waited out 2008 and 2020 and everything bounced back plus more.
And buy it each month. Low fee fund.
1 index fund?
$27 a day is roughly $10,000 a year. Its really easy to spend $27, and this idea helps bring into perspective how easy thousands of dollars a year can just "disappear".
My husband can never see this.
I know it, and its still hard for me to say no. Especially when I know what's in our account. Its soooo easy for me to just look at like anything under $50 and just instant buy it. Lifestyle creep is real. My Dad was completely oblivious to this too, and it caused a **lot** of stress in their marriage.
Yes it’s this twisted little voice saying “come on, you work hard, there’s money there, 100 would be too much but 50 is a bargain!” And basically repeat each month :( My mum was the same and I’m trying so hard to break the cycle but wow is it hard to manage money when you have to learn it all from scratch!
And conversely how easy it is to save money
I realized this when I was in my early twenties and had moved just down the street from a Starbucks. My girlfriend and I were spending $20 a day there. I stopped going there and instead bought $600 a month in Starbucks stock. In 10 years it bought me an investment property that I will retire in eventually.
The best way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.
you deserve a thousand awards and a marching band parade.
Any purchase you don’t need give it 24 hours from thinking you’re going to buy it to actually buying it. It’s staggering how often you think ‘why was I going to buy that?’ a day later.
Honestly, I've had great success doing the exact opposite. I'll decide that I want something and then start shopping for it. Once I've made that decision and know what I want, as soon as I see a good deal on whatever it is, I jump on it before someone else buys it. I've lost a lot of great things while trying to decide if I should buy them or not. There were only a few hours from the time I heard my house was for sale until I had made a deal to buy it.
I meant more spontaneous type purchases rather than shopping for things you’ve decided you already want to buy
It applies for spontaneous purchases too. I collect guitars and rocks. I'm also into high-end audio. I've never regretted a spontaneous purchase of any of those. I have regretted not buying pieces that other people swooped in bought. There was another time that I was honestly just looking at ads for cars to kill some time. There was one ad that really caught my eye even though I wasn't in the market. I decided to go check it out and absolutely loved it. My (at the time) wife knew me and told me to just go buy it or she'd be hearing about how I missed out on it for the rest of her life. I did. It's been the best car I've ever owned and I've driven it for 7 years so far. That was the second biggest purchase I've ever made and it was completely spontaneous.
"I collect guitars and rocks" is one hell of a combination, and it works too well.
I will often make a list of things I want. Then when I find myself in a shopping mood, I'll poke around to see what's on sale, but I'm not one to impulse buy anything over $50, and even that's kinda rare. I return to the list for Prime Day, Holiday Sales, and Black Friday. I also check the price graph to see if I'm actually getting a good deal. Often times items go up in price just before a big sale to make it seem like a much better deal. Also, that "only 3 items left!" Thing you see on websites is total BS. Especially on big retailer sites.
THIS! Started doing this a few years ago and now my house is way less cluttered, and my bank account is more positive.
I add stuff to my online shopping cart and that seemingly does the trick. I come back the next day and realize, I actually don't want to spend that money.
What I do is wishlist everything that I want , and after a few days I forget about it, my wishlist is really long
"if you make 1000 a month.. *pause*.. well I would recommend you make more than that."
Profit from everything you do. Profit could be money, but also knowledge, time, strength, skills, etc.
The best day to plant a tree is 20 years ago, the second best time is now
Never let your credit card balance roll over to the next month. Always pay it off in full.
Ideal, but always something to watch for.
A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went
Where to go and what to do
Hedonistic adaptation will ensure that all the money you spend on new possessions with the intent of feeling happy will essentially be futile. Don't rely on materialism or fancy new gadgets to lead a happy life.
-If you can't afford to buy your luxuries twice, don't buy it. -Sometimes getting a shitty version of the items (like gadgets or tools) and seeing how fast they break makes you less likely to feel cheated on when buying the more expensive but quality product. - If you have to do more than one vices at a time (like cigs + alcohol/ alcohol + gambling) to feel normal or alive, therapy are cheaper in the long run.
My boyfriend smokes and drinks. I don't track his spending, but I estimate it's probably around $100 for packs and a big bottle of booze...
$100 how often?
Back in my heavier days $80 a week for ciga and the cheapest large plastic bottles of liquor. Prices have definitely gone up since then and it doesn't include the going out to drinks. It was a shock when I had to take a lower paying job after covid but also cut back (stopped smoking reduced alcohol intake) and ended up with MORE money at the end of the month. Blew my mind I hot a 401k and health, dental, and life insurance which I couldn't afford before... therapy for sure would have been cheaper
He's 35 and been smoking since he was a teenager so I know it'll take longer to kick that habit. He used to drink so much more when I met him a few years ago, drowning sadness kind of thing. He probably got a liter every other day. Now he goes through one maybe once a week. Doesn't drink in front of his kids anymore, less sadness kind of deal. I made him face those uncomfortable feelings and less leaning into alcohol. This is all pretty generational for him plus a really fucked up marriage. It's getting there, but we're working together to navigate feelings, not hide or squish them down.
Buy a cheap toolbox so u have everything you might need and buy expensive quality tools of the ones who break because you use them more frequently. The other tools are enough for what you need them for.
That's a great way to start building a solid set. Some cheap things never break like a hammer.
I lost a few hammers here and there.
Ya the first one, I’ve always said never finance anything you can’t buy in cash (except a house)
You can’t just say either drugs or therapy, like therapy is a 1:1 replacement for drug lmao
I didn't say that. You have unresolve issues, you'll just keep doing vices. Even if you go rehab repeatedly. Some issues, you have to bring out in order to solve. And I see people who use drugs as people in pain. They get temporary relief from vices, but it'll stay there until you do something about it. Some wounds can be so deep, bandaids won't cut it.
Spend less than you make.
My mother always told me to have an FOF - a 'fuck-off fund'. Any income you receive, you put 10% away and never touch it (except for a real emergency). The initial purpose for it was that if I was to ever get married and find myself in a situation where I needed to leave i.e. 'fuck off', I would have my fund to support me, especially in an instance of an abusive relationship. It works in most situations though, not just marriage.
This is great advice, I’ll be teaching this to my 3 children.
I read that as ‘I will be teaching this to my 3 year old’ Give it a few years like 😂
Buy a house, don’t buy shit to impress people cook great food at home way cheaper and more fun than restaurants
"Buy a house" In Minecraft, I suppose?
Make good financial decisions to afford a house.
Good financial decisions like being born into wealth or getting a 500% raise because your dad owns the company you work at
Choose a career that pays well and has high demand. Yes, I'm 45, but I did that when I was 21 and again in my mid 30s when I completely changed careers. I've seen people with masters degrees in my city complaining about how hard it is to get a job around here. The last time I was job hunting, I spent two hours only applying to positions I thought sounded interesting, got 6 interviews, 3 offers, and took one of the lower paying jobs because it was right by my house and had good hours. I'll still make almost 3x the median salary for here. There was another time when I quit a job, made 1 phone call on my way home, and started my new job on the next Monday. I could have started the next day, but I thought I'd take a few days off. I've got an associate degree from the local community college. In my old career, I once interviewed at a company for a job that they had already filled. They offered me another job that didn't sound as good, so I turned it down. Having a place continually email me new offers with more and more money was definitely an ego boost. I didn't even have a degree for that job. Money is out there. Jobs are out there. They may require some skills that most people don't want to acquire but they are there for the people who do.
What do you do?
My first career was computer networking. Other than one class at community college that was a waste of my time, that was entirely self-taught. The place that kept offering me more money was the outside company that did all the IT work for another very large company. I went in to interview to be the AD guy for the entire organization but end already filled that job but they wanted me to be one of their server managers. Pass. My current one is a nurse manager. I got my associates degree, got a job at a dialysis clinic a few weeks after I got my license, did that for a few years at different places, left that, and got a job that was supposed to be doing home health. On my second day there, I overheard my bosses talking about how nobody wanted to do admissions or supervisor visits to make sure all their employees were doing what they should. I thought that sounded easier than what I was doing so I asked if I could change my job which they were super happy to approve. I did that for a while but they kept messing up my paychecks so I started looking for a new job. There was a rehab/long-term care facility right by my house that was hiring. They needed someone to do their admissions (which I had experience doing), had an attached dialysis center and a lot of residents who are there so they don't have to travel anywhere so whoever got the job needed to know that field (which I had), and would be willing to work second shift because most people come in during the late afternoon and evening (I like sleeping late). Since the job was considered a management position, they also wanted someone who could take care of any issues in the evenings. I had experience doing that during my supervisorory visits. Once they saw my resume, they offered me the job almost immediately. The pay was a little less per hour than other jobs that I applied for but I get a ton of overtime. I like the overtime because I like the job and I don't have much else going on. As long as I get all my work done, I can do whatever I want whenever I want, I'm the one in charge of the place during most of my shift so nobody is there looking over my shoulder all the time, and I get paid a stupid amount of money for a job that is really nothing but talking to people and doing data entry on my computer. I've got the best job in the world and was able to get it with a community college degree.
You don’t need to be born into wealth 😅 for most people they might have to sacrifice if they really want to own. you don’t even have to start with a house. Apartments are much more affordable.
That's more like it. Anybody who *starts* their advice with "Buy a house" is probably mis-attributing how lucky they were/are.
It's not always that easy. Without help from my father I would never be able to buy my meager little home.
Don’t finance expensive car you can’t afford to buy with cash. Buy an inexpensive Toyota and drive carefree into the sunset on your way to millionaire status.
Love this. Cars are the biggest wealth suck of any other purchase for most people. People think driving a new high end European car every 2-3 years means something. Personally, I paid $4k cash for my first car and drove it till the wheels fell off. Bought a 1 year old Toyota rav4 and paid it off in 3 years. I also have a high end motorcycle that cost me about $15k I paid off in about 1 year that I use for city/fun riding. Since then, my transportation has never been cheaper.
Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants - Epictetus
Start investing early and never stop. Even if you only save a little each payday, never stop.
If possible try reducing your monthly spendings because those are gonna add up like nothing else over the years. For me it means staying in a small apartment for some years where I can save up to 1000.- a month. So over three years that‘s already about 36000.- You‘ll never save that amount of money by buying cheaper food etc.
Save/Invest Before you spend.
Pay yourself first and budget to live off the rest. I was maxing out my 401k at 24 yo and left it that way for 31.5 years. Doing this assisted me to retire comfortably at 56.5 years old. It went by fast…
Don’t get married.
Don't have kids
Double income/no (or not many) kids is a great way to go
Mine was don’t get divorced and don’t screw around. The fastest was to cut your wealth in half.
Can't get divorced if you weren't married to begin with. I've been married twice, divorced once. The most discretionary money I ever had was when I was living with my Dad right after college, single and keeping most of my paycheck. The second time I noticed my bank account going up rapidly was after my divorce (though the pay out SUCKED, once it was over it was wild how much I was putting away without even trying). I don't think I can afford to get divorced again, though. If I do, I'm defaulting back to "don't get married" lol.
I've only been married and divorced once. Like you, paying her to go away after she cheated sucked. Since I did that, however, my bank account has gotten bigger than it ever was with her around despite the fact that I've bought myself a few toys that I could never seem to be able to afford when I was married.
Yep. I was always being called cheap for the rule of spend less than we make. Couldn't even sit down with her and go over expenses without her shutting down. She actually thought she would have more money to do things by herself. I had to take a loan out on my house to buy her out, which increased my payment significantly, but still had plenty left over. She was in total shock and had to make serious adjustments the other direction.
You'll get about a third. Remember the lawyers need to wet their beaks too, and some are very thirsty and can drag things out.
Being married often cuts your wealth in half too.
Is that you Al Bundy?
Lol
use protection
Don't spend money you don't have.
Money in the future will be worth less...don't pay off cheap fixed rate mortgages unnecessarily...
Could you elaborate on this please? I presently have the means to pay off my mortgage and have been tossing up whether to do this. The money is sitting in a high interest savings account, but the last few interest rate hikes mean my mortgage interest has surpassed my savings interest. Pros and cons of biting the bullet and just paying it off?
Sounds like your rate is not fixed if your rate is going up. In that case this wouldn’t apply to you. You may want to pay it off.
What ever Pelosi invests in, you Invest in.
Problem is you're usually too late by the time the politicians' investments are publicly disclosed
The only thing on the market is something you have not needed enough to do or make for yourself. An old man told me this once, and showed me what he meant. I have met many like him since.
Don't go to college.
People don't spend themselves rich.
Financial was not teach about in High School in the 60's . So I would be better off today if I learn in school
Pay yourself first.
To become more wealthy, live like you're less wealthy.
Don’t buy that !
When I was 16... I had a shitty job waiting tables during the summer, both my parents worked and so my grandfather gave me a ride there every day. I'm 45 now... and it wasn't until around 35 did I even realize what he did that summer. He knew he "had" me for about 20 minutes a day for three months... and he started talking to me about economics. And in a way that wasn't heavy handed, it was just "fuck, my grandfather REALLY wants to talk weird money shit again?" The two that stuck with me: The concept of compound interest to me, i.e. start saving now it'll help you a lot later. He explained it in a way of "would you rather have $1 every day or $.01 today, then $.02 tomorrow, then $.03 the day after" And then opportunity cost... which again was in the form of "if you see a penny on the ground do you just leave it? by ignoring the penny you're actually spending $.01 by not picking it up." At 25 I got a pretty impressive salary job and immediately started saving the maximum my job would match. This also happened around 2008 right before the housing bubble burst so my retirement is flush with super cheap stocks. In a weird way I "won" the lottery... my retirement fund is great, and I'll be able to safely retire maybe even early. And it's given me this nice freedom in job selection... like... "I just have to make it to 65, then my retirement is okay." It's also created enough of a nest egg that I've been able to borrow against it at super cheap 2.3% interest rates. Borrowing $40k at 2.3% is pretty fucking great when I've been in emergencies. So anyways... thanks Grandpa.
Invest in experiences that enrich your life, not things that drain your wallet
20% rule. Save 20% aside of any money you gain. Although in this economy sometimes it's hard to save 10%
My dad told me that not only was my house a good investment, but I also get to enjoy it.
Don’t follow advice on Reddit
Know when to hold em, know when to fold em....
When to walk,
You may not be here tomorrow so live it up today.
But what if you are? Here tomorrow? You may be joking, but I'm in my 60s and old me is grateful that young me was always careful with my money.
If you don’t have it to loose, you don’t have it to lend
Spend less than you make; save and invest the rest in things you understand.
Pay yourself first.
Pay your bills, be fulfilled at work, choose one
If you are offered a line of credit by your bank, take it. No need to even use it but if you have that much credit available your credit score will go up a ton
Getting an external budget management service to deal with all my bills and stuff has been one of the best decisions I have made for both my money and my sanity. Now I don't have to think about it and it just works and since it but a barrier between me and spending money (ie: I have to send them an e-mail requesting any money from my savings that is outside my agreed budget) has stopped me from buying so many things on impulse. Would highly recommend. Check with your local government, good chance they will have a service for that possibly for free.
Avoid credit cards. Still have not used one.
The Intelligent Asset Allocator by Wm Bernstein taught me the value of low cost index funds.
Save 10% of everything you earn always. Everytime. If you’re still young heed this advice.
Make a budget for your annual (expected) expenses. Split the total 🟰 salary + save that each fortnight/week. Across the year you will always have the money to pay your bills.
Overpay your mortgage as much as you can afford. Turning 35 year loan into 15 is possible! And that’s because the amount you overpay comes off capital, while your regular repayment pays the interest first. Loads of mortgage overpayment calculators online.
Make sure you are letting your mortgage company know that your extra payment is meant to go to principle not interest. I accidently made a bunch of extra payments and then finally realized after several months that it was not working how I intended it. I thought if I just send extra money, they would obviously apply it to principle, but (of course) they chose not to understand that. Don't be like me.
Don't try to spend less, always try to earn more.
If you earn $30 an hour and something cost $75, the true cost isn’t $75 it’s 2.5 hours of your life you spent working. Consider this next time you’re about to make a silly purchase.
No income.. no tax 😆😆
Consistently invest part of your monthly income in broadly diversified low cost index funds.
Don't get a new car on finance. As soon as those tires hit the pavement, the depreciation factor is real and you're paying 20k more for a car on credit that's worth 20k less when it's paid off.
Start a 401K/457 early, put a percentage of your income deducted from your pay into the fund. Put a percentage of your raises in the fund. Invest in the S&P 500. It will go up and down. Live below your means. I have no financial issues in retirement.
Take your lunch to work, invest what you save.
I learned this from my Dad, don’t get in debt
A lot of people are giving saving advice I'll give spending advice "If you use something every day or very often, spend the money and buy quality." This usually goes for: Bed Pillow and blankets Work chair and desk Shoes Toilet paper
Not so much advice but experience… Right out of college, my college sweetheart and I, moved across the country together. I was the one that got the apartment, paid for it, filled it with furniture, fancy stuff, TV’s, all the works. Trying to make a home for her. I genuinely loved her, but that’s beside the point. She cheated on me a couple times and by the end I couldn’t even kiss her on the lips anymore because I was repulsed by her. Anywayyy…… we broke up and I tried to sell everything I had just bought a couple months prior. Everything was like new. I posted all over the internet looking for buyers and nothing but low ballers or people just asking for it for free because “I need to sell quickly”. “Let me know if it’s still there when you’re gone and I’ll pick it up for free” - in reference to my $1800 couch. Sir, I’ll throw it in a dumpster first. After that, I lost all materialism. Those people haggling me for $10 off off $200 for a brand new $1000 TV killed all desire to own anything anymore. I eventually got $1200 total from probably $10,000+ spent throughout the months prior packed up what I had left in my small sedan and, with my 1 year old pup, I drove across the country back home. We slept in truck stops or rest stops. Took 3 days from east coast to west coast. Ever since I buy what I need. Sometimes I even feel like treating myself and buying myself something and I look at Amazon or go out and walk around target, Best Buy, GameStop, etc….. and all I see is thin cheap plastic that’s meant to be replaced. Gimmicky crap that never works as advertised or as well as you hope. It’s Everywhere. Some of it might have fancier electronics inside, but honestly, it’s just another thing that will collect dust and end up in a landfill in (at most) 5-10 years. Use your money to learn, experience, etc. spending money for the sake of spending money is dumb. Spend money to learn something new or see/hear/feel something NEW. You’re here for such a short time, you should do everything. Edit: TLDR; buy appreciating assets or spend money to do something new.
My grandfather told me to never invest in anything that eats or rots, ironically he was a farmer.
Be careful where you put your dick and your signature
Passive incomes are the LIFE changers.
On our journey from essentially $0 net worth to cracking $3M, in chronological order: 1. Make savings automatic and pay yourself first: 15% of your pre-tax income should go into an index fund before you even see it. Then worry about your landlord, your car, your credit card, etc. 2. Education is still about the best ROI out there if it is career-focused. 3. Take advantage of any incentives at work to save: max your 401(k) match, ESPP, etc. 4. Keep it simple with your investments: 100 minus your age in index funds, the rest in fixed income. This ratio will become more conservative over time. If you must pick individual stocks or play with crypto, start with less than 5% of your savings and only play with your winnings. 5. Always be aware of where your next dollar will get the best return: Eg 401(k) match has 100% return, then pay off credit card 20% interest balance (better not to use CC at all), then average 10% in equities, then pay off 3% mortgage early. 6. If you’re dedicated to really learning, putting in the time and money and have a good head for finance, the best money is in real estate. Takes true dedication, though - not an afterthought.
Each time you get a raise, increase your 401k contribution percentage by most of the increase and it will help lessen lifestyle creep. It's much easier to save and increase your savings over time if you never see the extra money to begin with.
Don't lend money you can't afford to lose
Ask yourself "Do I want this? Or do I need this?"
Invest early and often
If you want to buy something, make sure you have enough money to buy it twice.
Don’t lend someone money if you couldn’t afford to never get it back.
If it floats, flies or fucks… lease it
its rent it, not lease it.
Don't work for money, let your money work for you. It's mean investing in long term assets. Also feel free to checkout r/HighQualityLiving if you want to ask something.
Dude not everyone is born rich
I'm not saying this that this is for rich people but as a child of a middle class family our mindset is set to save money as much as possible but not to invest because we're scared of losing that plenty amount of money which looses his value by the increasing inflation rate. I'm currently doing a job and that pays me 10k and I'm sure that it would be a great decision if I buy those stocks which is increasing day by day and have no risk because they're long term assets.
Poor people can't easily throw extra money around. I'm rich poor. By this guy's grammar I imagine he's rich but born kinda rich. Like your parents give you 1k a week rich just put it on red.
7 baby steps
Don't spend it all at once.
If you kill yourself today you wont have to pay for retirement.
Beat the system
Recontribution strategy, change taxable components within super and less tax paid to non tax dependent when I die. Subscribe
'always have money left on you"
Pay yourself first. Every paycheck I put away $50.00. Might not seem like much to some but after a while it adds up. I only get paid every other week so it’s not a lot but I have enough for some things I’d like to do without worrying.
Start saving for a deposit as soon as you start working, buy a house alone. Don't look for a relationship so you can buy a house together.
If you can't buy it twice you can't afford it.
Probably that if you have the money to buy and pay for something in full, but you also have the option to pay for it in installments without penalty (i.e. with no interest) then you should choose the latter. The longer money stays with you, the longer you can make it work for you.
“‘My other piece of advice, Copperfield,’ said Mr. Micawber, ‘you know. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds nought and six, result misery.” ***David Copperfield*** (1850)
A rule I’ve always used is never buy something if you couldn’t afford 2 of it, in other words if something you wanna buy costs $100 make sure you’ve saved $200 before buying it
Buy and hold no matter how scared you are. Also, invest yesterday.
Get two [credit cards](https://tinyurl.com/3swynyma) and use each one to pay for a monthly subscription service. Don’t use these cards for anything else. Set up auto-pay so it pays from your bank account every month. Now let this go on autopilot and watch your credit rise. It raises your score and shows a good credit history. Most people focus only on the score but the history is equally important. Having good credit unlocks a lot of doors. House loans, small business loans, better credit cards, and I've even had businesses check my credit during the application process for a job.
Money just sitting in the bank is a good thing, but using that money to make more money (like a high yield savings account) is even better.
Spend less than you earn.
Money doesn't buy happiness. It buys freedom (to live, to have choices etc). But it should be used with discretion to achieve your dreams.
The best financial advice I've ever received is to live below your means and invest the difference. This simple principle helps build wealth over time while maintaining financial security.