If there is one message that stands out with all that’s going on in this country it is this:
The only way to create lasting financial security and erase stress related to money is to depend on yourself. Don’t count on the stock market or money from the government, and especially don’t rely on the advice and guidance from the Financial Services Industry. This industry manages the savings and financial plans of most Americans, but does not know how to create profit for their customers; rather they are trained to successfully market the idea that they do. It’s an industry whose track record has been devastating to the finances of most Americans over the last 10-15 years.
I describe these pitfalls in more detail and provide links to several studies (including one done by Harvard) which clearly demonstrate them at: http://moneysmartonline.com/advice/invest-successfully.
Managing your own finances, including your own savings, is the way out of common financial pitfalls. My goal with Money Smart (the book, the website, the blog, the radio show) is to help you solve the financial problems that so many have encountered over the past decade and to help you build a solid financial future for yourself and your family.
Millions of people like me never bought into the destructive financial system and advice being marketed by the Financial Services Industry and the majority of the financial media. We just kept on doing what works and avoided losing money when so many were losing their life savings.
So what is it that works?
The old adage, “it’s not how much you make, but what you do with it that counts” is true. There are several factors involved, but one critical element of this is to spend smart, really smart, and then use those savings to support your financial goals. You probably think you already know how to spend smart. I thought I did too, until I spent 3 years doing the research for this Money Smart project, picking the brains of the insiders in industry after industry. I can’t tell you how many times I was surprised to learn that I had left a lot of money on the table. Forced to support myself other than food and a roof over my head since I was 9, I’ve had 63 years of business building, investment and financial success. I thought I pretty much knew it all. Well I didn’t. I was pleased to learn even more about spending smart.
None of us knows it all, and small bad habits can really add up over time. Smart spending is one important way to be sure that we don’t end up spending a lot more money each year than necessary and also an important way to find more money to save each year.
While there are several aspects to being Money Smart, if you learn how to spend really smart, put it into daily practice and then make smart use of those savings, it will take you a long way to seeing to it that money adds to your life, rather than taking away from it through stress. You really do get to live the life you wish.
Here are two links to start you off:
Learn some key smart spending strategies to help you save thousands each year on the things you already pay for and to help you save 15% to 20% of your money.
Learn the surprisingly simple steps of how to invest and also when and where to invest.
As you proceed, never doubt that you can succeed when it comes to managing your money. What you’ll find is that it’s really quite straightforward. So keep going and never stop believing in yourself.