If you are so desperate for money that you actually googled I need money fast and landed here then continue on dear reader, I have the answer for you.
I do not have money for you nor do I have any get rich quick schemes or fast cash hacks. What I do have for you is a long term plan towards ever lasting wealth.
You have come here because you have got yourself into a desperate financial situation and are seeking a way out. For you, there is no quick fix. But the good news is, there is A fix. However you will need to commit to making massive change by taking immediate actions and continuing down the long and winding path of Financial freedom.
I would be honored if you would join me for a few minutes as I go through 4 simple lessons I learned that guided me out of a desperate financial situation and down a road of financial independence.
Lesson 1: Be honest with yourself
Be honest with yourself, you got yourself into this situation. The good news is, you can also get yourself out. Unless you were sick, hurt, robbed or the victim of some other circumstance beyond your control, you must accept the fact that you screwed up. Accept responsibility for your own actions and then get over it. Forgive yourself and resolve to be better in the future.
Until you accept that you are the cause for your current situation, you will not be able to come to the realization that you are also in control of changing it and making it better. Perhaps you made a bad financial decision in the past, maybe you gambled away the kids college fund, or maybe you just wasted a shitload of money and now realize the mortgage is due… Whatever it is, you can fix it. But you need to commit.
Lesson 2: Understand how lucky you are
We live in a time where everything get easier every day. It wasn’t too long ago that people needed to go to the library for information that is now available in seconds at your finger tips. If you wanted to buy a stock you needed to call a broker, wait until it was at their convenience and pay huge commissions. Now I just log into my brokerage account on my phone and in seconds I have made a trade commission free. I can go on with a million examples, just realize that any resources you need to improve your financial well being are right at your fingertips.
Lesson 3: Take control of your finances
Go get a pen and paper and start making a budget. What are your essential monthly expenses. How much is your income? Debt? Savings? Etc…. Write it all down and determine how much you spend vs how much you earn. If you are upside down, then its time to lean on those respurces I mentioned above and make some changes.
The most basic principle I can break this all down to is this: “Spend less than you earn; save and invest the rest.”
If you are spending more then you earn, then you will always need more money. You don’t need more money, you need to get a hold of your spending. Remember the list you just made of all of your expenses? Time to start cutting it back.
Pull out that cell phone and start cutting. Cancel that Netflix superscription, call your insurance company and ask what you need to do to get lower rates, cancel your credit cards, ask for lower rates, cut cable, stop buying a case of water a week and start drinking form the sink like we did in the 80’s… Basically, time to sacrifice some of the luxuries you have become used to that have lead you into this desperate financial situation.
Once you have gotten a hold of your expenses, you now have what is called a surplus. WOW! Extra money, lets go get a drink.
That was a test, if you got excited, you failed. What you need to do is SAVE the surplus. This is how the rich become rich.
Lesson 4: Save and Invest and Grow rich
Remember how lucky you are? You can open a brokerage account on your cell phone in minutes and begin investing your money today commission free. You don’t need to be a stock guru in order to do this. In fact millions of Americans are already doing it.
There is a wonderful principle called compound interest which will make you rich over time. There is no doubt you will become rich, it is simply a matter of when.
Compound interest is what happens when interest accumulates on top of interest on top of interest on top of interest ad nauseam forever into infinity …
For example, If I earn 7% per year on $100 at the end of the year I will have &107. Next year I earn 7% on $107 which would be $114.49, then in year 3 $122.50, and so on each year. After 10 years your initial $100 has doubled to $200. In 50 years your $100 would grow to $2950. AMAZING!!!
Now imagine putting away $100 a month every month for 50 years. You would have over a half a million dollars.
If you can’t afford to save $100 a month then you aren’t trying. I bet you have a cell phone with unlimited data that costs you $120 a month or cable at $200 a month or coffee every day at $5 a cup or $150 a month…
Do we need to go back to the earlier lessons about taking responsibility and finding places to cut spending?? If we do then this article hasn’t helped you very much at all and I am a shitty writer and I apologize for wasting your time and mine.
Also if that is the case, simply send me $10,000 and I will send you the super fast get rich today while sitting on the couch smoking weed and eating chips instructional guide.
Best of luck stoners
Earl