Narration- The Financial Diet
Vocal Characteristics
Language
EnglishVoice Age
Young Adult (18-35)Accents
North American (General)Transcript
Note: Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and may contain errors.
making it work is brought to you by wealth simple, which gives everyone access to simple, affordable investing on cruise control. When I first graduated from college, I went out into the real world with a minimum wage paying job. I was living paycheck to paycheck, and I would daydream about a day in the future when I would have more money. I imagine saving would be effortless. Once I was earning this hypothetical higher income cut to a couple years later when I began working in an office and earning more. But even six months into the job, my savings account was still resting at less than $500. It turns out that I'm really good at spending money. It's not like I'm spending thousands of dollars on clothing or travel every month. But when I started earning more, I gradually elevated all of my consumption. I swapped my $12 face wash for a $35.1. I started buying lunch at work daily. I would swing by Nordstrom once a month and spend $200 on new clothes. My spending increased with little conscious effort, and although my income increased, I was still living paycheck to paycheck. Over the past six months, I've started taking a very critical look at my spending habits. I want to reiterate how thankful I am to be making enough money to live comfortably and save every day. I am grateful to make more than enough to cover my daily living expenses. Today, I am saving at least 20% of my paycheck without feeling like I'm sacrificing anything important. I've just reached my first milestone savings goal, and I am genuinely confident that I will continue to save and reach new milestones. Here are the five shifts I've made to make this possible. Number one. I read the book, Your Money or Your Life. Although this book was originally published in 1992 it is still extremely relevant today. It was the first source of information that really opened my eyes to the true value of a dollar. It reiterates the point that money is representative of your life energy, not something to be wasted. My relationship with money has evolved so much over the past year, and I credit this book for kicking off that journey. Number two. I started tracking my spending without judgment. I would recommend tracking your spending in detail for 1 to 3 months. Don't try to change anything just yet. Simply take an honest look at where your money is going. When I first started tracking, I used a manual Excel spreadsheet and later switched to a nap. Although it was a bit tedious, it was very powerful to have to manually type out everything I purchased at the end of each month. I highlight the things on my sheet that, in retrospect, hadn't been necessary. This helped me develop a deeper understanding of how I spent money. It also illuminated the many small purchases I was unconsciously making every month that I didn't really need. Number three. I opened a separate savings account. I used to keep my savings in the same bank as my checking account. So every time I checked my checking balance, I would see how much was in my savings account. This is slightly embarrassing, but for years I would often transfer money from my savings back into my checking. It was almost impossible to keep my savings account above $500. Many financial experts suggest opening a savings account with a separate bank to help save more, and I finally decided to give it a try. I set up my direct deposit toe automatically put 20% of my paycheck into this new account. I only see the balance when I make the effort to log into the account, and I haven't let myself figure out how to transfer money from it to my checking. I am now weigh less tempted to withdraw money from savings. It may seem a little childish to have to hide it for myself, but it's truly helped me avoid the temptation of spending my savings. Number four. I set attainable goals. Even when I started working a 9 to 5 job after taxes, it was still a struggle to cover all of my expenses. Onley recently did I get a raise that has allowed me to truly start saving larger amounts of money. I used to be ******* myself about needing to accrue a six month emergency fund, but back when I was only able to save about 5 to 10% of my income, it felt like I wouldn't reach that goal for years. I've since learned to set more attainable goals. I typically set savings goals that won't take longer than three months to reach. This helps me avoid burnout and boost my financial confidence every time I reach a gold, because these goals are smaller. Adding an extra $50 to my savings account really makes an impact. If I was trying to save $20,000 that $50 wouldn't feel so impactful, whether it's $250 or $3000 sec ALS that you know you will be able to reach within a few months. Number five I learned to practice patients. Patience is the name of the game with money. I feel like I started my journey to get better with money about three years ago. But only recently have I really seen any of that work start to pay off. It takes time to change habits. It takes time to build your savings. We live in a world where you can get a lot of instant gratification, and it was challenging for me to accept that savings goals can take years to meet. You will make mistakes. You will accidentally overspend. You will accidentally overdraft your account. You might almost hit your savings goal when you suddenly have to replace the tyres on your car. Being patient isn't new advice, but it's really critical. Remind yourself to use financial setbacks as learning lessons. Look critically at why you may have over spent and think about what you would do differently next time. Perfection is not the goal. Were not robots. Be patient with yourself, and I promise you that if you want to get better with money, you will gradually see progress. Whatever your goals are in life, taking care of yourself both in your present and your future should always be at the top of the list. And with wealth simple investing in the future you want is more simple and straightforward than you might think. Well, simple is online investing that's a simple and human as it gets in just five minutes, they'll build you a custom portfolio to fit your personal goals and timeline. Just answer a few easy questions and they'll manage your money for you on autopilot. Set it, forget it and let your money grow in the background. You can turn on automatic deposits as well. A set up a smart savings account with higher rates than big banks for your shorter term goals. You're writing your next great adventure or that handbag you need. They also have a socially responsible portfolio that invests in green stocks and companies that support gender diversity. 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