So the other type of green would be money. A lot of how we feel about money comes from our families and the way that we were raised. As you grow as an adult I believe that is the basis of your foundation and then you make decisions to build on that either in same direction or a different one.
When I was in college I took a personal finance class that was really interesting. I'm pretty sure that my book from that class was one of the only college text books that I bothered to keep because it had such great information in it. And for some reason it was all really kinda cool to me to learn about the power of money and how to use it efficiently.
I subscribe to many personal finance and money related blogs. I also have read Dave Ramsey's book, The Total Money Make over, and I really liked it. I think Dave Ramsey has a great perspective on how to accumulate wealth and certain financial goals that you should strive for.
Some of Dave Ramsey's rules that we follow:
Baby Step # 1: $1,000 to start an Emergency Fund
Baby Step # 2: Pay off all debt using the Debt Snowball
Baby Step # 3: 3 to 6 months of expenses in savings (full emergency fund)
Baby Step # 4: Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
Baby Step # 5: College funding for children
Baby Step # 6: Pay off your home early
Baby Step # 7: Build wealth and give
We are working on the Debt Snowball elimination method to pay off our debts (credit cards), once the balance on the credit card is paid off to not carry a balance on the card from month to month, focusing on living like no one else now so you can live like no one else later.
The last point is a really big part of Ramsey's plan. That you should save for the things that you want, not just plop them on a credit card, and that you should deny yourself some of the little bonuses and extras now so that one day you can benefit from this thriftiness. Save save save.
Sometimes I get so caught up in saving for the future that my husband has to remind me to live in the now a little bit. I think its great how we have a balance like this to keep us both sane :)
Some of the best tips I think I've ever gotten from Dave Ramsey is to remember that money is just a tool, it helps you, and shouldn't be the focus of your life. Another great point is to aim to BE rich and not just LOOK rich (basing your wealth on material things, big name brands, expensive items) when you can't truly afford them.
So what is your money philosophy? Do you find personal finance to be interesting or am I out alone on a limb on this one? :)
Money is not my strong suit. My husband is really good with it. I just like to spend it on expensive healthy food. LOL. Thanks for the book recommendation though. I have some of Suze Ormans books. I just find a lot of them tell me to do things that are not ever do-able. It's tough to save when you are self employed and have ups and downs.
ReplyDelete@Laury@The Fitness Dish
ReplyDeleteThanks for your take on this subject. It really annoys me that healthy food is always so darn expensive!
I have to admit that sometimes the financial advice they give does seem all or nothing and can be a bit daunting. The ups and downs of self employment are something that I definitely can stress about!