Somostofthewealthypeoplethat I knowsharethiscommontrait, whichiswhat I noticedafterstartingmyownbusinessandnetworkingwithotherentrepreneurs, whichhonestlyis a bigdealformebecause I'm naturallyanintrovert.
Butthemostunexpectedandrevealingmomentwaswhen a bunchofuswentoutfordinnerafteraneventandeveryonewasaskingthewaiterforhappyhourspecialsandthecheapestwinetheyhad.
And I kidyounot, whenthebillcame, peopleliterallypulledouttheirphonestocalculatehowtoevenlysplitthebillsoeveryoneonlypaidforexactlywhattheyhaddowntothelastcent.
Insteadofgraspingatthelittlepurchasesandattemptingtosavemoney, it's moreeffectivetofocusonthebiggerexpenses, a brandnewcar, 100-inchTV, or a cheesedispenser.
Thethingwithbigpurchasesisthey'llmakeyouhappyfor a temporaryamountoftime.
Thenthat 70K carjustbecomes a regularoldcarwiththesamefunctionalityaseveryothercar.
Soifyoumanagetospendlessthan 75% ofyourincome, likeyouonlyspend 60% ofit, then I needyoutoholdontothat 15% differencebecause I'm gonnashowyouwhatyouneedtodowithitin a bit.
Next, the 10 inthe 75-10-15 rulesaysthatforeverydollaryouearn, youshouldsaveatleast 10% or 10 centsofitforthisthingcalled a cushionfund.
A 2022 studyfoundthatasmuchas 56% ofAmericanscan't affordanunexpected $1,000 expense.
Thinkofyourcushionfundas a cashreservethat's specificallysetasideforfinancialemergencies.
Andemergenciesdon't include a wildnightout, vacations, orfriedchickencravings.
Whilemostpeoplekeeptheirsavingsin a traditionalsavingsaccountlikeChaseorBankofAmerica, therearemuchbetterplacescalledhighyieldsavingsaccountsorHYSAsbecausetheygiveyoumuchhigherinterestrateswhichallowyoutogrowyourmoney a lotfaster.
Themostcommonemployer 401k matchis a 100% matchforthefirst 3% youcontributewith a 50% matchforthenext 2%.
Itsoundsreallyconfusing, butbasicallyifyoursalaryis $65,000 andyoumaximizeyourcontributionsuptotheemployer's match, youwillcontribute 5% or $3,250 in a year.
Andbybuyinganindexfund, it's actually a lotcheaperthanbuyingintoeachofthese 500 companiesindividuallyontheirown.
Indexfundsareusually a greatsafebetinretirementaccountbecausebasedontheaverageoverthecourseofthepast 80 years, indexfundshavebeenproventoreturnabout 8% a year.
I investinpassivelymanagedindexfundslikeFXAIXorVOObecauseit's easyandreallystraightforward, butyoucaninvestinwhateveryoulike.
Thereare a tonofETFsandindexfundsoutthere.
Andifthefundsthat I choosearen't availableinyour 401k, youcanjustlookforanothertypeofindexfundthatinvestin a lotofcompaniesintheUSandyoushouldbeprettygoldenforthemostpart.