One. Money should never be the final goal
Two. A reliable 9 to 5 paycheck is a valuable resource
Three. There are no short-cuts to wealth-building
Four. All debt is not created equal
Five. Investing in the stock market does not have to be complicated
Six. Budgeting is not the enemy
Seven. Budgeting does not mean you can never have fun
Eight. A $5 coffee drink will not ruin you financially
Nine. Experiences are more valuable than material things
Ten. A supportive partner is the most important asset you can have in your life
Eleven. Do not complicate your life on purpose because complication will find you
Twelve. If someone tells you something is guaranteed, run
Thirteen. Invest in your education
Fourteen. And invest in your personal growth
Fifteen. There are lessons to be learned from mistakes
Sixteen. Realize when fear is the only reason you are not starting
Seventeen. Compound interest is your friend and needs to be taken advantage of early
Eighteen. Do not wait until April 14 to do your taxes
Nineteen. No one is responsible for your economic well-being except you
Twenty. Be willing to accept money from others if given with good intentions
Twenty-one. Do not be afraid to ask for help or advice
Twenty-two. Your colleagues are just as nervous and unknowing as you
Twenty-three. What you have been trying to accomplish has been done before, so find a mentor
Twenty-four. Don't decide not to try something (especially in business) because someone else has done it before you
Twenty-five. Wealth is tied to your health
Twenty-six. Investing in your future does not mean you cannot enjoy life today
Twenty-seven. Most enjoyable things in life are free
Twenty-eight. Money is a tool
Twenty-nine. Wealth is not built overnight
Thirty. You do not have to settle with your job (but remember lesson two)
Thirty-one. Retirement does not mean "not working"
Thirty-two. Plan to retire towards something, not away from work
Thirty-three. Work is not the enemy, being forced to work for a paycheck is the problem
Thirty-four. A normal brick and mortar savings account is not an effective place to save cash
Thirty-five. Not investing for your future is the riskiest thing you can do
Thirty-six. Think long-term
Thirty-seven. Worry about the 6 and 7 figure purchases more than the occasional $100 date night
Thirty-eight. Credit cards are not bad if you have good spending habits
Thirty-nine. You can and should invest in both an employer-sponsored retirement plan AND your own individual retirement account
Forty. You need to make inherently high-risk investments inside your portfolio, just make sure those are "quality" high-risk investments (such as investing in the entire S&P 500 instead of one individual stock)
Forty-one. Low-cost index funds are excellent wealth building tools for long-term investors
Forty-two. Cash is not trash
Forty-three. If you are lucky enough to be born in the U.S., you have a chance to become a millionaire
Forty-four. You can choose the people around you
Forty-five. YOLO and FOMO are not good reasons to make investing decisions
Forty-six. Money is not always evil - money can give you the freedom to do a lot of good in the world
Forty-seven. Spend less than you make
Why In The World Did I Decide To Write This Article?!?
This was one of those articles where I had zero plans going into it. I typed the beginning of the title the same way I start every article, and right after I typed "#47", I said to myself, "47 lessons about money."
I have no idea why my mind went this direction. I am happy it did though because it allowed me to write out all the valuable lessons I have learned and wish to pass on to our son. I am not sure I am right about everything, but I feel most of these lessons are worth teaching to him.
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