6 replies
  • OFF TOPIC
  • |
Hello Warriors,

Every person makes money from their jobs or businesses and like to spend it as soon as they get their hands on it. It is also true that some people will save every penny that they can and let it sit in the bank.

For those of you who like to spend your hard earned income and don't have an emergency account set up for yourself, this article is for you.

Whether you have a full time job or a home based business, you have got to set up an emergency account and save your money each month so that you are financially ready when things go dark for you.

If you have a job, you have to save because that job may not be there forever. Your company may downsize and get rid of you and others in the company. Maybe you will get sick or something like that and you may need to be absent from your job for a few days or weeks.

If you have a striving business, it would also be a good idea to save money for a rainy day. Not everyone has consistent success all year long. The summer months and Christmas holidays usually are slow for many businesses. If you have not saved some money in your emergency account, then things will be a little hard for you.

Knowing that you have an emergency account up and running to save for a rainy day is a good feeling because you know that if business is slow and you need money to cover for that time, you know that you can count on your emergency account.

Now, I know that it is not easy to save with all the daily expenses and bills that an average person has. Mortgage, cell phone, electricity, food, gas, day care for the kids, and old bills that you still owe like student loans may make this process hard for you.

If you think that it is impossible to save, I am here to say that you can do it and it is not impossible. You just need to change your mind set and say "I can save". Now, try going out less to restaurants and cook at home. Spend less on clothes. Instead of buying 3 coffees a day, go down to one. There are many ways that you can spend less and take your money and save.

If you think that you should not save for a rainy day, then you are fooling yourself. You have got to take an amount each week or month and put that in an emergency account. If you save about $50 a week, and it is very doable, then after a year you will have $2400. If you do $100 per week then you will have close to $5000 in emergency savings within a year.

Yes, it won't be so easy for you to do this because you have got used to spending your money all through these years once you got your hands on it. What ever situation your are in, you CAN save money for a rainy day.
  • Profile picture of the author myob
    If more people had followed this sage advice, they most likely would have been prepared to weather through the economic crisis we are in now. And, they would have been in a position to take advantage of many of the opportunities that have been opened up as a result of the current financial climate.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[161746].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Lloyd Buchinski
    Originally Posted by talfighel View Post

    Every person makes money from their jobs or businesses and like to spend it as soon as they get their hands on it.
    The number of people that do this and just scrape by from month to
    month, just barely getting the rent together a few days after it is
    due, really surprises me. (I have some involvement with rentals, so
    consider this inside information.)

    On the other hand if you collect just about anything and don't do
    anything with it, it tends to start to rot, smell, get eaten by vermin
    or deteriorate somehow, and money doesn't seem to be an
    exception to me. Inflation is eating away at it for one simple
    obvious example.

    If I had started saving in my 20s, each dollar would be down to about
    10 cents by now, so I'm sure glad that I didn't do that for long.

    When I was just about 10 or 12, I read that when you are asleep, it
    doesn't really matter what kind of room you are in. That seemed like
    a powerful statement to me, and I really did appreciate it. I would
    prefer clean, but the furnishings, decorations and net worth of the
    room don't matter.

    So overall I tend to take a middle approach. I do like to keep at
    least a bit of padding. My minimum is at least one month's rent in
    the bank after I pay my rent. If it does dip below that I do scramble,
    work more, spend less or whatever it takes, but fortunately it has
    been a long time since that happened.

    I have lived in a van and slept under bridges and it really isn't
    that bad. In fact the van time worked out so well it was practically
    ideal. I suppose there is a possibility that that I will die of hunger
    out in the streets some day, and I'm not at all trying to suggest
    that it would be pleasant, but overall it has been such an interesting
    life that I don't think I would be unduly distressed by that. I do hope
    to die grateful for the time that I did have.

    So that last paragraph was not at all anything I had in mind when I
    started this post. It is interesting what happens when you try to be
    accurate and pay a little attention to detail.

    best wishes, lloyd
    Signature

    Do something spectacular; be fulfilled. Then you can be your own hero. Prem Rawat

    The KimW WSO

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[165592].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author awarepoint
    Some good advice to follow in this thread. I've only recently realized how fast money slips through my hands. It is easy to spend and keep spending in this society because it is designed as a consumer society compelling you to consume in order to gain popularity, prestige, respect, or friends.

    I've since started tracking all of my expenses in excel spreadsheets so I know exactly what I am spending money on.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[166085].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Lloyd Buchinski
    Thanks for the comments Indiana.

    I thought I should come back here and add that I'm not against
    investing and even the example I gave of inflation ignored that
    even in a bank account interest would probably have balanced
    inflation, but even there I do think there is a bit of a risk involved.

    And of course anyone smart enough to have extra money coming
    in would be in a better position to work with investments.
    Signature

    Do something spectacular; be fulfilled. Then you can be your own hero. Prem Rawat

    The KimW WSO

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[166957].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author myob
      The greatest achievement in life is in having so lived within your means, saved, invested, and seized opportunities as they came, that you are now able to help others caught in the storm. Give the umbrellas of hope to those in the rain, and soup to lighten the heart so they might sing again. This is to have really lived.

      Advice to those who can't save: Don't buy things you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't like. Invest the difference.

      People need to accept personal responsibility, and quit living beyond their means, or get a second job to pay for their lifestyle.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[167358].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author awarepoint
        Originally Posted by myob View Post

        Advice to those who can't save: Don't buy things you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't like. Invest the difference.
        That's a good way to put it. p

        It's a hard message to hear when the mass media is drumming consumerism into everyone. Advertising is everywhere, and it's hard to go out onto the streets without feeling some pressure to buy something that you really don't need. And that's supposedly going to bring your more happiness, better relationships, or whatever (not true). But, it's important to become aware of all these subliminal messages so that you are not buying compulsively and without being aware of the mistake you are making.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[240310].message }}

Trending Topics