A little over three and a half years ago my grandma passed away. Without a doubt, she was the strongest and most wise woman I've ever known. Throughout her life she was always very dedicated to her family. Within the last several years before passing away, I would always hear her say "I'm so rich...," especially around the holidays when we were all together. She would then go on to finish her thought by saying "I'm so rich in love." Looking back, her and my grandfather lived a rather simple life. They had a house in the suburbs, three kids, and I think even a dog or two in there somewhere. He was a welder by trade (at least most of the time that I can remember) and she would say she was a “homemaker” (a.k.a a stay at home mom) although her house would tell a different story. Their family of five shared an entire 875 square feet of living space and a single bathroom. Needless to say they spent a lot of time in close proximity to one another! I imagine finding some private … [Read more...] about What Does It Mean to Live A Rich Life?
General
What You Should Know Before Starting College
It's been exactly 20 years since I was walking across that stage to accept a piece of paper that would be the dividing line between not having a care in the world and having to get my shit together quick. I remember it being an exciting time, but back then I knew very little about college and even less about money. I just knew I needed both. Unfortunately for me, I was only one of a few people in my family that even pursued education beyond high school, and Dave Ramsey wouldn't come along in my life to teach me about money until two college degrees and several jobs later -which wasn't until 2016. In a nutshell, I had virtually no influence in either of these areas. I was winging it at best. There were many mistakes made along the way. It's a bit cliché, but if I had known then what I know now, perhaps I'd be much closer to Financial Independence than I am today. But, I suppose there are many of us that feel this way. The hard reality is that you can't change the past, … [Read more...] about What You Should Know Before Starting College
Financial Spring Cleaning
Spring time is here! Well, it's officially here, but depending on where you live you still may be trying to shake off that left over winter weather. Spring is arguably one of the best times of the year. It brings a sense of renewal in many aspects of life and in nature. Like many others, I always find this time year to be the perfect opportunity to do a little spring cleaning. For me this usually entails tackling closets or other areas of my house where stuff has accumulated and purging unused items to a point of where I feel more organized and better about myself. It's amazing how just clearing things out can lower stress and just improve your overall well-being. With that said, I find it is also a great time to do a little spring cleaning with our finances. Usually this involves me reviewing our budget and refining my vast array of spreadsheets that I use to track spending, school tuition, retirement, re-occurring expenses, etc. Here a few areas I also recommend … [Read more...] about Financial Spring Cleaning
Emergency Funds: Weathering the Storm
This post may contains affiliate links. Please read my Disclaimer Page. Have you ever heard the phrase "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst?" When it comes to your finances, preparing for the worst can mean the difference between maintaining financially stability or sinking heavily into years and years of debt. So, how does one financially prepare for the worst? Two words. Emergency. Fund. We all know to "save for a rainy day," however, the majority of us either get wrapped up consuming useless crap we think we need, or we fall trap to that all familiar feeling of being invincible and thinking "nothing bad will happen to me." Emergency funds are not only important in providing the ability to get ourselves out of a jam, but also psychologically give us that peace of mind knowing that not IF but WHEN things get rough we can calmly weather the storm. Why Do I Need an Emergency Fund? A few years back, I suddenly and tragically lost my younger brother. He died leaving behind no … [Read more...] about Emergency Funds: Weathering the Storm
So You Want To Be Financially Independent?
This post contains affiliate links. Please read my Disclaimer Page. Until recently, I didn't even know Financial Independence was something that can be achieved far earlier than your golden years. Heck, I didn't even know what Financial Independence really was. I always knew saving and investing for retirement was important, but always assumed those days would be when I was older - much, much older. It all started when I began researching to find better ways to invest some extra cash now that our student loans had been paid off. Clearing up our debt suddenly left an extra $1850 per month on the table and while I had some good ideas on where to put this money, I really wanted to make sure we were maximizing its potential for our future. After googling a bit, I landed on the Mr. Money Mustache blog and started learning about this small but growing online community known as FIRE which stands for Financially Independent - Retiring Early. A few articles in and I was hooked. I … [Read more...] about So You Want To Be Financially Independent?