My wife and I rarely spend much money on ourselves. We have never been the type just to go out and spend a ton of money out of nowhere on stuff that means nothing. But, ever since we began our journey to financial freedom, we have become even tighter with our spending.
If you gave me $1,000 today, I would invest $1,000 tomorrow. I wouldn’t even contemplate spending a dime on something I wanted. To be honest, there is nothing that I want. Yesterday, I received a $32 dividend from Altria (MO) on my Cash App debit card, and I keep telling myself I will spend it on something. Yeah right.
But, this year, I am making a goal to spend some money on myself. It all started when I opened my M1 Finance spend account that comes with a metal debit card. I then transferred $41 from my current dividend to have some cash on hand when I get back to America in a couple of weeks.
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It got me thinking, though. What if I put some more money into that account over time? I finally concluded that I want to get $1,000 into that account. Better yet, all of the money will come from dividends. Finally, I will spend all the money on Black Friday or during the Christmas season.
For years I have been telling myself that I would have a mini-spending spree on Black Friday, and it never comes to fruition. It is hard being responsible for so many people, houses, and scenarios, to actually spend money on oneself.
But the time has come to enjoy all that we have worked hard for. My wife and I have been stationed apart from each other for over a year. We have put this time to good use by paying off all of our debt, starting a blog, a Facebook group, creating an eBook series, writing 1000+ words a day, refinancing 2 of our homes, and building a $200,000 (in a few months) dividend portfolio. All on top of raising two amazing boys and keeping up with family and friends.
So yes, it is time to enjoy some of our cash. But, I want it to come from dividends because that is how the rich spend their money. We could quickly grab the money from the earned income from our jobs, but that won’t be the best way to finish. The best way to spend will be to invest all of our earned income and spend the money that our investments pay us. That is what I have learned after reading my 54 books this year.
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The plan. The plan is to collect up dividends from all my accounts and funnel them into my M1 Finance spend budget. Last month, I made $350 in dividends from my accounts, so I should be able to direct at least $150 into my M1 Finance every month while reinvesting a lot as well. That is the power of dividends; they give you options on how you want to spend them.
Two issues. There are two issues I foresee preventing me from achieving my goal.
1) First, I am going home for the first time in one year in about two weeks. It will be a romper room when I get home, as my spending will be out of control. I will be home for two months, so hopefully, I will still have enough to collect into M1 Finance.
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2) Second, it will be pretty easy for me to collect up my money, even with my trip home. However, I opened an M1 Finance spend account for my wife as well. And, we gave her the same goal. Her dividends produced about $150 last month, so we will have to double down to get her to $1000 by November.
So the goal is really $2,000 because it is $1,000 for each of us. Yes, we could easily get this money from rents, and maybe towards the end, we will grab a few hundred from rents. However, the intent is to use dividends because it sounds cool.
What I plan to buy. I don’t yet know what Kris intends to buy with her cash, but I will spend it on Nintendo Switch games. I haven’t bought a game in a while because I haven’t played my Switch in a bit.
However, I plan to gather $1,000 and go on a spending spree via Amazon and Walmart on Black Friday. I want to maximize my cash and get the most bang for my buck. I will keep everyone posted on my progress and my spending.
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Why dividends? So why the fascination with dividends? Dividends are a guilt-free way of spending cash. You are spending money that your investments pay you, so the assets remain after you finish. They will pay you again either monthly or quarterly. Over time, your investments grow, and your dividends grow as well.
We have worked hard to build our portfolio to where it is now. I started with $0.23 in my first month, to $350 last month. And every month, we are investing $3,000 to $5,000 into the portfolio. We plan to do this for the rest of our lives.
Yes, it is time to enjoy our cash hoard. We are living the American dream of working hard and playing hard. However, our hard work consists of using our minds to create money from thin air. We have earned the luxury to spend some of our passive income from investments.
What about you? Are you interested in creating your dividend spending spree? Go ahead and bookmark my site or join my email list if you want to read more about dividends and enjoy some free books. Reading is the best thing you can do for your mind. Enjoy and Happy Investing.
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Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. I am an Amazon Affiliate. Please research any investment vehicles that are being considered. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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