Tag: Financial Independence
How to Control Your Spending 104: Implementing a Daily Budget
We don’t realize how much marketing we receive throughout one day. Even worse, social media has helped average people market to one another—no evil corporations required. Therefore, it’s not a question of whether we spend money but how much we spend. With that in mind, let’s find a way to spend but remain under control.…
Retirement Planning for the Average Person 6
It finally happened; my wife and I retired. I am 42, and she is 39, and life couldn’t be better. We both started with below-average resources, but we still arrived at this momentous occasion. So, what’s the secret sauce to retiring when you want, having a great income, and living your dream life? The secret…
5 Takeaways from “Smart Money Smart Kids”
“Smart Money Smart Kids” by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze is a masterclass in raising smart money kids. My boys are 17 and 12, so this book is what I need to help my family learn good money habits at this crucial age. Raising money-smart kids isn’t about perfection from parents or children. It is…
Treasury Bonds vs. Options Trading: Graduate to the Next Phase of Investing
We rarely get to compare two completely opposite things—usually, there is no point. However, let’s make an exception in this case because both investment vehicles can help us reach our financial goals. Buying treasury bonds and trading options are about as far apart on the risk totem pole as possible. Treasuries give investors a risk-free…
Trading Long Strangles for Passive Income
Trading options on the stock market is not for the faint of heart. However, you have come to the right place if you want big returns (for taking big risks). Trading options can be a very emotional experience because the stock market can make you feel like an idiot sometimes. Therefore, finding the options strategy…
How to Control Your Spending 103: Developing a Hardcore Budget
There are only two ways to become rich: lower expenses or increase income. If you can reduce your costs as you add more cash flow to your bottom line, you have a good chance of becoming wealthy. But how do we lower our expenses when inflation wreaks havoc on our budgets? The answer is to…
The Pros & Cons of Homeownership #2: Wealth Destruction
The more I watch HGTV, the more I believe the housing industry created it to get people to spend money on their homes. Owning a home can be the most expensive experience of your life if you let it. Unfortunately, many people have destroyed any chance of building wealth by focusing their wallets on their…
How to Control Your Spending 102: Using the Envelope System
We kids teach kids how to spend using the envelope system; however, adults can use this system as well. The envelope system gives us a better way to visualize our spending and income than debit cards and online banking. But who should use the envelope method, and how will it benefit them in the long…
The Pros & Cons of Homeownership 1: Wealth Creation
There has never been a more challenging time to purchase a home than in 2023. Interest rates are soaring, and home prices haven’t decreased to reduce the monthly payments. Therefore, first-time home buyers need more money for a down payment and higher incomes for bigger mortgage payments. The burning question is if buying and owning…
How to Control Your Spending 101: Cutting Up Your Credit Cards
There comes a time in most people’s lives when they grow sick and tired of carrying credit card debt. It usually happens when they have maxed out most of their credit cards—it’s the end of the road. At this point, they usually ask how they got here. The answer is quite simple: we learn to…
Full Throttle: How to Build a Fully Funded Emergency Fund
There is a big difference between financial security and financial freedom, mainly the amount of passive income your portfolio generates. Financial security means a major emergency or repair will not be a significant setback for your family. Financial freedom means your portfolio generates enough passive income for you to stop working and live on the…
If You Don’t Have Money: Don’t Buy Anything
“If you don’t have money, don’t buy anything.” Seems like a simple mantra, right? So, why is it so difficult for us to stop spending? The good news is that it’s not just you who cannot stop spending. The bad news is that you are 100% in control of your actions. Spending has become a…
Fundrise vs. Dividend ETFs: Corporate Profits vs. The Housing Market
Which would you rather depend on during retirement: corporate profits from blue-chip companies or the rental income and capital gains from the US housing market? That’s a tough call, so let’s dive into how we can best position ourselves to earn passive income from these major capital markets. Building passive income during retirement should be…
Pumpkin Spice & Royalties 3
How does it feel to earn money while you sleep? Quite good, actually. Every night I sleep, my 1000+ books on Amazon go to work to produce cash flow for my household. This cash flow is even more vital to my overall game plan during the winter season. Fall brings in the season of giving,…
The Three Stages of Wealth: Debt, Saving, Investing
There has never been a better time to understand money because it isn’t what you imagine. Most of us spend our lives dreaming of having more money, but we should focus on adding more value. As you better understand the value system, you’ll determine how money orients itself depending on the end user. There are…
How to FALL into Investing 3
Every fall season brings a new set of change and intrigue. We go into the holiday season filled with love, joy, and excitement. We may as well also enter the season with a lot of money. To be the giving person we want to be, we need additional income outside our job—passive income. Building a…
Are You a Willing Contestant in the Rat Race?
Games are fun, especially when you understand the rules. Life is the ultimate game show because there is much at stake. Not only do we hold our lives in the balance, but also the future of our children. There is no better prize than financial freedom. However, we didn’t start the game of life with…
Happiness Isn’t Free 3: Happiness Comes from Measured Sacrifice
Everything has a cost. Your life will open up as soon as you live and breathe this mantra. You can have everything you want in this world if you pay the price. The question is, what do you want? If you attach your happiness to “things” and “stuff,” you will have a difficult time being…
Investing for Interest 117: Treasury Bills vs. Treasury Notes vs. Treasury Bonds
Choice is the spice of life. When it comes to building an emergency fund, saving for our children, or investing for the future, we have many options. To effectively use these options, you must understand each of their individual metrics and make decisions that best suit your income needs. Welcome to the Investing for Interest…
Income for Retirement: Understanding High-Yield Dividend Stocks
Retirement can be scary because you lose the safety and security of receiving a monthly paycheck from your company. What if you could still get monthly paychecks from Fortune 500 companies during retirement? We need a high level of income to satisfy our financial needs during retirement so we can invest in companies that pay…
