Unfortunately, personal finance has not yet become a required subject
in high school or college, so you might be fairly clueless about how to
manage your money when you're out in the real world for the first time.
If you think that understanding personal finance is way above your
head, though, you're wrong. All it takes to get started on the right
path is the willingness to do a little reading - you don't even need to
be particularly good at math.
To help you get started, we'll take a look at eight of the most important things to understand about money if you want to live a comfortable and prosperous life.
To help you get started, we'll take a look at eight of the most important things to understand about money if you want to live a comfortable and prosperous life.
- Learn Self Control
If you're lucky, your parents taught you this skill when you were a kid. If not, keep in mind that the sooner you learn the fine art of delaying gratification, the sooner you'll find it easy to keep your finances in order. Although you can effortlessly purchase an item on credit the minute you want it, it's better to wait until you've actually saved up the money. Do you really want to pay interest on a pair of jeans or a box of cereal? (To learn more about credit, check out Understanding Credit Card Interest and our Debt Management feature.) If you make a habit of putting all your purchases on credit cards, regardless of whether you can pay your bill in full at the end of the month, you might still be paying for those items in 10 years. If you want to keep your credit cards for the convenience factor or the rewards they offer, make sure to always pay your balance in full when the bill arrives, and don't carry more cards than you can keep track of.
- Take Control of Your Own Financial FutureIf you
don't learn to manage your own money, other people will find ways to
(mis)manage it for you. Some of these people may be ill-intentioned,
like unscrupulous commission-based
financial planners. Others may be well-meaning, but may not know what
they're doing, like Grandma Betty who really wants you to buy a house
even though you can only afford a treacherous adjustable-rate mortgage.
Instead of relying on others for advice, take charge and read a few
basic books on personal finance. Once you're armed with personal finance
knowledge, don't let anyone catch you off guard - whether it's a
significant other that slowly siphons your bank account or friends who
want you to go out and blow tons of money with them every weekend.
Understanding how money works is the first step toward making your money
work for you. (To find out how to have fun and still save money, see Budget Without Blowing Off Your Friends.)
- Know Where Your Money GoesOnce you've gone through a few personal finance books, you'll realize how important it is to make sure your expenses aren't exceeding your income. The best way to do this is by budgeting. Once you see how your morning java adds up over the course of a month, you'll realize that making small, manageable changes in your everyday expenses can have just as big of an impact on your financial situation as getting a raise. In addition, keeping your recurring monthly expenses as low as possible will also save you big bucks over time. If you don't waste your money on a posh apartment now, you might be able to afford a nice condo or a house before you know it. (Read more on budgeting in our Budgeting 101 special feature.)