Read on Twitter
Non-Football thread: I’ve been *that guy* on a new year new me kick and have been educating myself on a lot of things... finances, nutrition, business, etc. I want to share a few things that I’ve learned that might be obvious to others but I wish someone had told me sooner...
Feel free to tweet your own, “I wish someone had told me this sooner...” lessons in the thread.
You don’t have to put 20% down to buy a house. This idea of putting 20% kept me from buying a house and renting for a decade. You can put 5% down and still get approved. Yes, you have to pay mortgage insurance but the trade off of up front cash savings is worth it for most.
75k down now or 19K with an extra $100/month in PMI payment? Either you don’t have the extra $56k to put down or if you do you’re probably smart enough that you know investing it will pay off more than the PMI over the long term.
That was 1.
2. Your bank account shouldn’t grow. Your savings and investments should grow.
Setup multiple accounts and auto deposit your checks every month. Everyone is different but minimum 3 accounts: 1 for solely for bills. 1 for extra spend (set a budget). 1 for savings.
2. Your bank account shouldn’t grow. Your savings and investments should grow.
Setup multiple accounts and auto deposit your checks every month. Everyone is different but minimum 3 accounts: 1 for solely for bills. 1 for extra spend (set a budget). 1 for savings.
The idea is that you have a bucket for bills, a bucket for fun, and a bucket for savings. Savings should cover minimum 3 months salary for tough situations and should continue to grow while the other ones stay stagnant.
Fun bucket covers eating out, alcohol, fun, etc.
Fun bucket covers eating out, alcohol, fun, etc.
And if you have a little more income, as long as your debts are paid off or minimal, have a 4th bucket specific for something fun. Wife and I are setting up a “travel” bucket for some sweet ass vacations every year.
3. Fat>>>>sugar.
I’m sure you’ve heard all about this from your friend on keto but it’s true. Too much of anything is bad for you, so moderation is key, but our bodies are not made to process the amount and types of sugar we consume today. Moderation. Moderation. Moderation.
I’m sure you’ve heard all about this from your friend on keto but it’s true. Too much of anything is bad for you, so moderation is key, but our bodies are not made to process the amount and types of sugar we consume today. Moderation. Moderation. Moderation.
4. This is more pertinent for women, but think about what you put on your skin. Think about how a nicotine patch works: Put it on your arm and it’s absorbed into your bloodstream. All those chemicals in your lotion/moisturizer/tampon does the same thing.
5. Use your money to make money and don’t try to get cute. Be smart and play the probabilities and do it early. Max out your company’s 401K match if at all possible. Take the company’s stock discount if you can afford it. Invest in S&P and let compound interest do it’s magic.
6. Get moving. It’s not about being skinny. It’s about being healthy. Motion is lotion and your body needs the motion to stay fluid, flexible, and strong. It’s best if you can do something to break a sweat for 30 min every day, but any activity increases life span dramatically.
7. Meditation is more about mindfulness and being aware of the present instead of being on autopilot. It helps you control your mind and develop critical thinking masses in the brain. It helps make more conscious decisions and get your brain back on the rails faster.
8. Wanna be happy? Be grateful. We live in a, “What’s next?” world. We finish one thing and move to the next. People who are conscious and grateful for the small things appreciate their lives at a higher level and are generally happier.
I read about a study that had one group of people watch a video of people winning the lottery and spending their winnings. The 2nd group watched a video of families in 3rd world countries. Scientists expected that the lottery watchers would leave feeling energized & happier.
Instead, the study showed that the people who watched the 3rd world families felt more grateful for their lives and were happier for longer periods of time after the study.
Take real time to reflect and remind yourself how good you’ve got it.
Take real time to reflect and remind yourself how good you’ve got it.
That’s it for now... might add to this later on but I’m excited to read some of these replies.
Thought of another one.
9. Contribute to your HSA if you can. You move pretax dollars to a health account. If you use them on *medical expenses (any form of doctor, prescriptions, OTC medicine, etc.) and pay no tax on those dollars whatsoever.
But that’s not the best part...
9. Contribute to your HSA if you can. You move pretax dollars to a health account. If you use them on *medical expenses (any form of doctor, prescriptions, OTC medicine, etc.) and pay no tax on those dollars whatsoever.
But that’s not the best part...
With an HSA, you have access to those funds whenever you need them. If you use them for something other than medical expenses, you just pay the standard tax on those funds come tax time. Great way to protect yourself/family with very little risk.
*HSAs can vary in what you’re allowed to spend on so, as with any advice in this thread, double check the fine print or talk with an expert before making final decisions. I’m certainly not an expert on any of this.
10. 401k vs. Roth IRA
401K: Pretax $ taken from your paycheck and invested. Can’t touch until 65 without paying a huge penalty. Pay taxes when you withdraw.
Roth IRA: Post tax (your money from paycheck) invested. Can’t touch until 59 without penalty. No tax on withdrawal.
401K: Pretax $ taken from your paycheck and invested. Can’t touch until 65 without paying a huge penalty. Pay taxes when you withdraw.
Roth IRA: Post tax (your money from paycheck) invested. Can’t touch until 59 without penalty. No tax on withdrawal.
Roth IRA has huge value because if you invest $1000 and it turns into $1M, you’ve already paid tax on your $1000 so you don’t pay when you withdraw your million. You don’t pay taxes on contributions or earnings for a Roth IRA.
Lots of folks correcting me that 401k withdrawal age without penalty is 59.5 - same as Roth IRA. My bad. Told you I wasn’t an expert.
Last one for the night.
11. When buying a new car, always ask for the invoice and come prepared with your own interest rate(s). Talk price, not payments.
Invoice and rates keeps you from being ripped off. Price keeps you on budget.
Don’t buy the extra warranty on a new car.
11. When buying a new car, always ask for the invoice and come prepared with your own interest rate(s). Talk price, not payments.
Invoice and rates keeps you from being ripped off. Price keeps you on budget.
Don’t buy the extra warranty on a new car.
Throwing this in. Solid flowchart. But again, everyone’s situation is different.
Throwing this into the original life hacks thread. https://twitter.com/nflosophy/status/1275907465582960640?s=21 https://twitter.com/NFLosophy/status/1275907465582960640
Adding this one to the life advice thread. Mileage may vary a bit here, but if going to standard college with a normal major, totally worth it. Just make sure credits transfer to the school you want before deciding. https://twitter.com/nflosophy/status/1285568544877551616?s=21 https://twitter.com/NFLosophy/status/1285568544877551616
More life advice I wish someone told me earlier that I just learned: You can invest your HSA money. This is super useful bc it’s pretax $ put away in case of medical expenses but can be invested like a 401k. Difference is there is no early withdrawal penalty, only taxes w/drawn.
