Developing your money habit

The important keys to financial security are good habits. If you want to put yourself in position to weather any financial storm, you need to understand and follow only four good habits:

Studies show that Americans load themselves down with large debts compounding the difficulties they face in making themselves financially secure. Only those who keep their debts under control stand a chance to make themselves financially secure. Homeownership is a reasonably good store of value in the long-term. There’s nothing wrong with taking on debt to buy a car, either.

 

Consumer debts are those that people pile on to buy consumer goods such as televisions, do-it-all telephones, vacations at expensive resorts and the like. Credit card use is usually a bad idea for the individual because it leads to overspending, not to mention high interest charges if you don’t pay your balance off every month. The solution: Use cash when buying anything other than irg-ticket items.

 

Studies show that Americans work harder than most other people in the world, and what they have to show for it is an economy that creates extraordinary wealth year after year, decade after decade. People who want to make themselves financially secure don’t always love their work but they need a paycheck like everyone else. Hard work pays off in many ways. It creates opportunity, for example; in any company, it’s the hard worker who gets the difficult assignment, and it’s the difficult assignment done well that gets the raise or the promotion, or both. Hard work brings you two bonuses: The first is the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve done your best. The second is a small miracle. No matter what your job, if you master it, you can’t help but like it. And if you like your job, you’ll work hard at it.

 

At least 10 cents of every dollar you earn. The solution to the problem of putting money aside into savings is simple. If you don’t make it a priority to put money aside into your savings every month, you won’t lose your house, to be sure. You’ll just lose the chance to make yourself financially secure, and no matter what your age, study after study shows that you will almost certainly reach that goal if you put aside at least 10 cents of every dollar you make, and preferably 15 cents.

 

Protect yourself against catastrophe with appropriate insurance. No matter how good a driver you are, you can have an accident. No matter how carefully you guard your health, you can get sick. No matter how young you are, you can die. Insurance is the only way to protect yourself and your family against these risks. Find a good insurance agent, figure out what risks you face, and get insurance to cover them.