If you're in the US or generally any country that's becoming authoritarian, get a passport. You never know how bad it may get.
this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2024
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Start a diary, and review where you're at in life every once in a while.
Start buying a few shares of VTI every pay period. Use any left over cash to buy SPYG. Ignore the gains or losses, the market has never not gone up (eventually). Thank yourself later.
Max out your 401k when you get a decent paying job. But make sure you hit every pay period to maximize your employer contribution.
Consider using mass transit where possible, bike if you can, more or less avoid a car/insurance. If that's not possible get a cheap car like a used Nissan leaf ($7000 in my area, costs a few dollars a month to charge using a wall outlet and extension cord)
Minimize unnecessary expenses like using food delivery services. Meal prep on the weekends and make enough food for a week.
If you do all this for 10 years or so, you'll be in a really good spot financially. Buying a house will be a decent prospect, your VTI and SPYG will be making money, your taxable income will be small and you will have built up the ability to splurge on things without it making much of an impact on your finances.
I've been following the YouTube channel Chris invests and he gives lots of similar advice like this.
Yo those stock recommendations are actually nuts. I just looked at their 5 year and lifetime charts and you're not lying. It's 45 degrees the whole way basically.
All sound advice, but coming across the extra capital to invest, much less in your 20's, is a harder prospect than it sounds for most people these days.
I'm not sure if you can get fractionals of SPY or VTI, but $300-500 a paycheck or even a month of money you can't use on the moment is a hard ask for much of the working class.
It's less like "Stop the avocado toast and lattés and netflix" and more "If you stopped buying a new graphics card every month you could afford stonks that will be mature when you are elderly."
Lol like, we aren't living in luxury and frivolous with our money in the first place, it usually poofs away into food and rent these days. (And gas and the car, if you aren't in one of VERY few places that are walk and bike friendly.)
But for people who have it. This is a sound strategy. On that note, I have a relative who's got very few expenses, often broke...and they're constantly buying new full-priced releases on Steam. This degree of resource mismanagement vexes me so. Lol
Yeah... Closest thing to set it and forget it I've found. I usually buy between 1-7 shares of VTI then a share of SPYG every other week. Been doing it for a long time now. Plus the dividend payout on VTI is really good.
Save your money, invest what money you can, and keep in as good a shape as you can.
Invest in yourself. Be good to the people around you. Set up your finances well early so you don't have to rush later.
I'm not sure any good advice I grew up with applies to this future we're stumbling into. Learn practical skills like gardening and fixing your stuff. Buy as little as you possibly can. An affordable set of basic tools is a great thing to keep for life. Consider the state of the world long and hard before you decide to bring children into it. Never talk to the police.
Get accostumed to eat your veggies, once you hit you 30s your intestine starts revolting if you don't give it healthy food
- Get a fire extinguisher for your home.
- Get legal expenses insurance.
- In both private and professional affairs, be fair and honest.
- Don't waste too much time with shitty partners or in shitty jobs.
Go do a trade. Computers are dumb.
learn as much as you can, don't worry too much about what it is you learn
you'll find what you're good at or fascinated by
Don't worry too much if you fuck up. You have more than enough time to fix just about any mistake. You're still young, it's OK.
I have two that I always say:
Take care of your teeth. They’re the only set you get. Also they don’t tell you this when you’re young, but all dental care is either preventative or reactionary. They can’t actually “fix” problems. If you have a cavity, that starts you down a road that ends with a crown or implant. Use any dental insurance you have religiously, pay for a good toothbrush (Oral-B or SoniCare), learn to floss properly and do it all every single day.
Second, save now as much as you are able. If you can adhere to it, look into the 50-30-20 rule. One thing it took me too long to learn is, given an otherwise living income, you won’t miss money you don’t see. When savings is automatically deposited from your paycheck, it’s out of sight and mind.
Lastly, just be yourself, and be a good person to those around you.
Good toothbrush advice (but don't floss with a string, use those small brushes instead, doesn't budge the teeth if you have to force the string through).
But for spending? If you have loads of wealth, then why not, but I blew about all my cash I had when I was young, going on trips, partying, eating with people, buying hobby things, checking stuff out...
I don't regret that a second. I even think most old people would think it priceless just to go back in time and fool around a week as a 20 year old, but it's too late now for them.
So live right now is my recommendation I guess, without doing too stupid things obviously.
Cheers.
Not saying to not have fun while you’re young. By all means, go for it. Just pointing out that a small amount of savings when you’re young pays off much more over time. If you wait, you’ll spend your later years catching up!
Well I sure can put away way more money today than when I was young. Depends I guess 🤷
What do you mean by not budging the teeth while flossing? Some of my teeth are pretty tight and I do use force to get the string floss to break through, is that bad?
Thats what my dentist says yes, I use something like this (but longer and with an angle):
Find a topic that you have interest in and master it. This will only get harder as you get older.
No one has life figured out. Everyone has the same insecurities, fears, and doubts. Everyone is pretending to know what they're doing at least part of the time.
-Life is too short for bad coffee, bad wine, bad shoes and bad people.
-spend the required money in a good bed and a good chair. When it comes down to it later, it is not negotiable for your back.
-you will have to have a lawyer involved sometimes such as drafting up a will. It’s worth it. Also: do your will and sort out your stuff even if you haven’t been diagnosed with a terminal illness.
-clean like you’re moving house once a year. Cut down on the hoarding.
-‘no’ Is a complete sentence.
-sometimes acceptance of a situation is what it is is the only closure you’re ever going to get.
-acknowledge your stuff <—//—> other people’s stuff. Others might not work on their own stuff but they aren’t your job.
-resentment isn’t always something someone gives you nor is it the reality of the situation. Sometimes a person invites it along. Eg: assuming such things as someone being late to dinner is a personalized slight to your energy and time.
-try not to confuse misunderstanding with malice.
-remember the good ones. It’s so easy to just count the nasty people in your life and have them as your comparison for things. Spending your energy this way overlooks all the good people in your life and that’s not fair to them and the effort they put in with you.
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