Do you have money troubles? I can remember being over my head in credit card debt after college. I ended up burying my head in the sand so I wouldn’t have to deal with it too. You have to work on your finances every day.
How often do you think about your finances? Or, do you stick your head in the sand and just continue spending money you don’t have?
How often do you think about your budget or tweak it? Do you follow the news of companies you own stock in? Do you know what the mutual fund managers of your funds are doing or thinking?
If you focus on your finances a little bit each day, you will be able to handle and understand them better than ever. I’m not talking about buying and selling stocks everyday or watching their prices like a hawk. I’m talking about raising your financial IQ.
Work On Your Finances Every Day
You Are Good At What You Practice
It may not exactly be fun to everyone, and it may invoke memories of piano lessons of our youth. But, you are good at what you practice every day. Malcolm Gladwell is famous for pointing out in his awesome book, The Tipping Point, that it takes about 10,000 hours of practice at any one activity to become an expert at it.
So, all of you aspiring guitar players should definitely keep at it. The same is, of course, true for your finances. You have to practice to be good at it. What do I mean by practice? When was the last time you calculated your net worth? When was the last time you followed the stocks or mutual funds that you own in your retirement accounts?
Do you know the mutual funds top holdings and their rationale for it? Do you listen to conference calls of the companies you own stock in? It is not rocket science, but doing one small task each day will keep your finances in the forefront of your mind.
