4. Don't be taken advantage of. There is no limit to the ways your money can be misspent or the persons who will take it from you. Don't let this happen. Delete spam e-mails unopened. Recognize that all advertisements qualify for the admonition: Ninety-five percent of everything is nonsense. Purchase nothing from uninvited salesmen. Ignore random solicitations for charitable contributions.
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5. Plan for the changes that must surely come. Life is a constantly evolving process, with significance at each stage. In your twenties it's acceptable to live on a shoestring while dreaming and scheming for the future. By your thirties, as family or professional obligations take precedence, closely control your spending and savings habits. During your forties assiduously concentrate on asset accumulation. I recommend that by age fifty you are able to subsist on passive investment income if necessary. By your sixtieth birthday, you qualify as wealthy, meaning that you can live in a style you choose with no employment required. Be aware that things will work out this way only by your early decision to make it happen
6. Don't expect money to make you happy. You've heard the old saying: "Money isn't everything." That's true. Like it or not, wealth brings with it certain demands and responsibilities, and if you ignore them you'll regret it. As you become wealthy-recognizably wealthy-certain aspects of your life change, and not all for the better. Although the problems of meeting the mortgage and financing the children's schooling may no longer exist, other problems move in to take their place. Your relationship with friends and relatives begin to change as you are viewed as something apart. It seems that admiration and envy are opposite sides of the same coin, and as your perceived fortune grows, you will be the recipient of both emotions. Merely possessing money doesn't ensure happiness. Only its prudent use results in satisfaction.
7. Give away what you don't need. In the final analysis, there is a practical limit on personal consumption, beyond which satisfaction is marginal. At some point in our lives there must be more than mere acquisition. In this hostile world are deserving people, and the opportunity to share your bounty in a meaningful way is exactly that*an opportunity. There is satisfaction in giving back a portion of your good fortune. Establish a private non-profit educational foundation into which you contribute sums of money. These funds become available for scholarships to students chosen by the foundation directors whom you select, perhaps faculty members of a nearby college. The student chosen receive payments as long as they perform satisfactorily, and it's your task to monitor their performance. Not only do deserving students benefit directly to the extent of nearly 100 percent of your contributions, but also your donations qualify as tax deductions. This is a fine way to fund a philanthropic enterprise in which the value to the actual recipients can be seen and appreciated. What finer way might you spend money?
About the Author:
AL JACOBS has been a professional investor for more than four decades. His business experience ranges from real estate, mortgage, and securities investment to appraisal, civil engineering, and the operation of a private trust company. In addition to managing his investments on a day-to-day basis, he is a featured financial columnist for both online and print publications. He is the author of Nobody's Fool: A Skeptic's Guide to Prosperity. You may subscribe to his financial Newsletter, "On the Money Trail," at no cost or obligation, by visiting www.onthemoneytrail.com.
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