Everyone knows the best way to save for the future, is to put aside some money to invest. The problem is, that there are so many expenses in modern life it can be hard to find any money to start with. However, you may be surprised at how much you actually have available, when you get right down to it. That's why the first thing you need to do, before anything else, is to start watching your personal finances closely.
I had a friend, let's call him Bob, who was a total mess. Had a dozen different bank accounts, savings accounts, investment accounts, and of course a whole selection of credit cards. And every month, he'd barely scrape through to pay day, despite making a fair amount of money. He thought he would never be able to get enough to invest, and maybe you're in a similar situation - overwhelmed by a huge number of spending accounts and credit cards.
So the first thing you need to do, is to start reducing the number of accounts you have - or at least, the number you use. I know I have at least one credit card I haven't touched in a year. If you can, try and bring it down so that you are only spending money from one account, preferably a bank account with a debit card. It doesn't matter what kind of account this is, really, just that all of your money goes through it.
At the end of the month, you can look at the statement for that account, and you will be able to see exactly what you are spending, and where. This will make it easy for you to spot unnecessary expenses, that you might not otherwise notice. Like that gym membership you signed up for six months ago, and then completely forgot about!
Now that you can see all your finances laid out in front of you, you can pick one or two items that maybe you don't really need, and cancel them. That will immediately give you more money, money that you can put to good use and invest. Even then, keep monitoring your bank account, and tracking everything that goes in or out; you never know when it will come in handy to know that sort of thing.
As you know, the whole point of investing is that the money you put in gets bigger over time. So even though it might not seem like you have a lot now, once you get started even that small amount will start to grow, and before you know it you'll be sitting on a fortune!
I had a friend, let's call him Bob, who was a total mess. Had a dozen different bank accounts, savings accounts, investment accounts, and of course a whole selection of credit cards. And every month, he'd barely scrape through to pay day, despite making a fair amount of money. He thought he would never be able to get enough to invest, and maybe you're in a similar situation - overwhelmed by a huge number of spending accounts and credit cards.
So the first thing you need to do, is to start reducing the number of accounts you have - or at least, the number you use. I know I have at least one credit card I haven't touched in a year. If you can, try and bring it down so that you are only spending money from one account, preferably a bank account with a debit card. It doesn't matter what kind of account this is, really, just that all of your money goes through it.
At the end of the month, you can look at the statement for that account, and you will be able to see exactly what you are spending, and where. This will make it easy for you to spot unnecessary expenses, that you might not otherwise notice. Like that gym membership you signed up for six months ago, and then completely forgot about!
Now that you can see all your finances laid out in front of you, you can pick one or two items that maybe you don't really need, and cancel them. That will immediately give you more money, money that you can put to good use and invest. Even then, keep monitoring your bank account, and tracking everything that goes in or out; you never know when it will come in handy to know that sort of thing.
As you know, the whole point of investing is that the money you put in gets bigger over time. So even though it might not seem like you have a lot now, once you get started even that small amount will start to grow, and before you know it you'll be sitting on a fortune!
About the Author:
This article written by Stephen Hauptman, experienced trader of many years experience. If you're looking for the top share for beginners, you could do worse then check out his site!
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