Learning financial responsibility in your twenties can be a total game changer for your future. By getting the following six lessons before you turn thirty, you can set yourself up for more financial freedom and peace later in life.
1. Get a side hustle now. Seriously, while you still have the energy and time, get a side hustle. Not only will you save some coin by not spending every evening at happy hour after work, but you will also be earning some cash during that time.
2. Every dollar has a place. In other words, get a budget! Create a budget and assign every dollar to a category. If you have money left over you will spend it on dumb stuff, instead allocate it towards financial goals so you aren't tempted to waste in on yet another one of Kylie's lip packs.
3. Set financial goals. Whether they are paying off debt by a certain deadline, saving for a retirement or a home, start thinking about your financial future.
4. Make saving for retirement a necessity. To the previous point, if you are debt free, then saving for retirement via an IRA or 401k should be a fixed cost in your budget. The younger you start saving the more of the compounding interest you can rack in. Plus did you know it's nearly impossible for someone who started saving for retirement at age 30 to catch up to someone who started saving for retirement at age 20?
5. Building credit takes time, destroying credit takes minutes. Seriously, every time you open a retail card for that 20% off discount, you hurt your credit. Then factor in the fact that most Americans are living in financial chaos, (for example: forgetting to pay the bill on that retail card), and it has the potential to hurt you even more!
If any of these are you:
– You're new to credit (as in just started using it in the last 6 years) or
-If you don't have an emergency fund with six to nine months of income in it, or
-If you have had a checkered past with credit
Whether you're just starting out in your credit journey, or looking to repair your credit, a good rule of them is to only charge what you can pay off in 24 hours.
6. Live below your means. In your twenties you will probably make some nice jumps in your career, which come with nice salary boosts. You should use that as an opportunity to live below your means. Don't fall into the trap of lifestyle inflation to match your new paycheck. Remember, just because your co-worker comes in with new designer shoes every week, does not mean they don't have a buttload of debt they are paying off. Dave Ramsey says you have to “live like no one else today, so you can live like no one else tomorrow”… meaning that most Americans are in debt, and if we live below our means when we are young, we don't have to be tied by debt in our future.
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This is such great advice! Finances can be tough at any stage of life, but especially in your 20s!
I feel like its so easy in your 20s especially to think you have so much time to save and invest but its such a better habit to get started on asap!
This are all so important to learn and practice before turning 30! My husband is a really great saver so as soon as we got married we sat down and decided how much we would save each paycheck and how much we would put towards retirement. You can never get time back and learning these lessons is so important. Great post!
Yep yep super important! I need to start being even smarter with money. Just in case something happens!
I love these bits of financial advice. I live for my budget. I love when I hear other encouraging budgeting!
LOVE your tips! Seriously, it’s so easy to open a store card and SO easy to forget that you have a balance to pay! I’ve forgotten before and totally had every intention of paying it too. I’ve been working so hard to keep a great credit score too!
Sound advice for the young and reckless! I did my best in my twenties, but health issues with my daughter messed with my credit. I just couldn’t keep up with with them – they sent me to collections even when I sent ten dollars a month! Healthy financial planning means covering all bases that could be potential financial risk factors! Thank you!
These are such great tips! Now that I am 30, I am so happy that I saved as much as I did!
I’m turning 30 soon (AH!). I do most of these but I need to work on my retirement, it’s tricky since I’m self-employed but I don’t want to just count on my husband’s retirement for us.
Oh, thanks for these tips!! I am in my early 20’s and still don’t have a credit card and considering getting it soon…
http://thesofieyahdiaries.com/fashion/how-to-style-embroidered-denim
Great tips girl! Sometimes I wish a finance class is a requirement at university so that everyone can understand how beneficial it is to have an IRA or 401K! Side hustles are important too! Technically the generations before had them, but they called them their second and third jobs lol.
Amanda @ Cupcake N Dreams
These are all amazing tips – especially #5! I work at a place where we’re required to solicit credit apps at a 25% interest rate. Talk about yikes!
Dave Ramsey has some fantastic financial tips for sure!
xoxo A
http://www.southernbelleintraining.com
This is a fantastic list. I like love setting financial goals for myself. It really does make a difference in the end.
These are great tips! I’m defiantly going to be putting a ton of these to good use!
This is a super helpful list! Planning for your future/retirement is so important. That compound interest is so working in our favor in our 20s and people definitely don’t take advantage of it. I feel like people don’t give millennials enough credit for thinking about finances…I’m sure some of us don’t, but I see more and more people our age really saving, not going into debt, investing, etc.!
These are great tips! Especially since my student loan payments have begun, it is super important for me to budget. I always make sure to save a little every month too!
These are excellent tips. I think goal planning is huge. Definitly helps you stick to a plan and be smart with your money.
These tips are all so important to financial success! I totally agree that a side hustle is great to earn some extra cash on the side and you also never know when that could turn into your full time gig 😉
Starting a 401k and working on your credit are also crucial things to do in your twenties!
Kristen | http://www.sophisticatedgal.com
I definitely think budgeting, retirement savings, and side hustles are all SUPER great ideas to get on at our age! Great tips!