Money Well Spent with Lee Kent . . .

Business

I’m always broke at the end of the month. No matter how hard I try, I always come up short and never get ahead. I guess I should accept it since this happens to everyone, right?

A man takes his wife and kids to see the latest movie. As they sit down he sees his landlord and says “hello.” He also sees many other people sitting down, from the owner of the grocery store, the owner of the gas station he uses, the appliance store where he just got his flat panel TV, the car lot where he bought his new truck, and so on. Soon, after the movie starts, someone screams “FIRE!” He springs into action, telling his wife and children to stay in their seats! After that, he rushes to the aide of his landlord and helps him and his family to escape. He rushes back in and helps the grocery owner and the gas station owner to get their families out. By this time smoke is filling the theater. Our hero continues helping all the people he pays or owes money every month to, out to safety. Finally, as flames are breaking through the roof, he goes in for his own wife and children!
I don’t know about you, but at the end of the day I would be getting my own wife and kids out first!

As insane as this story sounds, many people live their financial lives the same way. Every month, the first dollars from their paycheck are used to pay for housing, groceries, and transportation. The necessities… Then, if they have some money left, it gets hot in the pocket and they spend it before it burns a hole and falls out. You know important stuff like texting bills, ball tickets, four wheelers, cigarettes and beer. Before you know it, there is more month left at the end of your money. But hey, everyone you know is in the same boat or should I say “theater.”

For anyone stuck in this “theater” it may seem impossible to fix the situation. They always run low on money. If you have spent your entire life handling money this way, you cannot turn it on a dime. It will take time, effort, and practice. YOU CAN DO IT! If you start today, you can change your situation.

When you receive your next paycheck, before you pay your first bill, pay YOURSELF first, even if it is only a dollar or five. Put that bill in a cigar box or open a savings account at a bank. The bank account is paying about the same amount of interest as the cigar box right now. That will be changing in the near future, thanks to our “friends” in Washington. More on that another time….

Force yourself to put up something every time, no matter how small. Most importantly, leave it alone! Soon, you will have quite a growing balance. Soon, you will start feeling good about having something put up. Soon, you will find a way to put a few extra bucks in each time.

I’m sure most people have a change jar that they empty their pockets into at the end of the day. This is a start, but it takes too long! Try this instead….

Never keep one-dollar bills in your wallet. Only spend 5s, 10s, 20s, or larger bills when you buy anything. Take the singles from the change and put them in your cigar box bank. Not only will you quickly see a rising balance, you will start thinking twice before you spend money on impulse. You will ask yourself, “Do I really need that extra cup of coffee?” That $1.25 soda is going to take $5.00 out of your wallet. You not only develop savings, you become more frugal with you money!

There are many other tricks to save a little or to spend less. Find what works for you and before you know it, there will be more money than month on the 31st.

Please, be prepared to save your family FIRST, before you smell smoke in life’s financial flick.

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