Image Source: PixabayIt’s not too late. Whether you’re hoping for a comfortable retirement or getting ready to make a big purchase, everybody needs to do a bit of planning ahead. We’re just a few days into the New Year. And there’s no better time to commit to some simple changes that will improve your finances.Many people make ambitious New Year’s resolutions. And then they fail and give up because it’s too hard. But growing your wealth doesn’t have to be difficult. Today, I’d like to share three easy resolutions that will help you meet your financial goals.
Three Easy Financial New Year’s Resolutions
According to the St. Louis Fed, Americans are saving less than 4% of their income. That’s not nearly enough.Too often I hear stories of people putting off saving and investing until just before retirement. But investments need time to grow in order to turn into life-changing wealth. That’s why I frequently remind readers to invest their money as soon as they can, so that it can compound over many years and support a comfortable retirement.Experts at Fidelity Investments recommend saving 15% of your income for retirement. If that sounds impossible, try starting at a lower amount and slowly working your way up to more savings. Even just an extra 1% savings can turn into 3% more income in retirement. But only if the money has time to grow. That’s why you need to start saving more right now.
Saving money is a good start to financial freedom. Right now, interest rates are high. So you can earn a reasonable return just keeping money in your bank account.But interest rates might not stay high forever. In fact, many people think the Fed will start lowering rates this year. So in order to keep growing your money to get life-changing wealth, you have to invest it. And when I say “invest,” I don’t mean throwing your money into meme stocks and sucker yields. That’s gambling – a form of entertainment – and not a reliable way to get rich. If the potential returns seem too good to be true, they probably are.Instead, invest your money into wonderful businesses – reliable companies that pay you dividends that grow every year. So even if stock prices drop in the short-term, you can sleep well at night because you know that the companies you own will be worth more over the long-term. It’s the “slow and steady” that win the race.
The late Charlie Munger was a legendary investor who helped Warren Buffett make some of his best investments. One piece of advice he had for investors was this: “You have to keep learning if you want to become a great investor. When the world changes, you must change.”Businesses are constantly changing. New technology and new competitors are a fact of life. Changes in laws and even things that happen halfway around the world can affect a company’s profits.That’s why it’s important to always keep learning. So you can invest your money into companies that have the best prospects and avoid the ones that are slowly fading away.
One Way to Get Started
We’re focused on finding the safest income investments on the market. Some of our favorite companies have steadily grown and rewarded shareholders through it all – from stagflation and double-digit interest rates to financial crises and recessions.My team of analysts and I are constantly learning. We spend dozens of hours every week researching the latest trends in the market and around the world. That’s how we know which companies are the highest quality dividend payers the market has to offer.And one quick way to add multiple high quality dividend paying companies to your portfolio is through the Schwab U.S. Dividend ETF (SCHD). This exchange traded fund yields 3.5% and invests in companies that have better fundamental strength than their competitors. And SCHD has a record of consistently paying dividends.So start making progress toward your financial goals today. This year is just beginning.More By This Author:Building Back Wealth Through “Stock Market Real Estate”
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