Protect your assets. Savings, combined with insurance for your life, health, home and automobile, may protect you from a loss or accident that could otherwise wipe you out financially.
Set aside money from each paycheck for saving and investing. If you can't put away 10 percent, begin with a smaller amount, such as 1 percent.- Learn about investment before investing your money.
Make a list of all your assets, sources and amounts of income, and your family's financial needs. Then create your financial plan. Do not hesitate to modify your lifestyle today, if it will help you reach worthy goals tomorrow.
Put your plan into action. Periodically monitor your progress.
Realize that many companies offer their employees investment programs as part of a retirement plan that includes significant tax advantages.
Regular investing will help you reach your goals and have money to pay for them.Financially successful people are that way not because of how much they earned, but because of the way they managed and invested their earnings.
On your way to success, remember to make your contribution to the world around you through the following ways:
Invest in the kingdom of God by paying a full tithing.
Invest in needy fellow Church members by giving a generous fast offering.
Invest in future Church members by doing such things as contributing to the missionary fund.
Invest a little time or money to support the Boy Scouts, a local charity or the public service organization of your choice. - Daniel Doornbos, San Jose, Calif.
Additional Information
Write to us:
July 30 "How to be a hard worker, yet find time to rest body, mind."
Aug. 6 "How to heal after a broken dating relationship."
Aug. 13 "How to have harmonious relationships at home, work, Church."
Aug. 20 "How to avoid being over-protective of your children."
Aug. 27 "How to recognize and overcome jealousy."
Sept. 3 "How to avoid making fun of others."
Had any good experiences or practical success in any of the above subjects? Share them with our readers in about 100-150 words. Write the "How-to" editor, Church News, P.O. Box 1257, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110, or send fax to (801) 237-2121. Please include a name and phone number. Contributions may be edited or excerpted and will not be returned. Due to limited space, some contributions may not be used; those used should not be regarded as official Church doctrine or policy. Material must be received at least 12 days before publication date.
HOW WE DID IT:
Time plus yield
My plan has two important principles:
I started with a simple plan of saving $1 per day.
I developed a plan of investing to achieve long-term highest possible yield.
I began my plan in about 1952 and have been able to average better than a 10 percent average yield through the years. I started with a simple savings account with a local bank. It's important to have the patience and determination to stick with a plan. - Doyle Crenshaw, Lebanon, Ky.
Live on less
The first and foremost thing is to get yourself debt-free, or at least if not 100 percent debt-free, having a debt on your home only. If you don't own a home get yourself in a situation where you can. Read and follow the advice from the book One for the Money by Marvin J. Ashton.
Now, to have money work for you, you have to have money. My suggestion is to follow Brother Ashton's advice and learn to live on 10 percent less than what you make. Pay your tithing and then learn again to live on another 10 percent less by putting away for savings. You will, thus, have money.
There are credit cards which rebate cash to you, and if there are no debts on those cards, you can use them to make your purchases, receive an additional rebate and then pay them off every month. - Peter D. Rona, Salt Lake City, Utah
Pay tithing
I am 20 years old and have been paying tithing for as long as I can remember. I believe that is the only way to make your money work for you, rather than working for your money. My friend and I have the same job, and make exactly the same amount of money, yet I find she is always broke by the end of the week. For a long time, I could not understand where all her money went, but then I realized it may be because I was a faithful tithe payer. We have the same amount of bills, except that I have a $400 car payment each month, and she does not.
I have a very strong testimony that my money works for me because I pay my tithing. - Tracie Hawthorne, Shalimar, Fla.
Control income
We have found that controlling our income and outgo in the following ways has helped our money work efficiently for us.
First, put all inflows into a collection/emergency account, preferably an interest-bearing account with check-writing privileges.
Second, place in a regular checking account enough income to cover monthly expenses such as mortgage payments, car expenses, food, utilities, etc. Also, place in a separate savings account a monthly account that would accumulate enough money to pay recurring non-monthly bills, such as auto insurance, property taxes and homeowners insurance.
Third, establish a water line of three to six months expenses for emergencies in the collection account. In our case, any funds in excess of emergency benchmarks is then invested to meet our investment objectives and risk tolerance. - Mark and Jane Warner, The Colony, Texas
With interest
Plan for known expenses; determine what each expense costs per week and put it aside. For example, if car insurance is $2,080 a year, put aside $40 a week.
To make it easier, we direct deposit the "put aside" amounts in our savings account for each expense; we never see the money. When the bill comes due, the money is ready with interest.- Jan and Clarence Dickson, Hawthorne, Calif.
While you sleep
First pay 10 percent to the Lord in tithing. Second, pay yourself 10 percent. You did the work. Save it. Third, budget your money. Pay bills to everyone else with the remainder. Avoid paying interest to anyone but yourself.
As the 10 percent paid to yourself accumulates in the bank, credit union, savings and loan, etc., it will begin to work for you by earning interest. Then spend only the interest on those things you want over and above the bills each month. Leave the principal always there to earn more for you while you sleep.- Blair and Lillie Anne Bradshaw, Salt Lake City, Utah
No magic formula
I am a Certified Financial Planner, and as I talk with individuals about their goals during retirement, I learn that most have high expectations, yet some are using guaranteed investments which underperform taxes and inflation. There used to be a simple rule regarding your nest egg: "safety first." That was sound advice during a time when people retired at age 65 and were only expected to live two years beyond that. Today, the average retirement age has dropped to 61, but life expectancy is nearly 80 years! As a result, Americans need to plan and prepare for a retirement span which may last 20 years or more.
It is important to remember there is no magic formula for investing during retirement. The size of your portfolio, your objectives, risk tolerance, and personal circumstances require that you design a game plan which is best for you and your changing needs. - Philip O. Johnson, Phoenix, Ariz.
HOW TO CHECKLIST:
1 Pay tithing, fast offering;
make this a priority.
2 Budget income; learn to live
on less than you make.
3 Save each month; make
interest work for you.
4 Invest wisely; take part in employee investment benefits.
