(ARTICLE) 50 Short Lessons About Money & Financial Freedom

I’ve spent the last 8 years self-learning all things personal finance from scratch.

Here are the 50 most important lessons I’ve learned, delivered in a no-nonsense and to the point list.

It’s everything I wish I knew 8 years ago…

1. Pay yourself first.

2. Understand the true definition of savings: It’s anything that positively increases your net worth.

3. The more you learn, the more you earn

4. Financial success is small efforts, repeated day in and day out.

5. Save and invest every month, retire twice as fast.

6. If you want true wealth, you must invest.

7. Don’t buy individual stocks, unless it’s with money you’re comfortable losing 100% of.

8. Invest in index funds that track the entire stock market like the S&P500.

9. You are the sum of the 5 people you surround yourself with, financially. So choose your friends and close people carefully.

10. Make a list of financial to-do’s. Circle the top 5. Don’t think about the rest until the top 5 are done.

11. Before investing. Have an emergency fund that can sustain and keep you afloat for at least 6 months if you was to loose your source of income overnight

12. Pay off ALL debts

13. Don’t ignore fines

14. Compound interest is when your money earns interest, and that money earns interest and so on from there.

15. More money doesn’t mean more problems. It means more responsibilities.

16. Money doesn’t buy happiness. It just makes life easier which allows you to experience happiness

17. If you want to start a company, start a company of one.

18. Look after yourself first, then help others

19. If you’re buying something on sale you’re not saving money. You’re still spending it.

20. Don’t quit your job overnight in pursuit of building a business.

21. Use your after work hours to build something to then be able to escape your working hours.

22. A credit card is not free money. You have to pay that money back.

23. However much you think you need for an emergency fund, double it. Aim for 6 to 12 months of expenses in cash on hand.

24. Keep your financial goals in sight to keep them in mind.

25. You need to have a monthly budget

26. Don’t spend money on a product that will give you the same results as an average version. Example: fancy pens vs. regular pens to write

27. Join a warehouse club. Buy common household items in bulk. (Costco)

28. Get pet insurance if you have a pet or pets.

29. Become a financial minimalist by consolidating investment accounts, staying organised, living on less than you earn. Keep things simple. Less is more.

30. Avoid lifestyle inflation. If you make £100k a year. Your living expense should not be £95,000 a year

31. They didn’t teach us money in school, so it’s your responsibility to become a lifelong learner.

32. Avoid speculative investments. Yes, that includes cryptocurrency and NFTs.

33. Never gamble or buy lottery tickets.

34. Your best opportunity for increasing your income is asking for a raise directly.

(Check the article I wrote on how to negotiate a higher salary)

35. If you need income today, sell things around your house.

36. Challenge yourself to have a no-spend week. It’s eye-opening.

37. If you don’t need to upgrade your car, don’t upgrade your car

38. Your best way to creating wealth is increasing your active income / earning potential.

39. You can only reduce your expenses by so much. But your income earning potential is unlimited.

40. If it’s a purchase over £100 you’re on the fence about, wait 30 days to think on it.

41. Your biggest opportunity to reduce your expenses is to focus on reducing the big 3: housing, food, and transportation.

42. Credit cards are fantastic if you earn great rewards or cashback and pay them off in full each month.

43. Buy quality. Not quantity.

44. Learn to say no.

45. The 3 most important words in personal finance are automation, automation, and automation. Be sure you automate your savings.

Have a separate account where a certain amount of money goes in automatically every month

And automate your investments like that aswell

46. Staying busy is one of the best ways to save money. Because people spend money when they’re bored.

47. Don’t keep up with anyone. Comparison leads to unhappiness.

48. Don’t look for shortcuts. Do the work..... the results you’re looking for is in the work you’re avoiding.

49. The point of acquiring money is to acquire financial freedom.

50. Patience is a shortcut. Slow down to enjoy the journey. It’s the best part.