Life based on reality

Live your financial life based on reality. You can fool everyone else with “stuff” but you can’t fool yourself or your calculator.

Following the rule that income minus outgo is what you have to spend. Writing down what you spend. Planning what you are going to spend. Owning all you have outright.

These are status symbols that matter. Don't get caught up in the fake symbols others see.
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Life insurance

Life insurance needs to cover only your individual situation. Don’t be talked into buying more than you really need should something happen to you.

If you live your life using good financial sense, by the time you reach your 50’s you won’t need life insurance at all. You will be self-insured by then.
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No they weren’t

How often do you say to yourself, “Things were different moneywise way back when?” No they weren’t.

I get my advice from Grayhairs and Millionaires, neither of which talk about getting rich from credit card company schemes, from leased cars, or from interest-only mortgages that work out only if the house goes up in value.

No, Grayhairs and Millionaires talk about not spending what you don't have. Pretty simple, really.
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Home and student loan

I didn't say never get a home or student loan. What I said was neither loan needs to be around forever.

Too many people put off owning their education or homes. Maybe it is because no one ever told them it's ok to own both outright.

Attack the student loan right after graduation and be sensible when buying a house. Neither loan was designed to be with you forever.
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Christmas is 10 months away

Christmas is 10 months away. It happens the same time every year.

If you start today putting $30 a month into a savings account you will have $300 to spend for Christmas. If you need more than that you put aside more.

Remember that Christmas is not about how much money you spend on each person. Next December it is not okay to use a credit card just because it's Christmas. Start planning today!
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Health insurance

The last thing you need on your mind in a doctor’s waiting room is how to pay for whatever comes next.

Health insurance is a must have, and having money set aside for services not covered by insurance allows you to focus on your health, not the cost of getting well.

Health worries combined with money worries only impede the healing process.
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Profit

The whole purpose of lending money is to make a profit from that act. It takes someone like you borrowing money to make this business plan effective.

Refuse to participate in this business model. Credit cards, car loans, store cards are the tools businesses use to get you to overpay for things. Don’t play into their hands.

It's the game of business trying to get your money. Who is winning in your life?
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