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10 steps to financial freedom




Anything you set out to do including financial freedom takes planning and goal setting. Getting your financial freedom also takes careful goal creation and planning. Because of past personal research on learning the do's and don'ts of making your finances stronger and building a savings account, and ridding all the debt in one's life, the list of ten below will be a good starting place for you as it has for me.

  1. Your Savings Come First. Your savings account should be first on your list as the one bill to make sure you pay before any other. This is especially true if your emergency fund is not up to the limits it should be or you do not have one at all. This account should be funded by an automatic deposit from your checking account or place of work. A savings account online might be a great option. With automatic draft, the amount of deposit is not even available for you to use and just becomes a habit you will eventually not miss.

  2. Start An Emergency Family Fund. An emergency fund is insurance that you and your family will have money stored away in case of an emergency like loss of a job or a major repair. It is also important that life insurance be bought for your family members especially the chief bread winner of the family. This ensures that your family will be taken care of should anything happen. It is also a great idea to have a solid form of renters insurance or homeowners insurance to cover your possessions in case of emergencies.

  3. Get Rid Of Debt And Keep It Gone. For those of you who have any type of debt to include credit cards, loans on a personal level, or other forms of debt, it is time to start getting rid of it by utilizing a debt elimination system. Make a list of all your debts and put them in order of the smallest amounts first down to the ones that you owe the most on. Start with the one at the top of the list and add more on it than what is due. This could be $30 more each month. Once this bill is eliminated, move to the next by taking the amount of the previous bill and the extra you have put on it and apply it to the next bill on the list. It will be paid off faster still. Continue this until all your bills are cleared. You will be amazed at how fast they will disappear. Make sure you celebrate bill elimination but do not go overboard. It is best you learn now that just because you have no debt, you need not make more.

  4. Stop Buying On Impulse. This seems to be a common issue with many individuals. Buying on impulse, having a fast food meal, and buying online will definitely kill the budget and can put you in a large debt situation. Since this is such a big deal, there needs to really be a complete section for it.

  5. Look At Expenses And Change To Be Thrifty. When you really look at your bills and expenses, you will see where your money is going. This will also give you an idea as to where you can begin to save money. You may find that some of your expenses are not necessary for you and can be eliminated such as eating out. Take this extra money and start a savings account or use it to pay off a bill.

  6. Your Future Is An Investment. The younger you are, the farther away retirement savings may be for you. It is never too early to plan for the later years in life. The earlier you begin your savings for retirement with a 401K or some other account, the more money you will have by the time you reach retirement age. Consider investing in a Roth IRA. Take the time to look into it and find something that works for you.

  7. Incorporate The Envelope Payment System. The easiest way to keep tabs on your spending money is to utilize the envelope payment system. Each envelope will contain money set aside for things like gasoline for your car, money for eating out, or for buying food for home. Your budgeted amount each month will go into the envelopes. When the money is gone, that is all you have to spend for the month. If you see that one envelope is going empty faster than it should, you may need to look at your budget and change the amount you allot for this bill. You may need to take from one to give to the other. If you have one envelope that has more money in it each month than necessary, this will be a good place to work from.

  8. Bills Need To Be Paid Automatically And Immediately. When you pay your bills right when they are due, you will find that your will save much money on late fees. If you can, make sure all your bills are set up to be paid automatically from your checking account. This way, you do not have to think about them and you will create a habit of not even missing the money that goes toward them. You will even be saving money each month on the late fees. These can really add up to a nice chunk of change you can use for something else. It is a really nice feeling when you know all your bills are paid each month. When you feel stress free about your bills, you will be glad you chose to set it up this way.

  9. Study As Much As You Can On Personal Finance Issues. As you learn about personal finance, you will begin to see new things that will help your individual situation. Your financial status will improve.

  10. The Goal Is To Raise Your Net Worth. It is most important that you raise your net worth. This can be done by in a number of ways to include lowering your debt, raising the amount you have in savings, making a higher income, or if you can all of these. If you can, make yourself some extra money or maybe it is time to ask for a raise you're your boss. Within a few months, you will begin to see how much more your net worth will become and it will be a great reward to see it happen.


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