As a single mom who didn’t receive child support, life for many years was about getting through that day, each day, making sure the phone didn’t get cut off, the children were fed and the roof stayed over our heads. I had no plan and frankly, no concept on how to create a plan to change my life and the lives of my three children. It took me many years to see a way forward and to make real changes in my life. I am not “there” yet…but I am on my way and the way forward seems so obvious now.
In school, we are taught so many things which we are told “you will surprise yourself someday and find yourself using this”. Well the fact is, I have never used many things I was taught in school. I am in my mid fifties and while I am glad that I know what I know, where were the basic life skills on the school curriculum? We need to teach our young people about credit scores, how to spend and how to save. We also need to teach them how to make a plan for your finances. How many of you reading this know your FIN# is? Do you know what a FIN# is? Your Financial Independence Number, the amount of money you will need to retire in a comfortable style where your needs in your senior years are taken care of. Having many people in my family living to and past the 95th year, I have witnessed firsthand, the cost of being very senior, in good health and bad. It can be very expensive and way beyond the means of many who thought they were safe.
So what can the average person, of any age, do to ensure that comfort? How do you go from surviving today to living in 40 years? Barring inheritance or winning the lottery, we need to start with the basics.
Number one: Invest in yourself. Investigate opportunities to increase your skills. Explore opportunities you would never think of yourself in but which would give you that freedom. Do not be afraid to approach others who are successful and find out how they achieved it. Ask someone to mentor you. Open up your world.
Number two: Be ready to work hard now for payoff down the road. The most worthwhile things in life take time and work. The most rewarding thing in my life and the lives of many, is my children / motherhood. Nearly ten months of pregnancy per child, nausea, labor, getting comfortable with nursing, worry, stress, money, no sleep and no private time…but the rewards are endless and lifelong. So why not be ready to make fewer sacrifices than that, for rewards that are also endless and lifelong. The ability to take care of those you love, travel, giving to charity, the home you want, the education you want, going to concerts, shows and most of all, saving for a quality retirement. All for a few dollars a month, invested well and being as much of a habit as showering.
Number three: Talk to an expert. Talk to a lot of experts!! Do not allow one person at a bank or investment company tell you that you do not have enough to invest to make it possible or feasible to participate in the best programs with the highest returns. There are companies out there who can make it work for you. You can start your savings plan with only a few dollars a month. Add to that, possibly switching out certain programs you are participating in for other ones with superior payoffs and even, possibly, at a lower cost. I know of some families that were paying tremendous interest fees plus insurance and with some changes were able to save up to several hundred dollars a month AND increase their portfolio and the value of their overall plan.
My new plan started when I was at a point in my life when I should have had it all. My car had been repossessed, I was at risk of losing my house, both of which I had struggled to save for and buy. I was devastated. I had worked so hard but the world’s economy changed my world. I knew I had to work smarter to make my plan work. If I wanted a change in my life, I had to be that change, once again. The plan began and life is amazing. I know now that my future is secure and I am helping others secure their futures too. I did not take NO for an answer, instead I made sure I KNOW all that I need to create my future. What is your FIN# and what is your plan?
Andrea Blaustein
UnLeash the KNOW 