7 Habits of Highly Effective Money Managers
Accounting was one of the most boring classes for me when I was in college. Looking at income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements gave me headaches; I swore I would never go near them again after I finished that class.
When I first entered the corporate world, my pay check was good and I could finally afford a few things that I wasn’t able to before. I bought a brand new car (a yellow beetle). I rented a nice apartment in Silicon Valley. I spent money on expensive weekend trips with my friends. I used to work twelve to fourteen hours a day. My motto was “work hard, play hard.” I told myself this is how life should be.
After “living large” for a few years, I received a late payment notice in the mail one day from my Chase Visa card. I was late on one of my payments and got charged a $39 late fee! I called them up immediately and told them I should not be charged a late fee because I have always been a good customer and paid on time. Little that I knew, but I hadbeen late for the previous 3 months and never noticed that I was charged a late fee. I was very mad at myself. It was a rude awakening. I had been flushing my hard earned money down the toilet without even knowing that it was happening. Three months of late fees could buy me a very nice dinner somewhere. I knew how to make the money, but I was having trouble keeping it!
Robert Kiyosaki says “Don’t work hard for money. Let money work hard for you.” I would say, “Don’t let money control you. You control the money.”
Money can’t work hard for you unless you are in control of the money. Money is like a child. The child can be easily tamed if you spend time to teach and nurture them. Otherwise, they can easily take over your life. Over the years, I have learned and developed a money management habits from different mentors and teachers. I would not say I am the best money manager on the planet, but putting these practices together has really made a big impact on my finances.
Here are 7 Habits of Highly Effective Money Managers:
Habit 1 – Create & Manage Your Money “Jars” - In T Harv Eker’s book ‘The Secret of the Millionaire Mind’, there is this concept of keeping your money in “jars” or accounts. It’s an easy to apply money management system.
- Financial Freedom Fund – 10%
- Long Term Savings – 10%
- Education Fund – 10%
- Play Fund – 10%
- Give Fund – 5%
- Necessity Fund – 55%
The way it works is every time you receive a pay check, you divide it up into these 6 money accounts. The goal of these money jars (or online bank accounts) is to make sure you spend within your means.
I really like this system because it’s simple and I have full control over how I spend my money. I would usually pay for all my necessities (grocery or gas) using my Necessity account debit card. I would pay for my vacation using money from my ‘Play’ account. I would use the ‘Give’ fund to donate to charities which I never did before. The best part is that you HAVE to spend your ‘Play’ account every month. This rule makes managing money really fun! I enjoy thinking about all the different possibilities of how to spend the ‘Play’ money and because it’s part of the budget, there’s no guilt associated with it. It is absolutely fantastic!
Habit 2 – Keep Score - At the beginning of each month, I spend a minimum of two hours to review my credit cards statements, my spending from the previous month and make sure all my bills are paid on time. This way I can be very clear on my money “jars” status. I would suggest blocking off specific hours on your calendar and make sure you have some quiet time to do this. This habit is so easy to miss because life always gets into the way. However, this is an absolute must-do!! The analogy would be imagine that you keep missing your physical check-up and one day you discover that you have a terminal disease and realize it is too late to cure. We each need to take full responsibility to maintain our financial health as well as our physical health.
Habit 3 – Keep Good Records – Keep receipts of everything you spend. Every weekend, I spend 15 minutes to gather all my receipts for the week, tape them up on recycle paper, write down the date and purpose for each receipt. At the end of the month, I send them to my book keeper to enter into Quickbooks. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but trust me, it will be even more work if you procrastinate until end of the year.
Habit 4 – Improve your Financial Literacy – Spend some time to learn the financial terms and their meaning. You don’t have to become a certified accountant or financial planning expert, but you should understand the basics so you can better communicate with your banker, accountant, real estate agent, mortgage broker, etc. How can you create passive income if you don’t even know what it means?
Habit 5 – Befriend Your Financial Team – Find a good book keeper and accountant. If you don’t have one, ask your friends whom already own some real estate and/or a business. Ask for references, then contact them. You’re looking to build a team for the long haul and you want to feel good about their experience and their reputation. If you are into real estate, find an accountant who also own real estate. If you are into stocks, find an accountant who also invests in stocks. Befriend them and tell them your financial goals. You want your accountant and bookkeeper to be on the look out for you.
You might say, ‘Do I really have to have an accountant? I can file my own taxes and keep my own records.’
You are right, but I want to share this true story with you. It happened to my friend a few last year. She purchased some real estate. Her accountant prepared all the statements and her tax return. The IRS did an audit on her tax return and it was done incorrectly. Long story short, her accountant ended up going to jail because of her tax return. I am not saying it would happen to you. But unless you want to become an expert in taxes, I’d strongly advise, to let the experts do their job. If she did the tax return herself, she could have been the one going to jail.
Habit 6 – Ask Questions – Don’t assume anything. Even experts make mistakes (as noted in the previous story). That is why improving your financial literacy is so important. Review and challenge the numbers. Chances are you are not the only person they help, and mistakes do happen once in a while. If you are in doubt, just ask. Let them explain to you. If they feel challenged by your question or are impatient explaining to you their work, chances are you may need to find a new team member. No question is a stupid question.
Habit 7 – Ask for Deals – Always asks for discounts. Why? Because there are always special deals for friends and family. Few will offer it to you unless you simply ask. Be nice to your banker, your creditors and your real estate agents. There are always discounts and it is up to them if they want to give it to you or not.
These money management habits may or may not work 100% with your particular financial situation, but it doesn’t matter. What is important is that you need to develop and write down your own money management habits that will work for you.
Money doesn’t bite. Take control over your money. Don’t let money run loose like kids without any parental supervision.
This money thing is a fact of life, it doesn’t go away. The habit of managing your money is just like brushing your teeth every day. For many, it’s just a habit that hasn’t been developed yet. And once you have master it, you no longer even need to think while doing it. Believe it or not, it actually becomes fun!
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