Most people make short-term and limited decisions without considering how these choices impact things to the right when you’re only looking left. Here’s how to solve that problem. If we could compare life to walking through a forest, we could say that you pass a lot of trees along the way. And most people tend…
How to Rollover a 401k (and How to Determine If You Should or Not)
About half of Americans have access to a workplace retirement plan like a 401k. If you’re one of them and have also had more than one job in your career, chances are good that you don’t just have your current 401k… you have one (or more) from previous employers, too. You might have moved on…
Beyond Finances Podcast #14: Your Money Questions, Answered
You asked us about student loans, credit cards, IPOs, retirement savings, and budgeting. Here are our answers. A few podcast episodes ago, we asked for you to send us some of your money questions that you wanted our perspective on — now we’re answering! We cover the following questions in this first “ask me anything”…
Don’t Have Specific Financial Goals? That’s Okay If You Have One of These Instead
It’s hard to plot out every goal you want to accomplish in your long life — especially if you’re in your 20s, 30s, or 40s right now. You have decades of life to live ahead of you, and these are the prime years in which to experience and enjoy some major life milestones and changes….
Beyond Finances Podcast #13: How Much the Average Person Spends
Ever wonder how much most people spend — and how YOUR spending compares to the average? We dive into some of these numbers in this episode, sharing what the average person spends, what we think you need to save, and how to fit YOUR spending around these data points. Some of the average spending numbers…
Saving for College: What to Consider and What Tools to Use
Worried about saving for college and having enough to fund your kid’s education? Then let’s start with the good news: there are so many ways to pay for college. You have a lot of options to explore. Now for the tricky part: you have a lot of options. There are a lot of variables and…
Beyond Finances Podcast #12: Thoughts on Planning and Paying for a Wedding
Here’s what to consider as you plan your wedding… and create a plan to pay for it. Getting married and planning your wedding is a big deal. But that doesn’t justify spending more than you can afford… or sabotaging all your other savings goals for the sake of throwing one giant party for hundreds of…
The Biggest Challenge in Creating Your Financial Plan: Finding Balance
It’s certainly not easy to find the perfect middle ground between saving and investing enough to secure your future goals while allowing yourself to spend enough to truly experience all the years in between now and then. Most people tend to fall on one end of the spectrum or the other. Either you’re more inclined…
Beyond Finances Podcast #11: Stocks, Bonds, and Mutual Funds, Oh My!
Get some guidelines that will help you invest smarter so you can make your money work for you (while avoiding silly mistakes along the way). “…but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” wrote Ben Franklin. He could have added something like “and the fact that inflation will…
Why Investment Returns Don’t Matter (If You’re Not Saving)
Ever heard someone brag about how much they made off their amazing investment? Or talk about how they got in somewhere early and made a killing because they gambled on an unknown company before it blew up? People often talk about great investments they’ve made or the incredible investment return they’ve received. But this is,…