There are a lot of ways to make your money work for you, no matter how much you make. You don’t need to bring in six figures a year to grow your wealth. In fact, the less you make, the more some of these tips will help you in the long run. Here are a few tips to grow your wealth you might have not thought about.
Snowball Your Debt
Use the snowball method to get your debt under control. This method sees you attacking your highest interest rate debt first, funneling as much excess income at them as you can safely afford. Once it’s paid off, take the entire amount you were spending on that debt and put it toward your next highest interest rate debt. With this snowball method, you’ll save a ton of money in interest you don’t end up paying.
Save Consistently
Once you’ve gotten your high interest debts out of the way, you can keep snowballing. Why not snowball that money into your own assets? There are quite a few ways that money can be put to better use than buying you fancy dinners or concert tickets to see bands you don’t even like.
Emergency Fund
First things first, bulk up that emergency fund. Get about three months’ worth of your pay back in a savings account and keep it intact for a rainy day. You never know when you could lose your job, get into an accident, or otherwise find your income interrupted for a while. Giving yourself about three months to figure out a new form of income is a huge safety net.
Invest in the Stock Market
You can also take that money you’ve snowballed by pummeling your debts into submission and invest it in the stock market. That’s not as scary as it sounds, I promise. There are lots of online tools you can use to invest, and you can stick to the simple stuff like blue chip stocks and exchange traded funds that aren’t quite as involved.
Whatever Amount You Can
Maybe you didn’t have a huge stack of debts that you were able to snowball down and you’re just squeaking by on your income while not carrying any outstanding credit card debt or whatever. That’s fine! Just save whatever amount you can. Can you afford to drop ten bucks into your ETF this month? Do it! Every little bit helps.
Investing Automatically
Maybe you determine you can dedicate $20 every month to your preferred investments. Once you get that money going, you can automate what it invests in. There are plenty of apps and services out there that will manage your investments for you, for a nominal fee. These can be a great “set and forget” form of investing.
Stay Aware of the Costs
Make sure you’re aware of the costs of investing, too. Depending on what assets you’re picking up, things could get a bit costly. Staying in the loop is a huge element of successful investment. If that’s all a bit too much for you, consider just leaving your investments safely in your favorite low-risk, slow-growing assets.
Save Money Any Way You Can
Cut those costs! If you want to really grow your wealth, you need to save it instead of spending it. Do you like having the newest car, the flashiest clothes, and the latest technology? Consider taking it easy and investing that money into yourself instead of your possessions.
Read More: Is Investing in the Stock Market Confusing?
Saving Over Spending
You can have an older car, a smaller house, and a more reasonable wardrobe. It’s not going to hurt you if people think you’re not a big spender. You’ll know that you’re saving money and that’s what matters. Your long-term financial goals are more important than the way people perceive you right now.
Read More: Investing Basics You SHOULD Already Know
Take Advantage of Your Situation
Does your employer offer a 401(K) match? If so, max that out. Could you get a tax break through a health savings account? Load that up. There are all kinds of things that could be available to you that you’re not taking advantage of. Savvy people maximize their money by using every resource they can!
Read More: Should You Save Money or Pay off Debt First?
