4 Steps to Make Your Money Last a Lifetime

By Jane Bryant Quinn, AARP Bulletin

A simple, easy-to-use formula to make sure you never run out of cash

As a financial columnist, I get asked the same heartfelt question over and over: “How do I make sure I don’t outlive my money?” And that makes sense. Surveys confirm that the No. 1 worry among older Americans is running out of cash.

Fortunately, financial planners have come up with sound ways to prevent this. Collected here are their key rules for maintaining a livable income for life, plus case studies that show how to put these general rules into action. The goal is your peace of mind — knowing that you’re getting the most from the money you’ve saved and that you’ll always have enough.

How To Become A Personal Finance “Black Belt”

Written by Sam Getting Finances Done

David Allen in “Getting Things Done” compares productivity to the martial arts. He gives instruction on how to become a black belt in your personal productivity with a “mind like water” that allows you to handle anything that comes your way with a balanced response. When a stone is thrown into a pond, the water reacts with perfect balance. It reacts just enough to disperse the energy, no more, and then returns to a calm state. It doesn’t over or under react. Becoming a black belt and having a “mind like water” in your personal finances is very similar. It means you can take whatever is thrown at you without knocking your finances out of control. You can respond to any situation with perfect balance.

Benefits of a Cash Budget – Part 2

Written by Sam Getting Finances Done

Be sure to check out part 1 about the benefits of a cash budget. In that article I explain how cash is the ultimate tool to help you control your spending and staying within your budget.

In part 2, I explain how budgeting will help save you time in the budgeting process.

How Cash Will Cut Your Budgeting Time By 80%

Think for a second about entering transactions into financial software like Quicken or YNAB. What are most of the transactions? By far the majority of the transactions come from categories like groceries, household, or entertainment.

Benefits of a Cash Budget – Part 1

Written by Sam Getting Finances Done

In this article series of articles, I have recorded somewhat of a manifesto for using cash in your budget. You can listen to the whole thing in my podcast for week 4 of my 12 Weeks to Fiscal Fitness program, Using Cash In Your Budget.

In week 3 I talked in considerable detail about how to create a budget that works. In week 4, I’m going to talk about a tip that has been crucial in helping my wife and I stay within our budget. It has also helped us decrease the total time we spend on budgeting from month to month.

11 Guidelines For Using Cash In Your Budget

Written by Sam Getting Finances Done

Here’s how to tell in which categories you should use cash.

1. You Don’t Have To Use Cash For Everything

To reap the benefits of using cash in your budget, you don’t have to go exclusively to cash. Some may choose to go exclusive, but it’s not necessary. Instead, identify which categories will be most effective for using cash using the tips below. You should use cash for categories where either you tend to overspend or where there are a lot of transactions in a month.

Two Common Objections To Using A Cash Budget

Written by Sam - Getting Finances Done

People have a big resistance to using cash in their budget. We’ve become so accustomed to using debit and credit cards that using cash is like a novelty. I wanted to address a couple of the concerns people have and why they don’t outweigh the huge benefits of using cash.

Objection #1: It’s Inconvenient

One of the main objections I hear about cash is that it’s inconvenient. It’s true that using cash may take a little longer than using credit cards. In fact, the credit card industry is well aware of this and emphasizes this point.

How to Create a Financial Binder

Written by Sam Getting Finances Done

It’s a common worry. Am I spending more than I should? When are my bills due? Have I paid them? Am I on track to reach my financial goals? Am I going to be able to get out (or stay out) of debt? Financial worries are not only one of the greatest causes of personal anxiety; they can also be one of the biggest strains on a relationship.

Many people don’t have their finances well organized and therefore aren’t able to tell where they stand. Disorganized finances can have severe consequences; In the short-term, you may end up paying hundreds of dollars in late fees and penalties. You may be digging yourself deeper into debt without even realizing it. In the long-term you won’t meet your high-level financial goals.

"8 Ways to Prepare to Become a Millionaire"

Written by Sam

Today I went to lunch with a very wealthy person. I don’t know exactly how wealthy , but based on his frequent trips to Maui, the fact that he earns a free plane ticket every month through his frequent flier points, and the fact that the other day he decided to go out and buy a truck just because he’s never had one before, there’s good reason to believe he’s close to a seven-digit earner.

As I talked with him, it raised a lot of questions in my mind about how managing my finances will change as my wealth grows. If I were a millionaire would I still need to budget? Would I still want to track all my spending? Would I still need to negotiate with my wife about finances?

34 Hard Truths To Know Before Becoming “Successful”

Dr. Benjamin Hardy

​ 1. It’s Never As Good As You Think It Will Be

“One of the enemies of happiness is adaptation,” says Dr. Thomas Gilovich, a psychology professor at Cornell University who has studied the relationship between money and happiness for over two decades.“We buy things to make us happy, and we succeed. But only for a while.

New things are exciting to us at first, but then we adapt to them,” Gilovich further states.

Actually, savoring the anticipation or idea of the desired outcome is generally more satisfying than the outcome itself. Once we get what we want — whether that’s wealth, health, or excellent relationships — we adapt and the excitement fades. Often, the experiences we’re seeking end up being underwhelming and even disappointing.

10 Amazing Ways to Build Wealth at Any Age

Use these tools to build wealth, whether you're just starting out in life or trying to grow the money you've earned.

MTN Staff • August 29, 2022

Most of us aren’t born rich. Those of us who didn’t inherit millions can still take steps to build wealth.

We have more options today than our parents ever did. For example, we can get price comparisons in a flash thanks to the Internet – and the money we save can go toward wealth-building.

If we want to diversify our portfolios, there are plenty of creative (and safe) ways to invest. That’s true even if we’re just starting out in life or nearing retirement.