A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I hope everyone’s enjoying the holidays given the current situation. With 2020 coming to a close, I threw all the money I could to my M1Finance Roth IRA to get as close to the $6,000 limit. I set up automatic payments in 2021 so that I can contribute the max amount yearly. Admittedly, I got started on my Roth IRA later in 2020 and wanted to contribute as much as I can before getting on a set deposit schedule. This week, I’m following up on last week’s post with some tips on how to talk about money.
Coming out of last week’s post, Alvin shared how turned a profit on Harry Potter memorabilia. I’m proud of Alvin sharing his story because not many people do when it comes to money. Be honest with yourself - when was the last time you had a conversation around money with your significant other, parents, and most importantly, yourself. There’s a few faux pas I’ve committed with my conversations around money.
Discussing Salary
When I was younger, I took a no holding back approach when talking about money. For me, your salary is a number and isn’t tied to you as a person. It’s not tied to your morals and how you were raised but accentuates those virtues when you do have money.
Not everyone sees this way. I’ve met people who are sensitive to how much they make and leaving a conversation with the flat salary amount can have someone feeling smaller than the other person. At the end of the day, it depends how the other person views money and if you’re both aligned with being open about it.
Instead of asking what people make, ask what the range is for their position. Coming out of this ask, many people will feel more comfortable giving you a range, and if you’re lucky, will share out the hard number if they’re comfortable.
Sharing Your Finance Wins
It’s easier than ever to share your financial wins on social media. Whether you’ve saved up for a nice vacation or invested in something that can turn a profit, I don’t think we share these wins enough on social media.
It’s difficult to share financial wins when some people haven’t been giving the same situation, but I believe these posts can inspire and share tips to those who need it. The worst thing we can do is to keep the tips to ourselves. We won’t be able to help our friends and family if we don’t share how to do it.
If you’re seeking advice, there are plenty of communities across Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit to help you begin opening up about speaking your finances. People genuinely want to help. I recommend taking a look at r/personalfinance on Reddit for the honest questions people ask. This leads me into my last point on these conversations.
Be Honest and Act on Advice
My last tip here is to be honest. People can’t help you make more money if you lie about your current situation. Don’t try to make it seem like you’re the hotshot who knows it all. You’re here to learn what others are doing and look for a way to implement their learnings.
It’s okay to live a humble life and our society says you need to give your life away to make a lot of money. We’re all trying to get by and seek help where needed.
Too often, I share with people advice on how to get ahead financially. Whether it’s advice on debt or income, people will always procrastinate (myself included since I only started my Roth IRA this year). When someone gives you advice, they mean it from the bottom of their heart and take a more objective view to the situation. With this, you’ll need to act on the advice.
Set up a monthly finance goal (open a new account, save more, increase your 401K contribution, etc.) on a certain day of each month. When that day hits, act on your goal. Typically, finance goals take about 15 minutes max and don’t require as much time as you thing.
I hope everyone is ready for 2021! Please share with your friends and subscribe if you haven’t. Thanks for reading :)
-Jordan