It can be rather daunting to start to learn about personal finance. Where do you even begin? What’s the most important, and how do you do it all if you don’t have much money?
This post is designed to give you direction with your finances and help you to learn about personal finance in a step-by-step guide.
Each article liked below will send you on a journey of discovery. There is lots to learn about each subject. However, come back to this main page whenever you need and work through each section from top to bottom.
The sections covered in this post are:
- Understanding what money means to you, why is personal finance dependent upon your behavior?
- Manage your money. Track, plan and spend less than you earn
- Protecting your finances and your assets
- Deal with debt
- How to start investing
How to use this guide
Take your time to read and understand more about your relationship with money. The first section requires no immediate action and you don’t need to rush in to anything. Rather take you time to think about what you read and to think about life and what you would like your financial state to be.
After that you will start learning some practical ways to manage your money. This section along with the following sections will require action. Don’t jump too far ahead though as you can’t really start dealing with debt until you can manage your money properly. And you shouldn’t be investing money if you still have short-term debt. So the sections are meant to build on your journey.
Remember that fixing your finances and building wealth is an ongoing journey. Nothing will happen quickly but with small consistent steps, you can achieve great things!
Check out my personal finance spreadsheet
This is the actual spreadsheet that I use to track my overall finances. You can download it for free ($0) but a donation would be appreciated.
Understanding what money means to you
Your money or your life?
“Your money or your life?” Which would you choose? “Life”, I’m sure most would say. But that’s not really how most people live.
Personal finance DIY
Because nobody cares more about your money than you do
Calculate your financial health
We all have a fair idea of what our physical health is like. And of course we can always visit a doctor if something doesn’t feel right or if we actually know that something is wrong.
Benefits of personal finance goals
Let’s look at the benefits of personal finance goals and why setting some is an important step in taking control of your personal finances.
How to set finance goals
Many studies show that individuals who can record their goals in writing are significantly more likely to succeed at achieving their goals than those who don’t.
Mange your Money : Track, Plan & Spend less than you earn
Track it or lose it
Irrespective of your financial situation, your situation with money is a very different topic. How you manage your money and whether or not you track it, is a whole different story.
Plan is the new budget
A budget is simply a plan. No matter how badly you want to reach your goals, and no matter how motivated you might be, you need to draw up a financial plan to make them happen.
Spend less than you earn
The ‘not-very-secret’ mathematical formula for creating wealth and achieving the future you’re hoping for is not a complicated one.
Protecting your Finances and your Assets
How to build an emergency fund
“Rainy day fund”, “emergency fund”, “money under the mattress” – call it what you will, but most of us will need a stash of cash at some stage in the future – for when ‘life’ happens.
Where to save your emergency fund
When mulling over your options for places to build your emergency fund, you should bear in mind a couple of fundamental principles.
What is inflation?
We know that moment all too well standing at the pay point, card in hand; the sudden realization that the cost of our groceries has spiraled upwards over time.
Putting a value on YOU
As mentioned in a previous article on spending less than you earn, your most valuable asset might in fact be you.
Income protection
Just because you can’t work doesn’t mean you can’t earn.
Critical Illness cover
Critical illness cover (also called Dread Disease) is an insurance policy that pays you an amount of money if you are diagnosed with one of the specific illnesses or conditions on a predetermined list.
Need a financial advisor?
Need to chat to someone about your finances and all these options?
Book a complimentary introduction session.
Deal with Debt
A good reason NOT to pay off debt
Well, it could be a contentious issue, but it’s probably more important to set up an emergency fund than pay off outstanding debt.
How to pay off your debt
You want to pay off debt? The interesting thing about personal finance is as much about your mind as it is about maths.
More on debt
A collection of posts on dealing with debt.
Invest
What it means to retire
Few words in personal finance evoke as much fear, excitement and shoulder-shrugging as retirement does, and justifiably so. Let’s take a closer look at what it means to retire.
How much do you need to retire?
Probably one of the most talked about retirement questions. How much do you need to retire. The reason is simply that no-one knows what the future will bring.
Long term retirement plan
Ever thought to retire like a tortoise? May sound silly but it’s the idea of a long term retirement plan. Slow and steady wins the game.
Index Funds
Follow the market for long-term financial success with index funds.
Is Bitcoin a good investment?
Are Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies good investments? Take a look at my thoughts on this.
Your journey to learn about personal finance
You can’t just learn about personal finance by reading a few articles and saying that you’ve done it. LOL.
This is a life-long journey of learning and doing. As you build habits and get better at it, you will find that there is more to learn. As an example, it’s great to start a small investment and you don’t need too much knowledge. But as your investment grows, you may want to learn more. In fact, you will probably diverge from your initial strategy and build on your wisdom and experience.
So start the journey off slowly. There is no rush to change everything right now.
Read, understand and mull over things. Take action and make small changes to habits.
Learn about personal finance basics and grow your knowledge and understanding through real actions.