What Makes Personal Finance Exciting?

   

If you’re somewhat involved in your finances, certain things about it may excite you. You may get excited every time you earn income.

Whether you earn income from a job and a paycheck, through dividends, or through any kind of business or consulting, you may get a feeling of excitement that I’ve been rewarded for the work that I’ve performed.

You Can Gain Something From Doing Nothing

The idea of passive income is exciting. True passive income is the ability to make money while doing practically nothing. I think interest and dividends are the best examples of this.

It’s true that it can take time to build up to a sizeable portfolio where passive income can be of significance. And so it’s not a matter of if, but when we do reach that level, we can make large sums of money while sleeping or watching TV. If you already have quite a bit of wealth, you can increase it by investing in the right places. You don’t even have to do any work if you don’t want to so long as you have someone in the know advising you on potential future investments.

The digital age has opened up various avenues of investments and it is just as easy to find a financial advisor to help you take advantage of these wealth options. Websites like financialadvisers.co.uk and aggregators like them let you choose from a wide pool of professional advisors. Investments can go both ways, and you would like to be on the profit side more often and not. An experienced financial advisor can help you achieve just that!

You Have A Finance Background

A background can provide inherent excitement. Of if you’ve studied and/or have worked in finance, you may have a bit of an edge. Having an edge in and of itself can be exciting. At the same time, it can also put pressure in a sense that hey I know the risks of not investing, or fail to pay a debt, or spend more than I earn. The pressure can create an opportunity for you to adjust your habits and get on track as well.

I have a finance background and have always been interested in personal finance. Years ago I would just read about personal finance topics on MSN and Yahoo along with other topics like sports, general news, and current events and even, admittedly, celebrity gossip.

For me, the real excitement came when I started writing about personal finance. It’s because writing forced me to take action into my own personal finances. Why would I write that it’s good to invest in a diversified mix of investments if I myself hold only one or two large stock positions? I try to practice what I preach, most of the time. 🙂

Writing about personal finance has also made me more accountable to make sure I am on track with my financial goals.

You’ve Struggled Financially In The Past

It’s possible to know a lot about personal finance and yet still struggle with your own finances. Certain things can hurt you financially that are just not in your control. These can include expensive treatment for illnesses or an emergency home repair.

It’s important to take everything that has happened in the past and find a way to learn from it. Control what you can; try to stay healthy to the extent you can and consider current and future costs when contemplating home improvements.

For example, we had a leaky ceiling in the bathroom a couple of years back. Above the ceiling is a balcony from my master bedroom. The leak was due to a faulty sliding door that was installed on the balcony. Long story short, a new contractor (whom I trust a whole lot more than the one that originally installed the faulty door) figured out the problem and installed the right door. Thank goodness it hasn’t leaked since.

The lesson I learned is to make sure contractors have a solid body of work, which is verifiable from past projects, and experiences from family and friends rather than cheap labor costs. To select a contractor, it seems imperative to know their expertise in the particular area of the house that needs repairing or renovating. An example is Wilmington NC remodeling company for bathroom and kitchen renovations.

The experience gained from a struggle can turn into excitement. I was excited and anxious to get my emergency fund back to its normal level. I had something to work towards again. The struggle allows us to seek opportunity and challenge ourselves.

You’re Excited From Someone Else’s Story

This one pops into my mind right away from the personal finance world. I see so many personal finance writers from other websites who didn’t start out in personal finance but have embraced it and excelled tremendously as a result.

One example I can think of right way is Mr. Money Mustache. He comes from an engineering background. He learned that he can live a great life while still saving more than half of his income and investing it regularly. I suspect a lot of his motivation came from simply the desire to not have to work a regular job anymore and enjoy life.

A recent motivator I found was from millionaire interview I read on ESI. The interview was from a public school teacher. Actually, both the husband and wife are school teachers. It’s not a surprise that public school teachers do not make a crazy ton of money, yet this couple became millionaires through hard work with additional teaching opportunities and smart investing. At the time of this interview, they were in Mexico teaching and vacationing too!

You’ve Stumbled Upon It And Are Now Hooked

I’ve also read on numerous websites the quest for young graduates to get rid of their student loans. It’s inspiring to see their sacrifice by continuing to live like a college student by renting rooms out, living in small quarters, eating at home, limiting spending, and using raises and bonuses to pay off their loans.

From having a goal to pay off student loans, newly graduates may stumble upon other concepts of personal finance like compound interest and investment efficiency from a tax standpoint. Even though it’s sad that this isn’t standard curriculum for all colleges, many college graduates are self-taught shortly after they graduate.

Because you’ve stumbled upon personal finance concepts that quickly be applied to your life and you’re able to see the results, you may be excited.

Anticipating The Outcome May Be The Most Exciting Part

Many of us are diligent in our personal financial lives so we, really, don’t have to work anymore. Or rather so we can spend time working or to do things we actually and truly want to do, all the time. The thought of that is exciting, isn’t it?

When we calculate our retirement needs out and determine we’ve got only five years left, then two years, then less than a year, then three months and then boom, we’re free from doing what we need to do and transition to doing what we want to do!

People say that your finances should be boring. While I partly agree the other part of me thinks, what does excitement really mean? Google defines it as “a feeling of great enthusiasm and eagerness”. As we continue to optimize our financial lives, we can’t help but feel excited.

Your Thoughts:

  1. What excites you about personal finance?
  2. If you’re in a non-financial field, how did you learn about personal finance?
  3. What has driven you to take more control over your personal finances?

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