Robert Kiyosaki said it best: “Most people are stuck between fear and greed, which makes them slaves to a job.” They live paycheck to paycheck and live in fear of losing their job and not being able to support their lifestyle. When they receive windfall income, such as a tax return or a raise, greed kicks in and they think of ways to spend it rather than save and invest the money.
Being able to manage money is a key attribute of entrepreneurship. Succumbing to greed will only keep you harnessed to the cycles of fear and greed and prevent you from breaking free of the rat race. I’m pretty confident that if you took all the money in the world and distributed it evenly among every human it would not be long before all the money was back in the hands of the rich because they understand how to manage money. To become emancipated from the slavery of a job and achieve a level of financial freedom you have to first become moneywise and control your tendency to spend money as fast as you get it.
It starts with a rainy day fund. Without a rainy day fund, cash flow hiccups force you to either take on more debt or miss other payments, destroying your credit and making matters worse. According to a CNBC article one-third of all Americans have no rainy day fund and are a hairsbreadth away from financial ruin. Even with a small rainy day fund established you can now afford to invest in quick return opportunities that will allow you to build your wealth. As the fund grows you can afford to take some of the reserve funds and make more lucrative longer-term investments to begin to grow your wealth.
Are you like most people, living paycheck to paycheck? What are you doing to become a better money manager and become more financially independent? How are you using your tax return?
