Hi, Matt here. I was not born into money. I had to work for it. And that is not necessarily a bad thing.
- I was taught that you need to save, and when you have saved enough, you can spend—good advice but not the whole picture.
- I was taught to take pride in a job well done. No matter the pay or the status – a job well done has its intrinsic value.
- I was told that I was important – but not to believe that I was entitled to more by design.
- I was taught that education is essential. What you know cannot be taken from you.
- I was told that the sky was the limit if I was prepared to work hard.
But no one talked about working smarter.
Study hard, get a job – mission accomplished?
After university, I landed a good job. All was well. But when a sizeable east-cost company acquired my employer, I faced a world of uncertainty.
I eventually moved on to bigger and better opportunities, but for a while there, it was a scary and eye-opening experience.
The lesson I learned was to plan for the unexpected. I had to stop living from paycheck to paycheck.
I needed to take control. But what does taking control mean?
But let’s back up a bit
I had a great childhood, but we never really discussed money management.
The mindset was to get a job to secure an income. Make sure you spend less than you make. And you save what you can in a savings account.
And this is not bad advice.
But it does not paint the whole picture. It does not address good vs. bad debt, investments, depreciating vs. appreciating assets, working for yourself, etc.
The online entrepreneur and personal finance nerd
I identify as an entrepreneur and personal finance nerd. And the articles on this website outline my view on the guiding principles that led me to my definition of financial independence.
It is all about making small but deliberate and intelligent decisions that work for you and your situation.
And when you understand the principles, you are much better equipped to make sound decisions.
And if you are reading this, you are probably looking to work and act smarter. Only you will know your situation. But I invite you to learn from my mistakes and successes.
After all, when we work hard to make money, we need to work even harder to make the money work for us—one wise decision at a time.
