tw-rl

A thread on the 10 biggest money mistakes I see people make. 1. Cutting spending instead of raising income Spending has lower limits (i.e. you have to eat), but income has no upper limit. Find small ways to grow your income today that turn into BIG ways to grow it tomorrow.

2. Not thinking like an owner Do you know who the wealthiest NFL player in history is? Not Brady/Manning/Madden. It's Jerry Richardson. Never heard of him? Me neither. He made his wealth from owning Hardees franchises, not playing in the NFL. Be an owner. Think like one too.

3. Overemphasis on small wins vs. big wins You'll drive across town to save $40 on a television, but won't spend 5 hours preparing yourself for a salary negotiation that is 100x more impactful. Saving $40 is great, but making $4,000 more a year is even greater.

4. Timing the market No one knows the future or where the market is going. 2020 taught us that. Being right about something and making money on it are two different things. Timing is the differentiator. Don't try to be the exception. Don't time the market.

5. Borrowing too much They say it takes money to make money, which is why borrowing money and investing it can be such a profitable strategy. Unfortunately, if things go south, you could lose it all. When borrowing money there are no guarantees, except your monthly payment.

6. Paying attention to other peoples' finances Some people are going to be richer than you. Some by skill and some by luck. Don't worry about them. Focus on how you are doing relative to YOUR financial potential. That's the only one that really matters anyways.

7. Too much lifestyle creep Some lifestyle creep is fine (and I encourage it), but the data suggests that spending more than 50% of your raises pushes your financial independence further away. When good fortune comes, enjoy it. But don't forget about your future.

8. Investing in products you don't understand If you can't explain it to a five year old, then you probably don't understand it. And if you don't understand it, then you are probably taking risks you can't even imagine. Keep it simple and buy simple investment products.

9. Paying too much in fees Fees are the silent killer. For example, if you had invested alongside Warren Buffett while he charged "2 and 20" your total gains would have been reduced by 10x!

Dividend Growth Investor @DividendGrowthIf you invested $1,000 in Berkshire Hathaway in 1965, by 2009 your investment would have been worth $4.3 million If Buffett had set up Berkshire as a hedge fund, and charged a 2% annual fee plus 20% of any gains, the investor would have been left with only $300,000 twitter.com

10. Obsessing over not having enough money Only about 1 in 6 retirees sell down their assets within a given year. Many more leave behind hundreds of thousands of dollars in inheritances. Don't spend your life worrying about money only to let someone else enjoy it.

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