Free Investment Advice

Experts and experience have proven that spending money doesn’t always result in more money. Thus, the saying ‘spend money to make money’ may turn out to be a financial joke sometimes. In fact, it may be the other way around. The more money you make, the more money you spend.

Money makes the world go round. It gets us the things we need and the things that we want. Unfortunately, although our needs are constant, the amount and value of money we have changes through series of economic booms and recessions. So when rainy days come, where do we find ourselves?

Another popular saying, ‘expect the worst and hope for the best’ may be the best way to deal with the ever-changing economic climate. A lot of people fall victim to the comfort of good days, thinking things will never turn bad. A good example is what we do with the tax refunds we are rewarded with.

The reality is, when know what the right thing to do is but the temptation of doing or spending the money how we want it oftentimes overpowers the other. We know that it’s better to put aside the money as an emergency fund. On the other hand, with that extra money, we know we can afford some extra wishes we had to set aside most of the year like a new cocktail dress or that long-been-postponed Thailand escapade. The tax refund seems like heaven’s way of answering such dreams.

But this is the vicious cycle that traps us forever in the rat race—working to live by. We make extra money and spend the extra money. Satisfying ‘now’ may sometimes mean sacrificing the ‘future’. Breaking this cycle takes a lot of discipline and fore-planning of the future.

The additional money we get from tax refunds can make the difference. Depositing the money in a regular account grows the money as it earns interest over the year. When enough money is saved, you can even try investing into mutual funds, stocks, bonds or some other investment vehicle that suits your investment requirements and size. If you learn how to live by without that extra money, that’s when you’ll really start to know how to earn more money.

Spending can be reasonable depending upon where you put your money into or in exchange of. Over-spending, however, is more than natural. It’s a bad habit that can rock or break your finances. Nowadays, advertisers and marketers are getting better at what they do especially in instilling to consumers the ‘need’ to spend. However, the ultimate decision on what to do with your money still lies on you in the same way that you make your own future.

It’s sometimes natural to spend more as you make more considering things beyond our control like tax regulations. But you have the power to balance your savings and expenses. Make every cent of your money count.