The old saying, Pay Yourself First, is some of the best advice you will ever get. If you don’t pay you, who will? How do you do that? Here’s how.
Out of every bit of income that comes in the door, immediately carve off 10% and put it in a savings account that you have designated for your retirement savings plan. I know that is a scary idea for a lot of people who have debt and past due bills to pay. My advice? JUST DO IT! As the weeks and months go by you’ll find you have adjusted to operating on 90% of your income.
The biggest benefit of this self imposed retirement savings plan is the security and peace of mind it gives you just knowing that cash is there. You will find that you actually stop worrying about money.
Think you cannot possibly put away the whole 10% to start with? Then take a look at your income from this point of view. Look at all of the suppliers you pay out of your income every month and get the idea that these suppliers are all on your personal payroll. Is there anyone you can fire and not really miss? Is there anyone you can cut back from full time to part time status? Just look at the bills that come in every month, or those automatic fees deducted from your accounts and you’ll see exactly who is on your “payroll”.
Here is an example. I was working with an individual who was having a hard time cutting personal expenses 10% to put away in his retirement savings plan. We looked at every expense from the viewpoint that the supplier was on his personal “payroll”. Suddenly we were playing a game of firing suppliers like the extra $19.95 per month Cable TV programming he signed up for but never watched because he was working all the time. We reduced the “pay” of the local coffee house by cutting down his daily visit to twice a week. We “fired” his local gym when the contract was up because he was so busy working, he never went to work out. That saved $40 a month. He cut the phone company’s pay by getting rid of his personal home line and just used his cell phone. We even fired his bank and got a new one with no monthly account charges and got the old bank off his payroll to the tune of $25 a month.
You can make this a fun game with your business or personal finances just by changing your viewpoint. Be the Donald Trump of your own household or organization. Take a hard look at who you are paying out of your hard earned income. Don’t be afraid to say “You’re Fired!” and pay yourself first by putting that money in your own retirement savings plan.
Sandra Simmons, President of This article is free for republishing
Source: http://www.financealley.com/article_193918_74.html