The Recipe
Okay, wise guy, Travis. What's the recipe? It's funny how the feedback rolled in from yesterday's post. Everyone 40 years old and above applauded my post, while everyone under the age of 40 cursed me. To frame it up, I wrote about a juxtaposition I experienced yesterday. While waiting for a client to join a Zoom meeting, I saw a social media video of anearly 30-something ranting about how his generation has been absolutely screwed out of a decent life. Then, two minutes later, I met with an early 30-something couple that's absolutely crushing it. What's the difference? Decisions compound. Good decisions compound our lives in a positive way, and bad decisions compound our lives in a negative way.
The biggest question I received since yesterday is what a series of good compounding decisions looks like in a real-life situation. The below sequence of events, in rough chronological order, is my idealized version of this recipe. Everyone's unique story will most certainly differ from this.
As a teenager, learn the art of spending, saving, and giving while NOT using credit cards. 90% of us don't get this one.
Buy that first car with cash. It's probably not going to be your dream car, but it will be an awesome experience!
When graduating high school, carefully choose that next step. If attending college, intentionally choose a college that you can afford; NO student loan debt. Every one of us has options to attend a college or trade school without debt. This is where most Americans' negative compounding begins.
Find a job that roughly meets the following two criteria: pays the bills and leads you closer to the field/work you're called to do. It doesn't have to be the dream job, but you also don't have to willfully sign up for 30 years of misery, either.
Secure housing that accounts for less than 25% of your take-home pay. Creativity might be needed for this one, but success on this item unlocks so many options!
Don’t rush to buy a house! Young adults don’t know what their life could/should look like, so an early house purchase is rarely a blessing.
DO NOT jump to upgrade the vehicle. A workable vehicle is a workable vehicle.
Once in a grown-up job, carve out a lifestyle conservative enough to allow for fun, saving, giving, and investing. It might not be much, but work each of those into your monthly practices.
Learn to budget well. A well-executed budget unlocks so many doors!
Save a healthy emergency fund (3+ months of expenses).
Consistently increase the amount going into your investments.
Make giving a priority.
Find the right partner. The wrong partner will cause so much heartache and trouble. Find someone who aligns with your values.
Find your why, and aggressively pursue it with everything you've got. Clearly defining this will enable you to intentionally plan your finances to align with this vision.
Don't be afraid to turn your back on the normal way of doing things. Keeping up with the Joneses is a great way to end up stressed and miserable, like so many around us.
Endeavor to stay out of debt. Outside of your primary residence, there's no reason for any of us to borrow money on anything. See, counter-cultural. This principle will change your life!
Find meaning in all of it; the exciting and the mundane, the large and the small.
Controversial? Perhaps. Effective? Absolutely.
____
Did someone forward you this post? We're glad you're here! If you'd like to subscribe to The Daily Meaning to receive these posts directly in your inbox (for free!), just CLICK THIS LINK. It only takes 10 seconds.