Money advice I wish I could give my 20-year-old self

It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago that I was in my twenties, but the reality is, it’s been %$# years.

My 20s were chockfull of memories, transformations, and lessons. Some of the hardest lessons I had to learn (sometimes over and over again) were financial lessons. Whether you have a strong financial literacy educational background or not, for some of us, the impulsivity and immaturity of our twenties can lead us to make some significant financial missteps. If I ever had a chance to talk to 20-year-old me about money, I’d have a few key tips:

1. B-U-D-G-E-T

One thing that I’ve learned since sailing past my 20s is that it doesn’t matter if you make $10,000 or $100,000; if you don’t know how to budget, you’ll never have control of your money. For some people—myself included at one time—a budget can feel like your control is being taken away, when in actuality, a budget puts you in the driver’s seat of your finances. Instead of your money telling you what to do, a budget allows you to tell your money what to do.

 

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