Money Musings đ When âinvest in yourselfâ is bad advice
âInvest in yourself!â It's advice we see everywhere. I say it all the time!
But itâs also advice that gets given and received out of context.
First and foremost, itâs important to invest in ourselves and what matters to us. That could mean anything from buying that course that will help us start our side hustle or making the conscious choice to go to bed earlier and not get something else done. It could also mean investing for retirement or some other future goal.
A key part of investing in ourselves is that we benefit from it or get something out of it.
In the above examples - we gained knowledge we were going to use, we got more rest and built up our wealth. This is all amazing!
âInvest in yourselfâ is also a commonly used marketing tactic.
Ads urge us to buy something as an act of self love or self care, or as a way to take our careers to the next level.
This can make the decision to invest in yourself even trickier. How do we know if something is worth it?
To combat this, I recommend taking a look at the trade offs and costs. Here are some questions to ask yourself and steps to take.
Will it take away from my other goals? And if so, how much? If Iâm depleting my rainy-day fund or building up my credit card balance to take an expensive course, will that cause me additional stress?
Are there other ways to get the same benefit for less (or even for free)? Sometimes when weâre investing in ourselves (this has happened to me too), it can feel like thereâs only one avenue to do it. I found THE thing and it has to be it. This is typically a red flag for me and a sign I should explore other options.
Take a pause. If we want to truly invest in ourselves, itâs okay to take a step back and think through other possible scenarios. Is the expensive facial really what I need or is it just as big of an investment in myself to drink enough water and get to bed on time. Maybe itâs both. In the end you get to choose what makes the most sense for you but taking a pause can make sure weâre investing in ourselves in the way we want and for the right reasons.
In what ways do you invest in yourself? What are some ways that cost money and what are some ways that donât? Iâd love to hear!
MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
TAKE STEPS TO INCREASE YOUR CREDIT SCORE.
Credit, or the ability to take out debt, is an important part of our financial well-being. It allows us to buy a home, purchase a car, start or fund a business, and supports us in the case of the unexpected when our savings arenât enough. Typically, the higher our score, the lower our interest rate.
Plus, many landlords do a credit check before accepting your application, 29% of employers check your credit score before hiring you, and insurance companies may even price your policy based on your credit.
Here are 6 ways to increase your credit score:
Remedy errors on your credit reports. Review for free once per year at annualcreditreport.com
Pay your bills on time. On-time payments make up the largest component of your score. I like to set up automatic payments so I donât have to think about it
Decrease your credit utilization (and keep it low). This is the amount you owe on your credit cards (at any given time the agencies check) divided by your credit card limits. One way to do this is to pay off your card multiple times throughout the month
Decrease your overall debt. Make a plan to do that here
Use a service to get credit for recurring payments. We pay a variety of bills on time every month yet historically, these havenât been factored into our credit scores. Not fair! The first two Iâve seen are Experian Boost and UltraFICO
Open a credit card (or secured card) if you donât have one. Read chapter 13 (All About Debt) in Financial Adulting first!
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
THE BUSINESS CASE FOR UNIVERSAL CHILDCARE.
Nothing gets me more excited than when a policy is both better for the economy and promotes equity. Win-win.
When I interviewed Linda Scott, economist and author of The Double X Economy for Financial Adulting we talked about ways to close the gender wealth gap.
She shared that building a childcare system would actually be the most important and impactful intervention worldwide.
She says it should be treated as âeconomic infrastructureâ (meaning itâs available to everyone) and because âitâs the biggest barrier to women participating in the economy it would easily pay for itself.â
In a recent podcast episode of Money with Katie (Youtube version), she digs into the details of the childcare problem and why building a system of universal, affordable, high quality childcare is not only better for parents but for the economy as a whole.
Plus, youâll hear me in there talking about one of the ways weâve tried to make childcare work - by creating a nanny share.