In today’s tip, I want to show you how to create an Investment Portfolio totally funded by free money! Creating wealth and what I call Awakened Prosperity which includes health, wealth and happiness – doesn’t normally happen just by accident. Wealth and prosperity in most cases are created through a combination of many smart choices and smart habits.
So my tip today is about just one way to find money to invest for your retirement by being a smart shopper!
When I needed a new vacuum, I went to my husband because he is the maven when it comes to finding deals. I knew which vacuum I wanted, but it was $400. My husband is so smart when it comes to savings that he searched and found it on-line for $80!
My new vacuum: |
|
I also needed a new headset for my landline, but I kept putting it off because it was $350 for a new unit. My husband told me that all I needed was the little earpiece, so he went off to perform his magic again.
Original Price: | $350 |
To replace just the broken piece: | ($190) |
Coupons from retailer +credit card points: | ($160) |
Total Cost to replace broken headset: | $30 |
Savings | $320 |
That’s a savings of over $600 in just one month!
Let’s say you are 45 years old and were able to save $500 a month that you put it into your retirement account for 20 years. Now let’s say that you earned 7% annually, then you could have $250,000 by age 65 for retirement. This is just a hypothetical return for this example, but you get the idea. If you were to put this money into a tax-deductible retirement plan, you could also save taxes!
The important tip is to stop and look at the options before you make a purchase. Are there savings opportunities that you are missing? Have you checked for store coupons, credit card points, Craig’s List, or eBay?
When you shop, ask the stores if they are offering any specials or have any coupons. It never hurts to ask. I did this at Staples last week, and I saved an additional $20 on the flip chart I was purchasing. All of these tips have saved my husband and me hundreds of dollars every month and allowed us to add tens of thousands every year into our retirement plans.
The secret is to:
- Take time to do research on pricing, coupons, points before you buy.
- After you make the purchase, take the physical dollars and save them somewhere:
- Piggy bank
- Savings account (cash reserves/emergency funds)
- Apply to credit card debt
- Track all your income daily:
- Keep a record of all the money you earn, save, or find
- Add it up at the end of the month, and you will begin earning, attracting, and keeping more.
Remember this tip — What you focus on expands. So focusing on your finances is a good thing!
Over the next two months, not only will I be sharing smart money tips with you, but in April, Chris Freer and I are launching our new Smart Women’s Empowerment course called: Unlock Your Financial Power: The Key to Health, Wealth and Happiness.
We are very excited because this content rich program will be available for free to women around the world. So stay tuned and if you are not on our list yet, please do that now by visiting www.smartwomensempowerment.org This way, you can sign up to join the community, and while you are there you can check out some of the blogs and our most recent movie review on the movie, The Big Short which will give you, movie critic Brent Marchant’s, insight on this film that illustrates the story of the 2008 mortgage and financial meltdown.
In addition, I just participated in the, Accelerated Freedom Summit, which was all video interviews with leading financial and business experts. My interview is there too, and you can still get a limited time pass by visiting our Smart Women Talk Facebook page to sign up!