Life Can Be Simple.blog
DISCLAIMER - I am not a Financial Advisor and do not work for any Brokerage Firm. The opinions given are of my own and are not to used as professional advice. These are my findings and can hopefully help you to make informed decisions on investing. Consult a Broker or Lawyer before making any investment. All of us have to start somewhere with investing. I have found that you can be successful in investing in many different ways. Some people want to simply put their money to work and do not want to be involved in any decisions. Let's begin by discussing how to invest in the stock market. SIMPLE NO INVOLVEMENT One of the easiest methods is to use a robo-type investment platform. One that my wife and I use is www.wealthfront.com We both have Roth IRAs at Wealthfront, and they let you decide the level of risk you want to take. As money comes in, they set the percentages to allow you to have a diversified portfolio. As certain categories grow, they reallocate your money to keep so much in safe investments like Bonds or Dividend Stocks. SELF DIRECTED ROTH IRA One of the best plans is to open an account at a brokerage that has no fees involved. We have accounts at Fidelity.com and Schwab.com, Each brokerage has its own advantages. One of the great things about having a self-directed account is that you are free to setup your own balances as to how much you want in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. We will go over each of these in a future article explaining some simple methods to get diversified to help offset turbulent waters in the market. In early 2024, some stocks have actually dropped in price, but it is crucial to stay invested. According a recent article by Fidelity, the people who stay the course through the ups and downs of the market make the most money. Trying to time the stock market is virtually impossible. So full market indexes using ETF's are a great long-term strategy. People like Peter Lynch (Long time successful investor at Fidelity with the Magellan Fund) and Warren Buffet both have stated that when everyone else is selling, it is probably a good time to buy. Dollar-cost averaging makes you have a bigger profit when the market starts back up. We will cover all these topics in future articles. Remember that you must have earned income to contribute to an IRA. You can contribute up to $6500 of earned income per year to either a Roth or Traditional IRA. (More if you are over 60 years of age.) The difference in the the two types of IRAs is that a Traditional IRA lets you have a tax advantage as you do not have to pay taxes on the contributions until you withdraw the money. On a ROTH IRA, there is no tax advantage as you pay the taxes on the money contributed. But it is really a far better plan as all distributions taken are tax-free if taken after you are 59 ½ years old. Also there are no RMDs on Roth IRAs. RMDs are Required Minimum Distributions. Check with a tax professional to determine what is best for you and your family. Investment Articles Minimalism Articles Internet Direct Laptops
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HAVING A STRONG UNMOVING MINDSET
DISCLAIMER - I am not a Financial Advisor and do not work for any Brokerage Firm. The opinions given are of my own and are not to be used as professional advice. These are my findings and can hopefully help you to make informed decisions on investing. Consult a Broker or Lawyer before making any investment. All of us have to start somewhere with investing. I have found that you can be successful in investing in so many different ways. Some people want to simply put their money to work and do not want to be involved in any decisions. Let's begin by discussing how to invest in the stock market. SIMPLE NO INVOLVEMENT One of the easiest methods is to use a robo-type investment platform. One that my wife and I use is www.wealthfront.com We both have Roth IRAs at Wealthfront, and they let you decide the level of risk you want to take. As money comes in, they set the percentages to allow you to have a diversified portfolio. As certain categories grow, they reallocate your money to keep so much in safe investments like Bonds or Dividend Stocks. SELF DIRECTED ROTH IRA One of the best plans is opening an account at a brokerage with no fees involved. We have accounts at www.Fidelity.com and www.Schwab.com, Each brokerage has its advantages. One of the great things about having a self-directed account is that you are free to set up your balances as to how much you want in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. We will go over each of these in a future article explaining some simple methods to get diversified to help offset turbulent waters in the market. In early 2024, some stocks have dropped in price, but it is crucial to stay invested. According to a recent article by Fidelity, the people who stay the course through the ups and downs of the market make the most money. Trying to time the stock market is virtually impossible. So full market indexes using ETFs are a great long-term strategy. Article on how to start investing with $100 using ETFs. People like Peter Lynch (Long time successful investor at Fidelity with the Magellan Fund) and Warren Buffet both have stated that when everyone else is selling, it is probably a good time to buy. Dollar-cost averaging makes you have a bigger profit when the market starts back up. We will cover all these topics in future articles. Investment Articles Minimalism Articles Internet Direct Laptops
S.M.A.R.T. Goals for 2024 Some think resolutions are pointless. But the bible is clear we should have plans and look to God daily for help. I have read that only 3% of people make goals, but those 3% accomplish more than the 97% who do not. My wife Denise and I have had clear written goals over the past 3 years which I put on the wall. Writing it down makes you 42% more likely to achieve the goal than to just speak it. With clearly written goals, there is a clear target to hit. Without a goal, you will hit it every time. But by having written goals, we have been able to meet those goals for 3 consecutive years. The Dictionary says the definition of resolution is: Resolution noun
3. A course of action determined or decided on. "His resolution is to get up early." The word Goal is similar to Resolution. Goal noun
Just reading books means nothing, but reading books that grow your mind and thinking can be helpful. No book helps me more than the bible itself. But of the others that have really helped me this year are books related to Habits and Mindset. One of them is Keystone Habits by Steven Shuster. In this book, he discusses making S.M.A.R.T. goals. SMART is an acronym tied to a word for each letter. S – Specific M – Measurable A – Attainable R – Relevant T – Timely Think on those a few minutes. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. What causes us to fail on resolutions is not following those rules. Thousands of people decide in the first week of January to lose weight. And they normally do well for a couple of weeks. Exercise gyms and people selling those exercise machines do a lot of business in January. But by February, most of those resolutions are gone. Why is that? Because they are not meeting those 5 criteria of S.M.A.R.T. Don’t just say I will lose weight. Set a specific goal. For instance, say I will lose 1 lb. each month. That makes it reasonable and attainable. It is a SPECIFIC goal. The reason for failure is not having clear written goals. I was thinking on that acronym and the S could mean a lot of things that would make sense. Steady, Systematic, Smart, Secure, Slow, or Steadfast. But he chose to use Specific, and we need to be specific. I like having clear and precise goals. Pray about what you are desiring, and be sure it is in God’s will. If your goal is reasonable and in God’s will, nothing can hold you back from accomplishing it. When the 5 men of the tribe of Dan went into the land to spy it out, they came to the house of Micah and asked for guidance of Micah and his priest. Jdg 18:5 And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous. Like them, we need to seek God’s face. And when we know God’s will, nothing shall hold us back. Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: Mat 7:8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. In the book of James, we have instructions on how to seek wisdom. Jas 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. Let us read all 6 of those verses beginning in verse 2. Jas 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Jas 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. Jas 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Jas 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. Jas 1:7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. Plan out your year. Write down your goals and make them specific and measurable and attainable. I believe with God’s help we can all attain our desires using S.M.A.R.T. goals. S – Specific M – Measurable A – Attainable R – Relevant T – Timely List of All Investment Articles List of All Minimalism Articles Internet Direct Laptops
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David ParhamChristian Minimalist and Investor. God guides and helps me everyday. Archives
May 2024
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