Extol April-May 2019 | Page 90

EXECUTIVE $1,030, leaving you with $1,060.90. This continues for the entire time you are invested. Let’s assume that you saved $1,000 per year for ten years from age 20-30 and stopped, allowing this to grow until age 65. Your friend saved $1,000 per year for twenty years, from age 45-65. Assuming a flat 6% annual compounded return, you end up with nearly three times more money than your friend. This is represented in the illustration below. Compounding is an amazing thing! Which should I focus on first – retirement, rainy day money, debt repayment, children’s education? While this question is best answered case by case, but as a starting point we ask you to look at your employer’s retirement plan. Is there a matching component? Such as if you contribute 3% of your salary they will match you 3% of you salary? If so, great! Let’s start there. That 3% match is free money! Be sure that you are contributing enough to take full advantage of the match. 3% is only $3.00 for every $100 you make. I promise, you won’t miss it after a couple weeks. Never has anyone said to me or anyone on my team, “I wish I hadn’t saved so much for my retirement.” Having rainy day money, or an emergency fund, is one of the most rewarding things that you can do for yourself. You never know when the washing machine is going to go out or you have to replace tires on your vehicle unexpectedly. As a general rule you should have enough cash on hand to cover three to six months’ worth of household expenses. We start this by simply putting a few dollars away at time using the methods above. The hardest part is staying out of it! The next part, and the harder part, is seeing the big picture and not giving in to that new trendy outfit. It is easy to set a goal, but no one else will hold you accountable. “How am I ever going to pay for my child’s college?” While having the goal of paying for your child’s education is wonderful, you must be able realize that you are not doing them a disservice by planning for your retirement first. Let’s face it; they don’t want you living in their basement because you planned for their college and not your retirement! We all want our kids to have it easier than we had it, and that is wonderful if you can comfortably make that happen. Just don’t sacrifice your financial wellbeing to make it happen. There are many ways to tackle the costs of college, so be sure to seek advice when the time comes. Goodbye Junk. Hello Relief! Get rid of unwanted items without lifting a finger. We show up on time and clean up when we’re done. 1-800-468-5865 | 1800gotjunk.com When you prefer the best Samantha Huber Owner By choosing us you help save billions of pounds of junk from the landfill. * To redeem this offer, present this ad at time of pickup. Cannot be combined with any other offer and is not redeemable for cash. Not valid on single item or minimum charge pickups. 88 EXTOL : APRIL/MAY 2019 7617 Old State Rd 60 Sellersburg, IN 47172 812.246.5930 www.preferredmeatsinc.com