Five Financial Mistakes Never To Make

We are all imperfect when it comes to money and our finances. We make mistakes. We spend too much here, not enough there and we are simply imperfectly perfect. Ask my husband; he will tell you that we are bad about spending entirely too much when we travel. We have no idea what a budget looks like when we are on vacation, and we never fail to amaze ourselves when we get home and realize what we spent on a trip (every single time). Other people make financial mistakes of their own. It’s part of the process of living and learning to be more financially responsible. And while we know we will all continue to make mistakes as we grow, we also know that there are a few financial mistakes not worth making. Here they are; and here is how to avoid them.

Paying Interest

It’s a good idea to use your credit card to make purchases so you can reap the rewards and benefits offered in terms of cash back or miles, but you have to pay the balance in full right away. Credit card interest will kill you; don’t let it accumulate.

Turning Enjoyment into Habit

I love a latte from Starbucks, but I don’t get one every single day. When we let our enjoyments and indulgences become our habits, it’s a bad financial cycle. Also, I don’t want all those calories every single day. So it’s win-win for me to avoid that.

Forgetting Trial Periods

Mistake of my life; I always sign up for free trials of things and end up forgetting to cancel them. I’m pretty sure that’s how I ended up with Amazon Prime, Pandora Premium or whatever it is, OnStar, XM Radio and about a  half dozen other things.

Not Contributing the Most to Retirement

If your employer offers to match your contribution to your retirement, do it. Do the maximum. This is FREE MONEY. I’m not sure how else to stress that so that you will understand how imperative it is that you do it.

Keeping Up with Your Friends

We have the most amazing group of friends, and I’m happy to say we are all in the same place in life. There’s no reason I feel I need to go out and get a ranger because they all have one. I’m perfectly happy with our golf cart. They hunt and go to the woods to their hunting camp; we live in a gated community on a golf course. We don’t need to spend money on something like that to keep up with them and they don’t feel any need to start buying designer handbags to keep up with me. Keeping up with others at the expense of your own finances is a terrible idea.

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