You know it’s kind of funny when most people start a proper financial Journey.
When they’re at the point of this is it fine I’m done living this way I’m getting my together well they think they know what kind of Milestones will
Bring them.
The most Joy but you know Milestones feel like stepping over a puddle and the ones you thought would be small and insignificant are like jumping over a raging River So today we’re putting together a list of things big and small that you can look for to on this journey if you’ve hit any of these Milestones let us know we’d love to hear about.
When Your Investments Outpace Your Income:
It’s all right let’s dive into number one when your Investments outpace your income if you keep going one day your Investments can outpace your income with a 4% return on your invested Capital can be more than what you’d make from a traditional salary.
It’s the shift that moves you from working for money to money working for you Studies have shown that for a lot of people, this is one of the best parts of their financial Journey because that’s when you feel what Financial Freedom is like now you’re not trading your time for money you’re financially secure.
You feel like you’ve accomplished something big and you know this is just the beginning you’re on the right track so keep going and if you haven’t started yet that’s fine the next one’s for you.
Starting is the Hardest. It’s Also the Most Important:
The number two starting is the hardest but it’s also the most important it’ll take a few
Months maybe even a year of regularly investing in a diverse portfolio for the joy of starting to hit you.
It’s almost like you don’t trust yourself at the beginning you think you’ll forget about it or withdraw your money in an emergency or change your mind once you got everything set up and you’ve got a standard debit order your life will go on and your Investments won’t be something that you think about very much until one day you check on everything.
You see that you’ve already made some money it’s not a lot but it’s a start all you have to do is keep living your life and making your regular payments you realize that you made a decision to take your financial future seriously and you did it and not just that you also realize that while you’ve made a lot of sacrifices along the way.
You also still lived a full fun life you were just more intentional about how you spent your money you can start in your 30s and build the $350,000 portfolio while still having a great time you start you gain momentum and you sit back and watch all that compounding effect even though it’s just the beginning you feel like hey I’ve made it.
Paying off Your Student Loan:
The number three is paying off your student loan the burden of big debt is greater than any sense of Safety and Security you get from investing your money it’s such an emotionally rewarding Milestone
Because you feel relieved lighter and so proud of yourself for student loans, especially in the US feel like a Never-ending chapter in a book you didn’t even want to read there are people stuck in Cycles where they’ve been paying for Four to five years and they owe more than
When they started paying because the interest rates were so messed up even when you play by the rules you lose so you have to pause the rest of your life and throw everything you’ve got to get rid of that debt and when you do it you feel like a million bucks fine it’s not just getting rid of that debt that’s rewarding it’s realizing that you can throw yourself so wholeheartedly into one of the most difficult missions and you I freaking did it but it gets better at the passage of time.
Paying off Your First Property:
Number four when you pay off your first property paying off your first home isn’t always thought of as the best financial move paying it off sooner could mean that you’re pouring a lot of money into it.
Financially that money could perform better if you invested it but this isn’t about getting the best bang for your buck it’s a mental thing not a financial one it’s about that feeling it’s the feeling of knowing that no matter what happens with your job.
You will always have a roof over your head nobody can take away that shelter from
The day your house is paid off you get a sense of Freedom that no amount of
The extra money from Investments could never top it’s these kinds of feelings that
Give you a level of security you cannot measure or buy with any current you know that you could walk away from everything and you’d still be fine.
When an Unexpected Expense Doesn’t Stress You Out:
The number five when an unexpected expense doesn’t stress you out think about those moments when a mechanic tells you that you need some new breaks or your electrician tells you you’ve got some major faults in the system.
You need a new one your heart drops right you can get some money from your savings
but the rest well do you go into debt at this point all of your plans go out the window and these issues seem to come up just as you’re finally making some progress with your finances now think about the moment you hear about those issues.
You can just shrug and say fine I’ll put it on my card that is a life-changing milestone when you handle Financial curveballs without shaking in your boots then you know you’ve made it you’ve poured Blood Sweat and Tears into building that 20K emergency savings buffer and now you’ve reached a place where the emergency isn’t going to wreck your finances you move out of survival mode and into control.
When You’re Able to Contribute the Maximum Amount to Your Retirement Plan:
The number six is when you’re able to contribute the maximum amount to your retirement plan every country has the maximum amount you can contribute per year to your retirement plan in some cases the more you contribute the more your employer matches that contribution.
The better your tax benefit so it’s a milestone that many aim for and when you reach it it’s like you’ve won the jackpot you know that not only are you thinking ahead you’re also doing the things you need to do to get ahead you build trust in yourself this you build trust in yourself.
This Way saving for retirement is a big commitment so many people can’t or won’t do it so be able to save and then hit that maximum contribution you know you’re stable on the ground in that case you can do a little victory dance for yourself and set your sights on the next mission.
Realizing That You Can Add More Value than Your Financial Advisor:
The number seven realizing that you can add more value than your financial adviser.
Financial Milestones aren’t only about hitting a certain number so many of them have to do with taking control of your own money most people start with a financial adviser.
They let them take the Reigns for a few years but once you’ve created the discipline around saving and investing there could be a point where you become more interested in it.
You realize that because you’re so invested you’re now at a place to add more value to your portfolio than your financial advisor is you’ll probably start by looking at a portfolio that isn’t performing as well and then moving it around to a more diverse or low-cost setup.
Then when you see the difference that you’ve made you know the best person to control your money is in fact you save on fees and the more you learn the more you start to see returns that match or even beat the market you’re not sitting back anymore you’re being proactive and you can see the payoff in real time.
You Watch Markets, Not Your Bosses:
The number eight you watch markets, not your bosses this one happens before your
Investments outpace income you have to feel this Milestone first to have the
Motivation to keep going and reach it within a few years of you focusing on your Investments.
You learn that sure the market is unpredictable and it has its risks but it doesn’t need
your soul or your time and energy in the way that working for a boss does on the one hand, you’re carefully watching your boss’s mood to see if today is the day you can ask for an HR raise or time off on the other hand you’re carefully watching the market for a downturn knowing that your best move is to stay put and just watch with vague interest one view is much better than the other and you know which one it is.
Getting Free of Uncontrolled Debt:
The number nine getting free of uncontrolled debt at some point you’ll get to a point where leveraging debts becomes a part of your financial strategy but before that, you’ll reach The milestone of becoming debt-free this is when you manage to get rid of
Uncontrolled debt.
That’s keeping you Shackled instead of something that you can use to your advantage it’s a great feeling you shouldn’t skip when you know that you won’t open up a bill
again and freak out at your interest payments being in debt can make you feel like you’re treading water all the time like at any moment if something goes wrong.
If a big wave comes your way you’ll be in danger it’s a stress that lingers at the back of your mind and stops you from focusing on things that matter and from enjoying life so letting go of that takes a huge weight off your shoulders now you can grow your wealth without feeling like you have something holding you back all the time.
The Emotional Impact of the First $100k:
Number 10 the emotional impact of the first 100K hitting your first $100,000 is great for your net worth but it’s even better for your mental health this is the moment you realize that you’ve gone beyond living paycheck to paycheck.
Your entire mindset around money time relationships and hard work shifts your worries ease up because you’ve got a map of the path to get there and you know you’ll be fine if you just keep following it whether you make that money through hard work and savings.
Or investment gains.
It feels like you’ve accomplished your hardest goal you walk through your days a little bit lighter because you’re out of survival mode now you’ve got enough mental energy to keep on building wealth and even to accelerate it.
Actually, Every $100k Feels Good:
Do you know what number 11 every $100,000 feels pretty good when you’ve made your money through sacrifice and hard work every 100K feels like the first one you’ve done it again hitting that number makes people feel like.
They can feel their progress happening in the initial buildup is slow but as you start moving along a little bit faster you can see how every decision you make is having a huge impact you can track it and do things to quicken the pace.
You can use what you’ve learned to understand how fast you can get to your goal and when you reach it you can celebrate it gives you a very tangible idea of how to build your wealth is like a road of small winds all built on top of each other.
Watching the Snowball Effect:
The number 12 watching The Snowball Effect is that the first 100K takes some time usually about 10 years on average income and being able to save a decent portion then the next is about 5 years 3 years 2 years.
You get the deal depending on your smarts and skill levels it can take about 20 years to get to that first 500k so you’ve been committed to this journey for two decades and you’re only about halfway to your goal but then the million speeds up towards you.
You realize just how much momentum you’ve got now you can adjust your goals and dream bigger and you know that you’ll nail that bigger goal too you’re not doing so much work any more but the Numbers are still rolling.
The Big 1 Million:
The number 13 that big 1 million now people might say 1 million you can’t even buy a house with that anymore but it’s not tied up in a mortgage it’s yours and now that you’ve gotten here you know you’ll get to your next milestone and your next one the number
Is amazing.
But only because now you feel like you can live the life you want it’s by getting there you know you’ve cracked the formula you know what it took the effort you had to put into it
and how much time it took you to get there you’ve mapped out exactly.
How you can reach the goals you’ve set your mind to and with this blueprint and some common sense you know that you can do it with other things in your life too your $1 Million Milestone is a reflection of your discipline smart decisions and sacrifices you’re going to love it.
Being Able to Help Out Your Family:
The number 14 is being able to help out your family a lot of people already help out their family financially in some way but it creates stress right it’s not something everyone can do freely without having to watch their own family more carefully.
Because of it so when you get to a point where you can change your family’s life without it affecting your finances you don’t just feel like you’ve taken your own worries away you feel like you’ve done it for the people you love too.
Because you kind of have you’re the only one who knows what it took to get there so for you to be the one who made the sacrifices and decisions that lifted everyone up and for you to be able to share your success without sharing your burdens that’s incredible.
It shows that your empathy and understanding have grown with your wealth and it’s a testament to the fact that this isn’t a quick or easy Journey you’re going to learn a lot you’re going to make some mistakes and get frustrated but you’ll also become a richer person because of it in your bank account and in your heart.
Being Able to Travel Whenever You Want to Go:
The number 15 being able to travel whenever you want to a lot of people don’t think that this Milestone isn’t as big or important as hitting that $1 million Mark but you’d be wrong fine.
Look just hear us out traveling is a beautiful educational interesting experience that changes who you are in a very short amount of time everyone has different ideas of how they want to travel and the financial Milestone isn’t about making so much
money that you can fly private and stay in only five-star hotels it’s about knowing.
How much money you’re able to spend on getting an experience that is so life-changing some people can travel cheaply and realize they don’t need a lot of money to have an amazing experience.
That’s a huge milestone in figuring out your financial meter so how much or how little are you fine with it’s a big step in understanding what you value and how you’re actually going to navigate your finances and also of course getting to travel without worrying about money is about the most freeing thing that you could ever experience and that’s all from us today.
Conclusion:
The article emphasizes the emotional and practical significance of achieving various financial milestones, highlighting how these moments can bring joy and a sense of accomplishment. Each milestone, from starting investments and paying off debt to reaching the first $100,000 or $1 million, marks a step toward financial independence and security. The piece underscores that while financial growth involves sacrifices and dedication, it also provides an unmatched feeling of freedom, stability, and the ability to enjoy life fully, including helping loved ones and experiencing travel without financial stress.
FAQs:
Why the first $100,000 is considered a significant milestone?
Achieving the first $100,000 signals moving beyond living paycheck to paycheck. It shifts your mindset and builds confidence, showing that your financial strategy is working and giving you momentum to keep building wealth.
What makes paying off student loans a noteworthy milestone?
Paying off student loans provides immense emotional relief, as it frees you from the financial burden and constant stress of debt. This milestone allows you to redirect your focus and finances toward future growth.
Why is contributing the maximum to a retirement plan important?
Maximizing retirement contributions is crucial because it indicates long-term financial planning, stability, and taking full advantage of employer matches and tax benefits, ensuring a secure future.
How does achieving the ability to handle unexpected expenses contribute to financial peace?
Reaching a point where unexpected expenses don’t cause stress reflects strong financial health. It means you’ve built an emergency fund that allows you to stay in control without derailing your financial plans.
What is the significance of the ‘big 1 million’ milestone?
Hitting the $1 million mark is not just about the number itself; it symbolizes mastering the financial discipline and strategies necessary for long-term wealth accumulation. It represents a proven formula for financial success that can be replicated for future goals.