Making Money: Finding the extra Cash

In changing the way I and my family think about money, making money, saving and spending money - I had to become a bit creative. I've read plenty of books on the subject of "managing money" and I know some of the ideas behind managing money - but sometimes it's just a matter of having an open mind and staying focused on your financial [money] goals.

Rich Dad Poor Dad Quote:

The Government
..." They protect widows and Orphans, not idiots.."

Ok, I know I have to invest, but I've written up my budget and there is no surprise in realizing that my budget doesn't give me enough to put aside money to invest with. So as most books and advisors tell you - start with small amounts, just start.... easier said than done buddy.

So my goal is to "teach kids about money", so finding money [ even if a small amount] is for their financial long term benefit, not mine. So I have to find the money if I want to reach my financial goals with my kids.

That still leaves the question: Where do I come up with the money?

Here is a tip [ it fell into my lap so be patient ]

Be open to opportunities to save money by cutting cost.

Perfect example: The other week my water heater stopped working - no hot water, so cold showers for everyone. So, desperate for a "HOT" shower I went into my emergency fund [ always good to have an emergency fund just for this ].

Then a thought ran thru my head - the last time I needed repair work done I felt so stupid when a plummer came to my house, took 40 minutes to fix a leak [ It was something I could have done on my own ] and then proceded to charge me $300 dollars. Ofcourse I felt dumb and my wife was probably thinking "I'm with stupid..."

So I decided to look into making the repairs on my own.. save money you know. After lots of cold showers and a lot of info. searching I realized I could save about $300 dollars in mostly labor cost if I did the work myself. Now I'm not very tool and mechanically incline so this was scary for me. But, in the end I replaced the entire water heater, have a bigger water heater and saved the $300 dollars in labor cost. Ofcourse this all came out of my emergency fund... then it hit me..

I thought, instead of leaving that $300 in my emergency fund - why not use the money I saved to start an investment fund for my kids. It was money that would have been spent and if the investment goes belly up - well, it's no great loss to my finances [ it's not like I need that cash to eat next week ].

Being open minded and cutting cost in order to invest

Ofcourse this tip doesn't work for every occasion - their are things I or you just can't do on our own an we need to call that high priced professional to get repairs done. But the point is - finding ways to get that extra money that is needed to help you do what you need to do to improve your financial situation. My goal is to teach kids about money - I can't afford to throw money away, so I have to make every dollar count. What's your goal? What are you doing to achieve your financial goal?

The most difficult part of my goal to teach kids about money is that I have to change in order to help them change. I have to stop the way I think, start thinking the way I want them to think. It's not about knowing best or saying I know it all here do what I say - this is life. Life is about learning, growing and the pursuit of happiness. If I want a better life for my kids - I have to start doing things that will help them in the long run. Like I said before - if all my kids learn is to save and invest a bit here and there while their young - they can grow to be a "millionaire next door" simply by using time to their advantage and letting the principal of compounding interest work for them.

Hell, I remember 1991 when the market started tanking and I thought - hey a repeat of 1987 - I should invest... What did I do, I put aside $1,000 and forgot to invest it. It’s 2009 and what do I have to show for it… nothing, I don’t even have that $1,000 dollars I put aside back then.