Financial Freedom and Self-Discovery Guide

Navigate the challenges of debt, build a robust emergency fund, and invest in a brighter future. Explore career paths, embrace self-discovery, and unlock the keys to a fulfilling life at 18 and beyond.

Unlocking Adulthood: Financial Wisdom and Personal Growth Tips for 18-Year-Olds

I remember when I turned 18, all the way back in 2013. Everyone was throwing their phones at the wall from playing flappy bird, Instagram used to look like this and Iphone just came out with their latest 5S. And with only being in America for 6 months at that point, the American money system was the furthest thing from my mind. I want to share four crucial tips that I wish I had known during those formative years. Stick around, and I’ll throw in a bonus tip that might just reshape your perspective on navigating adulthood!

Mastering Finances and Self-Discovery: Essential Tips for Your Journey into Adulthood

1. Avoid Debt like the Plague: Stay away from any form of debt as it were the 1300s and debt is the black plague. And by all, I mean all debt. The last thing you need as an 18-year-old with little to no income is a loan or a credit card balance. Especially, with a 25% interest rate and carry that balance till 2035 like 49% of Americans. If you’re reading this, you are already trying to be different and take control of your finances. So don’t do as the rest of the mainstream does. Make cash purchases and only buy things you can pay in full. There’s a whole different mental aspect of swiping a card for $200 or handing over 10 $20 bills.
Build an Emergency Fund: Start some kind of starter emergency fund. If you’re living with your parents, it might be something as simple as $500-$1000. Just to get you into the habit of saving money for later and not fall into the trap of living from paycheck to paycheck like 62% of American’s do. If you are already living on your own then you might need more of a real emergency fund which would equal 3-6 months of expenses. For example, you take the bare minimum that you need to survive which is housing(rent, utilities), transportation(gas, insurance, since were not going to have a car payment), food (basic groceries) take all that into account for the month and multiply by 3-6. And that’s your emergency fund.
Invest in a Roth IRA: At Kurpas Financial we’re BIG on investing. If you have any form of income, open a Roth IRA for yourself I personally use Charles Schwab for mine. This is basically a cheat code for growing your finances. When it comes time to withdraw it at retirement age, you don’t have to give the government a penny of it, because it will be tax free. If you only put away $100 a month into it starting at 18 and wait to withdraw it at retirement at 65, assuming an average of a 10% growth rate (which the S&P500 was done historically) you’d have 1 million TAX FREE! And that’s only investing $100 a month!
Plan Your Career Path: Sit down and try to figure out what you want to do with your life. Figure out what you’re good at and passionate about to figure out a career path for yourself. Then figure out if you want to go to college or not, just because all your friends are going to all these out of state schools you don’t need to follow them. Maybe you’re more of a hands on person and a trade school would be more appropriate for you. At trade school you’d spend 2 year in an apprenticeship and go straight into your career field skipping all those unnecessary student loans that American’s so struggle with.
Invest in Yourself: We’ve already talked about investing into your roth IRA, but really the most important investment you can make at this age is into yourself. That can look like getting and education, learning a trade, reading books on different subjects that interest you. Growing emotionally, spiritually, or getting counseling or therapy from past traumas as we all grew up under different circumstances.

Closing Thoughts: Embrace Your Journey into Adulthood with Confidence and Purpose

As we conclude this journey into financial wisdom, finances, and personal growth, remember that your path to adulthood is uniquely yours. Embrace the lessons, face the challenges, and celebrate the victories. Whether it’s conquering debt, building a robust future, or investing in your personal development, each step forward is a stride toward a fulfilling life.

One thing Holding You Back In 2024

Breaking Free: Unveiling the Barriers to Success in 2024

The Real Culprit: Overcoming Self-Sabotage for a Successful 2024

It’s a new year, and millions of Americans have made resolutions – be it working out, eating healthier, or finally shedding that lingering 20 lbs from Thanksgiving and Christmas. Or perhaps it’s a resolve to recover from the financial aftermath of Christmas. (I’m never going to financially recover from this). It’s time for a change, to approach things differently this year! In this video, I’ll share with you the 3 things holding you back from being successful in 2024.

Financial Freedom: Escaping the “Buy Now, Pay Later” Culture

Exploring the impact of the “I want it now” mentality on financial well-being.

So, what’s really hindering us every single year? I’ll let you in on a big secret – it’s ME! Well, not me in your case; in your case, it’s you! (Huh, cat meme). Let me explain a bit about what I mean. In the US, there is a big culture of “I want it, and I want it now.” The amount of credit card offers we get in the mail every single week – just think about all those trees wasted! Every time you shop online, there’s always the option of “buy now and pay later.” But why are we buying things if we can’t afford to pay for them now? That’s because no one told us about delayed gratification; everyone just wants that dopamine hit now. Let’s stop buying into the lies that drowning in credit card debt is normal and just a part of the “American Dream”. Let’s go against the mainstream and only buy things that we can afford to buy in full, not just afford the monthly payment!

Rising Above Comparison: Embracing Your Unique Journey

Addressing the pitfalls of comparing oneself to others, especially in the age of social media.

Now, the 2nd thing we need to address is that pesky little thing we all love to do – compare ourselves to others. You know what they say, the grass is always greener on the other side. Most humans like to measure their success in comparison to others, and you know what they say – comparison is the thief of joy. With the rise of social media influencers showing only the best highlights of their lives – sitting on the beach, or traveling the world with their perfect little family – our own lives could sometimes seem a bit mundane or boring. But we never know what goes on behind the scenes. So, let’s shift the focus to just ourselves away from others and only compare yourself to the person you were yesterday, last week, or last year, and celebrate the little things!

Navigating Success: Setting SMART Goals for a Purposeful 2024

Guidance on setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals for the year ahead.

Imagine you’re in a race with thousands of people, but you have no idea where the finish line is, so you start following the crowd and end up getting lost. Often, that’s what happens in our lives – we have no idea where we are going and just end up following the mainstream. What I’m trying to get at is that we need to set goals for just about every aspect of our lives to be successful. Because if you don’t know where you’re going, you sure as heck don’t know how to get there either. Don’t let your goal be something vague like “I want to save more money” or “I want to lose weight.” Be specific and follow the SMART goal method. For example, instead of “I want to save more money,” say “I want to save $5,000 by the end of 2024.” Then break that goal down – $5,000/12 is $417 per month or $105 per week. That doesn’t seem as scary when you break it down and do the math.

Watch the Video!

January 2024