By the age of 30, you should be familiar with the following personal finance basics: • Index funds

An index fund is a stock or bond portfolio that mimics the composition of a market benchmark, such as the S&P 500.

Advantages of index funds:

- Low risk
- Low cost
- Tax efficient
- Diversification
- Consistent long-term returns

For the next 6 months, invest in yourself this way, and your life will never be the same again in 2025: • Read daily

The more you read, the more you will advance professionally.

Reading helps you:

- Stimulate the brain
- Improve literacy
- Reduce stress
- Increase knowledge
- Enhance focus and concentration

The ability to succeed in life is determined by how much you read.

18 Timeless Lessons from the Book The Psychology of Money: • No One’s Crazy

People's money decisions are justified by taking the information they have at the moment and plugging it into their unique mental model of how the world works.

Origins and upbringing shape money decisions.

We do crazy things with money.

But no one is crazy.

From 18 to 30, here is the best financial advice no one will ever teach you: • Do not buy a new car

A car is a depreciating asset.

Ultimately, you pay more in taxes, fees, and interest.

New cars lose roughly 20% of their value in the first year, while some lose up to 50%.

You should invest your money in assets rather than park it in a garage.

By the age of 30, you must master these financial formulas to be financially better off than 99% of people:

• Cash flow

It shows your savings given your earnings and expenses.

A positive one shows that you live below your means.

A negative shows you spend more than you earn. • The rule of 72

It calculates how long your money will take to double at any given rate of return.

For instance, if your investment has a return of 4%, it will take 18 years for your money to double (72/4 = 18).

Rich parents raise rich children.

Here are some of the lessons that broke parents never teach their children that rich parents do: • Assets vs Liabilities

Poor individuals often fail to recognize that liabilities can deplete their finances without generating any income.

Wealthy people invest in assets that produce income, understanding that all paths to wealth pass through assets.

Microsoft Excel can make you $10,000 a month.

If you have:

1. Wi-Fi
2. A laptop
3. Skills in Microsoft Excel

Here's how you can start a side hustle that will make you wealthy: Side Hustle: Data Entry

Thousands of data entry specialists are making $10,000 a month.

In 2024, you can leverage AI to automate tasks and streamline your workflow.

Here’s how to utilize this new AI tool in spreadsheets and Excel to save both time and money:

10 Lessons From The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: • Wealth

Becoming wealthy is a learnable skill.

Creating wealth is more important than a status symbol.

Money is a tool that you exchange for products and services.

Wealth is created by providing value to society.

Something society needs, but it doesn't know it yet.

If you want to understand and analyze a cash flow statement, read this: The cash flow statement summarizes the cash generated and spent over a specific time (for example, a month, quarter, or year).

It shows an organization’s ability to operate in the short and long term based on the amount of cash flowing into and out of it.

Habits are the compound interest of personal development and growth.

Here are 12 habits of highly successful people to develop if you want to change your life's trajectory: • Read a Lot

Your brain is a muscle; use it or lose it. Reading has the advantage of stimulating your brain.

Because successful people see books as a gateway to knowledge, they read books that are going to help them grow their minds and improve their lives.

If you don't know how to read and analyze an income statement, read this: An income statement summarizes the total impact of revenue, expense, gain, and loss transactions for a specific time period.

It is also referred to as:

• Statement of operations
• Statement of earnings
• Profit and loss (P&L) statement

It shows how profitable a business is.

If you don't know how to read and analyze a balance sheet, read this: A balance sheet is a snapshot of a business at a specific point in time. It serves two purposes.

Internally, it provides information about the financial health of a company.

Externally, it depicts the business's resources and how they are financed.

15 books that everyone should read at least once in their lives :

• Think and Grow Rich

Lessons

• Success starts with a burning desire for a specific goal.

• Use positive affirmations and visualization.

• Surround yourself with a mastermind group of people. • The Psychology of Money

Lessons

• Your experiences shape your financial decision-making.

• Financial success is more determined by how you behave than what you know.

• Effective money management is simple: Earn. Spend less than you earn. Invest.

By the age of 20, learn these financial rules to become wealthy in your 30s and 40s: • Rule of 72

It calculates the number of years it takes your money to double, given a rate of return.

You need to divide 72 by the interest rate.

If your investment returns 4%, it will take 18 years for your money to double (72/4 = 18).

Hard Life Lessons I've learned in my 30s that I wish I'd known in my 20s: • Happiness

It does not come from material possessions

Our quest for and acquisition of material possessions will never completely satisfy our yearning for happiness.

Happiness is derived from within.

Broke parents raise broke children.

Here are some of the lessons that wealthy parents teach their children that poor parents do not: • Assets vs Liabilities

Assets = what you own.

Liabilities = what you owe.

Poor people do not realize that liabilities cost them money and don't generate revenues.

Wealthy people invest in assets that produce more income.

All paths to wealth pass through assets.

Habits are the compound interest of personal development and growth.

Here are the 12 High-Performance Habits of Successful People: 1. Measure success in happiness, not wealth

Success used to be measured in monetary terms.

But many people, especially young ones, are incentivized by freedom and empowerment.

Success is for many the ability to live life on their terms.

Habits are the compound interest of personal development and growth.

12 High-Performance Habits of Successful People: 1. Measure success in happiness, not wealth

Success used to be measured in monetary terms.

But many people, especially young ones, are incentivized by freedom and empowerment.

Success is for many the ability to live life on their terms.

12 Lessons From The Book Rich Dad Poor Dad: 1. Don't Work for Money

Rich people do not work for money. If you work for money, you start thinking like an employee.

It is important to start thinking differently. The rich focus on assets.

Every dollar in their assets is their hard-working employee. Money works for them.

I invested countless hours and dollars in learning about personal finance.

Here are the most important personal finance lessons that you should know about: • Invest in assets

There is no way to build wealth by simply saving money.

Assets are the way to accumulate wealth and achieve financial independence.

Every wealthy person either owns:

- Stocks
- Businesses
- Real estate
- Or a combination of these assets

Broke parents raise broke children.

Here are some of the lessons that wealthy parents teach their children that poor parents do not: • Assets vs Liabilities

Assets = what you own.

Liabilities = what you owe.

Poor people do not realize that liabilities cost them money and don't generate revenues.

Wealthy people invest in assets that produce more income.

All paths to wealth pass through assets.