Finance Basics (2 of 5)

This past Sunday, Dave Ramsey's second point was "Act Your Wage."  The basic premise is that Americans desperately need to learn how to spend LESS than they make.

For six years I had the opportunity of serving a large church as their young adults pastor.  One of the great perks about the job was getting to officiate at a lot of marriages.  As I would talk about money issues with the couples during pre-marriage counseling, I found that many young adults have developed a sense of entitlement.  In a few short months, we think we should be able to accumulate all the stuff that it took our parents thirty years to obtain.

So, how much money do you bring home every month?  How much are your bills (rent/mortgage, utilities, groceries, etc.)?  Do you have any extra?  If you don't, you need to either cut some of your expenses or you need to find a way to make more money!  Unfortunately, most folks won't even consider cutting expenses (we're more like our congressmen than we care to admit).  Maybe you need to cut out your cable (Keri and I haven't had cable since we've been married).  Maybe you need to cut the cell phone or get a plan that doesn't have so many bells and whistles.

As Dave Ramsey says, "Live like no one else now, so that later you can live like no one else."  Its called delayed gratification!