Ask whether these people are showing you the money. Hold them accountable for your money.
1. Your boss/company. Ask yourself first if you had a good year. If so, do some research on at you should expect to be earning. Try starting with Glassdoor. If you are not making what you want and are not moving in the right direction, consider moving to another company. But, be sure to do through research and then line up a job (in writing) before giving your notice.
2. Politicians. Are you getting reasonable benefit for your taxes? Grade by region. Here’s my grading: City C, County B, State B+, Federal D. If your grade is C or less, consider voting the bums out!
3. Social Security. Ever work out the rate of return on your projected Social Security payments versus the amount you have and will put in. Mine is about 0% return. And that is *if* I ever get *any*. Not much you can do about it, but something to consider when planning your own retirement…. What if I get nothing from Social Security when I retire?
4. Investment Adviser. How does my return stack up to A) The S&P500 total return (including dividends)? B) A 100% bond profile such as Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VBTLX)? If, overall, it is under-performing both, fire your adviser. If it beats one… ask questions like why it didn’t do better. If it beats both, ask “what risks are you taking with my money!”? If you are your own investment adviser ask yourself the same questions. And, if you decide to fire yourself, consider getting advice from someone reputable and sane like Vanguard.
5. Your credit score. Know your credit score (FICO score). Guess what? If it’s below 711, it’s below average! [Technically below “median”, but let’s not split hairs.] 720 used to be golden, but today 750 is the new golden score. In some cases 770. If your score is below where you’d like it to be, start getting financially fit. And remember, success doesn’t happen overnight. Success takes time.
Balhiser.com 