John Boyd Thacher State Park

Ever since I got my first job, I always “paid my future first.” In other words, at least part of my paycheck was automatically deposited into one kind of savings account or another, only to be touched when making a long-term purchase after allowing the money to grow for a number of years. 🤑This day of age, paying your future first is pretty easy — automatic deposits can withdraw money from the account where your direct deposit goes in, and it’s like the money never existed — except it does and it’s being saved.

As I’ve gotten older, made a little more money, gotten promotions and the alike, I’ve increased the amount I’ve been doing to “pay my future first”. Normally if I get a raise, a cost of living adjustment, or a bigger tax break, I always put the majority of increased funds towards “paying my future first”. 🏦 0Sure I like having a little more money to spend, but I figure I am mostly content with my life now and no need to blow the money — when I can invest it and have more later on, compounded by interest and growth in the markets.

I’ve also diversified where I “pay my future first” money to. Diversity is a good thing because it ensures if any one investment doesn’t work out, there is another one to fall back on. If one goes down, one other is likely to go up. Some are tax-advantaged, like my ordinary IRA deferred compensation for retirement, while others like my Roth IRA are not tax-advantaged, at least not until I retire and take money out of that account. Some are very stable but have very modest returns, like my FDIC-insured savings account, or the FDIC certificate of deposits. 💸Some are mid-term investment accounts — things that are maybe have some substantial short-term risk but are investment vehicles that will grow at the rate of the market growth. The later will help me down the road in 10 or 15 years when I go to buy land and my off-grid cabin.

Some people say I should rush into my future. But I don’t know, I’m pretty happy the way it is. I’d rather consume less and put more towards a better tomorrow, in a series of diversified investments.🚜🏡 Even if the money today that I’m “paying towards my future” I understand the benefits of compounding, and I know that eventually I will get towards my life goals.