I love the concept of disproportionate rewards–getting the biggest rewards, for the least effort.
You can use an app like iBotta to save money on groceries and in a year’s time save a few hundred dollars. While saving money this way is easy, it’s not like the benefits will change your life.
Compare this to optimizing your 401(k). Ten minutes of research (with the right tool) and optimizing your investments can knock years off your working life. The rewards for the effort here are disproportionate.
What personal finance actions have disproportionate rewards?
Here are 15 of my favorite money management tips.
15 Smart Money Management Tips You’ll Wish You Knew Sooner
# 1 – Increase Your Credit Score
You should know your credit score. A few years back, a medical bill of mine was sent to the wrong address. I didn’t find out about it until I got an alert that a collection agency showed up on my credit report. I ended up getting it fixed but if I didn’t have credit monitoring setup, the situation could have been far worse.
A recent FTC report found 20% of Americans have an error on their credit report. With how big of an impact your credit score has, it’s vital to know if an error is bringing down your score.
I now use a free website called Credit Sesame to get free credit alerts, see my score, and details of my credit report.
What’s nice about Credit Sesame is that it gives you customizable tips for increasing your score.
Why is this a big win?
A good credit score can save you thousands over your life.
# 2) Give Your 401(k) a Free Analysis
Have a 401(k)? If you’re like most you decided on your choice of funds a while back and haven’t given it much thought since.
Sorting through the sometimes complex options in your 401(K) can seem daunting. An easier alternative is to have a robo-advisor give you a free analysis.
Blooom is a 401(k) robo-advisor that analyzes your 401(k) in a totally hands off way.
All you do is link up your retirement account–then get a free analysis of your 401(k) in minutes.
You can take this free analysis and make adjustments yourself. If you prefer a hands off approach, Blooom can manage your 401(k) for $10 a month (as a reader of The Ways To Wealth, you’ll get your first month free).
A 401(k) is often a large percentage of your net worth. It’s important to get it right.
Start the signup process by entering your name, birthday, and estimated retirement date. Then, let Blooom link up to your retirement account to get your free analysis.
Prices for the same exact coverage between two different insurance companies can vary drastically. This means by finding the right insurance company — you can potentially save hundreds of dollars overnight.
Start by shopping your auto insurance. Use a site like Esurance, which takes only a few minutes to get a quote, to see if you can save. All it takes is a few minutes. So, with ease you know whether to continue shopping around or if you’re already paying the best price. Time saved!
# 4) Apps That Help You Earn Money for Doing Almost Nothing
Who wouldn’t like to make an extra $50 this year with only a few minutes of work?
There are a select few websites and apps where you can make some passive income for doing virtually nothing.
By downloading all three, you can earn a few hundred dollars a year, which can go to paying off debt or your highest leveraged goal.
Considering some of them require you to do almost nothing, it’s a pretty easy win.
Here’s 3 apps/websites to try:
- ShopTracker — ShopTracker is an app out that pays you to see your Amazon shopping history. To start earning you just have to connect Shoptracker to your Amazon account. You’ll instantly earn a $3 Visa Gift card, plus another $3 for every month you keep it installed.
- Nielsen Mobile Panel – This app runs in the background of your smartphone. It collects data on your use of applications, mobile web and other services for the purpose of market research. When you download the app, you’ll again earn $3 for downloading, then another $3 every month it’s installed.
- Drop – Drop is an app that allows you to earn rewards for your purchases, without even scanning a receipt or even opening the app! All you have to do is sign up for Drop, then link your credit and debit cards. Then, when you make a qualified purchase, you’ll automatically earn points. The points then add up and you can exchange them for a gift card for stores like Amazon
# 7) Earn Up To 20% Cash Back For Shopping Online
I kick myself for not knowing this tip earlier. Did you know you can make money when shopping online?
All it takes is a few seconds of your time.
Here’s how it works…
Many websites give you cash back for buying things from online stores such as Amazon. What these sites do is share the affiliate commission they earn. For example, eBates one of the largest cash back sites, splits the affiliate commission with you 50/50.
Besides eBates I also use Swagbucks. Swagbucks allows you to earn anywhere from 1 to 20% cash back. While you can’t use eBates and Swagbucks at the same time, there are times when one has a higher payout than the other. So I check both before making a purchase on a site like Amazon.
Sign up for both of them (to earn $15 in bonus cash) and see how much cash you’ll get back on your next online purchase.
# 9) Discover if online stores owe you a refund
Ever bought something, which the price dropped shortly after? Now, you can easily get refunded the difference. One simple money management tip, which takes almost no time, is to use Paribus.
Paribus is a website and app that automatically tracks purchases from select merchants. When a price drops, Paribus will then automatically refund you the difference.
Stores include Amazon, Target, WalMart, Costco, Old-Navy and more.
This is a real no-brainer, as all it takes is signing up once for free. Then, the app takes care of the rest.
# 10) Make a Strategic Career Move
If you spend 100 hours looking for a job (most people spend much less) and are able to get a $10,000 annual raise, your time was worth $100 an hour. Potentially much more if you account for future raises.
This makes finding a higher paying job a very rewarding activity.
Start strategically thinking about your career. I recommend the book The Start-up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself, and Transform Your Career.
#11) Switch To A Balance Transfer Card
Another avenue of securing a personal loan is through a 0% balance transfer card. The advantage here is with a good balance transfer card, you can avoid hefty credit card interest charges.
What’s extra important though is that you want to pay off the entire balance of the loan before the 0% rate expires. This is by no means a strategy that allows you to accumulate more debt!
One card I have myself and recommend to others is the Chase Freedom Unlimited. (That link is a referral link from my personal chase account, which helps support the blog). This card has a 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on balance transfers, with a 5% balance transfer fee. You’ll then earn 1.5% cashback on all your purchases. There’s also a $150 sign up bonus for spending $500 in the first three months.
# 12) Discover If Your Employer’s 401(k) Is Ripping You Off
High investment fees can literally add years to your working life.
Do you have to work an extra 2 years, 5 years, or even 7+ years because of excessive fees in your 401(k)?
It’s definitely not unheard of.
Here’s how to find out.
With employer sponsored plans, there are two layers of fees:
- Account management fees. This may be a flat fee or a fee based on a percentage of your account value.
- Mutual fund fees. These are fees charged for the specific mutual funds you choose.
Fees can often be hidden. However, a free tool called Personal Capital can help you uncover these hidden fees. All you do is link up your retirement account–then get a free analysis of your 401(k) fees in minutes.
The “401(k) Fee Analyzer” is just one of the many useful free tools of Personal Capital. By linking all your accounts to Personal Capital you can:
- Keep track of your net worth. Personal Capital works with all of your financial accounts – from your 401(k) and other investments to checking, savings, mortgage and credit cards. So you get a complete picture of your net worth anytime.
- Give your portfolio a checkup. With the free “Investment Checkup” tool, you can learn whether your investments (401K, IRAs, taxable accounts) are optimized to the ideal target allocation designed to minimize risk and maximize return.
- Know exactly where you stand relative to your retirement goals. With the “Retirement Planner” tool, you discover how prepared you are for retirement based on your ideal target retirement date. Plus, learn the impact of life events – such as paying for college, buying/selling a home and adjusting your savings rate has on your retirement. .
Learn more about Personal Capital.
# 13) Learn to Negotiate
Negotiating is one of the top financial skills to grow your net worth.
Consider the ROI on spending an hour learning the basics of negotiation for a home purchase or negotiating a raise (You can and should spend more time, however, since most people don’t spend any time here, even an hour of prep makes a big difference).
Beyond asking for a raise and in home transactions, negotiation is a valuable career skill. Since few people take the time to understand negotiation, it’s extremely valuable.
Some of my favorite books on the subject are:
- Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It – by Chris Voss & Tahl Raz
# 14) Make Money Driving
When it comes to earning money quickly on the side, becoming a driver for a company like Lyft is work checking out.
The pay is good and the hours are extremely flexible.
They also offer a large signup bonus, which is up to $900 in some cities, which can come in handy for achieving your financial goals
Learn more about driving for Lyft.
# 15) Setting Financial Goals With Your Spouse
Money is the leading cause of stress in marriages. Often it’s because the lack of communication and shared vision.
My best advice for communicating with your spouse when you’re not on the same page is don’t bring up past mistakes. Instead, set a vision of where you want to go in the future based on what’s important to each of you. Then, determine what you both need to change to get there.
I’ve written a financial goal setting workbook, to help guide both individuals and couples for setting a vision. It’s a step-by-step process for gaining clarity in your financial life. Sign up below for free access.
Original article and pictures take www.thewaystowealth.com site
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