Father’s Day Special: Financial Life Lessons

There are a bunch of reasons why I am the way I am when it comes to money, but a lot of it has to do with the way my parents raised me. My dad is the frugal master and has been subtly and not so subtly passing on some financial life lessons to me throughout the years. So here’s a Father’s Day Special thanks to my dad, here’s a few great frugal financial life lessons he’s pass along to me;

1. Don’t be a typical consumer

There have been countless articles and books written on how all of us have become so focused on consumerism and keeping up with our peers. Rarely do we save the money we make but instead spend, spend, spend. Don’t just buy things for the sake of it and also just because something you own isn’t the newest item out there it doesn’t mean you need to buy something new to replace it all the time.

2. Invest your money

Along with the save, save, save theme, my dad has always given me a ton of information about how to invest my money. Some of which it has taken me a crap ton of time to really understand, but I’m getting there. I’ve taken a lot of money that honestly would have been spent otherwise and invested it, kept it safe and started to get a grasp on investing my money. It’s better to let it grow then spend it on items that will only depreciate in value.

3. Use your skills to start a side business

I’ve always seen my dad finding ways to make money on the side, whether its investing or helping install electronics for people. He always encouraged me to develop skills that can help make me money in the long term, which has also really influenced my entrepreneurial spirit. The current world we live in is exploding with freelance work and people getting away from large companies in search of freedom and self-empowerment in the work they do. Not sure what I’m planning for the future, but working on this blog and trying to make a little money here and there has always been on my radar.

4. Shop around for the best deals

This mostly has to do with grocery shopping for my dad but honestly I’ve really started doing this with everything. Do your research and get the best deal you can, because it’s not worth overpaying for the same product at another store. I’ve picked up the skill of knowing the prices of most items I regularly buy and definitely keep an eye out when things are a steal.

I know there’s more, and I’m sure I’m missing a few but honestly I’ve learned a great deal from both my parents when it comes to financial life lessons.