Bitesize Smart Money Tips

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1. Buy Only Necessities
It is very easy to feel you deserve whatever you suddenly want. And I completely agree that you deserve anything you believe you deserve. The only problem I want you to tackle is the "want". You have to stop wanting too many things. Try as much as you can to only buy the things you absolutely need.

Every month, I know that I deserve a new car; a sleeker, newer model and more reliable one than I currently have. Even my girlfriend and parents join me in that belief. Then everyday I want get a new laptop. I see those new touchscreen, core i100 and metal body laptops, and can't let go of the reality that my current laptop is three years old and not high-end enough. And those are not all, I regular catch other "I need this and that" flu. Some days, the attacks are severe and I have to sacrifice something to ease the feeling. I have recently spent some good money on my car and that has helped greatly reduced the severity of the "new car" flu. I tell myself that no one genuinely uses two laptops, one laptop will just completely go unused after a while, and that I would set aside money for the new sleek laptop I want and buy it the very moment I am sure I no longer can use the current one. The sacrificing some money by setting it aside as new laptop fund makes the "new laptop" flu manageable. And I have other similar ways I manage the other flus.

You also have to find a way to manage your own, sometimes child-like, wants. You can't just pamper yourself with everything you feel you deserve. That is like paving one's road to financial destruction. Warren Buffett once said, "If you keep buying everything you want, you will end up selling what you need." Meaning, it will lead to financial ruin -- where you not only lose the very luxuries you bought but also have to dispose of some necessities to survive.

2. Don't Have Expensive Hobbies
It is very easy to justify paying hundreds of thousands annually to join social clubs. They will pay off in terms of the network/connections and opportunities you'll get. The trouble is that some people overdo it. They make themselves a social pest, doing speed networks across the nation at exorbitant prices. If you ask my advice, it'll come in form of one word: don't. Don't find the most expensive way of achieving things -- whether social connections or personal development.

3. Put Money Away In An Investment Account Regularly
Don't just save, invest.
Every month, I try to invest as much as I can. A little this month and a little next month all add up to a substantial amount at the end of the year. Most especially bonus-like money. There are some money I get that I am not expecting, I often move them to my investment account before I get any funny idea of buying some fancy gadget. And as a business man, there are times business is very good and I get a bumper harvest. I make sure to splash on my investment account rather than on something more temporal.

4. Lastly, Be Part Of A Financial Intelligence Community
There is nothing as edifying and motivating as being a part of a community of investors and highly financially literate people on the same journey to financial abundance as you. I am a part of at least five such highly edifying communities.