Financial freedom might be your goal, but what about the time from now until you reach that goal? If you want to live a great life characterized by having control, you need to be willing to make smart money decisions.

It can be hard to know what the best decisions for your finances are. There is a battle between living your best life, now, and saving for the future. The more you focus on one, the more the other suffers. So, which is it? Each person is different, but there are two lifestyles everyone should avoid!

Buying a home is a big step in most people's lives. But it doesn't come without a lot of decisions to make, and potential pitfalls to avoid. One question is around if you should have at least 20% of the purchase price when buying real estate. In this article, we discuss the pros and cons, and when it makes sense.

Lifestyle design is all the rage these days, and it seems like everywhere you go people are "living their best life." The problem is, most people have skipped the foundational parts of designing their lifestyles and jumped straight to enjoying it - which is leading to big issues!

For a long time retirement has been the epitome of planning goals in the personal finance industry. You work hard for 30-40 years, and then get to live out your "golden years" doing what you love. I can't disagree enough. And in this article, we're discussing why you should reassess your goals of retirement.

Many people are trapped in a paycheck-to-paycheck spending cycle, and are left feeling guilty about overspending. But it doesn't have to be like this. By taking specific steps to set up your financial machine, you can get to a place where you can lose the guilt and spend your hard-earned money guilt-free.

Making good financial decisions can be tough, even without dealing with the judgement of others. But with a society so focused on imposing lavish lifestyles and frivolous spending, reaching for your credit card can be too tempting.

When thinking about the word "rich" it can be easy to get caught up in the materialistic side of the word. But there is a difference between being rich, and living richly. In this article we'll dive into the difference.

It can be easy to rationalize a bad purchase if it's something you actually want. Your mind can also trick you into thinking you are getting a deal. If you aren't careful, it could end up costing you more than you think.

Investing is a difficult thing to be good at. On top of it being made super complicated by the likes of Wall Street, humans also have internal behavioral handicaps that make it harder. Luckily, there are specific principles you can follow to help increase your chances of success.

If you've been thinking about your finances, but are getting the feeling that you're "behind" where you should be, you're not alone. But don't let that feeling get you down and deter you from making real progress. It's never too late to get started!

With all of the pieces of advice floating around the personal finance industry, it can be difficult to know which ones to adapt into your own life. My advice is to focus on the things you can truly control. By doing this, you're sure to have a much greater impact on your finances.

It can be easy to get sucked into making a poor financial decision. Society pushes us to spend more of our money, and the fear of judgement can sway us down the wrong path. But by taking the time to fully evaluate the big choices we make, we can have a lasting positive impact on our finances.

Most people battle with overspending. But for a portion of the population, the fear of financial hardship, and guilt brought on by outlandish headlines causes them to struggle with spending in a different way - they feel bad about spending on themselves. This isn't constructive, either, and there are ways to avoid it.

Having a strong grasp on your finances is important for everyone. It helps eliminate stress, and provides you with control over your life. But many struggle to accomplish this because they build it up to be such a daunting task. New research has shown us that you can go far by focusing on "small wins."

For a long time the path to a better life has gone through colleges and universities. It seemed like anyone you spoke with knew that the only way to get ahead was to get an advanced education. But the thought process is changing, and the reasons NOT to attend college are mounting.

Every purchase you make has an affect on your wealth. Most people only see the sticker price of their purchase, and miss either the long term costs; and worse yet, the qualitative affects it can have. By focusing more on how things will be after your purchase, it will shed light on the true cost - and potential stress.

Many people get caught up in the "lifestyles of the rich and famous," and start believing this is the only way to live out your dreams. But your dreams are yours, alone, and you don't have to amass a certain level of wealth to start living them.

Many financial experts will tell you that it's a bad idea to spend your money on things that aren't necessary. Any spending over the bare necessities is a waste, and you are hurting your wealth building. I disagree. I think there are a number of key reasons why you should spend on nice things!

Comparing yourself to those around you is incredibly common. It's so prevalent that there is a term called "Keeping up with the Joneses" that shows how people are always trying to outdo one another. But avoiding this mentality is incredibly important if you have any intentions of building wealth.