I was just thinking about a question in my horoscope: “What big dreams are you pursuing today?” My first thought:”TO BE A MiLLioNairE!!”! But then it immediately changed to a more realistic answer:

“For money to never be an issue.”

But that got me thinking, will money ever not be an issue, no matter how much you have? There’s research and general understanding that people are stuck in their spending habits and it makes no difference how much money they have, they always think they need more!

So when do you have enough money?

If you won the lottery and lived exactly how you are living now, with maybe a few extra vacations a year, would it last? Would you feel generous or would you hunker down over it growling “my precious”?

What would it mean to finally have enough money?

Honestly I feel pretty comfortable right now. I don’t want for anything and I pay my bills and I have a savings. But I can’t just up and buy a new car. I can’t jump a plane for the weekend and still plan a larger vacation next month.

There are limitations to my lifestyle.

I know that if I were to win the lottery I would try to play it smart. I wouldn’t live much different, except for my weekly spa treatments and a new car and my new house.. Oh wait, those ARE big changes. Suddenly there are more expenses, taxes and upkeep on the house, more expensive cars and toys, more money spent playing. I think life would be more fun and carefree but it would also be easy to fall into a trap and suddenly start to worry about money again.

If only it really did grow on trees.

But wait! It does, kinda. Investments are like a fruit bearing money tree and if you ever want to get ahead at all you have to learn about them. You have to learn to play the game by the rules and you have to make your money work for you. Millionaires are millionaires because they understand that. And they might not feel like they “have enough” money, but they can pay their bills and take off on a plane for the weekend when I can’t.

If you win the lottery you have to immediately learn how to handle your money and you have to take precautions. Unless you want to just go hog wild and blow it all in two years. I guess that’s your choice.

I do try to think about investing and I am careful with my money but I’m ready to make it work for me. I’m ready to learn more so I can know the rules when I throw the dice. I want to take some chances but I can’t afford big gambles and I know that.

Here’s my plan:

I have only student loan debt and I’ve been paying extra most every month. Considering the interest on those loans I didn’t think it would make much difference to start investing two years ago but now I’m ready and in the market for good investments. I think I’ll start safe and throw aside a little for a Roth IRA, I hear it’s a great place to start while you’re still younger. If you’re in your twenties and don’t have a lot of debt you should REALLY look into them because they grow exponentially with time and I probably should have started mine two years ago.

Stocks scare me because I know nothing about them. But I’m really curious so I might play small and use it as a learning experience. I do like the idea of buying stocks for new companies with forward momentum. From the little I know I feel that strategy can be quite profitable, if you pick the right one. Just think, you could have bought an Uber stock when it was starting and you would probably be rich now.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not falling for the idea of getting rich in the stock markets, it’s a dangerous game, but I think it could be good to have as one of many investments. A side hustle if you will.

Real estate is another thing I’ve thought of but that is a much bigger investment than I can handle right now. Flipping homes is only good if you have the cash to start and can do the work yourself while commercial properties sit empty for years. I’ve owned a home before, a duplex really, and it was no joke being a landlord. I did okay but I wouldn’t do it again unless I was going to go big, owning lots of properties with help to manage them. It can be done but I don’t want to work that hard.

Really I’m still trying to figure out my plan. I have an idea, I have done some reading and I think it’s time to talk to somebody.

 

What about you? Do you have big plans to make your money work for you? Do you understand the investing game well enough to play?