My money advice for the Katie Couric team

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Candidate,

Last week, I spoke to the team at KatieCouric.com for their newsletter, Wake-Up Call. Here's what I shared about money.

"What are good money goals?"

The usual money goals you hear from experts are "to achieve your investment retur--"

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This is exactly where people's eyes glaze over and they stop reading. WHY DO PEOPLE MAKE MONEY SO BORING?? Here are 3 goals that I prefer.

You should be spending less than 1 hour per month on your finances. Here's what your automation system can look like. Then go outside and live your Rich Life. Get my book to build this system for your own money.
You should be able to know exactly when you'll have $500,000, $1 million, or $5 million. Watch this video to see how to do it. (You can also use the same video to learn the exact month and year your debt will be paid off.)

This reader shaved off 7 years and $20,000 from her loans using Goal #2

You should not be waiting until retirement to live a Rich Life! I want you to spend extravagantly on the things you love — as long as you cut costs mercilessly on the things you don't. Use your money for convenience, use it for fitness, use it for whatever your Rich Life is. For example, here are some of my recent travels. And if you want to know how to master the psychology of money, get this program.

Where should my money go?

This is a popular question — people wonder where they should start investing, and they ask questions like, "Should I invest in stocks? Or a 401(k)?"

Let's assume you have $10,000 to invest per year. Where should it go?

Here's the way to think about it. I call it the LADDER OF PERSONAL FINANCE:

Page 104 of I Will Teach You To Be Rich

If you have a 401(k) match, max it out. This is free money. If you don't do this...I will hurt you.
If you have credit card debt, pay it off.
Fund your Roth IRA ($6,000 limit if you make less than $124K).
Go back to your 401(k) and keep funding it until you hit the max.
If you have access to an HSA (Health Savings Account), did you know you can use it as an investment account?
Open up a taxable account. Invest as much as you want — no limit.

It's important to know that things like 401(k)s and IRAs are just accounts (you still have to invest your money once it's inside). In my book, I share a heartbreaking story about a woman who contributed money to her Roth IRA for about a decade, but nobody ever told her to actually invest that money. She lost out on a lot of money. Follow the guidelines in Chapter 7 of my book to see how to do this.

What are common money mistakes?

The first is paying unnecessary fees. Wall Street fees are unlike any other — they're different than paying someone to be your personal trainer or mow your lawn. For example, did you know a 1% fee can reduce your investment returns by 28%?

Another mistake is not learning how to talk about money with your partner. The amount of emails I get on this is truly unreal. I will share some of the juiciest ones in a future email. (If you want to share your story about love & money, please reply here — I can keep you anonymous.)

Here's the full article from Wake-Up Call.