25/03/2020
1. SAVING AND INVESTING
Don’t Wait to Get Started
YOU CAN DO IT!
IT’S EASIERTHANYOUTHINK.
No one is born knowing how to save or to invest. Every suc- cessful investor starts with the basics.
A few people may stumble into financial security—a wealthy relative may die, or a business may take off. But for most peo- ple, the only way to attain financial security is to save and in- vest over a long period of time.
Time after time, people of even modest means who begin the journey reach financial security and all that it promises: buying a home, educational opportunities for their children, and a comfortable retirement. If they can do it, so can you!
2. Your First Step—Making a Financial Plan
What are the things you want to save and invest for?
• a home
• a car
• an education
• a comfortable retirement
• your children
• medical or other emergencies • periods of unemployment
• caring for parents
Make your own list and then think about which goals are the most important to you. List your most important goals first.
Decide how many years you have to meet each specific goal, because when you save or invest you’ll need to find a savings or
YOUR FINANCIAL GOALS
If you don’t know where you are going, you may end up somewhere you don’t want to be. To end up where you want to be, you’ll need a roadmap, a financial plan.
What do you want to save or invest for?
3. SAVING AND INVESTING
investment option that fits your time frame for meeting each goal. Many tools exist to help you put your financial plan together.
You’ll find a wealth of information, including calculators and links to non-commercial resources at Investor.gov.
KNOW YOUR CURRENT FINANCIAL SITUATION
Sit down and take an honest look at your entire financial situation. You can never take a journey without knowing where you’re starting from, and a journey to financial security is no different.You’ll need to figure out on paper your current situation—what you own and what you owe.You’ll be creating a “net worth statement.” On one side of the page, list what you own. These are your “assets.” And on the other side list what you owe other people, your “liabilities” or debts.