The Coffeehouse Investor's Ground Rules

2Ground Rule 1: Save

 

In the big picture of life, saving for retirement is a relatively new concept. It isn't a tradition that has been passed down through generations. Socking money away for 25 years of unemployment just isn't built into our saving DNA. If you are trying to figure it out, you are not alone.

There is a popular notion that Americans are not good at saving, especially for retirement; that they just want to live in the moment and spend money on what makes them happy today. That may be true for some, but not for you. You know that finding a harmony between how much you save for the future and how you spend your money today is in your own hands.

It is up to you to make it happen, even though trying to calculate how much to save today for 25 years of unemployment can be so daunting that you hardly know where to start. Over the past 20 years, Coffeehouse Investors have revealed that the best place to start is at the very beginning – with a vision of what you want.

Take a moment and reflect on a time in your life when you had a vision of saving up for something, and you reached that goal. That is the same sense of purpose you need now, and the benefit transcends reaching that saving goal sometime down the road. There is an equally important benefit of knowing you are on track today.

For me, my vision was saving for a $15 mitt. I made it happen and that $15 saving ...