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6 Basic Financial Tips Every Recent Graduate Should Know

As you finish your education, there are a lot of new things to consider in your financial life. As you choose a career, you’ll find yourself with more money than you’ve had before but perhaps less than you expected at the end of each month. Here are some tips that will help you stay ahead of the curve as you begin working and earning. Set yourself on a path to financial success.

Create Your Budget

Especially when you’ve just started getting a full-time paycheck, or even before you find work, it is important to know how much money is going out each month. Start recording your expenses, even splurges, and you’ll naturally start to make choices and trade-offs. If something takes you beyond your budget, seriously consider whether it is necessary.

Cut Down Spending

Once you have a budget, you can notice categories where you can trim off a few items or a category that doesn’t matter much to you. If your gym membership or streaming service goes unused, find a way to cancel it and use that money for something else you love.

Reduce Your Debt

Once you are cutting down spending, you can put some cash behind paying off debt. Because lenders charge interest, you save yourself a little bit of money every time you pay back a lender even a small amount of your total. You’ll be debt-free that much faster.

Start Investing

If your company offers stocks or 401(K) options, talk to them! If the company offers a “match” for a certain percentage of how much you put into these retirement savings accounts, you can essentially get extra compensation, so make the effort to start investing for your retirement, even if it is a small percentage of your paycheck.

Keep Learning

If it makes sense to take classes or get a higher degree, look into options for doing this affordably or part-time as you work. It is important to continue adding to your expertise but weigh the pros and cons of going back to school full-time before you assume that’s the only way!

Build and Protect Your Credit

As you look to major choices in the future – where you will live, large purchases like cars – you’ll want to make sure you have strong credit. Pay bills on time, and if you use a credit card, consider paying it off every month. Over time, a history of payments on loans and credit cards makes you look like a great choice for everything from renting an apartment to a low rate on a mortgage.

It may feel like many of these tips require years in order to implement, and to some extent, that is true. However, you get such an advantage in life if you can learn these lessons early and start practicing great habits right from the start. Build your financial future today!