One of the biggest problems is financing lifestyle with debt. Most of the people I know don’t carry a balance on n their credit cards, but oddly enough some in the same general circumstances do. In one case the guy and his wife seemed to have no fiscal sense at all. He made six figure salary and was frequently complaining about being broke. However, it turned out that poor spending decisions were their family values. Example 1. Expensive vacations- went on a two week vacation to Hawaii with wife and 2 kids. Put it on the plastic. Example 2. Car buying. His older car became increasingly more expensive to fix so he decided to replace it with a newer but still used car. OK decision so far, BUT after he left the dealer he had two almost identical used cars because “his wife didn’t like him getting a “new” car when she didn’t.” Example 3. Sending both kids to expensive private school. Where he lived the public schools weren’t the war zones that they are in black Democrat dominated parts of GA. When he occasionally tried to rein in expenses wifey would double down. He realized what they were doing was not in their best interest, but wasn’t sure what to do about it, but from what I heard the wife didn’t really care. Both needed to sit down with a financial advisor but didn’t want to.
He made six figure salary and was frequently complaining about being broke.
Being rich is a little like a vernal pool. The pool exist as long as there is a flow of water into it but when the water flow stops the pool eventually dries up. This like someone living paycheck to paycheck regardless of how much money is coming in, when it stops the money on hand quickly dries up.
Being wealthy is using the money you have to create multiple streams of money flowing into your pool. This is done with interest on savings, CD or stock, or a side business.
One of the most basic rule of money is that your income should be greater then outgo. Once you start using credit to support you current lifestyle you are on the road to the poor house.
If you can’t increase you income, then cut back on your outgo.
Of course there is no point in telling anyone this, they don’t listen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vernal_pool
One key to being wealthy:
—Marry someone frugal and stay married.
If you both are on the same team you both will win every time.
I grew up in a well to do suburb and did not marry any of the local young women—my joke was “I have no intention of working my tail off to keep them living in the style to which they have become accustomed”.
I married a farm girl—still married—and we are doing great.
I had a summer job back in the late 70s in the collection department of a bank. There were many people considered to be prominent in the rolodex. If they were a month past due I would make call. After that, the calls were elevated to the supervisor.