“You definitely have to watch this video,” one of my best friends told me over chat the other day. It was a video of a man explaining why real estate is the worst investment you can make and what better alternatives there are for investors.
My friend has been changing his outlook on finances lately and wants to be better with money. So he’s spent the last few days reading, watching videos, and learning how to manage his money.
Of course, he has been sending me every video he finds interesting so I can also learn and we can “debate,” which I have successfully skipped. After the third video I didn’t watch, my friend asked me, “Why do you think you’re better than all the guys explaining financial advice on the internet?”
“I’m not,” I replied, “but none of them will tell me the right way to manage my money because I already know how.”
I’m not the best at managing money; I’m the best at managing MY money.
I have been learning and managing my finances since I got my first paycheck in 2015, almost 10 years ago. At this point, I already know exactly how much I need to save to achieve my goals, what things I need to avoid if I want to grow, and what things just haven’t worked for me.
I bought my first house in 2019, and since then, I have bought three more houses. Currently, it is one of the most profitable businesses for me. I have invested in cryptocurrency (and have made profits from it). I have lost a lot of money in the stock market, and my favorite investments are in high-yield accounts (although they only give 4%).
For this reason, if someone comes to me with a video about “why real estate doesn’t work,” I will ignore it. It has worked perfectly for me all those years. And the guy in the video doesn’t know my lifestyle, what I consider earnings, and the situation in which this advice has worked for me.
The problem with financial advice we see in books or online is that it is too subjective. Their effectiveness will depend too much on the context in which it is applied.
I can make a video saying that cryptocurrencies are a scam because several years ago, I bought at $20,000, and it dropped to $14,000, so I lost a lot of my money, but anyone who sees that video now will think I’m crazy.
Every person who talks about money on the internet is right and wrong at the same time. So, for this reason, we cannot blindly believe in advice until we apply it and see how it goes.
No matter how good financial advice someone gives you, it won’t work if it doesn’t align with your current lifestyle.
Many businesses can give you a substantial amount of money, but that doesn’t mean you should jump into them without analyzing whether it could really be good for your current lifestyle.
I’ve been trying to sell my Porsche for six months. The reason it hasn’t sold yet is because I’m simply not a good car salesperson. I quickly lose patience with men who want to theorize about my car. I’m not interested in listening to the client for hours. And I don’t like people who try to find defects “to get a discount.”
That doesn’t mean selling cars is a bad business. It just hasn’t worked for me. A guy I used to work with makes up to 5 figures monthly buying and selling vehicles in his free time (it’s not even his main business). Every day, there are more and more car dealers from regular guys who are just good at selling. Every month, more and more luxury cars are sold, and mine continue collecting dust in my parking lot.
So when a person on a video wants to tell me the best businesses that can make me a millionaire, I just don’t feel like listening to it.
I already know what works for me and what doesn’t, so even if you are making thousands of dollars a month, that is not a good enough reason for me to jump into an investment.
The best financial advice is the one you build up little by little as you try different ways to manage your money.
No financial advice will benefit you until you adapt it to your current lifestyle. No matter how good the advice is, it will probably make you lose money if it’s not for you.
Many people have called me “dumb” because I sold my Bitcoin too early this year. But by that point, I had already made over 4x my investment and felt that was enough for me. I know I made the right decision because it was the right move for me and not for all the people who wanted “me” to earn more money.
So, all financial advice should be taken in whatever way you think it will work for you, regardless of whether it has or hasn’t worked for others.
The 10% rule, 20% rule, save first, kill your debt, or never use your credit card will be good as long as they make you feel comfortable and live a peaceful life.
So my last piece of advice (which may or may not be helpful) is to look at everything that is currently out there, take what you feel might fit into your lifestyle, and try it out with a small amount of money first and then gradually increase your investment if you feel comfortable with that investment.
There are currently thousands of ways to invest. Depending on how risky or conservative you are, you can find the perfect one for you. But you have to adapt it to your current context, not blindly follow someone else advice.
99% of financial advice won’t work for you until you try it and see if it applies to your current lifestyle.
I love talking about finances.
It’s been a passion I’ve built over my years of managing my money and making it grow. However, I know what I’ve done to make more money isn’t going to apply to everyone, so I’m careful about how I give advice.
At the end of the day, the best financial advice is the one that aligns with your lifestyle, goals, and circumstances. It’s not about finding a universal formula for success but about experimenting, learning, and refining what works for you. Take inspiration from others, but don’t be afraid to deviate when their methods don’t fit your needs.
Financial freedom isn’t about following every trend or guru — it’s about building a system that makes sense for you, even if it doesn’t make sense to anyone else. Try, adapt, and grow at your own pace, and remember: the only person who truly understands your money is you.
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