How To Keep Your Wealth

If you thought making money was hard, keeping it is even harder. Follow the 8 rules below and you will learn to preserve, protect and enjoy your wealth.

1. Stay away from get rich schemes. You won't get rich; the person perpetrating the get rich scheme will. Preserve your wealth by not getting involved in these schemes. They are everywhere - on the Internet, in newspapers, on T.V. Learn that getting rich isn't instantaneous. It takes time and effort.
2. Shop for quality. The Chinese have a saying, "Good things, no cheap. Cheap things, no good." The Chinese are right. Have you ever bought anything on sale, because it was on sale, but the quality ended up being awful? Buy good quality everything, and you will find it lasts longer, looks better with age, etc. Remember, cheap is a false economy.
3. Read contracts. Have you ever bought anything and forgot to read the fine print in the contract? Big mistake. It can cost you a lot of money. Make it a habit to read the fine print in contracts and your wealth will stay yours!
4. Contribute to your 401K or Roth IRA. You are going to get older. Even though it may not feel like it now, it's inevitable! When you do, it's good to have funds to fund your old age. But right now, you can get a tax benefit by contributing to a 401K or Roth IRA. Uncle Sam doesn't often give anything away. Take advantage of his largesse.
5. Create an emergency fund. Accidents happen. The unexpected happens. It's called life. You can't anticipate the future. But you can be prepared for the unexpected when it does happen by creating an emergency fund.
6. Research big purchases. How many of us have heard the phrase, "Did you really spend that much?" With the advent of the Internet, we can get easily research what the best price is. Spend wisely and keep your wealth.
7. Don't lend money to your friends and family. I know from personal experience that it doesn't work out. If you feel generous, give them the money, but don't lend it. It creates bad feelings all 'round. People who need to borrow money in the first place don't have good financial management skills. It's doubtful that an infusion of cash will improve those skills. As I previously said, if you have worthy friends and relatives in need, just give them the money.
8. Spend time with your family and friends. It's great to have money, but your family and friends are the big blessings in your life. Spend time with them and cherish them. The point of having money is to have time away from work to spend with your family.