Money: the good, the bad, and the really ugly.

   Money is a government issued, circulating, medium of exchange. 

   It is also a tool that can be used to build up and improve the life of an individual, however if a person mismanages their money by creating more bills than they can afford to pay, it can become the source of a miserable existence . Anybody can create a better life for themselves if they learned to save a portion of what they earn instead of wastefully spending all of it. They could use their savings to buy a beautiful home in a great community for themselves and their family. They would also be able to buy nice clothes, drive around in a new car, travel, and do all of the things that they love to do without the worries of living from pay check to pay check. They could also save enough money to start investing, the creation of a secondary income that could put them in a position to no longer rely only on their job in order to survive. Wow, now wouldn't that be beautiful!! These are just some of the benefits of good money management. Unfortunately, most people do the exact opposite, by creating a lifestyle that consumes 100% of their earned income. They spend all of their money on extravagant material possessions, ultimately leaving their bank accounts empty on a daily basis. And that’s just the Bad. Things could get really ugly when people start to spend over 100% of what they earn by running up credit card bills and taking out loans that they can not afford to pay back. So why is it that, in spite of these knowingly horrific facts, most people continue to recklessly spend their money without any thought of tomorrow. And thereby embracing the inevitable possibility of a bad or really ugly lifestyle? In response to this question one word comes to mind: Sacrifice. Most people do not want to sacrifice today for a brighter tomorrow. They would rather spend it all and enjoy today instead of saving a small portion to invest tomorrow.  I used to be a part of that group of people. I lived from pay check to pay check for years (the bad). I also ran up a lot of credit card bills and took out loans that I couldn’t pay back (the really ugly). However one day I decided to start educating myself on personal finance and as a result, really soon I’ll be debt free and on my way to creating a secondary income. This will eventually give me the financial freedom to live the lifestyle I want to live, without having to worry about going broke or losing my job. I encourage you to educate yourself on personal finance as well, and if possible start saving a portion of your earned income every pay period so that you can start to invest, and eventually join that elite group of people who are truly financially free. 

Edited by Reginald Forest