How I've Been Working to Increase My Investment
Looking at an investment app

How I’ve Been Working to Increase My Investment

A few years ago, I made it a goal to learn more about investing and really make an effort to invest more of my money. Well, while I’ve had some great successes since — including my wife and I both maxing out our IRAs on an annual basis — I’ll admit that I haven’t been steadily contributing to my Vanguard account as I originally envisioned. So, recently, I’ve been revisiting the idea that I ought to be investing more and found some small ways to do just that.

2 Small Ways I’ve Been Making a Big Difference in My Investments

Making the most of “found money”

Whether you want to call it “found money,” “house money,” or just “money you didn’t really earn,” these types of funds are ripe for investing.

In my case, I recently closed out an account I had with an app called Bumped that allowed me to earn bits of stock when I shopped with certain brands. Well, really, it wasn’t my decision to close it out as the service sadly shut down. It also proved to be a pain to get that money — but that’s a different story. Anyway, when I was finally able to claim my money, I moved it over to Robinhood. My plan from there was to simply transfer it to one of my savings accounts. Instead, however, I figured I should use my brokerage account as a, you know, brokerage account. Thus, just today, I took my $250 and bought shares of $VOO (Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF).

Another option I’ve been considering involves credit cards. In my mind, tapping the cashback you earn from credit cards and using it to invest seems like a stellar idea… even if I haven’t done it yet. In my defense, one issue I have currently is that my biggest credit card point balance is with American Express and turning those points into cash would mean settling for a 0.8¢ per point valuation (which is what I’d earn by transferring to my American Express Rewards Checking).

On that note, if you like the idea of using credit card rewards to invest, then there’s actually a pretty solid option: Platinum Card from American Express for Charles Schwab. This card has all of the awesome benefits of my beloved Platinum Card but adds the ability to transfer Amex Membership Rewards points to your Schwab account at a rate of 1.1¢ per point. Sadly, that’s decreased from the former 1.25¢ per point, but it could still be a good option.

The bottom line is that, while my first thought is usually to tap my “found money” for splurges, I’m now trying to think of “investment” instead.

Using smart automation

Another way I’ve been adding more to my investments is by having funds from my checking automatically move to my brokerage. Basically, it feels like I’m pilfering from my current self in favor of future me.

Specifically, I’ve continued using the app Oportun — formerly and better known as Digit. Since the last time I updated my review of the app (which I need to do again), I’ve left on its automation and allowed it to deposit funds into an investment account on a near-daily basis. Even though I did eventually go in and cap these daily contributions at $5, that account now has more than $1,400 in it. That’s not too shabby considering that the whole process has been painless to the point where I’ve barely even noticed it was happening.

Even if you don’t want to use an app like Oportun or Acorns, there may still be ways to leverage automation and set up a similar system to help you ramp up your investment little by little.


Alas, my lofty goal of pouring hundreds of dollars a month into a brokerage hasn’t worked out for me. Luckily, though, all hope is not lost. As I’ve found, taking smaller actions means I’ll actually do them! So, for now, I’ll continue tapping my “found money” and using smart automation to build up my brokerage account.

Author

Kyle Burbank

Head Writer ~ Fioney
Kyle is the head writer for Fioney. He is a personal finance nerd, constantly looking for new apps and services to test and incorporate into his own financial game plan. In addition to his role at Fioney, he's written for other publications including Born2Invest, Lifehack, and Laughing Place, as well as his own site Money@30. He also creates personal finance and travel-related videos for Fioney's YouTube channel, which has garnered more than 2 million views. Currently, Kyle resides in Springfield, Missouri with his wife of 10 years. Together, they enjoy traveling (including visiting Disney Parks around the world), dining, and playing with their dog Rigby.

Other Articles by Kyle Burbank

Discover It Cards

2025 Discover It Card Review: Still Feeling “It” After All These Years

Many years ago now, following what I called my financial awakening, I found that I was suddenly in the market for a new rewards credit card. This led me to start researching various cards before ultimately landing on my final choice: the Discover It card. Before we get into my hands-on review, let me explain what I liked about this card on paper and why I ultimately applied for it....
Coinbase logo and credit card

Coinbase, Cardless Teaming Up for Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card

Coinbase has announced plans to launch a new Bitcoin-earning credit card later this year: About the Coinbase One Card: This fall, Coinbase will roll out the Coinbase One Card. For this offering, the platform is partnering with the FinTech Cardless. The cards will be issued by First Electronic Bank and will utilize the American Express network. With the Coinbase One Card, customers will be able to earn up to 4%...
4 Citizen credit cards

Citizens Bank Premieres Four New Credit Card Options

Citizens Bank is rolling out a new suite of credit cards, meeting the needs of multiple customers. About Citizens' New Card Line-Up: Today, Citizens introduced four new cards: Citizens Amp Mastercard Citizens Spring World Mastercard Citizens Summit World Mastercard Citizens Summit Reserve World Elite Mastercard Starting with the Citizens Amp Mastercard, this no-annual-fee card is designed for those looking to establish and build credit. Specifically, the card is available to...
The "Email" field is empty, you must enter some text to proceed.The text you entered in the "Email" field appears to be invalid, please edit it and try again
Get the Latest News Delivered to Your Inbox
Travelers with two Best Western Credit Cards

Best Western Debuts Two New Rewards Credit Cards

After pausing applications for their previous rewards card, the hotel chain Best Western has unveiled a new pair of rewards credit cards with a new issuer. About the Best Western cards: Best Western is partnering with First Bank & Trust and Mercury Financial to introduce two new co-branded credit cards. First up is the no-annual-fee Best Western Rewards Visa Signature Card. With this card, customers can 4x points on Best...

2025 SoFi Checking and Savings Review

 Ever since I started taking an interest in the FinTech sector, one company whose name I’ve seen pop up over and over again is SoFi. That was later sent into overdrive as the company has not only become a household name thanks to its stadium naming rights deal but also because of the company’s continued product expansions. The most interesting development in my mind is SoFi’s acquisition of Golden Pacific...
Marriott Bonvoy card and a woman on vacation

Marriott Bonvoy Bold Card Launches Travel Contest

Chase and Marriott Bonoy have unveiled a special contest while continuing to offer its best-ever welcome bonus. About the welcome bonus and Bold Chat Court Contest: Marriott Bonvoy and Chase have launched a special opportunity called the Bold Chat Court contest. As part of this contest, 10 lucky travelers will be awarded 500,000 Marriott Bonvoy points (for a total of 5 million) as well as $5,000. For this contest, the...
Bilt and All Reward logos

Bilt Adds 2 New Transfer Partners Including First 3:2 Transfer Rate

Bilt is once again expanding its travel transfer rewards program — and is even breaking the mold with one new partner. About the new additions to Bilt: This week, Bilt launched partnerships with two more travel brands: TAP Air Portugal and Accor. As a result, Bilt members will now be able to transfer their points to Miles&Go and ALL Reward, respectively. In total, Bilt now has 18 transfer partners including 13...
Fioney Top 10 Must-Read Personal Finance Articles Septemeber 2024

Top 10 Personal Finance Articles of the Month — September 2024

Welcome to Fioney's look at the top 10 personal finance articles of the month. On the first Friday of each new month, we look back at some of our favorite posts published in the weeks prior and highlight them right here. This includes a mix of sites that have become staples of our lists as well as many first-timers. To start things off this month, we'll look at some articles...