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Top 10 Personal Finance Articles of the Month — August 2021
It’s time again for one of my favorite features here on Dyer News: a look at the top 10 personal finance articles of the month. To start things off this month, we’ll take a look into the past and to the future for some financial wisdom. After that, we’ll check out some insights on money management. Then, we’ll peek in on two FIRE-related posts. Finally, we’ll cover quitting your job, cognitive biases, and more.
As usual, this month’s list includes a couple of Dyer News Top 10 mainstays as well as a few first-timers. Without further ado, below is my list of the top 10 personal finance articles published in August of 2021, along with their title, author, and the site they originally appeared on.
Financial Pasts and Futures
My Biggest Financial Regret (And How to Avoid Making the Same Mistake) — Kara Perez, Bravely Go
No matter who you are, you’ve surely made money mistakes in the past. Some of these may be obvious — and perhaps you even knew it was a mistake at the time — while the errors with others only appeared with time. In this post, Kara reflects on a few of her financial regrets and how things could have gone differently.
A Letter From My 80 Year Old Self — Accidentally Retired
It’s common for many of us to wish we had the wisdom of today back when we were younger, pondering exactly what we would tell our past selves. But what if you flipped the script and wrote to your current self from the perspective of future you? As mind-bending as that concept might be, that’s exactly what Accidentally Retired did. The result is an interesting exercise that just may help you gain perspective on your priorities going forward.
Money Management
How I Manage My Money In Retirement — A Purple Life
There’s no doubt that saving for retirement is near the top of every budgeters list of priorities. Moreover, there are those who aim to build such a nest egg even faster in hopes of retiring early (we’ll talk more about FIRE in the next section). However, have you ever considered how you’ll actually manage your money once you’ve reached your goal and are able to stop working? In this article, A Purple Life shares her personal money management tips as she continues her early retirement.
100 Envelope Challenge: Guide, Variations, Trackers (and More) — Dylan Houlihan, Swift Salary
One increasingly popular way that people have learned to better manage their money is through various money challenges. In fact, this type of gamification has made its way into mobile apps, websites, and more. If you’re looking for a fun way to build your savings, Dylan explains the 100 Envelope Challenge and provides some resources to help you get started.
What Is A Reverse Budget? (And Do You Need One?)— Kimberly Studdard, Life and My Finances
As we’ve discussed in these round-ups before, there are several ways to build a budget. This even includes alternative approaches such as the non-budget and the reverse budget. Kimberly takes a look at that latter option and explains why the reverse budget may be a better path for some people to manage their money.
Financial Independence, Retire Early
The Psychology of Money: 16 Lessons for the FIRE Community — Money Flamingo
Last year, author Morgan Housel published his book The Psychology of Money. While that might make the book sound heady and technical, it actually contains several financial lessons that those in the FIRE community and beyond can learn from. With that in ‘mind,’ Money Flamingo highlights 16 such lessons as illustrated by Housel’s work.
The Cheat Code to Financial Independence — Millennial Revolution
While financial independence is now a goal for a growing number of individuals around the world, the paths that various people take in order to achieve this can vary greatly. Yet, one interesting “flavor” of FIRE is ExpatFIRE, which emphasizes what’s known as geo arbitrage. Sharing the experience of a friend, this article from Millennial Revolution looks closer at this potential “cheat code” to reaching FI.
Personal Finance Tips
6 Steps to Quit a Job You Hate (Even If You Don’t Think You Can Afford To) — Amanda Claypool, Millionaire By Next Year
We all know that, before you quit your job, you should have another one lined up. After all, leaving a job without a plan could lead to fiscal ruin… right? For those stuck in a job they hate and aren’t seeing much hope ahead, Amanda offers some helpful tips that may assist you in quitting your job while staying afloat financially.
How I Use These 7 Cognitive Biases to Improve My Money & Life — Jim Wang, Wallet Hacks
These days, we’re all familiar with biases — and we’re probably biased to believe they’re all bad. Similarly, while cognitive biases can have a negative effect on our lives and finances, you could also potentially use them to your advantage. As Jim explains, he’s found a few ways to turn his cognitive biases into positives.
Your Spending, Your Life — Kathryn Hanna, Making Your Money Matter
Finally, as you probably know but might be quick to forget, money is personal! Thus, the way you spend will likely look different from someone else but should reflect your values. If it’s time to check in on whether your money and values are properly aligned, Kathryn has a simple exercise to help sort yourself out.
Thanks for checking out our top 10 personal finance articles published last month and congratulations to all of the bloggers who made the list. To find more of these great articles on a daily basis, be sure to follow us on Twitter @fioneymoney and of course visit Fioney.com.
