Smart Financial Decisions: Level 1

Since before I can remember, my money-management skills have been literally non-existent, and everyone who knows me knows this. Every Chinese New Years growing up, my grandmother always gave my brother two sets of red envelopes: his money, and mine for him to hold onto because I'd lose it or spend it all too fast.

The sad thing is my brother is three years younger than me.

It became worse throughout college. In one year, I went through all the money my parents put in my savings account while I was growing up. There have been too many times when the accumulation of my overdraft fees, below-minimum fees, and other fees actually dwarfed my expenses for that month. It got to a point where my mom actually closed my savings account and replaced it with a credit account. That way, when I overdraft from my checking and the system dipped into the credit account for more money, it was alright for that account to be negative.

Yes, I am horrible with money. And this is where my story starts... at Level Zero. I've been actively pursuing financial literacy and nurturing the ability to make financially smart decisions. The point of this series is to chronicle my financial decisions and share with you my success, failures, and most importantly, knowledge.

Level 1: I changed my perspective on money.
First of all, all the most motivated and successful people that I know or know about are all extremely well-read. This isn't a coincidence. Among other things, if you want to be successful in a specific area you must read, reading more complex books as your level of understanding of the subject elevates.

The first books that started me on my path:
Rich Dad Poor Dad
Millionaire Mind

These books are easy to read and contain simple concepts that are constantly repeated to ingrain them in you. They don't tell you what to do, but how to think: the right mentality is the first step in becoming financially successful.

The basic underlying concept explains that those that have high-paying and "stable" employment are actually broke and have no job security if they don't make disciplined spending decisions or invest in passive income. Just because you make a lot of money doesn't mean you're rich.

My understanding of this concept changed my life.