It Doesn' T Take Money To Make Money

I was standing in line at the local doughnut shop waiting, like tens of other people, for a chance to order a coffee.

The conclusion was, it takes money, I guess to make money. I couldn' t help but overhear a conversation in front of me about how terrible it was because these people in the doughnut shop who worked so hard, were actually making money. "It's because they have big money behind them, " was some of the chatter I heard. The guy directly in front of me was part of the conversation and seemed to agree with the above conclusion. Then he said, "He must have had money to begin with. " I probably didn' t sound too sympathetic to his point of view when I made the comment, "maybe we stop here too much. " He sighed and then explained, "well I do stop by doughnut shops 3 or 4 times a day, but it's my$ 1, 600 mortgage payment every month and the ridiculous gas prices that are stopping me from being able to invest in stocks. He told me he worked with a guy who just sold a stock for$ 37, 000 profit. How are you going to make money with all these people getting rich off you all the time? " At this point, he had no idea I disagreed with his point of view.

He blurted back, "Paid off! I continued the small talk by asking him how long it would be before his mortgage was paid off. I just got past the first two years! " By this time, we had edged our way up to the counter where I ordered my large black decaf. Not only do I disagree with the prevailing doughnut shop idea that you need money to make money, but the guy I was conversing with seemed to believe when someone else makes money, it makes it more difficult for him to make any money, like$ 37, 000, for instance. I did notice he had bought$ 14 worth of coffee and doughnuts, which seems like a lot for somebody who is down and out but, I realize coffee, then again and doughnuts are a necessary part of life. So, I pretended I was his financial adviser and went to work to see if there may, have been a way for him to make$ 37, 00 To this point, here's what I had learned: My large black decaf cost me$ 9Actually, it cost me$ 2 because I dropped the extra 10 cents into the tip jar. Probably, some part of that$ 1, 600 was escrow.

I know my new, coffee sipping friend, negative thinking had been paying$ 1, 600 a month for his mortgage. So, I estimated the escrow portion of his monthly payment to be$ 270, which would make his principal and interest payment$ 1, 33 From my conversation with him, I found out he had 28 years left on his mortgage. From that information, I was able to calculate that his current mortgage principal was a little over$ 191, I calculated that, 00 From there if he were to pay an extra$ 60 a month with his mortgage payment he would save$ 37, 4314 in interest over the term of his mortgage. I had to guess what his interest rate was, but I know that two years ago there were a lot of mortgages being closed at 25% . The significance of the$ 60 is that it amounts to one less coffee a day. I know it would take a long time for$ 37, 000 in interest savings to be realized.

I' m not advocating anyone become a miser, but I would like to make the point this would not be a case where it took big money to make$ 37, 00It really would only take a coffee a day. However, another thing to consider is his mortgage would be paid off 41 payments sooner than it would be if he hadn' t kicked in an extra coffee a day toward his mortgage payment. 41 payments times$ 1, 330 equals$ 54, 53 This is money he would be able to save above and beyond the$ 37, 000 interest savings. Since he told me that he made several trips a day to doughnut shops, I thought maybe he could cut out two coffees a day. If he then put the$ 1, 330 each month into a savings account with a modest interest rate, after the 41 months he would have over$ 60, 000 in this account. If he did, he would save$ 64, 1730 in mortgage interest. So, he certainly would be able to save a substantial amount of money within those 72 months, because he would have an extra$ 1, 330 each of those months to put aside.

In addition, if he went this route, his mortgage would be paid off 72 payments sooner. I must stress, I have nothing against coffee, and I buy it all the time. I just want to set the record straight. Also, I realize 28 years is a long time to wait to finally make money. It doesn' t take money to make money. Many years ago, someone taught me one of the most important things I' ve ever learned. It takes desire, a plan and perseverance.

A wealthy, elderly gentleman said to me, "take care of the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves. " Unfortunately, too many of us have never learned this lesson. The USA is full of people who were born penniless and are now millionaires, and one of the great things about it is they' re welcome to spend some of their money in the most modest of doughnut shops. The lesson I' ve learned by myself through the years is you can' t make money if you' re too busy complaining about other people making money. So, the next time you' re in a crowded doughnut shop or any crowded place for that matter, there will probably be at least one or two of these self- made success stories in your midst. Or, if they all went broke, could that help you at all? Now, if not just, think about it one or two, but every one of these people in this crowd was loaded with money, could that have any negative effect on you? Sure, there is such a thing as luck and it's wise to take stock of what you have and don' t have from time to time, but in the end, your financial situation is up to you.