| In the day to day bustle of a student's life planning for retirement and
future financial security can seem unimportant. The future is on its way, its
not too late, and never too early, to plan for financial security. Gary
Robson, professor of finance and accounting at Youngstown State University, said
a good first step towards financial security, is to create a budget. Figure out
what money is brought in and what money has to go out. Many of YSU's students
don't have much disposable income now, and even when part-time jobs turn into
full-time careers, more money means more expenses, Robson said.
Skimp and save. Robson said it doesn't take massive amounts of money to start
an investment portfolio, try for $25 a week into a savings account. $25 can seem
like a lot, at first, but figure out your "little bit of fat," Robson said. What
Robson means is to reduce spending on luxuries that leak cash.. Luxuries like a
$2 latte or bottle of water, or eating out for lunch.
It's a sacrifice now, the earlier you put away, the more you will have in the
end. Starting early puts compound interest on your side, Robson said. By
regularly putting money away starting at age 20 Robson predicts
A savings account, of course, isn't the place to leave money. Start with
diversified mutual funds or an Individual Retirement Account (IRA).
According to the New York Times Dictionary of Money and Investing, a
mutual fund allows a group of investors to pool their money into a
community pot to reach an investment goal. A mutual fund's manager
invests the community money into stocks and bonds usually. An
investment into a mutual fund is buying shares of the fund, thus you
become a shareholder of the fund.
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