The Financial Growth Engine

Introduction: The Struggle to Save

This article is for those who have just started their financial journey and are struggling to save.

How familiar does this sound? You have finally decided to save a certain portion of your income. Month after month, you receive your salary, but despite your best efforts, your savings remain nil or close to nil. No matter how hard you try, money slips away like grains of sand, leaving you with nothing by the end of the month. You resolve to try harder next month, only to relive the entire cycle once again.

The "Save Before You Spend" Approach

Occasionally, you might decide to "save before you spend." This involves setting aside a portion of your salary into a separate account and spending only what remains. However, sooner or later, you find yourself dipping into these savings, resulting in minimal accumulation.

If this story resonates with you, then this article is written specifically for you. Clearly, relying on self-discipline alone (which might take months to build) isn't working. So, what else can be done? One idea is to build your own "Financial Growth Engine" (or "Financial Growth Monster"). While the term might sound intimidating, the concept is straightforward.

The Concept of the Financial Growth Engine

There are only two rules to set the Growth Engine in motion. Once in place, the Growth Engine ensures steady progress towards building assets without you having to worry about it. This approach removes the human element from the equation, ensuring continuous progress in your journey toward asset-building regardless of your habits.

Let us start with rule 2 first.

Rule 2: Protecting Your Fortress

The second rule is simple: the assets built by the FGE cannot and should not be touched. Think of the asset as a fortress that needs to be protected at all costs. By adhering to this rule, you will see your wealth grow over time, allowing the magic of compound interest to take over.

Example:

Imagine you set up a separate savings account or investment account where you direct your automated nibbles. Over time, this account grows. One month, you face an unexpected expense and consider dipping into this account. However, you remind yourself of Rule 2 and find another way to manage the expense, thereby keeping your savings intact and allowing them to grow further.

Rule 1: Automate Daily Nibbles

The first rule involves setting up multiple automated mechanisms that "nibble" a small part of your account daily. Many apps allow you to make daily investments in gold, mutual funds, or shares of a particular company. Ensure that the nibbled amount is small enough not to affect your finances.

Start with small daily nibbles and observe the impact on your finances over a few weeks. If you feel the financial crunch, it's a strong indicator that you were too ambitious with your daily nibbles. However, if done correctly, you shouldn't feel any effect from these small nibbles. If you feel comfortable, you can experiment with increasing the size of the daily nibbles.

Example:

1. Investment Apps: Apps like Acorns, Stash or INDMoney allow you to invest small amounts of money daily or weekly into diversified portfolios. Set up these apps to automatically withdraw $1-$2 daily and invest it for you.
2. Savings Accounts: Some banks offer programs where they round up your purchases to the nearest dollar and transfer the difference into a savings account. For instance, if you spend $5.75 on a coffee, your bank rounds it up to $6 and transfers $0.25 into your savings.
3. Gold Investment: Apps like Gold Direct allow you to purchase small amounts of gold regularly. You could set it up to buy $5 worth of gold daily.

Diversify Your Automated Mechanisms

It's preferable to have multiple automated mechanisms instead of just one. Once started, the FGE ensures steady asset growth over time, regardless of your motivation to save. It also ensures that you always spend less than you earn (assuming you’re not using credit cards, which can allow you to spend more than you earn).

Example:

Combine different types of investments and savings:

• Use an app like Acorns to invest spare change.
• Set up a daily transfer of $1 to a high-yield savings account.
• Automate a $5 weekly investment into a mutual fund through an investment platform like Vanguard.

Adjusting Your Nibbles

If you need to control your spending habits, you can always tweak the nibbles. Add another stream of daily nibbles to your existing ones so that your expenses are automatically reduced as a consequence.

Example:

After a few months, you review your finances and realize you can comfortably increase your daily nibbles. You decide to add another $1 daily investment into a new ETF. Conversely, if you find the daily nibbles too constraining, you reduce the amount slightly until you find a balance that works for you.

Conclusion: Building Wealth Steadily

By following these two simple rules, you can set up your own Financial Growth Engine and ensure steady progress in your financial journey. This approach helps you build assets and wealth over time without relying solely on self-discipline. Start small, automate your savings, and watch your wealth grow.