Jl Collins Quotes

There are many things money can buy, but the most valuable of all is freedom. Freedom to do what you want and to work for whom you respect.

You own the things you own and they in turn own you.

It’s not hard. Stop thinking about what your money can buy. Start thinking about what your money can earn. And then think about what the money it earns can earn.

Look again at those people around you. For most, debt is simply a part of life. But it doesn’t have to be for you. You weren’t born to be a slave.

I may not have owned a Mercedes, but I owned my freedom. Freedom to choose when to leave a job and freedom from worry when the choice wasn’t mine.

A parable: The Monk and the Minister Two close boyhood friends grow up and go their separate ways. One becomes a humble monk, the other a rich and powerful minister to the king. Years later they meet. As they catch up, the portly minister (in his fine robes) takes pity on the thin and shabby monk. Seeking to help, he says: “You know, if you could learn to cater to the king, you wouldn’t have to live on rice and beans.” To which the monk replies: “If you could learn to live on rice and beans, you wouldn’t have to cater to the king.” Most all of us fall somewhere between the two. As for me, it is better to be closer to the monk.

Here’s the simple formula: Spend less than you earn—invest the surplus—avoid debt

Stop thinking about what your money can buy. Start thinking about what your money can earn.

Avoid fiscally irresponsible people and certainly don't marry one.

But the simple truth is this: the more complex an investment is, the less likely it is to be profitable. Index funds outperform actively managed funds in large part simply because actively managed funds require expensive active managers. Not only are they prone to making investing mistakes, their fees are a continual performance drag on the portfolio.

Simple is good. Simple is easier. Simple is more profitable.

If your goal is financial independence, it is also to hold as little debt as possible. This means you’ll seek the least house to meet your needs rather than the most house you can technically afford.

There may be no "I' in Team, but there is an "I" in Victory.

Money can buy many things, but nothing more valuable than your freedom.

Try saving and investing 50% of your income. With no debt, this is perfectly doable.

Inflation certainly played a role. Using the CPI (consumer price index), what cost $1 in 1970 took $6.19 to buy in 2014. A six-fold increase.

Wisdom comes from experience. Experience is often a result of lack of wisdom.” —Terry Pratchett

As individuals we only have one obligation to society: To ensure we, and our children, are not a burden to others.

Bonds are in our portfolio to provide a deflation hedge. Deflation is one of the two big macro risks to your money. Inflation is the other and we hedge against that with our stocks.

It’s a big beautiful world out there. Money is a small part of it. But F-You Money buys you the freedom, resources and time to explore it on your own terms. Retired or not. Enjoy your journey.

Everybody makes money when the market is rising. But what determines whether it will make you wealthy or leave you bleeding on the side of the road is what you do during the times it is collapsing.

If you intend to achieve financial freedom, you are going to have to think differently. It starts by recognizing that debt should not be considered normal. It should be recognized as the vicious, pernicious destroyer of wealth-building potential it truly is. It has no place in your financial life.

Here are a few key guidelines to consider: Spend less than you earn—invest the surplus—avoid debt. Do simply this and you’ll wind up rich. Not just in money. Carrying debt is as appealing as being covered with leeches and has much the same effect. Take out your sharpest knife and start scraping the little bloodsuckers off. If your lifestyle matches—or god forbid exceeds—your income, you are no more than a gilded slave. Avoid fiscally irresponsible people. Never marry one or otherwise give him or her access to your money. Avoid investment advisors. Too many have only their own interests at heart. By the time you know enough to pick a good one, you know enough to handle your finances yourself. It’s your money and no one will care for it better than you. You own the things you own and they in turn own you. Money can buy many things, but nothing more valuable than your freedom. Life choices are not always about the money, but you should always be clear about the financial impact of the choices you make.

Three things saved us: Our unwavering 50% savings rate. Avoiding debt. We’ve never even had a car payment. Finally embracing the indexing lessons Jack Bogle—the founder of The Vanguard Group and the inventor of index funds—perfected 40 years ago.

The Three Considerations You’ll want to consider: In what stage of your investing life are you? The Wealth Accumulation Stage or the Wealth Preservation Stage? Or perhaps a blend of the two? What level of risk do you find acceptable? Is your investment horizon long-term or short-term?

Governments love a little inflation. They can add money to the system, keep the economy humming and not have to raise taxes or cut spending to do it. In fact, it is sometimes called “the hidden tax” because it erodes the buying power of our currency. It also allows debtors, like the government, to pay back their creditors with “cheaper dollars.

Before you decide to use kicking techniques on the street ask yourself this question: ‘Am I Bruce Lee?’ If the answer is ‘no’ keep your feet on the ground.

Waste no time. Debt is a crisis that needs immediate attention. If you are currently in debt, paying it off is your top priority. Nothing else is more important.

Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.” —Coco Chanel

When you can live on 4% of your investments per year, you are financially independent.

Everything you want is on the other side of fear.” — Jack Canfield

Ironically, a crash at the beginning of your investing life is a gift. In fact, any pullback in stock prices is a gift while you are in the process of accumulating your wealth.

The lines between need and want are continually and intentionally blurred.

In the simplest terms: When you buy stock you are buying a part ownership in a company. When you buy bonds you are loaning money to a company or government agency.

But Dad,” my little girl once said to me, “I know money is important. I just don’t want to spend my life thinking about it.

There are pervasive and powerful marketing forces at work seeking to obscure the idea that such a choice exists. We are relentlessly bombarded with messages telling us that we absolutely need the latest trinket and that we simply must have the most fashionable of currently trending trash. We’re told that if you don’t have the money, no problem. That’s what credit cards and payday loans are for.

When interest rates rise, bond prices fall. When interest rates fall, bond prices rise. In either case, if you hold a bond to the end of its term you will, barring default, get exactly what you paid for it.

You know, if you could learn to cater to the king, you wouldn’t have to live on rice and beans.” To which the monk replies: “If you could learn to live on rice and beans, you wouldn’t have to cater to the king.

Bogle’s brilliance, for us investors, was to shift the ownership of his new company to the mutual funds it operates. Since we investors own those funds, through our ownership of shares in them, we in effect own Vanguard.

Since money is the single most powerful tool we have for navigating this complex world we’ve created, understanding it is critical. If you choose to master it, money becomes a wonderful servant. If you don’t, it will surely master you.

Life choices are not always about the money, but you should always be clear about the financial impact of the choices you make. Sound investing is not complicated. Save a portion of every dollar you earn or that otherwise comes your way.

If your interest rate is... Less than 3%, pay it off slowly and route the money to your investments instead. Between 3-5%, do whatever feels most comfortable: Either put the money to debt payment or investments. More than 5%, pay it off ASAP.

Once 4% of your assets can cover your expenses, consider yourself financially independent. Put another way, financial independence = 25x your annual expenses. That is, if you are living on $20,000 you have reached financial independence with $500,000 invested.

The lines between need and want are continually and intentionally blurred. Years ago, a pal of mine had bought a new video camera. It was the best of the best and he was filming every moment of his young son’s life. In a burst of enthusiasm he said: “You know, Jim, you just can’t raise a child properly without one of these!” Ah, no. Actually you can. In fact, billions of children have been raised over the course of human history without ever having been videotaped. And horrific as it may sound, many still are today. Including my own.

Being independently wealthy is every bit as much about limiting needs as it is about how much money you have. It has less to do with how much you earn—high-income earners often go broke while low-income earners get there—than what you value. Money can buy many things, none of which is more important than your financial independence. Here’s

When interest rates rise, bond prices fall. When interest rates fall, bond prices rise. In either case, if you hold a bond to the end of its term you will, barring default, get exactly what you paid for it. Stage 6 As you’ve likely guessed, the length of the term of a bond is our third risk factor and it also helps determine the interest rate paid.

We can learn to think in this same way. Again, let’s use VTSAX in exploring this idea. Suppose yesterday you said, “Mmm. This idea of owning VTSAX makes sense to me. I’m gonna get me some.” And having said that, you sent Vanguard a check for $10,000. At yesterday’s close the price of VTSAX was $53.67. Your $10,000 bought you 186.3238308 shares. If VTSAX shares are trading at $56 per share a week from now, you might say, “Mmm. My $10,000 is now worth $10,434. Yippee. Mr. Collins sure is smart.

Sound investing is not complicated. Save a portion of every dollar you earn or that otherwise comes your way. The greater the percent of your income you save and invest, the sooner you’ll have F-You Money. Try saving and investing 50% of your income. With no debt, this is perfectly doable. The beauty of a high savings rate is twofold: You learn to live on less even as you have more to invest. The stock market is a powerful wealth-building tool and you should be investing in it. But realize the market and the value of your shares will sometimes drop dramatically. This is absolutely normal and to be expected. When it happens, ignore the drops and buy more shares. This will be much, much harder than you think. People all around you will panic. The news media will be screaming Sell, Sell, Sell! Nobody can predict when these drops will happen, even though the media is filled with those who claim they can. They are delusional, trying to sell you something or both. Ignore them. When you can live on 4% of your investments per year, you are financially independent.

OK, but what do I do about the debt I have? While the mantra here is “avoid debt at all costs,” if you already have it, it is worth considering if paying it off ahead of schedule is the best use of your capital. In today’s environment, here’s my rough guideline: If your interest rate is... Less than 3%, pay it off slowly and route the money to your investments instead. Between 3-5%, do whatever feels most comfortable: Either put the money to debt payment or investments. More than 5%, pay it off ASAP. But this is just looking at the numbers. There is a lot to be said for focusing on just getting it out of your life and moving on. Especially if keeping your debt under control has been a problem for you.

our investments are the soul of simplicity.

the market and the value of your shares will sometimes drop dramatically. This is absolutely normal and to be expected. When it happens, ignore the drops and buy more shares.

Advisors are only as good as the investments they recommend.

The con, the thing that will leave you broke and with a real reason to cry, is carefully hidden. It is deep in the proverbial fine print.

Make no mistake. You can be conned. So can I.

a crash at the beginning of your investing life is a gift.

Everybody makes money when the market is rising. But what determines whether it will make you wealthy or leave you bleeding on the side of the road is what you do during the times it is collapsing. 3.

Being independently wealthy is every bit as much about limiting needs as it is about how much money you have. It has less to do with how much you earn—high-income earners often go broke while low-income earners get there—than what you value. Money can buy many things, none of which is more important than your financial independence. Here’s the simple formula: Spend less than you earn—invest the surplus—avoid debt

last few couple

sprint

The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins:

To this day it stuns me to read about some middle-aged guy laid off from his job of twenty years and almost instantly broke. How does anyone let that happen? It is the result of failing to master money.

Stop thinking about what your money can buy. Start thinking about what your money can earn. And then think about what the money it earns can earn. Once you begin to do this, you’ll start to see that when you spend money, not only is that money gone forever, the money it might have earned is gone as well. And so on.

Great Gatsby was, and I quote, ‘a light, ineffectual novel with a clunky religious allegory shoved down reader’s throats.

I wasn’t sure was I expecting,

In summary: Withdrawing 3% or less annually is as near a sure bet as anything in this life can be. Stray much further out than 7% and your future will include dining on dog food. Stocks are critical to a portfolio’s survival rate. If you absolutely, positively want a sure thing and your yearly inflation raises, keep your withdrawal rate under 4%. And hold 75% stocks/25% bonds. Give up those yearly inflation raises and you can push up towards 6% with a 50% stock/50% bond mix. In fact, the authors of the study suggest you can withdraw up to 7% as long as you remain alert and flexible. That is, if the market takes a huge dive, cut back on your withdrawals and spending until it

thinking about what your money can buy. Start thinking about what your money can earn. And then think about what the money it earns can earn. Once you begin to do this, you’ll start to see that when you spend money, not only is that money gone forever, the money it might have earned is gone as well. And so on.

Low-cost, broad-based index

Before you start trying to pick individual stocks and/or fund managers ask yourself this simple question: “Am I Warren Buffett?” If the answer is “no,” keep your feet firmly on the ground with indexing.

Everybody makes money when the market is rising. But what determines whether it will make you wealthy or leave you bleeding on the side of the road is what you do during the times it is collapsing

Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” —Anais Nin

incurious

My mother smiled and begged me to come for Christmas, to which I replied, “We will not be seeing each other again.” Then I went into the house. You must think me cruel, but I was so injured, so dispirited to think of myself alone in the world. For indeed, I have never felt so isolated.

What in God’s name is going on?” “Do you not remember what we did?” said Mrs. Unwin, matching my tone. “The whole village knows. Aggie Ducette has been telling everyone who’ll listen that I drugged her, that you came in and made off with little Jonah.” “That’s exactly what happened.” “Yes, well, now everyone knows it.

When May was sure she was alone, when the door was firmly shut and Rose had stormed off to her room, she slumped down in the kitchen chair and sobbed. She cried until she was completely empty of emotion, until all the anger and grief and fear could be wiped onto a handkerchief and thrown into a basket to launder. And then she stood, smoothed her nightdress, and poured another cup of coffee.

Missus,” Mrs. Unwin said, a disapproving look on her face, “if you would like a garden, I can have a boy dig one for you.

A woman emerged from the corner and walked to the bed. She was tall and lithe, dark hair drawn back into a bun. Tendrils curled prettily around her face, and her eyes shone as she bent over the cot and smiled.

JL Collins brilliantly described this as a “self-cleansing” mechanism, and that’s exactly what it is. Owning the index means you only own the biggest, healthiest companies and makes sure you get rid of shares of bad companies before they hit zero. (Note that the only major American index not to use this methodology is the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is price weighted rather than market-cap weighted.)

That’s when I learned about index investing. I first heard about it from bestselling author JL Collins, author of The Simple Path to Wealth and founder of JLCollinsNH.com.