💵 The first $10,000 is the hardest


Good morning Reader,

Earlier this week we enjoyed our first major snow of the season, with our area getting around 5" and three days off school. Our kids loved it.

When our kids were younger, and we were a bit more frazzled, the idea of a couple days off school was scary. Stressful.

But now that they're older, and we're older and wiser, the days off are kind of nice. It slows down the pace of life so you can enjoy it. It's nice to take an unscheduled day off the stresses of life.

How has the start of your year been?


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💵 The first $10,000 is the hardest

Charlie Munger, the Robin to Warren Buffett's Batman, famously said that saving the first $10,000 is the hardest.

And it is. No one disputes that. (and the first $1,000 is harder still sometimes!)

But if you're able to get there, and we all can, you will start seeing how powerful compounding in the stock market can be.

👉 Why Saving The First $10,000 Is Critical

🏧 $197.5 million ATM fee settlement

Visa and Mastercard agreed to a massive $197.5 million settlement about unlawful surcharges on ATM transactions. If you paid an ATM access fee to JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, or banks that use the Visa or Mastercard ATM networks between October 1, 2007 and July 26, 2024, you qualify for reimbursement. (17 years span!)

📲 Watch me explain it on Instagram

If this sounds familiar, it's because the named banks agreed to settlements earlier (to the tune of $67 million). If you filed your claim then, you don't have to do anything - you will be reimbursed again in this settlement.

If, however, you missed that you will need to go to the settlement website to make your claim by January 22nd, 2025 - which is not far off.

👉 Go to the ATM Settlement website

🏋️ Health is wealth

I'm in my mid-forties which is about the time when you start injuring yourself doing benign things. Like getting into the car. Or sleeping. Or turning your head too fast. 🤣

If you want to get a little bit healthier, this post shares four simple secrets to a healthier life (and it's a really funny read):

👉 This Is How To Get Healthy: 4 Powerful Secrets From Research

What did you think of today's email?
I Loved It! 🟨 It Was Okay Not My Favorite

Take care!

Jim

PS. Did you know that Truist Bank has a $400 new account bonus? Here are the details.

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Hi, I'm Jim Wang and I share my strategies and tactics for managing your money and enjoying more out of life.

I have been writing about money for nearly 20 years and believe that personal finance is one of those subjects that is made complicated because it benefits a select few. Our aim is to help make it easier to understand so that regular folks can use what we teach to take control of their money and build wealth.

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