Ben Wacek: The Financial Advice That Made The Biggest Impact on My Life
I received a piece of financial advice early in my career that, while I wouldn’t necessarily advise it to everyone, has made a big impact on my life. The advice came from my close friend’s stepdad, whom I was living with at the time. This is what he told me as a recent college graduate:
Continue to live like a college student even after you get a job.
That advice is countercultural because, for a lot of young people, the tendency is to significantly upgrade your lifestyle once you enter the workforce. The typical mindset is this: I’ve worked hard for years studying and it has finally paid off. Now that I have a paycheck coming in, I owe it to myself to go out and buy that new car, rent that fancy apartment, buy the clothes I couldn’t afford in college, etc.
I’m really glad that I chose a different path and took the advice I was given. I kept my junky car and I rented a two-bedroom apartment with three other guys. That was still an upgrade in lifestyle, though, because having two-to-a-room was better than the three-to-a-room living situation I had in college!
Luckily, I really enjoy people and don’t need a lot of space so I never felt the need to live alone. After living in that apartment, I bought a house and filled it with roommates. It worked out well for me because they paid my mortgage while I built equity in the home.
Continuing to live frugally even after increasing my income allowed me to pay off my student loans aggressively and become debt-free faster than many of my peers.
It also gave me the freedom to direct my career as I desired instead of having my fixed expenses dictate what I could do with my life. Several years into my career, I was able to leave financial planning for a year to do a full-time leadership development program at my church for a year. While that didn’t add to my net worth, it gave me something much more valuable—the opportunity to meet my wife! Keeping my expenses low also made it possible for me to start my own business ten years ago, which has been more valuable to me (and many other people) than driving new cars ever could be.
I’ll admit that I no longer live like a college student. I have a nice home and my only roommates are my wife and four kids. But I still live below my means. I drive a comfortable, reliable vehicle but it was purchased used and with cash. Our family is also in a position to be able to give generously to organizations, causes, and people that we’re passionate about. My early lifestyle decision set me on the course that I am still on today.
The best part is that I have no regrets. I don’t feel like I have sacrificed at all. I’m incredibly grateful for the freedom that comes from having margin in my finances. When I think of how much stress I have avoided and how many fights with my wife I never had to have, I thank God.
I made a decision to follow good advice as a young man and it set me up for a lifetime of financial success. Sometimes the best thing we can do for ourselves is to seek outside advice, as Proverbs 11:14 says, “Victory is won through many advisers.” If you feel like you would benefit from some advice for your financial life, I am here to help. Schedule a free introductory call to learn how I can help you get on the right track towards financial success.
About Ben Wacek
Ben Wacek is a Christian fee-only Certified Financial Planner™ and Certified Kingdom Advisor®. He has a passion for helping people of all income levels make wise financial decisions and steward their resources from an eternal perspective using Biblical principles. Based in Minneapolis, MN, he works with clients both locally and virtually throughout the country and abroad through the firm he founded, Guide Financial Planning. You can follow the links to learn more about Guide Financial Planning and our team and the services we offer.