New Year started out badly for stocks. And Our Net Worth Tumbled

We already took a net worth tumble. After another pandemic New Year’s Ball drop and with Don Lemon going nuts, it really couldn’t get any worst right? Well, once you lose Betty White; we already set the tone for another rough year.

Worth a Tumble – The 1st Year and the First 31 days

Stocks plummeted in January (again) on fears of inflation, eviction moratoriums, high home prices, and student loan payments. The Feds aka the Federal Reserve won’t drop the hammer on interest rate hikes until March 2022 so retail investors reacted as balanced as possible. Nope, pure correction pandemonium with stocks down as much as 10%.

We were down by $38,000 in our portfolio. And, it kept going.

The most egregious issue, the Build Back Better Infrastructure Plan failed. We really needed that to go through. The US needs a domestic overhaul but politicians are politicking (again). As of now, it’s a dead halt. This bookmark falls inside Joe Biden’s first year in office, where he couldn’t get much done.

He tried but the people refused to get vaccinated, wear masks, get boosters, and go to work. This is just the start of the year.

But we are back for Now?

Welcome back to a new year with TNFG’s monthly breakdowns. Our household’s 2020 Net Worth sped up by over $200,000, and we repeated it in 2021. This proves that the first $100,000 is clearly the toughest.

My wife and I also hit the $500,000 investment portfolio which is always amazing since this is where compounding interest really starts carrying its own load. This is like having a toddler help you with groceries.

It’s progress. Building wealth is cheaper and easier than advertised.

Although the Net Worth tumbled downward, Here’s hoping the movement moves us forward.

Although very aggressive, we are hoping to hit the millionaire mark by the end of the year. I’ll have to get creative with how we re-balance our investments for inflation in 2023. On top of that, we will have to put $10,000 into primary home repairs so we can start looking for a new home in 2023.

If you are starting brand new, don’t worry.

We started at the bottom too. Sharing the journey is important because we have never seen anyone that looks like us shift from poor working class to millionaire status in one lifetime. The US is still one of the few countries with an incredible upward mobility social class slope if you do it correctly.

Building your Financial Intelligence through diligence and effort is the golden ticket.

Avoid Net Worth Tumbles with SMART+ER Objectives for your first 90 days

Wealth comes down to three easy steps; 1. Decrease your expenses, 2. Increase your income and 3. Invest in the Difference. However, before you get there, create a 3-year vision and construct the plan. Be specific; the plan should have objectives and can be evaluated in 12-week intervals.

This will improve your life by 400%. If you aren’t addressing your smarter goals, you are merely working backward. Here are TNFG’s top three books to alter your life toward wealth.

We started out on a low note, our Net Worth really took a tumble.

In the end, our net worth went is down 1.35% – a cash value of $8,835.  

We were really saved by Apple $APPLE earnings and Microsoft $MSFT. Although I’m watching it closely $DWAC surged so we are hoping for a huge win, by March 2022.

Travel, Groceries, and More Travel

My wife is always wondering, “when will I feel rich?”

For my household, the goal for 2022 is to hit $1,000,000 by December 2022. Though it’s not likely, it’s worth putting it out into the universe.

If we don’t hit it by then, we will likely weather the storm until Spring 2023. Beyond that, we front-loaded our travel costs for the year, which accounts for $6,310.

We ate out twice so our food cost is astronomical. We ordered during DC Restaurant Week. There was a discount but price inflation is so ridiculous that it doesn’t matter one bit.

I guess adding extra logs into the fireplace helped our gas for next month but not our groceries for this month.

My wife found a gym benefit with her job so it refunded us for last year. So double-check your benefits, you never know. Suffice it to say, it was an OK spending month that we would like to drive lower.

Biggest Culprit of Our January Net Worth Tumble

Investing surprisingly still grew on the last day. We were down as much as $38,000. Volatility will happen more in more through 2025 so we don’t expect record-breakers anymore. The rebound spared us for the last two days.

It’s the reversion to the means for the middle class. At this rate, you will have to fight for every inch of a better life.

How will TNFG avoid the next net worth stumble?

Re-balance when the stocks are at all-time highs. Sell stinkers and save 10% gunpowder for the next low. That’s our strategy moving forward.

I’m going to have to go video game macro strategist level. Beyond that, we are paying down debts and investing.

1. Investing at least $2,500 per month in M1 Finance Brokerage focused on Growth and Dividend Income that generates at least $1,000 per month in passive income in 2025. Check out the portfolio in real time. If you like the platform and want to start investing, I have the $50 for $50 referral if you need it – https://m1.finance/SYdqDJ2SyADC. Offer only available until March 31, 2022, when it will revert to $10 for $10.
2. Shooting for a sustained investment rate with the push for a $750,000 net worth by June 2022. To help monitor your savings, cash flow, net worth, investments, retirement, and freer with Personal Capital! Sign up with my link & get a $20 Amazon gift card. *Terms apply. https://pcap.rocks/lawrencegonz
3. Build out Financial Literacy Workshops for 2022 – Setting new goals and pushing the community forward. Hopefully dropping Mid-February or early march. I’m tempted to start sooner but greatness takes time. Trust the process.
4. Work on blog consistency while adding eBooks and eCommerce. Pushing to build out for the next 3 years until we hit a $1,000,000 net worth valuation.

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