The One Move You Need to Make to Become Rich

The One Move You Need to Make to Become Rich

What I learned during a chess game

I recall one particular end game where my king was trapped behind my own pieces. Although I was in a strong position with enough material strength to fend off defeat, victory didn’t appear to be in my grasp. It looked like a draw. My coach asked me why I didn’t move my king onto a specific square.

“My knight is sitting there,” I replied.

“Move it,” he responded.

From this, I learned that when one obstacle is stopping you from getting ahead, an obvious solution would be to move it out of the way. Sometimes we miss seeing something simply because it is so obvious.

How does this apply to building wealth?

How many times have you failed to remove an obstacle that was stopping you from making more money, an obstacle that would be easy enough to move away?

Think:  credit card debt?

Here are five steps to help eliminate credit card debt:

1. Write down the debt – and the interest rate – on every card you have.

2. Call the credit card companies to renegotiate, and ask for a supervisor if necessary.

3. Track your costs (review backwards) and create a written budget.

4. Pay off the smallest debt first. Though this is not the most cost-effective way to banish your debt, it’s the fastest way to eliminate debt on a single card, and it can be a psychological boost to eliminate a bill for good.

5. Stash your plastic.

Here’s a true story to think about when it comes to credit card debt: In 2000, MIT researchers took two groups of students and dangled scarce Boston Celtic tickets in front of them. One group was required to pay cash. The other was asked to pay by credit card.  The research found that the credit card crowd was willing to pay more than twice as much.

The lesson: Plan to pay in cash whenever possible.

If you enjoyed this tip, you might enjoy this podcast at https://www.richasaking.com/category/podcasts/