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struka

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If you had about $7 to $10k in cash, would you leave it in the bank or would you do a short term mutual fund or other investments? In the future, I would like to use it towards my business idea however I currently don't have one that I want to move forward with. (This is not my emergency fund).
 
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MJ DeMarco

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My opinion:

Cash, 100% -- use it toward your business when the time comes.

A business can potentially make you 10,000% on your money.

A mutual fund might make you 6%. And at this high point of the stock market, might even lose you 20%.
 

Dan_Cardone

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Money is like a work horse, its no good unless you put it to work for you.
 

struka

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One thing to add, this would be short term in the investment world, 5 years or less. I am hoping by then I will be able to give my business ideas more time.
 

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If you had about $7 to $10k in cash, would you leave it in the bank or would you do a short term mutual fund or other investments? In the future, I would like to use it towards my business idea however I currently don't have one that I want to move forward with. (This is not my emergency fund).
There's a lot of online high interest savings accounts, such as Wealthfront, Ally, or Beam.
 

Ernman

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MHO - leave it in the bank where it is liquid for you to use on your biz. You never know when you'll come across that need that you can fill and start that biz. When you do, you'll want to act quickly, so keep the cash ready in the bank until needed. This assumes that you are actively seeking to start a biz.
 
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Just slam it all into one high volume S&P ETF and it is still very liquid and at least it is doing something for you.

I tend to park money there when I am waiting for some opportunity or stocks that I like better.

There is nothing like the markets to be able to invest with one click and divest with another. Don't get a CD or a anything that locks your money up.
 
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DeletedUser0287

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High yield savings account, thats not enough money to get good enough returns in the market without significant risk.
 

struka

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There's a lot of online high interest savings accounts, such as Wealthfront, Ally, or Beam.
I really like this idea. Never thought of going this route.

This brings up a second question that is partially related to my first question. I currently have my emergency fund at a local bank earning 0.01% (aka, losing money). Do any of you keep your emergency fund at these banks (wealthfront, ally, beam) instead of a local bank (Regions, Bank of America)?
 
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Dan_Cardone

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I really like this idea. Never thought of going this route.

This brings up a second question that is partially related to my first question. I currently have my emergency fund at a local bank earning 0.01% (aka, losing money). Do any of you keep your emergency fund at these banks (wealthfront, ally, beam) instead of a local bank (Regions, Bank of America)?

My emergency fund is a credit card. My spare money gets invested into either my business, or another persons business. If I have an emergency I just use a CC and pay it off ASAP.
 

struka

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Thank you, everyone, for your input in this. I am looking into Ally or other High-Interest banks and parking it there. I like the idea of having it in a liquid in case there is an opportunity that comes up.
 
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Rawseed

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Invest it in YOU.

Either in learning a new skill.
Or in paying someone to hold you accountable.
Or freeing up your time.
Or in improving your health.
Or in improving your fitness.
Or in clarifying your vision.

You think your barrier to creating a productocracy is the lack of an idea.

That’s BS.

Go back and reread Chapter 35 of Unscripted “The Commandment of Need.”

There are a million problems all around you that need to be solved.

You either can’t/don’t see them or
You can’t or don’t know how to solve them.

Those are problems that you can use money to help you solve.

Maybe you need time to think.

Then you can pay someone to do all the minutiae that you waste time on.
Washing your car, mowing the lawn, cooking, grocery shopping, cleaning your house, etc...

Use that time to become an expert problem finder. Get a Journal and right down 10 new problems everyday.

Maybe you’re too stressed to be creative.

Use that money for massages or a vacation or to hire an organizer to organize your life.

If finding problems isn’t your obstacle, then solving problems might be.

So, use that money to get domain experience.

Hire a mentor.
Pay someone to be their apprentice.
Pay to learn a new marketable skill.

Or use that money to increase your creativity.

Invest in exercising your body.
Invest in improving your quality and quantity of sleep.

If solving problems isn’t your obstacle, then action faking might be.

So use that money to force your hand.

Hire someone to hold you accountable.
Join a mastermind of successful action takers.

Your problem shouldn’t be that you don’t have an idea. Your problem should be that you have too many.

Invest that money in YOU.

Money is a replenishable resource.
Time and Energy aren’t.
Use that money to buy time and energy.
 

struka

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Invest it in YOU.....
(Didn't want to quote the entire post)

That is a fantastic reply and I really appreciate the input because I agree with everything you said.
I have ideas that I should move forward with but I am putting them on the back burner for a bit because I need to focus on ONE thing that I have been putting off for some time, getting my Professional Engineering license.

The money that I have is from flipping car parts so I would have some leftover as cash to buy and resell more car parts as the time comes and deals come up. This doesn't take much of my time as I am in a niche market.

I already work out daily at lunch, don't have a stressful work life, and don't waste a lot of time (i don't count family time as a waste). I get massages or acupuncture once a month to destress and focus on me.

There are two things that I would like to change that you have mentioned however one is not so easy to fix at the moment. Sleep is one but that is because I have 6-month baby and she wakes up once a night for feeding (still get my 8 hours of sleep).

The second would be a mentor. Of all the things you mention, this would be most beneficial for me. Of all the possible mentors on here, ZCP is the closest one due to his engineering background (not sure how to tag him on here).

Finally, I see you are in Atlanta, we should meet up next time I am in town.
 

Rawseed

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@struka, congrats on the baby!

If you can't get @ZCP to mentor you, consider @LightHouse.

I'm relatively new to this forum. So, I haven't used his service, but many fastlaners, including @ZCP, seem to endorse it.


Also since you have at least one child, I have to mention that you should have:

At least 3 months of living expenses in an emergency fund
At least a million dollars in term life insurance
Health insurance
Home or renters insurance
Auto insurance
Possibly disability insurance
An estate plan including: Will, Health Care Directive, Durable Power of Attorney, Executor Documents, and Final Arrangements, etc...

If you and your partner both pass, you don't want the wrong relative or the government getting your kid(s) and assets.

I'm sure you know all of that, but the dad in me has to state the obvious.

I love linking up with smart people. Let me know when you're coming to town.
 
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struka

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i happen to be in ATL as well. easy drive, lunch, change your life
Will do for sure. Looking forward to it!
 

ZCP

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struka

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Invest it in products you can flip
I actually already do that with smaller items, under $1k that I can get a good profit on. It is niche car parts to a vintage BMW. I used to go to junkyards, pull the part for $12 and sell it for $100 plus. I haven't done that lately because the cars don't show up as often so I can't pull them. SO now I am selling my car part inventory.
 

Dan_Cardone

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I was consulting with a client today and was reminded of this thread.

We were going over various aspects of his business and came to his marketing strategy. His overall marketing plan was actually VERY good. The right message being sent to the right market using all the right media and his ROI was pretty high.

What puzzled me is that he had a set "marketing budget" every month for how much he was willing to spend. WTF....

I asked him why he was limiting his marketing budget when doing so was essentially limiting his profit? I gave him the analogy of effective marketing is like buying $100 bills for $50 bucks each.

Long story made short: One of the best investments you can have is effective marketing. Once you test and optimize everything and you have a marketing system that constantly gives you a positive ROI, scale up and THROW money at it.

Effective marketing can give your ROIs like nothing else really can. Think 12% stock market return would be awesome? How about getting 300% ROI on your facebook ads? Even better!

Just something to think about for the newer guys who may not understand the importance and power of marketing.
 
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Mono

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I actually already do that with smaller items, under $1k that I can get a good profit on. It is niche car parts to a vintage BMW. I used to go to junkyards, pull the part for $12 and sell it for $100 plus. I haven't done that lately because the cars don't show up as often so I can't pull them. SO now I am selling my car part inventory.

I also have around 10k and not a real business idea at the moment. Well i have some ideas... but not enough cash for it to start haha. So in the mean time i'm just trying to building my bankroll with buying and selling stuff.
 

SchenkFinancial

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My opinion:

Cash, 100% -- use it toward your business when the time comes.

A business can potentially make you 10,000% on your money.

A mutual fund might make you 6%. And at this high point of the stock market, might even lose you 20%.

While I greatly respect MJ's thoughts in general, I think that the entrepreneurial life and investing in the stock market should not be seen as mutually exclusive options. In my opinion, entrepreneurs and stock investors should think highly of each other, pre-eminently because a stock is simply ownership in a corporation. Whether you own a business or stocks, at the end of the day we are all owners.

Yes, there will be bull markets and there will also be bear markets. I take a positive view of both markets, even of bear markets. In my considered opinion, bear markets should be seen as an opportunity to buy stocks of good companies at reasonable prices.

“You make most of your money in a bear market, you just don’t realize it at the time.” Shelby Cullom Davis
 
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struka

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for the record ...... no contact has been made to take me to lunch ..... crickets.......
Didn't want to send you a noninformative message without an actual plan of action. I travel to Atlanta occasionally for work so plan to be in touch next time I am in town. Unfortunately, Nashville to Atlanta is not a quick drive just for lunch (4.5hrs one way) but I hope we can arrange a meeting in the future.
 

ZCP

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if only there were other ways to communicate visually and verbally ......

you seem to keep finding excuses / reasons / obstacles....

this will help: change 'why can't i' to 'how can i' ...... it will change your life....
 

LittleWolfie

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if only there were other ways to communicate visually and verbally ......

you seem to keep finding excuses / reasons / obstacles....

this will help: change 'why can't i' to 'how can i' ...... it will change your life....

You mean like skype , zoom and telephone calls, right?
 
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ZCP

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........crickets.........
 

ZCP

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would this be 2nd or 3rd generation crickets?

@struka
 

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