Renee set herself a goal ten years ago. She wanted to build wealth slowly and get richer little by little. As exciting as this plan sounds, it’s actually pretty boring.
The picture we have of wealth is very different from the reality. I picture fast cars, smart deals, and a great home in my mind. My way of building wealth seems less flashy. It’s mainly about spending and saving and automatically depositing money into my savings and investment accounts every month. And so again every month. Well, it looks boring. And that is it.
Butterflies in my stomach
Those first few months, after my husband and I got Target richer) I really felt butterflies in my stomach. It was a great goal that we were aiming for. It seemed that I was six again and that Sinterklaas would arrive in Holland that day. Pure excitement.
Nothing sexy about it
Soon after I realized: There is nothing exciting about this. She makes a plan once and then does what she has planned for each month. For example, there is always more in your account, you pay off a little more on your mortgage, or you pay off less debt. Very small steps, which if you keep at it, eventually become big steps.
The big secrets
When I say we paid off the mortgage almost in full — the final payment will come this year — people want to know how we did it. They want to hear our golden tips and our big secrets. Well, there isn’t. Except for those very boring tips like: keep costs low, spend consciously, and invest an amount each month. No one wants to hear this advice, but that’s ultimately what got us this far.
Still want those boring tips about paying off your mortgage faster? Then check out this video.
Biting through dullness
In recent years I have often thought: I quit. Not because I had to give in so much, but because I was bored. It is difficult to achieve the long-term goal because many people give up. Buying a new car with money now is very tempting. Then you will instantly feel happy.
Fortunately I didn’t. I am now reaping the benefits of that. Because the goal has almost been achieved. And I’ve learned that sometimes achieving great goals is a matter of perseverance. Even when it gets really boring.
