Financial Report Card: Alex D.

This post is one in a series from real actual life. Along the financial journey, we do some things well and others not so well. We learn as we go, and benefit from sharing our stories.

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Alex D., 32 (he/him)
Industrial designer, Kansas City

Looking back at your 20s, how would you grade yourself in the five key areas of personal finance?

Creating income: B+
My mom was the financial planner in the family. She introduced me to the piggy bank and allowance, then my first checking account in high school. I had a job and put my spending money in there.

I was certain about my choice of career after college, but my parents didn’t really understand my field very well. There was some tension there, because they just wanted me to get a job. I was of the mindset that the first job has a lot of impact on your career trajectory for the next few years of your life, so I was a little bit picky about where I applied.

It’s not easy to get an entry-level position in my field. Usually less than a quarter of the class does. I hustled, working part-time at retail jobs while I was applying. I knew I had to be willing to accept less money to get my foot in the door.

It took me 6 months, but I finally landed my first junior design role. I felt like I was walking on water! After that first hurdle, I did pretty well, figured out what networking was, and grew a lot professionally.

Spending less than you made: C
I knew the core rules because my mom taught me about budgeting, the old school way, on a written calendar. She’d say, “It’s a budget for a reason. This is for food, life, subscriptions, then here’s the play money.”

Still, I broke some of those rules with credit cards in college. It started with supplies I needed, but then the bar tabs and that type of stuff wasn’t necessary. So I had credit card debt that I had to pay off after college, and that meant I also wasn’t saving or investing as much as I could have been.

I always did have an emergency fund, from my early 20s and the jobs I had in college. That translated right from the piggy bank. And I wasn’t living in a major city so that was more cost effective in terms of living expenses. I don’t think I realized that until later.

Paying down debt: A
It took me two or three years to pay off the credit card debt, but by the time I was 25, I was done. Then I got married and went to grad school and so did my wife. We really prioritized paying off our student debt. We had to sacrifice. We didn’t take any lavish trips. But we learned to pay it off while investing at the same time.

What’s exciting is that I just wrote the last check! We’re coming out of it now and it’s all paid off. My life is finally coming together the way I envisioned.

Investing in your future: B+
I feel like I just got there, even though I always understood the foundation. My parents were hardworking, middle class people who taught me about core principles like compound interest and how to pace out investing for the long term. I’m glad I listened. Even if I didn’t do as much as I could have from the start, I was able to ramp up.

I’m pretty comfortable with 401(k)s. I was maxing that out in my mid-20s, even while paying off student loans. Now I’ll be able to start diversifying from an investment standpoint.

I was also able to take advantage of an employee stock purchase, and I’ll be using some of that for a down payment on a house. I’m also thinking about starting a Roth IRA.

Knowing your money: A-
I have an OCD tendency to check my bank accounts every day. I know⁠—to the dollar⁠—how much money is coming out and where it’s going. If we want to go out this weekend, I know how much we have to do that. I never have to transfer money to pay a bill. I know down to the dollar, all the time, how much is in each account. I also check my 401(k) regularly.

I still do budgeting on paper. I know there are digital tools, but this worked all the way through my 20s and got me where I am today. I had a plan and executed it. Now I have a strong chance of being a multimillionaire by the time I retire. That’s definitely exciting.