Becoming financially secure is a goal of many of us, yet most of us still live from pay to pay and just scrape by. The basic rules of becoming financially free are really quite simple and can be learnt by anyone, but it's the implementation of these rules week after week, year after year that is the challenging part. Below is a list of simple truths to set you up for financial freedom.

Knowledge and Information
If you are going to be successful in business or investing you have to acquire as much knowledge as you can. That doesn't mean you have to spend six hours everyday watching the stockmarket or going to university to get a business degree, it simply means you should have a good general knowledge of the basics which will give you more intelligent options to choose from. As you learn to earn you will also learn to avoid making poor decisions that cost you money.

Patience and Time
With time anyone can get rich and the earlier you start putting money aside the better. Most financial advisors rave about the magic of compounding interest because it is so effective. Compound Interest is where your earnings from investments are reinvested. So when you are first getting started your reinvested earnings will be quite small, but over time they begin to create a snowball effect. The secret is to get started and be patient!

Persistence and Discipline
Despite what many "get rich quick" peddlers would like you to believe, it's generally not easy to get rich and it will not happen overnight, unless you're extremely lucky and win the lottery. Getting rich is about taking many small disciplined steps over a long period of time.

Goals and Flexibility
Having a set of financial goals will give you strength and give you a clear target to head towards when things get tough. Get clear about where you are now and where you want to be in 12 months, 5 years, 10, and even 20 years. Keep reviewing your goals regularly and be prepared to be flexible and change things if circumstances change. A good financial advisor that has been recommended by a friend can help with some of the financial details of this step.

It's important to get the basic money making steps right in the beginning. Once you have a solid foundation built for creating wealth and are putting away a percentage of your income each week, set about learning a little more about finance and investing everyday. Keep up to date with the business news and learn about different investment products and services. But most importantly, keep moving a little bit closer towards your goal each week and do not ever give up!



::: more articles by Kristine Geimure
::: more articles about Personal Finance
::: Republish this Personal Finance article