If youre not familiar with Target funds, theyre actually incredibly intuitive. Say youll be 65 years old in 2050. If you invest in a Target 2050 fund, the fund will auto-magically adjust over time from investing more aggressively (lots of stocks) to more conservatively (lots of bonds). And while most Target funds have the same purpose, their fees (what youre paying the people managing the mutual fund) vary wildly. Vanguard is known for having some of the lowest fees, which means more money goes in your pocket instead of theirs.

This is another way of saying, diversify. Ive made this mistake and I wont make it again. There will likely be some naysayers out there, but if youre a noob to investing, heed this advice.

I hear what youre saying and note your concerns, but Im going to go with my gut and trust that random commercial I saw during daytime TV that told me to cash out all of my investments and buy gold.

Im not sure where he came up with this number, but a guess would be the 70-20-10 rule: 70% living expenses, 20% savings, 10% debt. Theres also Elizabeth Warrens 50-30-20 rule which allocates 50% to wants, 30% to needs, and 20% to savings. Im not a huge fan of that method, but in any event 20% seems like a great benchmark.

Duh. If you cant follow this one, no more credit cards for you. Heres our take on credit cards.

The more money you put toward these weird-sounding acronyms, the less Uncle Sam will hold you accountable when you pay your taxes. And thats always a good thing.

As mentioned in #2, fees eat away at your investment earnings. Any time youre researching mutual funds, look at the Gross Expense Ratio. Lets say Mutual Fund XYZ has a 1.75% expense ratio. That doesnt seem too high, right? Well, lets say your mutual fund earns 7%. That would mean 25% of your earnings would be lost to fees. Thats a lot of dough. That doesnt mean that high fees always equate to poor funds, but be cautious of unseen costs that will eat at your earnings.

Fiduciary is such a weird word. Fi-do-she-airy. Fiduciary. Weird. Anyway, its a weird word that has a simple meaning: acting in your best interest. That means your financial profits should come before theirs. Seems like thats what every financial advisor should do anyway, but thats just not the case.

Sure, I guess. I do my part in promoting those programs every time I look at my paycheck and realize a whole lot of it is missing. Beyond your involuntary responsibilities to support public programs, helping individuals and charities is a great place to put extra money.