Here we are at the end of our core lesson on personal finance. And we're going to end as usual, with mystery question answered. Now, if you'll recall, I asked you earlier to think about the five rules of gold. I gave you the first but I was curious if you could guess any of the other four. And I'm sure you remember that the first rule of gold was pay yourself first. Here, a person should save at least 10% of their income for the future, which means every time you get paid, every time you get a check from your job, take 10% minimum and put it into savings or invest it.
So what are the other four? Well, number two is invest your money in a way that your money will simply make more money. We just talked about this. Can you guess, compound interest here, you put your money into an investment that earns compound interest, and the money you make on interest will start making interest, you have a snowball effect essentially. Number three, only take investment advice from those considered professionals in the field. I'm not a financial professional.
However, the rules of gold here are not mine, but those that have been passed down over the years by professionals. These rules are timeless. And when it comes to the point where you're seriously thinking about investing in something, don't rely on advice from family. Don't rely on advice from friends, it's good to listen to them. But when it comes down to actually making the decision, unless your family or friends or professionals seek out the advice of a financial professional. Now, the last two rules are things not to do.
Number four, do not invest in areas that you're not familiar with, or not approved by a professional in the field. If you don't understand the tech industry, maybe don't invest If you don't understand the oil and gas industry, maybe don't invest in it unless you do your homework. Perhaps a good example of something that you are familiar with is Coca Cola. The world is familiar with Coca Cola products and these products probably aren't going anywhere so they seem to be a pretty safe bet. Maybe take some time and learn more about Coca Cola company and number five never invest in something that promises incredible returns far greater than average and never invest in something when pressured to do so by someone else. The first thing that comes to mind here for me is Bitcoin everybody was jumping on the bandwagon expecting to make huge gains while watching Bitcoin continuously rise and what happened?
Boom bust most people who invested in Bitcoin and and other similar things probably were not obeying rules four and five. Remember the old saying if it seems too good To be true, it probably is. guard your money and only put it into investments that you're comfortable with and have a decent level of understanding about. So keep in mind these five rules of gold. If you follow these throughout the rest of your lifetime, you're definitely well on your way toward building wealth. And don't forget, become a teacher.
Take what you've learned here today and pass it along to family and friends, perhaps help someone with their personal budget. Go over the Excel file with them. teach someone about compound interest. Tell someone the story about Jake and Katie, and the difference from investing when you're 19 compared to 27, regarding compound interest, have funds spark a conversation on investing in general? Who knows? As you become the teacher, you might also learn more.
Okay, ladies and gentlemen, I really hope that what you learn in this lesson is a value to you and that you're able to take it Build your wealth as the years progress. Don't forget to continually update your goal sheet and continually update your budget. Take care and see for the next lesson.