Three Money Thoughts
Most folks I meet don’t have time to memorize Wall Street jargon, and frankly, that’s a blessing. You don’t need a finance degree to make smart decisions; you need clear, practical steps that actually work in real life.
Think about it like tools in a toolbox. You don’t carry around every tool Home Depot sells, you keep the essentials that fix what breaks. Money works the same way. Here are three simple "tools" anyone can use:
1. Automatic Savings (The Hammer).
You don’t have to be disciplined every day if you set it up once. Have a slice of your paycheck automatically moved into savings or an investment account. Out of sight, out of mind—until you actually need it. Sometimes that’s as simple as using a bank’s “rounding” feature. Say you spend $17.49 on lunch; the bank rounds it up to $18. The restaurant gets $17.49, and 51 cents lands in your savings account. It’s the digital version of a coin jar by the bed. Those pennies really do add up.
2. Employer Match (The Power Drill).
If your employer offers a 401(k) match, that’s free money. Walking away from it is like saying no thanks to a raise. Don’t do that. Maximize the match. If your company offers a 100% match up to 4% of your income, contribute at least 4% so you get the full benefit. Contribute less, and you’re leaving dollars on the table. Contribute more, and the employer still only adds 4%. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t save beyond the match, but it does mean you should talk with a financial advisor about the best way to allocate those extra savings before blindly putting them all in the 401(k).
3. Pay Down Debt (The Level).
High-interest debt tilts your financial foundation. Getting rid of it makes everything else easier—like building a house on concrete instead of sand. Americans are facing record debt loads: TransUnion reports the average credit card balance was $6,580 at the end of 2024, and Forbes pegged the average interest rate at 25.35% in August 2025. That’s expensive money. If your investments are earning 8% but your debt is costing you 25%, the math is clear: paying down debt often delivers the best return, even if it feels less glamorous.
Three basic tenets. Three ideas worth chewing on. If you want to dig deeper, contact one of our advisors at Iron Eagle Advisors. We’ll help you build a plan that brings confidence to your future and a real path forward.