The LARGEST Wealth Transfer Just Started | How To Prepare

What's up guys, it's Graham here. So you're probably going to want to sit down for this because we've got a major problem. In June, it was reported that 61 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. As of a recent report, higher inflation and rising costs have affected every single income bracket, with the personal savings rate now at the lowest level it's been in 10 years.

Now, of course, you would think that making more money solves the problem, right? Wrong. The same report found that 36 percent of those making above $250,000 a year were also left over with nothing at the end of the month. This means Americans are flat out just not saving enough money while wealth is transferring yet again from those who have nothing left to those who are already well off to begin with.

On top of that, what's even more disheartening is that during recessions, savings immediately spike upwards and then quickly trend back down the moment the economy recovers. That tells us that people can and do cut back if needed, but as soon as things start looking more optimistic, they quickly revert back to an almost non-existent savings rate.

Fortunately, though, at the end of the day, there are some steps that you could personally take to save more money than you ever thought was imaginable, and it could all be implemented immediately at no cost to you whatsoever. The first step is by subscribing and hitting the like button if you haven't done that already. Okay, you don't actually have to do that, but it does help out the YouTube algorithm tremendously.

And as a thank you for doing that, here's a picture of Adam Sandler. So thank you guys so much! Also, big thank you to Rocket Money for sponsoring this video, but more on that later. First, just don't spend money!

Alright guys, well, thanks so much for watching. Make sure to get a free stock down below in the description, and I'll see you on the next one. Just kidding! Okay, but in all seriousness, one mental trick that could save you a lot of money is just this: if there's anything that you want to buy, never buy it now and instead buy it tomorrow.

The fact is, impulse purchases are getting more and more common, with the average American spending an extra $314 a month without even realizing it. Once you start digging deeper, the reason becomes obvious. I mean, most of us know that shopping releases dopamine in the brain, which then brings about a sensation of well-being and happiness; hence the term retail therapy.

But what most people don't know is that research shows that the dopamine hit doesn't actually come from the purchase itself, but instead the anticipation of the purchase. While you think about what you're going to buy, this research concludes that buying something is not going to give you the fun and excitement that you're looking for.

You could still get all of those exact same sensations by thinking about buying something without actually spending any money. This is basically the strategy that I've used all the time. If there's something that I want to buy, I'll consider it and then I'll wait to buy it the next day. By then, if I still want it, then I'll most likely go and buy it.

But more times than not, I'll wake up the next day and realize that I didn't really want it that badly, or the desire to own it just goes away. I'm positive that if you implemented the same thing, you could probably save about $300 a month without even feeling like you're cutting back. By waiting 24 hours to buy something, you could still get all the enjoyments of shopping without sacrificing your Roth IRA contribution.

The second step, assuming you've waited a day and you're about to buy something, just think to yourself: if someone offered me the cash value for that item right now, tax-free, would I take it? The reality is, we often forget about how much something costs when we're so fixated on getting the thing that we want. But by reframing every purchase as a dollar amount that could be earned, it's almost as though you pay yourself to save the difference by deciding not to buy that thing.

Of course, you can't just say, "Hey guys, I just saved $100,000 by not buying these 1985 Air Jordans, which I was totally about to purchase, but I didn't!" Because it's not Grant's video. But when you apply this mindset to the normal, everyday purchases you don't really give a lot of thought to, it really helps prioritize what's important.

It gets you thinking about the effect of saving more money rather than spending it on buying something new. In fact, I used this technique throughout my entire 20s to cut down on random purchases. Like if I chose to eat at home versus spending $20 at a restaurant, I counted that as me making an extra $20.

Or if I got a cheaper gym that was $100 a month less expensive, I counted that as me earning an extra $100 a month for being fiscally concerned. You can also take this a step further and break down how many times you've actually used an item relative to how much it costs. Like an $80 shirt that you've worn twice? Well, that cost you $40 for every time you put it on.

Or those $300 headphones that you've worn five times? Well, that was $60 every time you've used it. Once you begin thinking about everything in terms of how much it costs per use and if you would take the cash equivalent instead, I guarantee you'll end up spending a lot less money and saving a lot more as a result.

Third, another easy way to save a lot of money is by thinking to yourself: how many hours is it going to cost you to pay for it? For example, let's say you're making $30 an hour and you spend $90 on dinner. In a way, that dinner is actually costing you three hours of your time.

Spending $30 eating out on your one-hour lunch break would be the same as you having to work one hour later just to make up for it. Because of that, it's vital that we spend our money on the things that are the most important to us, and since our time is a very limited resource, we shouldn't spend it on things that don't bring us true value long-term.

Not to mention, when you really consider just how long you're going to have to work to pay for something you might not ever actually use, it makes you reconsider whether or not it's actually worth buying in the first place. In a way, I apply this metric throughout almost everything in my life and I'm constantly asking myself: is this worth the cost of my time? And is there something else I could do in its place?

Like, would I rather eat dessert and then spend an extra hour on the treadmill burning it off, or just not eat the dessert and then spend an extra hour watching "Only Murders in the Building," since that's a really good show? Just like fitness, it's a lot easier to cut something out than it is to burn it off. And when you begin thinking this way, I guarantee you're going to be a lot more mindful in terms of where your money is best spent.

However, there's one problem with everything that we've mentioned so far, and that all the savings mean nothing if you don't actually keep it. Thankfully, our sponsor Rocket Money is there to help. Without exaggeration, I've been using them on an almost daily basis to save more money, and up until recently, they've been known as Truebill.

But now, with your backing for market companies, they offer even more features to help improve your finances with a fresh new name and look. Like, just consider this: a recent study found that Americans spend $133 more on monthly subscriptions than they realize, but Rocket Money is able to safely and securely identify recurring charges and cancel the unwanted subscriptions for you with a single tap.

From my perspective, it's worth it for this service alone, because most likely you have a recurring charge that you don't even know exists. So why waste your hard-earned money if you don't absolutely have to? On top of that, Rocket Money will even help you lower your bills from phone, cable to internet. All you need to do is upload a photo and from there, they'll help negotiate to bring it down and save you money.

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So if you're interested in learning more, checking them out, and most importantly, saving more money, feel free to use the link down below in the description or go to RocketMoney.com/Graham to try it out for free and unlock even more features with premium.

So thanks so much! Now, let's get back to the video! Alright, so after you do that, number four: once you save money by not buying something, immediately transfer the difference to another account instead. This is a really great way to make sure that you not only get to keep all the money that you're saving, but it's also really effective because you get to see the immediate results of cutting back.

For instance, instead of ordering a normal lunch for $20, bring food from home for $5 and then transfer the $15 difference to another account so that you could invest it. From there, you could apply this thinking towards all of your other expenditures, and I guarantee you're going to be surprised at just how fast it adds up. All of this is just about seeing an immediate reward for all of your work, and by doing that, you're more likely to stick with it long term.

And finally, fifth, the most important from all of this: think about how much your money would be worth had you saved and invested it instead. See, most people never truly understand exactly how much they're missing out on anytime they spend their money. To put that into perspective, just consider this: if you just took the average return of the stock markets, your $100 today would grow to $425 in 20 years, $875 in 30 years, and $1,800 in 40 years.

This means you could multiply your spending by four to eighteen times, and that is how much it could be worth if you invested instead. Of course, I'm really weird and I think of everything in this way, but to me, a $5 coffee is really worth $75 in future money. I'm not gonna lie; I'd rather have $75 in the future than a coffee that I could make at home today for a fraction of the price.

From that, you could start thinking about your purchases in the exact same way. Really ask yourself if the cost today is worth the potential value in the future. If the answer is no, then don't buy it. But if you decide it is worth it and you'd rather give up the long-term potential of what that money could be worth, then by all means, go for it.

There's always going to be a fine line between living in the moment and saving for the future. That point is going to be different for all of us, so it's important that you find a healthy medium that's preferably just not spending any money. Honestly, at the end of the day, all of this is about maximizing what you already have and treating every purchase as an opportunity to save the difference.

You already have all the tools available to you for free at the most basic level to save money. Even though we could certainly blame external economic factors, the lack of wage growth, and BlackRock going and buying up all the homes, there are steps that you could take right now to take back control of your spending in a way that costs you absolutely nothing.

After all, Americans are already spending an average of $18,000 a year on non-essential items. Consumer debt is on the rise, and 75% say their incomes are falling behind the cost of living. But by using these five steps, I promise they're going to put you ahead of what almost everyone else is doing and allow you for so many more opportunities in the future—not just to become another statistic.

Or I guess you could actually be a part of the statistic that saves a record amount of money. As long as it's something good, I'm all for it. So with that said, you guys, thank you so much for watching! Also, feel free to add me on Instagram. Thank you so much for watching, and until next time!