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I have a bit of a confession to make. Something that I’ve been keeping secret for the past 18 months: I am not enrolled in my 401(K); a statement that has probably just sent dozens of financial planners around the world into a permanent state of catatonia from the HORROR. Though hopefully Suze Orman won’t send me directly to Financial Hell for my lack of contribution, for my reasons were kind of, sort of…maybe…ok. My job did not match our contributions and I had no way of calculating what effect giving up a percentage of my income for my retirement would do to my monthly finances. I was very well uninformed and perfectly OK with that. There was also some naivety in that my retirement is years, if not eons away, so why would I worry about that. Also I do not make enough to even think about contributing. Throw in the sad, sad fact that I am in debt – not a lot mind you, but enough to give pause – so why should I even think of saving?
Oh stupidity, how I love thee.
Or perhaps it was stupidity with a heaping side of being totally uninformed. My lack of care and general hesitance towards the whole deal was of course my fault, my excuse being that I am not a ‘money person’. Money and I don’t get along well as I am from the bad ass school of
Then the obvious happened; my company began matching. They came up with a very well devised small group sit-down to go over, in detail, the new 401(K) package. There were sites to figure out how much contributing .09% to my retirement would kill me. And lo’ I find out that I can give significantly more than that because it’s pre-tax. All done without me wanting to crawl into a hole and die because I’m giving more towards my retirement than to my monthly food amount. It’s all very long and complicated of course, but I’m grasping the basic tenants based on spending roughly 45 minutes with my auditor aunt on the phone – a long, ear burning conversation – as to the differences between Emerging Markets and High Yield accounts. She spoke V E R Y S L O W L Y and only questioned how I graduated from college with a degree in Economics, one time.
I feel slightly more like a REAL adult now. Because that whole graduating from college and having a career thing doesn’t feel real until you can say “I must diversify my portfolio†without spontaneous combustion.
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BlogHer CE, Heather B, discusses wine far more than money at No Pasa Nada.
