In The Roadmap to Financial Freedom: A Millionaire's Guide to Building Automated Wealth, veteran Certified Public Accountant and founder of Budgetdog Academy, Brennan Schlagbaum, delivers an inspiring and practical account of how he and his family paid off over $300,000 in debt. He'll also show you how you can apply the same principles to your own life to transform your financial situation.
In the book, you'll discover how to track, grow, and protect your money as you work your way closer to financial freedom. You'll also find: - Comprehensive strategies for crafting a plan to turn around your personal finances - Ways to give to others that help you in your path to financial security - Rock-solid budgeting techniques that help you get control of your income and spending patterns
Perfect for members of new and growing families, young professionals, and anyone else seeking to redefine their relationship with money, The Roadmap to Financial Freedom is an intuitive, insightful, and hands-on roadmap to financial independence.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xi
About the Author xiii
Introduction xv
Part I: Track Your Money 1
Chapter 1: Who I Am: My Journey 3
Chapter 2: The First Step 15
Lesson 1: The Psychology of Money 15
Lesson 2: Looking into the Mirror 20
Lesson 3: Changing Your Habits 23
Lesson 4: Building a Support Team 28
Lesson 5: Staying the Course 31
Chapter 3: Evaluate Your Financial Situation: Getting Organized Through the Balance Sheet 37
Lesson 1: Know Your Starting Point 38
Lesson 2: Evaluate Your Debt and Focus on Your Goals 39
Lesson 3: The Breakdown of the Balance Sheet in Steps 41
Lesson 4: Understanding Your Net Worth 45
Chapter 4: Craft a Plan: Create Your Budget 49
Lesson 1: The Importance of Crafting Your Plan 49
Lesson 2: Organizational Tips for Tracking Your Money 56
Chapter 5: Getting out of Debt: The Triumph Before the Real Storm 61
Lesson 1: Say No to Spending 61
Lesson 2: Amortization Schedules for Debt Payoff Success 62
Lesson 3: Stay on Track 66
Part II: Grow Your Money 69
Chapter 6: Setting the Stage for Your Investments 71
Lesson 1: Compound Interest 72
Lesson 2: Investing 101: Understanding Stock Market Basics 78
Lesson 3: Understanding Types of Asset Classes 82
Lesson 4: Breaking Down Equity Asset Classes 87
Lesson 5: Diversification 89
Lesson 6: Target Date Fund Diversification 93
Lesson 7: Single Asset versus Mutual Fund versus Index Fund versus Exchange-Traded Funds 94
Chapter 7: Formulating Your Investment Plan 101
Lesson 1: Where to Buy Asset Classes 101
Lesson 2: Types of Investment Accounts 102
Lesson 3: Fees: What They Are and Why They Matter So Much 121
Lesson 4: When to Invest 128
Lesson 5: How Much to Invest 129
Lesson 6: Risk Profile for Investing 130
Lesson 7: Investing Framework 132
Part III: Protect Your Money 137
Chapter 8: Build Your Moat 139
Lesson 1: Protecting Your Money Through Insurance 140
Lesson 2: Protecting Your Money Through Tax Diversification 149
Lesson 3: Protecting Your Money Through Tax Planning and Tax Preparation 150
Lesson 4: Protecting Your Money Through Wills and Trusts 151
Lesson 5: Protecting Your Money Through Durable Powers of Attorney 154
Lesson 6: Protecting Your Money Through Credit 156
Chapter 9: Budgetdog, My Money Mindset, and My Passion 161
Chapter 10: Logan Lee, an Unimaginable Reality: My WHY 167
Conclusion 173
Glossary of Common Investing Terms 177
Resources 187
References 189
Disclaimer 191
Index 193
