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A great commentary on Work by the Good Bishop.
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$233K per year to be comfortable?!
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The average American thinks they need $230K+ per year to be comfortable, but the average pay per year for Americans is somewhere around $75K. Why this massive
disconnect? The obvious answer is that things like housing and cars and insurance are just too expensive. But the everything is too expensive may just be taking the easy way out. Not saying it is not true, but we may be looking past a solution by having this tunnel vision on high expenses.
72% of Americans do not think they are financially secure and 61% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Some of this may be out of our control. After all we live in a greedy and unjust world that is ruled by the enemy. Things are far more expensive than they should be, and employers can get greedy and obsessed with the bottom line and ignore the dignity of their workers. But is any of this really in our control? Probably not! Of course, we should be educated
on economic policy and be careful who we vote for and what companies we support. But from a truly practical standpoint we do not have control as individuals over the price makers in global economics.
So, what are we to do? Change our mindset is what we all
should do. Embrace the simple life, because that is the life where Joy can be found, and Sainthood can be achieved. Take a look at the below three tips for living a more financially secure life. They may seem simple, but almost no one follows through with all of them.
- Stop paying for things you do not actually need and our destroying your ability
to be a Saint (i.e. Streaming platforms, Coffee addictions, going out to eat too often).
- No keeping up with the Jones’! It is okay if your kids have to share a room, or you do not have 2020 or newer car. Used cars and smaller living quarters will help your wallet and your soul (Think humility, and close-knit family).
- If you can, switch to a Health Share Ministry. I saved my family major $$$ by switching
from my NBA Insurance over to Christian Health Care Sharing | Samaritan Ministries (I am not an affiliate and make no money off you clicking on this link. I just think they are awesome!)
I know
it easy to complain about the powers at be for the woes you suffer through, but it really does not do anyone any good. So, just contemplate on what you can actually do, and have Trust in our Lord to give you your daily bread.
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Quick Hitters
The most notable are highlighted in RED
- The Biden admin is increasing OT Pay. In the US right now, all hourly employees are eligible for time-in-a-half pay and salaried workers making less than $35.6K/year. The new rule would increase the threshold of salaried people eligible for OT pay to $55k/year.
- The battle over EV charging stations is intensifying. But no matter how hard ChargePoint and Government backed CC systems fight, Tesla is going to be the winner.
- Expect higher prices everywhere for Credit Card users. Visa and Mastercard
are raising the fees they charge retailers. This means that those retailers will be hiking prices to ensure they don’t eat the extra $500M+ payout that credit card companies are expecting. Cash discounts might be a real thing moving forward. Do you even know who’s on the $10 bill?!
- The US Health Department is considering
lowering the risk category for Marijuana. Right now, the drug is considered on the same level as heroin and ecstasy.
- There is a nationwide deficit in Adderall, and college kids are freaking out as they return back to school. I am sure some suffer from severe ADHD due to no fault of their own, but is anyone convinced that 30% of all
19–22-year-olds have attention problems that need to be medicated? Maybe just stop scrolling for a bit.
- Shein, a fashion giant who is looking to IPO is found to be even to nefarious for the SEC. The SEC says Shein has to prove they are not using forced labor to create their products.
- Movie going overall has still not reached pre-pandemic levels, but IMAX revenue has tripled thanks to films like Oppenheimer.
- AMC’s first day ticket sales
record was broken by Taylor Swift’s Eras concert movie. I am sure some people wonder why I include so many movies related points in my newsletter. I think the movies tell a huge story about which direction our culture is moving. The fact that Taylor Swift is dominating makes it tough for me to put a positive spin on things.
- The AI boom has really helped the Stock Market for the most part this year, but August was rough, and September is a historically bad month for Stocks.
- Weight Loss Drug company Novo Nordisk just became the highest valued company in Europe. The valuation is $428 billion, which beats
out previous top spot holder LVMH ($419 billion).
- The Writers and actors strike that has been going on for 128 days now has cost California an estimated $5 billion. This figure is not just because of the strikers but because caterers, transportation services and even cleaning services are all suffering from the stoppage in
work.
- Goldman Sachs has cut the recession odds by 15% as economic optimism becomes persistent through finance sector.
- Russia and Saudi Arabia extend voluntary oil supply
cuts. Russia needs revenue for their war, so they are really only cutting production to pump price up.
- The Job Market has been slowing down, and this means rate hikes will hopefully going away soon. However, the job market may be slowing too much and some do not think it will plateau. If the job
market tanks lower than expected than that recession everyone feared a year ago, but less now will probably still happen.
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Marc Lozano, Christ Centered Capital
support@christcenteredcapital.com
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