Health and wealth are inseparably linked.
Trendy advice might work for some people, but it can often be counterproductive to achieving one’s goals.
The health industry is a breeding ground for the latest but not necessarily the greatest body hacking advice.
First, look at some health trends that might do more harm than good.
Wearable technology isn’t the panacea many make it out to be. Fitbit, Oura Rings, and the Apple Watch all have benefits but also many flaws. Many of these devices’ sleep scores and calorie counters are defective. According to Dan Go, Sleep scores can be misclassified by up to 28%, and calorie estimates by 18 to 40%!
Relying on faulty stats can have a detrimental effect on one’s mood. In addition, pivoting away from how we feel on any given day and relying on inaccurate numbers to satisfy our needs isn’t an optimal way to improve mental health.
Wearable devices have their place, but overreliance on corporate marketing is advice most don’t need.
Fad diets are another problem area. Extreme diets in which you eliminate entire food groups may not lead to the highlight reels of the jacked people you find on Instagram. Cutting all carbs, going full carnivore, or eating 100% vegan may cause vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
In addition, such Spartan Regimens aren’t sustainable in the long run. While eating a wide variety of whole, nutrient-dense foods may sound boring, it’s often the best advice unless one has certain health conditions that require a more radical approach.
It’s certainly a better idea than consuming the average American diet, which includes delicacies like milkshakes spiked with Pop-Tarts. (Yes, that’s a thing.)
The same goes for your finances. Personal Finance common knowledge may not be common or serve as valid knowledge. Personal finance is more personal than finance, so a bespoke approach is essential.
Here are five financial behaviors that seem healthy but can be harmful in the long run.
- Always Paying Off the Mortgage Early: While avoiding debt and saving interest payments are noble goals, there are caveats. Potential liquidity needs and higher long-term investment gains are options that shouldn’t fall through the cracks. (Depending on your mortgage rate, one size doesn’t fit all.) This issue depends more on your life stage than on an iron law of money management.
- Avoiding All Credit Cards: It’s imperative not to carry high-interest credit card debt, but not having a credit card isn’t the best way to accomplish this task. Building a credit history is indispensable for an eventual home purchase. Credit cards also come with valuable fraud protection and rewards programs. Used appropriately, credit cards help build rather than destroy wealth.
- Keeping Too Much Cash in Savings: Emergency funds protect against unexpected financial disasters. Like everything else, extreme behavior hurts more than it helps. Inflation is the ultimate destroyer of wealth, and keeping too much cash in the bank and not in the market is a recipe for destroying future purchasing power.
- Maxing Out Your 401(K) But Ignoring Tax Diversification: Retirement savings isn’t optional. However, there are many ways to achieve this goal without restricting access to your money for several decades if you’re unwilling to pay a 10% penalty plus ordinary federal and state taxes.. Taxable and Roth accounts give you tax flexibility and are more suitable for the modern workforce, where employees tend not to stay with the same company for thirty years.
- Obsessing Over a Perfect Budget: Money discipline is a prime asset, but never let perfection be the enemy of the good. Automating savings and spending the rest is a far more straightforward path to fiscal health than micromanaging every dollar spent.
The Roman Emperor and Philosopher Marcus Aurelius explains why avoiding trendy extremes is in your best interests: “Live according to nature, and you will never be poor; live according to opinion, and you will never be rich.”
Finding what works for you and practicing self-restraint are unavailable on your Apple Watch or a TikTok video.
Living on steady ground between extremes is a first-rate plan for your health and wealth.
