I’m so glad to see this thread is active again! (Really good timing with our recent announcement…)
I’ve been thinking about this myself, and I think I’ve have two things to tell my younger self…
1 - You can have more than one bank account! That includes savings accounts. You shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket, and you should shop around for the best deal. Be disloyal!
2 - Money not being put to work is money wasted. And credit can be a more useful way to finance things than dipping into savings.
^^ (These are my personal views, not Monzo’s. Get advice from a professional before making any financial decisions).
Don’t get too greedy with investments that do well and always take profit and cut losses. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket and diversify your investments.
Have a separate savings pot that is not exposed to risk.
If it’s possible to buy something on 0% finance, keep up with the repayment terms, and pay exactly in total as as lump sum, then that can be the better option if paying as a lump sum would be withdrawing money from a savings account or not depositing money in to it. Granted, in this case it does rely on such offers being available and on you keeping up with repayments (as generally missing or late payments result in charges being added, the 0% interest offer being lost, or both). But it’s how I managed to by my last mattress, for example.
1 - Finishing work and calling the weekly ritual “Super Fridays” is not so super on your bank account. The bar manager who let the crew play Dr. Dre on the aux lead and rolling out free shots was just making you spend even more money.
2 - What a smile she had but a gf in Copenhagen is a lot of work.
Stack your paper, prosper long-term and retire early.
