In the times we're living in today many people are looking for alternative ways of saving their money. As inflation and debt levels continue to soar while wages remain stagnant, it's becoming increasingly difficult for people to grow a nest egg.
In the book, "The Richest Man in Babylon", Arkad was widely known for his great wealth. The story suggests he had a working theory of, "A part of all you earn is yours to keep. It should be not less than a tenth no matter how little you earn... pay yourself first."
Unfortunately, most of society has strayed away from this thinking.
The fact is Canadians aren't saving as they once did and collectively are holding record high levels of debt. The average household savings rate in Canada has dropped from about 20 percent in the 1980's, to 5.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016.[i] Many people believe they cannot save because after paying "all their bills" there's nothing much left. However, understand that in most cases if you're attempting to save after paying all your bills you may find this strategy to be futile. Instead, get in the habit of saving first or, consider it paying yourself first. Once you've developed this habit then you can look into what vehicle you want to save your cash in.
Generally speaking, when people DO consider saving often times the traditional approach is taken; open a bank savings account and dump as much cash in it as possible. Sit on it like a goose sits on her eggs and wait for your savings to hatch. The sad reality for most however, is making a future cash withdrawal only to be afforded the ability to buy less with their savings because inflation has eaten away at it. And you'll always be on the losing side of a bank savings account because interest rates are not higher than inflation.
Another option many consider is putting money into the stock market however, one should not consider the stock market as a savings vehicle because the stock market has had a history of crashing dating back to beyond 1929.[ii]
Search the definition of saving in Webster's dictionary and see "preservation from danger or destruction" while the definition of investing reads, "to commit (money) in order to earn a financial return." Neither method is good or bad but you must understand which it is that you're trying to do.
Finally, during my research I have found throughout history when people lose faith in their national currency, the banking system that controls it and their governments, many rush back to gold. Gold is the oldest form of money and has proved to be a safe haven for centuries. Gold cannot be printed, debased, or inflated. Simply put, gold is financial insurance.
To understand this concept more, it's important to start investing in your own education. Financial literacy should be taught in our school system however, sadly it is not. If you are concerned about where to stash your cash so that you can protect your money from danger and destruction, you will have to take those matters into your own hands. And for good reason too, your savings should be in your hands because your economy should be the most important economy to you!
Learn what they banks don't want you to know and protect your money from danger and destruction.
[i] http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/saving-tips-1.4131592
[ii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stock_market_crashes_and_bear_markets
