Good morning, HTM Family!

Here are 5 universal truths of human interaction, via Verbal Judo…

1. All people want to be treated with dignity and respect.

2. All people want to be asked rather than told.

3. All people want to know why they are being asked.

4. All people want to be given options, rather than threats.

5. All people want a second chance when they screw up.

Just something to keep in mind when chatting with friends, family, co-workers, and strangers this week.

Giving people what they want —> might get you closer to what you want 😉

OK now let’s chat about money stuff! 👇👇👇

TO DO

Book Some Vacation Days… 🏝️

Studies show that 46% of folks who get paid time off from their employers don’t use all their vacation days! 😳 Whhhyyyyy!?!?!

Time away from work is of top-notch importance. Whether it’s just one day off to stay home and relax, or taking a couple weeks off to explore a completely different world, disconnecting from work helps you become a better you.

So if you have a bunch of PTO built up, now’s the time to start prioritizing your well-being and planning some breaks. You’ve earned it. 💪💪💪

PS. If you haven’t listened to Podcast Ep #935 with Cady North, it’s all about how to plan and take a sabbatical!

SAVING

E-Funds for Furry Friends 🐩

Attention all pet owners:

I’m sure you’ll agree that your fur-child’s health and happiness is a top priority. And finances play a crucial role in this commitment!

Recent surveys highlight that less than half of pet owners feel ready to handle a pet's medical emergency in 2025. With vet services and pet supply costs rising rapidly, it’s easy for bills to sneak up on you.

The average unexpected health event in 2024 cost approximately ~$560, contributing to an annual expenditure of ~$2,085 on pets.

Soooo…. here are a few things to consider…

Set up a pet E-Fund:
Cash should be set aside for unexpected pet costs. This way you don’t have to dip into any personal savings or take on debt to cover a surprise bill. $500-$1000 might be a good number to shoot for, in addition to your regular e-fund.

Sinking funds:
For larger, predictable expenses, set up a sinking fund to build up money during the year. For example, one of my friends travels every Christmas and pays about $300 in doggy daycare fees while she’s away. She sets aside $30 a month throughout the year. That way there’s no pain when December comes around and she has to pay for it.

Ongoing pet budget:
If you’ve had your pet for a while, you probably already know how much they cost each month for food, treats, medicines, poop bags/litter, etc. Re-evaluating this budget line item every year is important as costs can rise and change as your pet gets older!

Reevaluate pet insurance:
Adults have all the necessary insurance varieties, right!? They’re protecting themselves “just in case.” Well, some types of insurance are vital. But pet insurance isn’t one of them. Consumer Reports found that “saving money on vet care is not guaranteed if your pet is insured.” In fact, “the typical survey respondent…just about broke even.”. Pet insurance can provide peace of mind, but you might not come out ahead financially.

All in all, pets cost more than people think they do! Being a responsible owner means having planning for unforeseen costs, and making sure your finances are in the right place to take care of whatever little Fido might need.

Related stuff:

• 📈 Pet-flation: Chart and Numbers via Empower Research 

• 🗺️ Pettable: Average Cost of Owning a Dog by State

• 🐶 Insurance: Pet Ins Buying Guide via Consumer Reports

TOGETHER WITH BETTERMENT*

Right now, new investing customers can get up to $1,000 with a qualifying deposit. Terms Apply. Get started.

RETIREMENT

How America Saves 👀

Each year, Vanguard publishes a report called How America Saves.

They dig through ~5 million customer accounts, look at savings trends, retirement plan offerings and changes, and call out interesting movements in the retirement industry.

Here are some highlights from the 2024 report👇👇👇

• Average 401k balance: 👆👆👆 Remember averages are skewed by outliers (either very large or very small accounts), so a better metric is really the median balance.

• Auto-enrollment for 401k plans: 59% of all Vanguard retirement plans have adopted automatic enrollment for new employees (compared to just 34% a decade ago). Also, 2 out of 3 auto-enroll plans include automatic increases to contributions each year. Woohoo!

• Savings rates: The average savings rate across all plans was 7.4% (median was 6.2%). But if you include employer matching, the average savings rate was 11.7% (median 11%). Get that match!!

• Roth 401ks: A whopping 82% of Vanguard retirement plans offer a Roth option. But, only 17% of participants who have this option take advantage of it.

• Funds: About 70% of participants invest their entire balance in a single Target Date Fund. This is a growing trend — keep it simple!

Here’s the full Vanguard report if you want all data and points. Fidelity has a similar trends report based on its customer accounts too.

Looking at trends and averages is always fun…

But at the end of the day, what matters most is how YOU save money. What things are you doing differently this year to better your finances? 🤔

Related stuff:

• 👨‍💻 Vanguard Viewpoints: More interesting articles and reports from Vanguard

• 💻 Savings Rates: How much of your paycheck should you invest?

• 🤷‍♂️ Roth vs. Traditional: When a Roth 401k is better for you…

ICYMI

In other news…

Chase UR Giveaway 🤩
For anyone with an active Chase credit card, you can enter this giveaway for a chance to win 1 Million Ultimate Rewards Points from Chase Travel. Entries close this Friday Jan 31st!

Fed Hiring Freeze 🏛️
Part of Trump’s Day 1 executive orders was a federal hiring freeze for all agencies, as well as a return-to-office directive, effective “as soon as practicable.”

Too Many Toys 🧸
You may have heard this stat floating around… “The U.S. has 3.1% of the world’s children, but consumes 40% of the world’s toys.” The Washington Post put out a great article about consuming fewer toys, and instead giving kids what they really want (more play time with you!)

Behavioral Activation 💪
A great read from Derek at Meaningful Money. “Imagine you wanted to feel more confident with your money or in your career, relationships, or hobbies. Conventional wisdom might suggest waiting for confidence to arrive before taking bold action. But here’s the catch: confidence rarely comes first. Often, it’s the result of doing.“

2025 Rules ✅
Ryan Holiday shared some killer Secrets to Better Habits in 2025. Actually they are more just common sense reminders of things you already know you should be doing more of — very motivational nonetheless!

Passive Bubble 🤷‍♂️
Nick Maggiulli explains how the rise of passive investing (mainly index funds) is slowly contributing to overvaluations in the stock market. “It’s like what the Michael Green profile said about the super volcano under Yellowstone. We all know it’s a problem, but there’s not much we can do about it for now.“

Garmin ⌚️
When Apple and Google released iPhones and free GPS map apps to nearly everyone on the planet, Garmin had to make big changes to survive. A detailed and interesting read here: Garmin's ~$40B Pivot.

FRIENDS OF HTM

Cameron Huddleston — Family Finance Guru

Cameron is an award-winning personal finance journalist with 20+ years of experience writing about money. We interviewed her on Ep #992 of the podcast.

She’s also the author of the book Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk, which helps you navigate those awkward (but very essential!) money conversations with your parents.

Cameron’s got a free In Case of Emergency Organizer you can download on her website — it’s like a fill-in-the-blank financial checklist to give to your parents so they can provide you with the info you need to be prepared for worst-case scenarios. Super helpful stuff!

Wishing you a great week ahead, full of productive conversations and fun interactions. Go get ‘em! 💪

Best friends out 🍻