lucky to save two hundred a year and, even if I could save money, I don't know anything about investing—the stock market, options, commodities . . . C'mon, Roy, you've got to be kidding!"
Tom's points were well taken. Saving money is never easy. No one—and I mean no one—has devoted more time to developing a budget than Susan and I. Yet every month, apart from our down-payment fund, we haven't managed to save a cent. As for investing, the only investment I've ever made was in a penny stock. I lost six hundred dollars in one week. Six hundred dollars that I couldn't afford to lose. Six hundred dollars that I needed for my tuition.
"I'll talk about saving and investing in a minute," Roy commenced. "As for inflation, well, I'm sure that, in the mid-fifties, people probably said, 'Yeah, saving ten percent sounds like a good idea, but what's a million going to be worth in the nineties, anyway?' Sure, inflation is going to have an impact. But not a devastating one. Far from it. In fact, inflation is all the more reason to save. Things are going to get more expensive. Lakefront properties are going to continue to rise in price. Lincolns are going to cost more. But, believe me, if you save ten percent, you'll be parking your Continental beside your vacation home someday. Remember that your wages will continue to rise too, as will your ten percent savings. My original ten percent stake was only thirty dollars a month; yours will be much more and so will your total wealth. That will do a lot to offset inflation. If you handle your savings wisely, your growth rate should far exceed the inflation rate. Maybe not every year, but certainly on average.
"It's the person who doesn't save ten percent who has to worry about inflation, not the person who does," he