In the past, we’ve talked extensively about good money moves—steps you should take that put you on the path to financial success. We’ve covered topics from setting up a budget to building up your savings, and even tried to help you figure out ways to save up for big-ticket items, and even provided advice on specialized problems like what to do if you buy a haunted house.
Well today, we’re doing something different.
In honor of April Fool’s Day, we’re going to give you some bad money moves—things you should never do with your money under any circumstances. If you’ve ever wanted to end up bankrupt and destitute, consider taking one or more of these actions:
Spend Your Retirement Fund on Lottery Tickets
This is a prime Bad Money Move. Why waste time budgeting and saving when you can just play the lottery and get tens of millions of dollars?
Never mind that the odds of winning the lottery are so high that even if you bought 10,000 lotto tickets your odds of success would still be 1 in 30,250. Also never mind that winning the lottery creates at least as many problems as it solves and that you just don’t have experience managing that kind of money.
Don’t waste time making your retirement fund a S.M.A.R.T. financial goal. Find your nearest gas station and start filling in those bubbles!
Get started setting financial goals today! 
Send Your Savings to a Nigerian Prince
Speaking of can’t-miss opportunities, you definitely should take a look at your email junk folder. There are probably hundreds of letters from Nigerian princes in there, all of whom want you to give them a couple thousand dollars so they can get a couple million dollars, which they will of course share with you.
Sure, there might be some signs of a scam, like misspelled words or the fact that Nigeria is actually a federal republic and has no princes. Just ignore them and send your money to the prince. It’s sure to be a life-changing experience!
Spend Your Child’s College Fund on a Lamborghini
Speaking of life-changing experiences, one that should not be missed is buying an expensive sports car. You probably have the money lying around in your child’s college fund, so why not use that?
Sure, there may be some setbacks, like the fact that Lamborghinis, Ferraris and other high-end sports cars cost a lot to maintain, not to mention insure, and that they’re not actually useful for day-to-day activities like grocery shopping. The important point is that you’ll look cool, and that’s what really matters.
Avoid Bad Money Moves With Help From First Alliance Credit Union
We’ve all had the urge to make a bad money move or two at some point in our lives and spend more than we should on a luxury item or take an enormous risk with our money, and if we’re being honest taking a chance to win big or buying an expensive toy is kind of fun. When you make good money moves, though, you still get to gamble, invest in an interesting business opportunity and even buy luxury items, but the important difference is that you’re not sacrificing necessities like rent or other important financial goals to do them.
If you want to make some good money moves that will let you have fun and be responsible with your money, become a member of First Alliance Credit Union today. Read through our easy-to-follow guides on how to start saving and budgeting your money in our resource center, then put aside money for your financial goals in a traditional savings account or invest it in a certificate of deposit to earn more interest. You can even speak with a member experience advisor about your financial goals and get some expert advice on how to achieve them.
In fact, making good money moves is the theme of our award winning Good Money Moves podcast. You'll learn about everything from taking out loans to deciphering common money quotes, and you'll have fun doing it.
