Last July, I started my 29th year by writing a list of 30 things I wanted to do in this last year before I turn 30. It’s a pretty lofty list of goals…it’s made me realize more than once that thirty is actually A LOT. The list covers fun things like horseback riding and laser tag and more tedious, adult things like learning to change a tire and starting a 401K. Another one of those “adult” things on this list is investing in the stock market. I’ve been interested in the stock market since we learned about it in third grade, but I never really got around to investing or even learning more about it. Probably because it just always seemed so intimidating!

One thing I’ve learned as an adult is, sometimes life does not have any more room for complicated or confusing things. The stock market always seemed so complicated and confusing and it felt like you were supposed to have some huge sum of money to be able to start a portfolio, which is exactly why I always procrastinated actually figuring out how to invest. At least, it was until I found out about this app called Acorns!

Do you remember how Bank of America used to have their “Keep the Change” program? Maybe they still have it, maybe they don’t. But I remember all of the ads about it when it first started because I thought it was a genius idea. For a second, it even made me think about leaving the credit union I’ve been with since I was 11 years old to join BOA instead! The ONLY other thing that almost made me leave my bank was the Hello Kitty debit card BOA used to have, so that’s saying something!

Anyway, the premise of “Keep the Change” was this: BOA would round up the amount of any purchase you made, say if you paid $5.75 for tacos on Taco Tuesday, they’d round up to $6 and deposit that $.75 into your savings account. It doesn’t sound like much, but over time it would add up to a nice little savings you otherwise wouldn’t have. Acorns’ premise is essentially the same thing. You connect your bank account and then they round up your purchases and turn around and invest that into a portfolio they help you choose! I LOVE the idea of this app because it’s simple and it doesn’t really feel like it’s costing me any money.

I’m sharing this under the category of “For Photographers” because I know that there are so many small business owners like myself who may be killing it in the finance department when it comes to everyday bookkeeping, year-end stuff, etc but are majorly slacking when it comes to preparing for the future. I know that a lot of people who work traditional jobs will often have stock options through work, which is great, but not a perk a lot of us who work for ourselves have. While I may pursue other options as far as investments go in the future, the Acorns app was a great way to get started in just a few minutes! I’d highly suggest the app for anybody who’s interested in starting a little portfolio!

If you’re interested in signing up, use this link to get $5! I’ll get $5 too, so it’s a win/win for both of us!