{"id":60,"date":"2017-07-19T19:48:23","date_gmt":"2017-07-19T19:48:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.weissthompson.com\/blog\/?p=60"},"modified":"2017-07-19T19:48:23","modified_gmt":"2017-07-19T19:48:23","slug":"the-6-dos-and-donts-for-your-next-bonus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.weissthompson.com\/blog\/index.php\/2017\/07\/19\/the-6-dos-and-donts-for-your-next-bonus\/","title":{"rendered":"The 6 Do’s And Don’ts For Your Next Bonus"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Most top companies provide some type of bonus as part of their compensation package. In fact,\u00a075% of companies<\/a>\u00a0gave a year-end holiday bonus in 2016; many of those same companies also provide performance based quarterly and semi-annual bonuses. If you’re one of the lucky ones, then you are faced with a problem that most people would love to have. What to do with all that cash? Your\u00a0fun friend tells you that you’ve worked hard, and deserve to treat yourself with that\u00a0brand new boat (this is the same person who\u00a0tells you sake shots at lunch\u00a0are a great idea and that you won’t regret that tattoo). The responsible friend will tell you to put 100% away in a market index fund, and not to\u00a0touch it for 40 years. Well, you should\u00a0kind of listen to both (but really, you and I both know that you should rarely take advice from your fun friend – you know who I’m talking about).<\/p>\n

Most financial professionals will agree on the\u00a0top priorities to address first: debt, emergency fund and retirement.<\/a>\u00a0The most important first step is to make a plan, and allocate accordingly. If you have\u00a0high credit card debt, perhaps allocate 80% to that, 10% to savings and 10% to fun. If you have no credit card debt but only a few months of emergency funds, you could allocate 50% to emergency fund, 30% to retirement and 20% to fun. There’s no right or wrong; do what’s best for you. While there are many smart ways to use your bonus, there are just as many\u00a0pitfalls to watch out for. This goes for not just bonuses, but inheritances, jackpots and any other windfalls you may receive.<\/p>\n

The DOs:<\/strong><\/p>\n