Gather, Savor, Repeat
Tips for Launching Your Own Dinner Club
Although the holiday season often enables us to reconnect with friends and loved ones in person, maintaining that spirit of tangible togetherness all year can often be a struggle. Sure, social media is fine for “likes,” but nothing beats sitting down with people whose company you enjoy. If you’re looking for a new way to stay connected with family members, friends from college, old work colleagues, or anyone else within a reasonable travel distance, starting a dinner club may be perfect! CONCEPTUALIZING YOUR CLUB There are no hard-and-fast rules to creating and maintaining a dinner club. You could start by giving your club a fancy name and
deciding how often it should meet. From there, think about the people you want to invite. For example, maybe you know people who share a particular interest you also love (classic movies, model airplanes, etc.), or you have a group of old friends you’d love to catch up with over a great meal. The trick is to be mindful of your club’s membership size. Ideally, it should be large enough for guests to connect with several friends or new people but small enough to ensure intimacy. CHOOSING YOUR DINNER DESTINATION Determining the best settings for your dinner club gatherings is key to their success. For example, hosting them at members’ homes on a revolving basis (with the host or other
members doing the cooking) would help the invitees avoid cramming into a noisy restaurant and having to shout at each other while seated at a long table. MATCHING MOOD AND MENU Coming up with interesting themes for each meal adds a thrill to the festivities. Maybe one of your members would like to give cooking a vegan meal a try. Perhaps another member would love to share an amazing recipe they picked up while vacationing in Mexico. The possibilities are endless! No matter how you structure your dinner club, the goal is to have fun and spend time with wonderful people. Bon appétit!
Lock in a Fail-Safe Savings Plan
Budgeting and saving are skills many Americans learn late in life, if at all. Only 36 states require high schools to offer personal finance courses. While that’s a marked increase from seven states in 2000, it still leaves many Americans adrift. Many consumers benefit from setting up regular automatic deposits to each of the four key savings and investment accounts, either through paycheck withholding or via their bank. With this system, growing their savings requires no conscious effort. START AN EMERGENCY FUND. Deposit 2% of your paycheck into an emergency fund, either a high-yield savings account or a money market fund. These accounts currently yield about 4% annual interest or more, so your money will be working for
you. Work toward setting aside enough to cover at least three months’ expenses to avoid using high-interest credit cards.
AUTOMATE RETIREMENT SAVINGS. If possible, put 10%–15% of your paycheck into a retirement account, such as a 401(k), Roth IRA, SEP-IRA, or another investment account. To help you meet this lofty goal, take full advantage of any matching program your employer offers. That’s free money! OPEN A BROKERAGE ACCOUNT. A regular investment account gives you access to stocks, bonds, and other instruments. Most advisors recommend a low-cost index fund as an initial investment, but if you are uncomfortable with stock market volatility, consider certificates of deposit or bonds. If you hold investments for at least one year, your earnings will be taxed at the long- term capital gains rate — far less than the tax on your ordinary income. SET UP A HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNT. Health savings accounts (HSAs) are a powerful way to set aside income tax-free to pay medical bills. They offer a triple tax advantage in that deposits, earnings, and withdrawals are tax-free if you use withdrawals for eligible medical expenses. You can sign up for these plans through an employer or HealthCare.gov by opting for an HSA-eligible health insurance plan. To determine how much to deposit, search online for “HSA Contribution Calculator.” Unlike other tax-sheltered savings vehicles, HSAs do not have a “use-it-or-lose-it” requirement, so you can accumulate funds for the future.
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