This post will detail options available to UK citizens when managing their money. Although UK centred, most of the information will be relevant to all.
LISA - Lifetime ISA
This is an essential scheme, which unfortunately isn't taken advantage of by many people. Once opened you can deposit up to 4k a year, with the government adding 20% onto anything deposited.
However, your cash will be locked away until you either use it for a house purchase/retirement. Or you could take a 25% penalty (5% on your original deposit).
You can either keep the money in a Cash LISA or a Stocks and Shares LISA. My preference is to invest my money due to the low-interest rates, and I will then sell it down for a house in 5-10 years.
Money-Saving Expert has a detailed breakdown of the scheme and providers: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/
For first time buyers, there are excellent help to buy schemes available. These range from government-backed loans to partial ownership offerings.
The current market in my opinion is incredibly inflated. However, if you want or need to buy then you should take advantage of everything available.
Money-Saving Expert has a great page dedicated to the options available: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/mortgage-schemes/
The best tip to increase your money for the majority of people is to track your expenses. A lot of the time people are not even aware of the occurring direct debits or terrible food/clothing purchases. Once you are aware of your habits you can then reduce unwanted ones, and gradually value money more.
The UK Personal Finance Reddit has some great tips, and have likely answered every scenario/question you need. There are great recovery stories to inspire you if you are struggling for motivation.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UKPersonalFinance/
If you are responsible with money, a credit card can be a great tool to build a credit score, earn cashback and also give you extra flexibility each month. This reduces the amount of cash required for emergencies which can lower your opportunity cost.
Also, I think as a society we have become accustomed to showing our status with our material objects, such as a fancy car, huge house or a top of the range phone. If those things are something you desire, go for it! But try not to cower to social pressure, as it could become a dangerous cycle.
Unless you receive a huge inheritance early in life you will need to invest your money to achieve financial independence. FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) is a movement I am particularly interested in, due to its unique lifestyle and focus on one's happiness over wealth and power. The community understandably has a lot of information on investment strategy, which is incredibly simple.
If you invest in a global low-cost index fund, you will likely become very rich if you invest regularly each month over your working life. This graph demonstrates that fact, investing 10,000 a year increasing with a 2% inflation over a 30-year timeframe quickly makes you a very rich individual.
If you want to learn more about what platforms, specific funds please check out the FIRE community on Reddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/FIREUK/
I also think bitcoin/crypto now deserves a small piece of your portfolio (based on your risk tolerance). However, if crypto is successful the companies you invest in through the index will hold bitcoin on their balance sheet, as seen with Telsa and Micro strategy.
This is just a glimpse of my limited knowledge on these subjects, so I encourage everyone to read or watch youtube videos on finance. If you take responsibility for your money early on, you can take that career break, pursue more hobbies and take less stressful jobs if you so desire.
