{"id":593,"date":"2026-05-24T11:03:29","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T11:03:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=593"},"modified":"2026-05-24T11:03:29","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T11:03:29","slug":"im-a-ceo-who-teaches-private-wealth-management-you-can-make-huge-savings-by-avoiding-these-spending-traps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=593","title":{"rendered":"I’m a CEO who teaches private wealth management. You can make huge savings by avoiding these spending traps."},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Rob Mallernee, the CEO of Eton Solutions, who teaches a class in private wealth management at the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flager Business School. Business Insider has verified his employment. This piece has been edited for length and clarity.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more AI just hit its COVID shutdown moment<\/a><\/p>\n

I teach a wealth management class at the University of North Carolina, where I show students how being intentional about their spending can shape their finances long term.<\/p>\n

The vast majority of people, especially those without financial training, underestimate how much they could save over a lifetime by avoiding these common spending traps.<\/p>\n

Most people don’t think about spending in such a systematic way \u2014 but the ultrawealthy do.<\/p>\n

Buying a coffee every day is a bad financial habit<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Let’s say you go to Starbucks every morning and buy a $4 cup of coffee. Calculate what that costs if you do it every day from age 22 to 65, and how much less you’d have compared to buying a Keurig and making coffee at home each morning instead.<\/p>\n

The difference in numbers will be an astonishing amount of money \u2014 thousands that you could otherwise invest and grow.<\/p>\n

It’s easy to make poor decisions when buying a car<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A while back, I was looking at SUVs. At a Honda showroom, I took a picture of the sticker for one of their models, and later did the same at a Mercedes showroom. When I compared them, the features were almost identical, but the Honda cost about $50,000 while the Mercedes was $125,000.<\/p>\n

That’s not to say a Honda is a Mercedes, but both will likely get you where you need to go, while one is $75,000 cheaper.<\/p>\n

Read more From mindset shifts to \u2018no spend months,\u2019 early retirees and financially independent people share top savings tips<\/a><\/p>\n

Then, there’s also the matter of how often you replace the car. It’s worth running the numbers to compare the lifetime costs of buying a new car every eight years versus every three.<\/p>\n

If you do the math, you’ll see that over the course of a 45-year working life, you’ll end up with enormously more money at the end if you hold onto your cars for longer.<\/p>\n

Pay more attention to assets that aren’t investments<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Regularly buying a new car, which depreciates in value dramatically the moment you drive it off the lot, is probably not a financially wise decision. On the other hand, buying a vacation home in a popular area that’s likely to appreciate over time is probably a smart move, especially if you rent it out to cover the costs.<\/p>\n

It’s important to be thoughtful about why you’re making certain decisions, especially when it comes to assets that aren’t investments.<\/p>\n

Small choices, big consequences<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Whether you’re talking about a $4 cup of coffee or a $125,000 car, everybody has choices in terms of how they consume. The key is understanding the math behind those decisions.<\/p>\n

Always ask yourself questions like: Is it really worth spending an extra $75,000 on a car, or is it just a short-term psychological benefit that won’t make a big difference to your daily commute?<\/p>\n

In many cases, you might find that you’d have been better off taking the extra $75,0000 and investing it in something that you can watch grow over time.<\/p>\n

Read more Vibe Code Your Life<\/a><\/p>\n

That’s how the ultrawealthy tend to think about these things.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Eton Solutions CEO Rob Mallernee, who teaches private wealth management, has advice for saving money. It starts with reconsidering that $4 coffee.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":592,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance"],"yoast_head":"\nI'm a CEO who teaches private wealth management. 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