How to use your tax rebate

In today’s big story, the top habits of financially free people could serve as inspiration for what to do with your tax rebate.

• Markets: These market experts see a bubble forming as valuations outpace earnings.
• Tech: What to expect from the “Woodstock of AI” event hosted this week by Nvidia.
• Business: How to post on LinkedIn and not be ashamed of it.

In reality, tax season can be a pain, but at least there’s new free software to do it, thanks to the IRS.

For many filers, there is a light at the end of the tunnel in the form of a rebate.

(Of course, that’s not the case for everyone. But as my grandfather used to say, better to owe the government money than ask for some of yours back. To be fair, he was not an accountant, so don’t take that as financial advice.)

If you do snag a rebate, what should you do with it? It’s a question plenty of Americans contemplate every year. And with so much turmoil in the economy currently, it’s even more pressing.

Business Insider’s Kathleen Elkins has interviewed dozens of financially independent people who don’t need to work thanks to passive income or their investments.

To get inspiration on what to do with your rebate, I asked Kathleen about some of the themes she constantly hears from these financial wizards.

Establish an emergency fund. Saving up a safety net is something else those on the path to financial freedom look to do before they even consider investing. Kathleen told me the standard amount was typically three to six months of living expenses.

Keep it simple. Investing doesn’t have to be complicated, according to these experts. Many often opt for index funds over individual stocks or, dare I say, crypto. They’re also not worried about timing the market since they almost always take a long-term approach.

The power of an HSA. Health savings accounts are a favorite among this group thanks to their triple tax advantage: contribute pretax dollars that grow tax-free over time until you withdraw your money tax-free to cover qualified medical expenses. The case for HSAs was so compelling Kathleen even opened one up for herself.

Don’t forget yourself. People looking to achieve financial freedom are known to cut costs wherever possible. But Nischa Shah, an accountant and former investment banker, preached the value of spending money on yourself. That could be building a new skill, attending a conference, or hiring a coach.

Your Monday headline catchup

A quick recap of the top news from over the weekend:

• Why the scale of Putin’s landslide win matters so much.
• Ukraine drones attack multiple oil refineries in the campaign against Russia’s strategic energy industry.
• Trump couldn’t bring himself to condemn Putin for Alexey Navalny’s death.
• Sacramento will soon give low-income Black and Native American families $725 a month, no strings attached.
• Dell workers can stay remote — but they’re not going to get promoted.
• The end of the Realtor monopoly.

🔔 Before the opening bell: US stock futures rise in premarket trading as the Fed’s next policy meeting looms.

2. What part of the stock market will get the AI lift next? Nvidia, which makes AI-enabling GPU chips, was the initial benefactor of the AI boom. But Goldman Sachs sees three more broad stages of the “AI trade.” That includes infrastructure players behind the tech and software and IT services with tools that will help companies utilize AI.

3. Bitcoin’s looming halving feels like a big deal. The token’s fourth halving, which is expected to take place in April, is unlike others before it, crypto market experts told BI. It’s unlikely to be a “sell the news” event as the excitement surrounding spot ETFs continues to build, they said.

2. AI’s hottest new job. Demand for prompt engineer roles has skyrocketed amid the ChatGPT hype. That’s probably because you don’t need a formal tech background to do the work, and companies are offering salaries that echo the buzz. But some are warning that the job is merely a fad.

3. Advance could win big from Reddit’s upcoming IPO. The Condé Nast owner’s stake in Reddit will be worth $1.7 billion if the social news company’s listing this week pans out the way bankers are expecting. It’s a rare case of a big media company investing in a digital property and not living to regret it, BI’s Peter Kafka writes.

2. The shame of LinkedIn. As much as it is a professional platform, something about posting on LinkedIn feels really personal. But that’s not a dunk on the platform. It’s actually pretty helpful. You just have to get over the cringe part — here’s how.

3. Some DINKs want kids — but can’t afford them. In the current economic climate, more people are deciding that having children is too expensive. That’s the dark side of the “Dual Income, No Kids” lifestyle, BI’s Juliana Kaplan writes.

• I’m a junior in high school. Here’s the real reason my generation is falling behind.
• Target is taking a chunk of its ad business in-house to compete with Amazon and Walmart.
• Anthropic-backer Menlo Ventures is preparing for a ‘gold rush’ of infrastructure startups. Here’s why.
• Solving the looming retirement crisis means thinking differently about aging, economist says.
• We asked ChatGPT and Claude to analyze Biden’s cognitive abilities based on the Joe Biden-Robert Hur transcript. Their verdict: the president is doing fine.

• Don Lemon will release his interview with Elon Musk.

Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York. Jordan Parker Erb, editor, in New York. Hallam Bullock, editor, in London. George Glover, reporter, in London. Grace Lett, associate editor, in Chicago.

Get in touch. Email us at insidertoday@insider.com

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