Personal Finance Advice

Personal finance books and articles offer many simple ways to save money — cut out a daily trip to Starbucks, turn down the heat by one degree, order water at restaurants — and all of these tips are useful, but we often ignore the fact that the best way to save money is not so [...]

I recently stumbled upon the idea of a different tax system that some are advocating our country change to called The Fair Tax. I don’t know if my head has been in the sand about this or if many other people have never heard of it as well. It was an interesting concept to me [...]

We haven’t had a significant salary raise in this household for quite some time. Yet, despite the fact that our income hasn’t gone up very much, our standard of living has increased. We’re able to travel more and buy more of our wants. Not all, but some. I wondered how this could be. If our [...]

I try to live an environmentally friendly life. Among other things, I drive a smaller car, I recycle, and I use compact fluorescent light bulbs. I’m interested in doing more to help the environment, but sometimes I find myself stymied by the cost of becoming truly green. Environmentally friendly detergents, cleaning products, light bulbs, clothes [...]

I was recently on a lengthy cross-state drive with a few family members that took us through miles and miles of farmland. Along the way, my brother in law asked “What do farmers do in winter?” Now, I’m no farming expert, but I always like to share my ideas as possible answers when a question [...]

Some bits of advice are so common that they’re cliche – don’t put all your eggs in one basket, don’t count your chickens before they hatch, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, and so forth. But have you ever thought about how advice for other areas of your life can apply to saving [...]

In England, letterboxing is old news – more than 150 years old, in fact – but I only heard about it for the first time (from two different sources) in 2007. It may be gaining more popularity because of its close relation to geocaching and the many recent books and movies about puzzle-themed treasure hunting [...]

In recent weeks I’ve felt a distinct discomfort when listening to the media, the government, and even my acquaintances talk about money. It’s always been pretty clear that I’m not normal and that I don’t fit financially into this society. I’m a saver and a proponent of more frugal lifestyles. I’m not a big spender. [...]