Personal Finance Advice

Maybe you’ve always dreamed of being in a movie but you took a boring day job instead. Maybe you just want to make a little extra money while getting to see the inside workings of movies and TV. If this is you, you might want to become an extra. Extras are in almost every production. [...]

You probably don’t think that the hours you’re sleeping can possibly cost you that much. After all, everyone’s in bed, everything is off, and no one is out shopping. But the truth is, the overnight hours can be costing you hundreds of dollars per year and you might not even realize it. The biggest culprit [...]

The other day I was reading a post on a message board from someone who was very proud of their money saving efforts. They listed things they’d cut including the house cleaner, the lawn service, eating out, and that they’d dropped premium channels on their cable. They’ve started buying store brands and given up many [...]

If you are an expert on anything, have a unique approach to a problem, or if you have strange or unique life experiences to share, you can make money writing eBooks. Self-publishing used to get a bad rap. It was considered the last resort of the desperate author who couldn’t get published any other way. [...]

When you and all of your friends or family are deeply in debt, you can all be miserable together. You can gripe about your finances, complain about how there’s never enough money for everything, and then go shopping anyway. You can egg each other into further debt by saying things like, “You’re only young once,” [...]

As a wardrobe stylist and personal shopper, one of my jobs is to help people create their seasonal or annual clothing budget. For many new clients, who normally shop here and there throughout the year, they sometimes have sticker shock when they start shopping “in bulk” twice a year. Although they have more than likely [...]

I have a relative who is at the mercy of every tiny financial bump in the road. When the dog has to go to the vet, or gas goes up two cents, or the power bill is higher than expected, or the car needs new tires, he is thrown into chaos. He hasn’t got the [...]

If you spend a ton of money at one store, you might want to think about taking a job at that store and using the employee discount to offset your spending. I have a friend who did this when he was remodeling his house. He took a job at a local home improvement store and [...]

A friend of mine told me a sad story yesterday. Her parents are going to have to move in with her sister who lives in a different state. I assumed that the reason was because the parents had become frail or because they wanted to be nearer to their grandkids. But, no. The reason the [...]

I recently had a conversation with a young friend who has recently moved out on her own after getting her first job. She was lamenting the fact that she eats out too much. Not only is it costing her a lot of money, but it’s not helping her weight, either. “I just can’t cook,” she [...]

If you want to make a little extra money and you don’t mind people staring at you, you might consider becoming an art model. Models pose for art students so they can learn to draw the human form. Some models pose clothed and others pose nude. Nude models are in particularly high demand since fewer [...]

When I talk to people about assets and which ones are most important, I often hear about homes, 401k balances, collectibles, antiques, jewelry, secure jobs, and education. But no one ever mentions what I think is your most important asset: Your health. Think about it: Without good health you can’t work, or at best your [...]

Death is a fact of life, but I swear I’ve never seen it celebrated so much as when there is a lot of money on the line. Some relatives get downright ghoulish waiting for the wealthy one to pass. They just know that the money is coming their way and they are salivating over it. [...]

If you live in an area where parking is scarce or in high demand, you can make a little money by renting out your parking space. Around here there are several large fairs and festivals held every year. While most provide free parking, the free parking is often a good hike away from the venue. [...]

One of the best things you can do if you want to achieve financial success is to know yourself and be honest with yourself. Many people don’t know what they want, what their tendencies are, and how their behavior affects their finances. It reminds me of the movie, “Runaway Bride” where Julia Roberts’ character likes [...]

Sometimes you have to quickly create some breathing space in your budget. Maybe you lose a job, take a pay cut, or have an emergency that eats up your available cash. Things like getting another/better job, starting a vegetable garden, or moving can help, but they take time. When you need to find extra money [...]