Personal Finance Advice

Do you enjoy skiing? Maybe it’s one of your favorite pastimes or maybe it’s something you only indulge in occasionally. Or maybe you’ve always wanted to learn how to ski but were worried about how expensive equipment and lessons could be so opted for less expensive winter fun. There are always ways to save money [...]

By Mitchell Pauly The notion that going to a “good” college is a ticket to a brighter future should be taken on a case by case basis, but this isn’t what American society would have you believe. I want you to think about this example, which is all too common: an extremely high academically performing [...]

We all want to be able to put more money away for the future, rainy days, or those special goals that are dear to our hearts. Unfortunately, sometimes in our zeal to save money, we devise some strategies that end up backfiring. This usually happens when we feel like we have a discipline problem with [...]

There are plenty of organizations out there that claim that it’s worthwhile joining their ranks. It’s important to evaluate a membership to make sure it makes sense for your particular needs. Even when you have to pay, there are times when a membership makes sense and you can get much more value back than you [...]

On one of the board gaming forums I frequent the term, “Cult of the new” is frequently tossed about by posters. What they’re referring to are all the new games that come out each year. They’re new, hot, and hyped to the max. People pay exorbitant amounts of money to get their hands on the [...]

One of my favorite restaurants in town isn’t the swanky chain restaurant, the fine dining establishment, or the fast food place. It’s the simple cafeteria. You know the drill: You push your tray down the line past the steam tables laden with everything from salad to dessert. Many people think that the cafeteria isn’t good, [...]

While it’s estimated that some 147 million people will participate in Black Friday, this is not the only choice that people had on how to celebrate. The day after Thanksgiving is also Buy Nothing Day, the biggest no spend day of them all. If you decided to shop on Black Friday, you made a conscious [...]

In this day and age of factoids, time saving gadgets, news that’s more infotainment than real news, and our harried pace of life, most of us find ourselves just skimming the surface of information, hobbies, and work skills. We absorb what we need to get by and then move on to the next thing. What [...]

I hear from people who are struggling with money that one of the things that bothers them the most is their inability to financially help their favorite nonprofits and charities. The view that the only way to help these organizations is through a monetary donation is one that is far too prevalent. I hope this [...]

One of the keys to financial success is learning how to separate wants from needs. It sounds easy. A refrigerator is a need. A car (in most cases) is a need. Housing is a need. Utility usage is a need. This is all true, to a point. However, these things can easily bleed into the [...]

Do you want to know a really simple way to save money? The next time you go to the bank, any money you take out, make sure to ask for brand new bills. That’s it. Once you have the new bills in your wallet, psychology takes over and you will spend less than if you [...]

With Black Friday just around the corner, you might be wondering if you should take a peak at the advertisements and possibly wade into the crowds to try to score a great deal. Don’t! Seriously, it isn’t worth it. You’re only going to end up spending a lot of time and effort to not get [...]

It’s so easy in our day-to-day lives to get caught up in the moment and forget about all the good things that there are to celebrate. Most of these things have very little to do with money (although having money can sometimes make them easier to accomplish). I think it’s important to sit down every [...]

While I am sure that you were already well aware that November 15 is National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day (how could anyone not know this?), there are a number of steps that you can take to save money while cleaning out your fridge — and really, it probably is about time that you did [...]

I recently received an email asking me if I could give some pointers on how to get a free turkey for Thanksgiving since I’d managed to buy and cook a full Thanksgiving meal for six people for under one dollar (this is what it looked like). One of the biggest obstacles that I faced with [...]

People spend a fortune trying to “improve” the air quality in their homes. They buy fabric sprays, air fresheners, candles, special vacuum cleaners, and expensive purification machines. Unfortunately, most of the candles, plug-ins, and sprays just make things worse. They don’t eliminate odors; they simply mask them. As for the expensive machines, many don’t work [...]

You’d think that if a manufacturer offers a warranty, getting service or a replacement under that warranty would be easy. You’d think that al you’d have to do is call the manufacturer, provide proof of purchase, and get your problem taken care of. Oh, if only it were that simple. While some manufacturers are great [...]

I recently wrote a piece about backing up your computer’s hard drive. At the end, I mentioned that if you don’t have the money to afford a backup mechanism you shouldn’t get the computer because the risk of data loss is too great. You’ll end up paying more than you paid for the computer to [...]

Everyone would like to save money on food if it means they can still get the same quality for a better price. One are where most people can save on their food bill is to reduce the amount of food they waste. Americans through out as much as 40% of their food according to a [...]

One problem people have when it comes to money is prioritizing. They either don’t have the ability to sort out what matters most, or they simply can’t decide what’s most important. It’s a skill people need to master because achieving financial success (without a Trump-sized income) requires prioritizing. You have to put your true needs [...]