Personal Finance Advice

Twice in recent weeks I’ve come across situations where people were trying so hard to keep their things in pristine condition that they ended up cheating themselves out of some fun and being a complete jerk. The first happened when we were at a fast food restaurant. The landscapers were blowing leaves outside and they [...]

Recently I was invited to a lunch at a very pricey, exclusive restaurant in town. I accepted because it was a professional thing and I felt like the contacts I would make would justify the price tag. I was right, to an extent. I did meet a lot of people that will probably be helpful [...]

As a kid you probably grew up hearing Aesop’s Fables. These little stories all have a moral designed to teach kids (and adults) to live better lives and to be better people. Many of these stories deal indirectly with financial topics. As an adult it’s fun to go back and re-read some of these tales. [...]

The other day a friend of mine came over to have dinner. While she was here, she commented on my DVD collection. “What a waste of money,” she said. “You can rent from Netflix for much less. Besides, DVD’s will be obsolete one day and then where will you be?” She didn’t say anything I [...]

One of the best ways to become and remain debt free is to simply learn to love what you already have. It’s human nature to be swayed by the glitter and gloss of new items. You drive past a new car lot and think, “Wow, those cars are so great.” Or you walk into Target [...]

I’m always a little surprised at how much everything in our society is measured in terms of money. We measure our worth by our salaries, not by how much we love our work. We measure our remodeling projects by how much we can get back when we sell and not on how much we love [...]

Earlier this week a friend asked me out for dinner at a pretty pricey restaurant. Having been there once before for a special occasion I knew that the food and service wasn’t that great and definitely not worth the price tag (at least to me). I declined my friend’s invitation. When she asked why, I [...]

“If Bill Gates saw $100 lying on the ground, it wouldn’t be worth his time to pick it up,” a friend told me once. She reasoned that he would make more during that time by doing something else. At an estimated salary of $4,000 per minute, every minute of the week, Gates would indeed be [...]

Trent Hamm at the Simple Dollar wrote a post in January about enjoying the free things in life. On a flight home, he found himself looking forward to taking a hot shower and spending time with his family. Once he realized that these things were free or nearly free, he started listing activities he enjoyed [...]