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The Simple Dollar

Simple, applicable personal finance advice for the modern world.

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Latest Posts from The Simple Dollar (page 7)

Is Every Purchase Merely an Investment?

Published Tuesday, April 23, 2013 - 10:00 by The Simple Dollar

I’m going to use a long example of a car purchase to start off this post. Bear with me through it. Let’s say, for calculation’s sake, that a car has a life span of 200,000 miles before the maintenance issues catch up with it. For the last 40,000 miles of that drive, the reliability of the car is going to be seriously slipping, but up to that point, the car will be pretty reliable. […]

When Your Values Come Into Conflict

Published Monday, April 22, 2013 - 16:00 by The Simple Dollar

And the cat’s in the cradle and the silver spoon Little boy blue and the man in the moon When you comin’ home Dad? I don’t know when, but we’ll get together then, son You know we’ll have a good time then - Harry Chapin, Cats in the Cradle I have a free weekend. I want to spend that weekend doing a bunch of small home repairs that need my attention. […]

Reader Mailbag: Vacation Planning

Published Monday, April 22, 2013 - 10:00 by The Simple Dollar

What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to five word summaries. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question. 1. Debt piled up – what’s next? 2. First steps for small business 3. Challenges of working from home 4. Inflation’s impact 5. Wills through LegalZoom 6. Piracy as frugality 7. Is stock market a scam? 8. […]

Connecting Big Projects and Goals to Today

Published Sunday, April 21, 2013 - 16:00 by The Simple Dollar

Quite a few people emailed me about my recent post where I encouraged people to live for today by actually achieving enough that you go to sleep happy about the productive day you’ve had. […]

Fifteen Things

Published Sunday, April 21, 2013 - 10:00 by The Simple Dollar

Waking up to a two year old jumping up and down on the bed next to you shouting “Daddy! Daddy! […]

The Challenge of Lifestyle Deflation

Published Saturday, April 20, 2013 - 16:00 by The Simple Dollar

It’s a pretty common story. Boy (or girl) wants something. Boy discovers that there’s easy credit available. Boy convinces self that they can just pay the debt later. Boy buys that thing on credit. Boy gets more credit and buys more things. Boy starts realizing the bills and interest are drowning him. […]

Ten Pieces of Inspiration #122

Published Saturday, April 20, 2013 - 10:00 by The Simple Dollar

Each week, I highlight ten things each week that inspired me to greater financial, personal, and professional success. Hopefully, they will inspire you as well. 1. Tao Te Ching on mastering yourself “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power. […]

When Does Couponing Cross the Line Into Diminishing Returns?

Published Friday, April 19, 2013 - 16:00 by The Simple Dollar

A few days ago, I watched an old recorded episode of Extreme Couponing. I’d caught bits and pieces of the show before and had always intended to watch a full episode of the show. Clearly, the people shown on the program were very organized with their spending – and that organization reaped significant rewards for them. […]

Defeating Anger in Money Conversations

Published Friday, April 19, 2013 - 10:00 by The Simple Dollar

I really, really don’t like arguing with my wife. I love her dearly and I respect and value her opinions. Sometimes, though, we just disagree. We see things differently and bring different experiences and thought processes to the table. We might be married, but we are two different people. Those disagreements can easily translate into anger. […]

How Can I Become Financially Independent?

Published Thursday, April 18, 2013 - 16:00 by The Simple Dollar

Greg writes in: I don’t see how a person making minimum wage can ever become financially independent. It’s basically impossible. It’s far from impossible. It’s just a matter of priorities. Let’s say you’re single and live in Washington state, where minimum wage is $9.19 per hour. You work forty hours a week for fifty weeks a year, earning $18,380. […]