Some very good advice here. Freelancers -- women and men -- need to get into their heads the idea that you should NEVER undervalue their work.
One eentsy complaint, regarding this: "...unless you are one of the "conservative" women who believes that places like Smith and Barnard are actually finishing schools and not modern colleges." You do your otherwise great article a big disservice tossing in a lame stereotype like that. I'm conservative, and I know plenty of conservative women, and none of them regard any college as a "finishing school."
I don't have this problem as much with PayPal, but Amazon One-Click definitely does me in. Now that I'm working full time at a job with no pay--yet--I make myself step away from the computer for a few minutes to overnight before clicking the button.
Putting the impulse purchases of the past up for sale on eBay is a real lesson in their true value. I don't think my husband will ever rush out to buy a hardback best seller again. And his collection of Stephen King, valued on Half.com at 75 cents a book, is hardly worth the shelf space. Any he might decide to read again could be purchased quickly and cheaply.
Interesting. So perhaps we can append to our vernacular, an alteration of the familiar old addage as: "You have to have money to save money (or at least it's easier that way)."
I am fascinated by the psychology of it as well. Referring to the next to final paragraph, it seems that the symbols of success can take a higher priority for those who are aspiring than for those who are experiencing. And as Dr. Housing Bubble points out, there can be real confusion about what is a viable personal asset and what is not. I often ask what would motivate someone to sink 'would be' capital into symbols of success using extractive financial instruments. I wonder if it is holes in the financial education? impatience? Aspiration-based self deception? It's a puzzle, and it is frustrating to witness.
In any case, Philip, I think you're spot on here. A little capital goes a long way in the frugality and flexibility department. Thanks for the post.
I'd say the ease in online purchasing itself often leads to impulse buys. If the checkout is nice and easy, there's less time to second guess your decision. But there are still some sites you hide shipping information to the last minute, which tends to discourage my purchases. I don't know if I'm alone in this regard, but after making so many purchases I realized I had my credit card number memorized, expiration date and security code included. Then again I tend not to let sites store my credit card number, so I'm always reentering it.
I have no idea why I would order this, but apparently, I just did...well. I did that using the newsletter, but I think I have an idea as to how yours went without the newsletter method. You probably already got an existing account with overstock, and when you look at that particular product, the price is automatically deducted. Well, it's a theory... :)I still don't understand why I bought that!
In times of liquidity crunches, cash is king. One direct example is the necessity to have cash in a market that is contracting. Many in the housing market got a false sense of easy capital without having any capital. They operated under the other people's money (OPM) model of investing. In addition, they somehow mistook credit with capital. That is many folks saw their home with zero equity or their leased car as an asset when in fact, it was a drain on their wealth.
In addition, cash provides the leverage needed to buy deals in shifting markets. Buy low and sell high is easier said than done. Having the fortitude to withstand market mania and not becoming too pessimistic when blood is in the streets. With the amount of credit floating in our economy, couldn't agree more that having liquid capital is a safety net for many folks.
I can't believe some of the blanket statements being posted here.
A vast majority of us live beyond our means. Personal bankruptcies are a common occurence these days. Huge credit card debt is a norm in most households. Personal savings are at historic lows. Financial products and matters are significantly more complex and confusing than they were even 10 years ago.
To claim that everyone should buy term insurance and index funds is not only iresponsible, but absolutely ludicrous.
If financial planning is so easy that a caveman can do it, then why are so many North Americans in such terrible financial shape.
I find Shawns comment particularily ironic given that he posted his comments on a web site that teaches you how to be cheap/frugal.
I think it's a special magazine that tells it like it is; and if that means that sometimes there is a dark side to a story, then I think it's relevant and important. For me, that's part of gaining perspective.
If part (or all) of the reason we're here is to learn more about ourselves, to find meaning in our lives and maybe help others along the way, then I'd say that pretty much sums up the overall theme of 'The Sun'.
We, too, have been Sun subscribers for several years, although originally I used to make a monthly ritual of purchasing it at a local bookstore and reading much of it right there in the adjacent coffee shop.
The Sun's content - stories, interviews, articles, photos, and poems - touches many shared experiences and concerns, and also, with its "Readers Write" section, it is wonderfully interactive.
Some readers have accused the Sun of leaning to the dark side, as does my wife, who nevertheless reads it as thoroughly as I do.
On spring break in March, I went with some college friends to scuba dive in Florida. I was having ear pain, so I went to a local clinic, where the doctor diagnosed an infection and prescribed antibiotics. I paid $80 on the spot and left.
Two months later I got a bill from them. For a visit by somebody else in April, which they had put on my record. I wrote back and politely explained that I was a college student and had only been in Florida for one week in March, therefore it was impossible that I had visited their clinic in April.
They sent me a nasty last-chance letter threatening to turn me over to the collectors. For an $80 bill for a visit I never made. I replied with an even nastier note threatening them with my (phantom) laywer and never heard from them again.
But seriously? I write a letter from an out-of-state address, explaining that I'm out of state and you made an error, and you threaten me with a collection agency?!
I've sat in on interviews and debriefs with hundreds of hiring managers and they are just as unique and quirky as the candidates. From the most balanced, let's consider everything approach to the most narrow, "Did you see her shoes!?" approach, I've seen it all.
Just be yourself. Hiring managers actually DO like to see evidence of your personality in your resume, and especially your cover letter, but it is impossible to predict whether they will hire you or convict you based on that evidence.
What to do? Network! Your people know people that like people like your people. :)
.... my goal is freedom. I want the freedom to leave a job I don't like, to take advantage of a time-sensitive opportunity (like visiting my sister during the three years she lived in a foreign country), to not have breakdowns or other bad financial surprises be devastating, etc.
Well said Debbie, that I think sums up how my wife and I feel, frugality isn't about saving money or getting things cheap but finally breaking the cycle of never ending financial crisis's. It seems we do good for a while and then whamo we get hit again. Frugal living means we can forever put that behind us.
Of course the positive side is you get to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.
Supercharge Your Mortgage is a totally self directed, step by step mortgage equity accelerator program. The book on CD is in "Point and Click" page turning format and comes complete with easy to use interactive calculators to track your equity growth. The Phenominal Program That Enables Mortgage Free Home Ownership! Change Your Life Forever“Supercharge Your Mortgage”, the system that is mathematically proven to work! It cannot fail! Whether you've had your mortgage for 1 month or over 20 years, it works! If you have a fixed rate, adjustable rate or interest only loan, it works! If you have a Conventional, VA or FHA loan it works! Just refinanced your home or making bi-weekly payments? It works! No matter what kind of home loan you have, if you are making a house payment, "Supercharge Your Mortgage" will work for you! Find it at http://www.SuperchargeYourMortgage.com or Amazon Books has it..
"The Sun is to publishing what Ben and Jerry's is to ice cream and A Prairie Home Companion is to radio: quietly revolutionary, selectively anachronistic, unfashionably idealistic."
The offer is still working - just signed up for the newsletter and $2.95 plus 5-10 days later I will have a lovely necklace. :) After I receive the goods I will just cancel the newsletter. Thanks!
I like the pay-for-performance business model the best (% of assets isn't perfect but it does link the advisor's interest with the client's interest). It would seem that any model could work, but in practice the performance model should make the most sense (though I have talked to a few in that realm who only dealt with high-net worth clients so to a certain extent, getting the business/landing the account rather than giving great advice was key to their success). The fee for service should also make lots of sense but Ameriprise, for instance, which offered such an arrangement to clients has just settled a class-action lawsuit for claims that its agents dispensed standard advice and sold it as customized: http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/settlements/08127/standardized-advice.html?ref=newsletter_bca_standardized-advice
So, you might see, why some people choose to go it alone; though sound advice is invaluable, it's often extremely difficult to find.
a cool idea!
Some very good advice here. Freelancers -- women and men -- need to get into their heads the idea that you should NEVER undervalue their work.
One eentsy complaint, regarding this: "...unless you are one of the "conservative" women who believes that places like Smith and Barnard are actually finishing schools and not modern colleges." You do your otherwise great article a big disservice tossing in a lame stereotype like that. I'm conservative, and I know plenty of conservative women, and none of them regard any college as a "finishing school."
I don't have this problem as much with PayPal, but Amazon One-Click definitely does me in. Now that I'm working full time at a job with no pay--yet--I make myself step away from the computer for a few minutes to overnight before clicking the button.
Putting the impulse purchases of the past up for sale on eBay is a real lesson in their true value. I don't think my husband will ever rush out to buy a hardback best seller again. And his collection of Stephen King, valued on Half.com at 75 cents a book, is hardly worth the shelf space. Any he might decide to read again could be purchased quickly and cheaply.
You can also take pictures with a digital camera. Jot down their email addresses and send them a copy of their picture.
It helps if you are a pro and have pro camera equipment.
Interesting. So perhaps we can append to our vernacular, an alteration of the familiar old addage as: "You have to have money to save money (or at least it's easier that way)."
I am fascinated by the psychology of it as well. Referring to the next to final paragraph, it seems that the symbols of success can take a higher priority for those who are aspiring than for those who are experiencing. And as Dr. Housing Bubble points out, there can be real confusion about what is a viable personal asset and what is not. I often ask what would motivate someone to sink 'would be' capital into symbols of success using extractive financial instruments. I wonder if it is holes in the financial education? impatience? Aspiration-based self deception? It's a puzzle, and it is frustrating to witness.
In any case, Philip, I think you're spot on here. A little capital goes a long way in the frugality and flexibility department. Thanks for the post.
I'd say the ease in online purchasing itself often leads to impulse buys. If the checkout is nice and easy, there's less time to second guess your decision. But there are still some sites you hide shipping information to the last minute, which tends to discourage my purchases. I don't know if I'm alone in this regard, but after making so many purchases I realized I had my credit card number memorized, expiration date and security code included. Then again I tend not to let sites store my credit card number, so I'm always reentering it.
I have no idea why I would order this, but apparently, I just did...well. I did that using the newsletter, but I think I have an idea as to how yours went without the newsletter method. You probably already got an existing account with overstock, and when you look at that particular product, the price is automatically deducted. Well, it's a theory... :)I still don't understand why I bought that!
In times of liquidity crunches, cash is king. One direct example is the necessity to have cash in a market that is contracting. Many in the housing market got a false sense of easy capital without having any capital. They operated under the other people's money (OPM) model of investing. In addition, they somehow mistook credit with capital. That is many folks saw their home with zero equity or their leased car as an asset when in fact, it was a drain on their wealth.
In addition, cash provides the leverage needed to buy deals in shifting markets. Buy low and sell high is easier said than done. Having the fortitude to withstand market mania and not becoming too pessimistic when blood is in the streets. With the amount of credit floating in our economy, couldn't agree more that having liquid capital is a safety net for many folks.
Dr. Housing Bubble
Or, you could check out this free offering from wisebread: DIY Mortgage Acceleration, http://www.wisebread.com/diy-mortgage-acceleration. Some may consider it phenomenal.
I can't believe some of the blanket statements being posted here.
A vast majority of us live beyond our means. Personal bankruptcies are a common occurence these days. Huge credit card debt is a norm in most households. Personal savings are at historic lows. Financial products and matters are significantly more complex and confusing than they were even 10 years ago.
To claim that everyone should buy term insurance and index funds is not only iresponsible, but absolutely ludicrous.
If financial planning is so easy that a caveman can do it, then why are so many North Americans in such terrible financial shape.
I find Shawns comment particularily ironic given that he posted his comments on a web site that teaches you how to be cheap/frugal.
Nora,
I was totally excited to see this and bought a similar game after doing some browsing on amazon. Thanks!
Nice to see some fans.
I think it's a special magazine that tells it like it is; and if that means that sometimes there is a dark side to a story, then I think it's relevant and important. For me, that's part of gaining perspective.
If part (or all) of the reason we're here is to learn more about ourselves, to find meaning in our lives and maybe help others along the way, then I'd say that pretty much sums up the overall theme of 'The Sun'.
We, too, have been Sun subscribers for several years, although originally I used to make a monthly ritual of purchasing it at a local bookstore and reading much of it right there in the adjacent coffee shop.
The Sun's content - stories, interviews, articles, photos, and poems - touches many shared experiences and concerns, and also, with its "Readers Write" section, it is wonderfully interactive.
Some readers have accused the Sun of leaning to the dark side, as does my wife, who nevertheless reads it as thoroughly as I do.
We both look forward to each new issue.
On spring break in March, I went with some college friends to scuba dive in Florida. I was having ear pain, so I went to a local clinic, where the doctor diagnosed an infection and prescribed antibiotics. I paid $80 on the spot and left.
Two months later I got a bill from them. For a visit by somebody else in April, which they had put on my record. I wrote back and politely explained that I was a college student and had only been in Florida for one week in March, therefore it was impossible that I had visited their clinic in April.
They sent me a nasty last-chance letter threatening to turn me over to the collectors. For an $80 bill for a visit I never made. I replied with an even nastier note threatening them with my (phantom) laywer and never heard from them again.
But seriously? I write a letter from an out-of-state address, explaining that I'm out of state and you made an error, and you threaten me with a collection agency?!
I've sat in on interviews and debriefs with hundreds of hiring managers and they are just as unique and quirky as the candidates. From the most balanced, let's consider everything approach to the most narrow, "Did you see her shoes!?" approach, I've seen it all.
Just be yourself. Hiring managers actually DO like to see evidence of your personality in your resume, and especially your cover letter, but it is impossible to predict whether they will hire you or convict you based on that evidence.
What to do? Network! Your people know people that like people like your people. :)
Jill
.... my goal is freedom. I want the freedom to leave a job I don't like, to take advantage of a time-sensitive opportunity (like visiting my sister during the three years she lived in a foreign country), to not have breakdowns or other bad financial surprises be devastating, etc.
Well said Debbie, that I think sums up how my wife and I feel, frugality isn't about saving money or getting things cheap but finally breaking the cycle of never ending financial crisis's. It seems we do good for a while and then whamo we get hit again. Frugal living means we can forever put that behind us.
Of course the positive side is you get to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.
Supercharge Your Mortgage is a totally self directed, step by step mortgage equity accelerator program. The book on CD is in "Point and Click" page turning format and comes complete with easy to use interactive calculators to track your equity growth. The Phenominal Program That Enables Mortgage Free Home Ownership! Change Your Life Forever“Supercharge Your Mortgage”, the system that is mathematically proven to work! It cannot fail! Whether you've had your mortgage for 1 month or over 20 years, it works! If you have a fixed rate, adjustable rate or interest only loan, it works! If you have a Conventional, VA or FHA loan it works! Just refinanced your home or making bi-weekly payments? It works! No matter what kind of home loan you have, if you are making a house payment, "Supercharge Your Mortgage" will work for you! Find it at http://www.SuperchargeYourMortgage.com or Amazon Books has it..
Smile while you say--
Can you do a little better on this price?
Is this your best price?
Is there a discount I can have?
If I take two [--which I meant to do anyway--], can you give me a discount?
Clothing: Can you get your manager to give me a discount?
In flea markets: Don't buy right away. Leave. Come back. Offer to buy in terms of what you will give: I'll give you ten dollars for this.
I almost always receive a discount.
:-)
Very postmodern indeed.
"The Sun is to publishing what Ben and Jerry's is to ice cream and A Prairie Home Companion is to radio: quietly revolutionary, selectively anachronistic, unfashionably idealistic."
Can't go wrong with Home Prairie.
Using the newsletter it worked for me too! Not that I really have a use for pearls, but for $3 how could I not?
The offer is still working - just signed up for the newsletter and $2.95 plus 5-10 days later I will have a lovely necklace. :) After I receive the goods I will just cancel the newsletter. Thanks!
I like the pay-for-performance business model the best (% of assets isn't perfect but it does link the advisor's interest with the client's interest). It would seem that any model could work, but in practice the performance model should make the most sense (though I have talked to a few in that realm who only dealt with high-net worth clients so to a certain extent, getting the business/landing the account rather than giving great advice was key to their success). The fee for service should also make lots of sense but Ameriprise, for instance, which offered such an arrangement to clients has just settled a class-action lawsuit for claims that its agents dispensed standard advice and sold it as customized: http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/settlements/08127/standardized-advice.html?ref=newsletter_bca_standardized-advice
So, you might see, why some people choose to go it alone; though sound advice is invaluable, it's often extremely difficult to find.
I went the newsletter route. Way cool. Thanks!
There may be a reasonable alternative to paid-up insurance, such as investments in the child's name that may yield a higher return.