Elance.com is a great place to find VA's. I also have had some success on Twitter finding people to help out with projects. the best way of course is through recommendations.
This is an outstanding idea when you're working from home. As much as working from home seems like a dream arrangement, one of the real negatives is that when you get busy, or really need to concentrate on a major project, there's no one to hand the extra work off to. And you generally can't afford or don't have enough work to keep an employee on a regular basis.
I find it offensive that in this day of so many Americans losing their jobs with little hope of reemployment that you would publish this article that promotes outsourcing to India among other countries. Outsourcing overseas has been one of the biggest robbers of jobs for the American worker for decades, just to satisfy corporate bottom line costs, and you, of all people, shouldn't be talking out of both sides of your mouth in claiming to help the American people.
Great article. We are a 1-car family and are lucky enough to be in a position to have some cash that was given to us. Should we pay off our single car, or invest the cash instead? Our APR on the car is not great... Can't remember it off the top of my head, but I doubt we could make a higher or even equal return if we invested for the same amount of time that we have remaining on our loan...
We actually enjoy playing the game a whole lot, as has everyone we've shared it with. As a game, it's quite good.
(And, I've played it with kids I used to tutor in math so it's not too complicated to be a game.)
Debbie M wrote: "First, the game is extremely biased. You cannot make more money by getting a higher paying job or reducing your expenses, for example."
That's partly true, but that's the point of the game. The game absolutely connects lowering expenses to getting ahead, but the point is that a higher paying job sucks you further into the rat race and tends to make your expenses higher. The game wants you to internalize that low income/low expenses is a more flexible starting position. Whether or not you believe that message is one thing, but that's the game's message and I think it does a good job of promoting that message.
While Kiyosaki may have been discredited himself, some of the basic advice (not thinking of your house as an asset, generating "passive" income, building a business not just creating a job for yourself as a self-employed person) really changed the way we saw our financial situation.
Granted, I'm sure a lot of that had to do with the fact that his books were #1 best sellers right at the time we started to get serious about entrepreneurship/personal finance. His were "the" books to read at the time, and there was good advice to be found in them. We also were influenced heavily by "Your Money or Your Life" and "Free Parking" so we were getting a lot of good ideas right around the same time. (If you're put off by Kiyosaki himself, do check out those other 2 books. They're older, but they're great.)
"It also promises to change the way you think about money forever, which will ultimately get you out of the rat race and into a life of financial freedom."
It sounds so corny, but this is exactly the experience we had, as a culmination of the variety of personal finance books we'd read, our decision to move to the middle of nowhere and buy a house for less than my parents spent on their minivan. It's true that it's difficult for money to be totally passive, but having bought enough rental properties (again, in cheapie-land, but where most people rent houses instead of apartments) to justify paying a property manager, we're well on our way to the income being quite passive.
I do credit the game for giving us a particular "a ha!" moment, but we had also already planned a crazy lifestyle change, so we weren't in "this is just a game and it won't ever work in real life" mode to begin with. We were playing the game with the intention of living it, and that's pretty much what happened. Had we not been already primed to change our lifestyle, then it probably would have felt just like playing Monopoly. (Although, I find this game much more fun than Monopoly.)
Certainly it's not worth the cost for everyone (and you don't even want to know what it sold for in Canada at its prime!) but if you get a chance to play someone else's, I'd take it.
and I haven't seen anything getting better, my markets aren't loosening yet and I'm still losing my job at the end of the year - and I consider myself lucky that they let me go part time till then rather than a straight layoff.
My husband had to take a job he didn't want that paid lower than he made at his prior position (prior company shut down) and doesn't involve his MBA, which he just graduated with. He couldn't take the time to find a job that did utilize his MBA since my job wasn't secure.
We're in a good place though, no debt other than a mortgage which we refi'd to a low rate, savings, good health plan and we started being frugal before any of this happened to the economy or us. I've trimmed our monthly expenses where I could (and these are real cuts not superficial ones), we don't eat out, we grow most of our food, we have laying hens, the goal is to be able to live on his salary as best we can because who knows how long it will take for me to find another job (markets have frozen up in my industry).
I feel good (and not denied) about what we've done though - we have discovered the joy in living a simple life. I agree with the poster who said 10 years of these 'doldrums'. I think that's where we'll be too.
Well the book i am writing is a travel tips book, dedicated to helping save money when visiting costa rica. Its called Tips for Costa Rica and my husband and I were inspired to write it when travelling this beautiful country. We both live in Costa Rica, and we have a lot more insight and inside info than the other travel guides, because we have to be careful with our money every day.
People just don't understand how much money cost in the long run. Opportunity cost... once it is spent ... it is no longer available. Make sure you need things before you buy them. There are not enough storage buildings to hold all of the stuff... things.. junk
Excellent article! Thank you. Glad to see one more person in the world looking toward sustainability. We have been using rainwater from the roof here to water the vegetable garden for 2 years. It works and works well. A biological sand filter (often called a biosand filter or slow sand filter) in conjunction with a first flush diverter will produce pure water from most rooftop runoff. (There are some exceptions). A system can be put together by the average person that will make use of the water that runs off of their roof. As people begin to realize the advantages of capturing rainwater from rooftops, laws will change - they already have in Colorado. Our website (see homepage) has all the info. The water from our system has been tested by an EPA approved lab numerous times and checks out fine, plus it contains no toxic residue from chlorine or ozone, and no fluoride.
Dave
The book would be about how to secure your own financial future as a single person. I''m a big believer in controlling your own destiny. topics would include starting saving early, buy and hold strategies, low-cost index mutual funds, envisioning your retirement early and eliminating debt asap.
The book would be titled "Financing Fun and Adventure" and it would discuss being a kid with a credit card and the dangers of racking up debt young as well as living abroad and finding the balance between the value and cost of exploration.
Excellent article. The optimists, those people in the "know",who are telling us that the worst is over, are the same people who failed to recognize the financial tsunami that has become a nightmare for millions and millions around the world. I will forever take what these "experts" say with a grain of salt.
As a new home owner, I believe this is a good idea. This water can definately used for different chores in and around the house. Currently my house has aluminium gutters which I believe will harvest less toxic water. I will have to do more research on the subject.
My book title would be "Pay Your Bills On Time!" but it would be a very short book since I am not one to mince words. I wish people would just use common sense sometimes...
I would also love to write the "anti-Shopaholic" book since I'm sick of that sort of chick lit but that's another story.
@MrsCasanova - Thank you for the comment! Glad the article was useful.
@Guest (#2) - I am sorry if this article is a painful reminder of a less-than-ideal situation that you are evidently experiencing as a result of the economy. I must note that not all people in all the countries who read Wise Bread are feeling the financial pinch as much as others, and I try to write timeless pieces geared towards many applicable Wise Bread demographics. I think you will still find that Wise Bread publishes a number of articles that will still be very useful for you at this time.
@Raghuram Molla - Absolutely - if we could live off our lowest earnings, that would always be ideal. But with a truly variable freelance income, sometimes this is just not possible. Although the low income month numbers I chose for the example might be workable for some people, there are almost always months when it is not possible (as @Connie #6 points out).
@Kevin (#4) and Guest (#5) - Great discussion about what is required to live a retirement lifestyle. This is different for everybody, but it is indeed true that many of the expenses (both fixed and elective) disappear in retirement, depending on the choices we make.
@Connie - You bring up a valuable point; how do we deal with the zero months? This is partly why having a little history to rely on for determing your low income months is valuable. If your income swings wildly from $0 to $20k (as can happen), then being vigilant about squaring away the excess on the good months is crucial. You can still set a baseline automatic contribution schedule that you think you can handle (even over a stretch of $0 income months), since you will have money set aside to cover it, and you can continue to make manual contributions too. It is a matter of knowing yourself and how you specifically manage your finances.
Growing up in an artist's family meant I was surrounded by financially strapped folk who lived imaginatively. They pursued what they loved, interacted with stimulating people, and created beauty around themselves. Many consider this life the prerogative of the rich. Not so. It's a matter of discovering and embracing the possibilities.
At least it isn't getting worse. That is something to celebrate. I've never been the domestic type, I like eating out and travel. The recession trapped me in a place I don't want to live with no means of survival other than unsteady freelance work. I learned how to be frugal, how to cook at home, how to cut corners in some places. Though my haircare and skincare products are still as pricey, there's no way to cut corners there as I have learned the hard way when I tried it and woke up with a face full of zits and unruly, uncombable hair.
I learned the value of the clearance rack, how some people had to survive without getting clothes except for every six months including me now, how to take care of my things since there was no way to replace them, and how to be assertive to get what I need.
Now that the economy is recovering, we can celebrate! Even if it's slow at least we know we've survived the worst of it and there will never be another Bush in office. All of the pain is almost over and we may just finally get free health care. There's a lot we can hope for now.
I think it would be reasonable to let a sales associate, store owner, or manager that you are interested in a piece but want to snap photos of high-dollar items -- at least that would be the approach I'd take.
And being able to bring in photos of parts to DIY stores rather than bringing in items (which could seem as if you took the parts of the shelves and then removed their tags) could save you some trouble from security -- though I have heard the recommendation to take items to the customer service desk first to show that you are bringing items in rather than taking them out.
Title: Financial Independence Via Barnes and Noble
I was on fire after reading Terhorst's book, "Cashing Out..", Robins & Dominquez's "Your Money or Your Life", and "Rich Dad, Poor Dad", as well as all of Amy Daczsyn's (sp?) stuff: I paid off my mortgage, set up passive income as outlined by Dominquez, did everything " by the books" and was able to go to a celebratory luncheon when I was laid off from my job, go back to school to "finally" get my degree,( just for myself), drop in and out of the job market when I was interested in a particular project (software engineering), take care of my mother's needs in her final decline, and just in general lead a very flexible, low-stress life -
Elance.com is a great place to find VA's. I also have had some success on Twitter finding people to help out with projects. the best way of course is through recommendations.
This is an outstanding idea when you're working from home. As much as working from home seems like a dream arrangement, one of the real negatives is that when you get busy, or really need to concentrate on a major project, there's no one to hand the extra work off to. And you generally can't afford or don't have enough work to keep an employee on a regular basis.
Greg, Thanks for the "how to" on it.
I find it offensive that in this day of so many Americans losing their jobs with little hope of reemployment that you would publish this article that promotes outsourcing to India among other countries. Outsourcing overseas has been one of the biggest robbers of jobs for the American worker for decades, just to satisfy corporate bottom line costs, and you, of all people, shouldn't be talking out of both sides of your mouth in claiming to help the American people.
An attitude that salesclerks are only in it for the money contributes to treatment of them that is disrespectful and mean.
Sounds like the young clerk here had only a few years on your daughter and was probably just as excited about the new product as your daughter.
Doesn't mean that you shouldn't encourage strong boundaries, but at the same time you need to remind her that the clerk is just human, too.
Great article. We are a 1-car family and are lucky enough to be in a position to have some cash that was given to us. Should we pay off our single car, or invest the cash instead? Our APR on the car is not great... Can't remember it off the top of my head, but I doubt we could make a higher or even equal return if we invested for the same amount of time that we have remaining on our loan...
Re # 12. Write a letter: My daughter has written a cute, cute letter to my folks. I have to remember to mail it.
-- copy the letter before you mail it so that you can look at it later!
We actually enjoy playing the game a whole lot, as has everyone we've shared it with. As a game, it's quite good.
(And, I've played it with kids I used to tutor in math so it's not too complicated to be a game.)
Debbie M wrote: "First, the game is extremely biased. You cannot make more money by getting a higher paying job or reducing your expenses, for example."
That's partly true, but that's the point of the game. The game absolutely connects lowering expenses to getting ahead, but the point is that a higher paying job sucks you further into the rat race and tends to make your expenses higher. The game wants you to internalize that low income/low expenses is a more flexible starting position. Whether or not you believe that message is one thing, but that's the game's message and I think it does a good job of promoting that message.
While Kiyosaki may have been discredited himself, some of the basic advice (not thinking of your house as an asset, generating "passive" income, building a business not just creating a job for yourself as a self-employed person) really changed the way we saw our financial situation.
Granted, I'm sure a lot of that had to do with the fact that his books were #1 best sellers right at the time we started to get serious about entrepreneurship/personal finance. His were "the" books to read at the time, and there was good advice to be found in them. We also were influenced heavily by "Your Money or Your Life" and "Free Parking" so we were getting a lot of good ideas right around the same time. (If you're put off by Kiyosaki himself, do check out those other 2 books. They're older, but they're great.)
"It also promises to change the way you think about money forever, which will ultimately get you out of the rat race and into a life of financial freedom."
It sounds so corny, but this is exactly the experience we had, as a culmination of the variety of personal finance books we'd read, our decision to move to the middle of nowhere and buy a house for less than my parents spent on their minivan. It's true that it's difficult for money to be totally passive, but having bought enough rental properties (again, in cheapie-land, but where most people rent houses instead of apartments) to justify paying a property manager, we're well on our way to the income being quite passive.
I do credit the game for giving us a particular "a ha!" moment, but we had also already planned a crazy lifestyle change, so we weren't in "this is just a game and it won't ever work in real life" mode to begin with. We were playing the game with the intention of living it, and that's pretty much what happened. Had we not been already primed to change our lifestyle, then it probably would have felt just like playing Monopoly. (Although, I find this game much more fun than Monopoly.)
Certainly it's not worth the cost for everyone (and you don't even want to know what it sold for in Canada at its prime!) but if you get a chance to play someone else's, I'd take it.
and I haven't seen anything getting better, my markets aren't loosening yet and I'm still losing my job at the end of the year - and I consider myself lucky that they let me go part time till then rather than a straight layoff.
My husband had to take a job he didn't want that paid lower than he made at his prior position (prior company shut down) and doesn't involve his MBA, which he just graduated with. He couldn't take the time to find a job that did utilize his MBA since my job wasn't secure.
We're in a good place though, no debt other than a mortgage which we refi'd to a low rate, savings, good health plan and we started being frugal before any of this happened to the economy or us. I've trimmed our monthly expenses where I could (and these are real cuts not superficial ones), we don't eat out, we grow most of our food, we have laying hens, the goal is to be able to live on his salary as best we can because who knows how long it will take for me to find another job (markets have frozen up in my industry).
I feel good (and not denied) about what we've done though - we have discovered the joy in living a simple life. I agree with the poster who said 10 years of these 'doldrums'. I think that's where we'll be too.
Well the book i am writing is a travel tips book, dedicated to helping save money when visiting costa rica. Its called Tips for Costa Rica and my husband and I were inspired to write it when travelling this beautiful country. We both live in Costa Rica, and we have a lot more insight and inside info than the other travel guides, because we have to be careful with our money every day.
thanks for this post!
http://www.tipsforcostarica.com
Good blog here, very true what you said about the "attitude adjustment". Take care!
People just don't understand how much money cost in the long run. Opportunity cost... once it is spent ... it is no longer available. Make sure you need things before you buy them. There are not enough storage buildings to hold all of the stuff... things.. junk
Thanks for the articles! I'll definately read some of them!
There's a lot of personal finance writing about managing cash flow, but not much about actual finance. Thank you for getting this out there.
Excellent article! Thank you. Glad to see one more person in the world looking toward sustainability. We have been using rainwater from the roof here to water the vegetable garden for 2 years. It works and works well. A biological sand filter (often called a biosand filter or slow sand filter) in conjunction with a first flush diverter will produce pure water from most rooftop runoff. (There are some exceptions). A system can be put together by the average person that will make use of the water that runs off of their roof. As people begin to realize the advantages of capturing rainwater from rooftops, laws will change - they already have in Colorado. Our website (see homepage) has all the info. The water from our system has been tested by an EPA approved lab numerous times and checks out fine, plus it contains no toxic residue from chlorine or ozone, and no fluoride.
Dave
Flying Solo to the Finish Line
The book would be about how to secure your own financial future as a single person. I''m a big believer in controlling your own destiny. topics would include starting saving early, buy and hold strategies, low-cost index mutual funds, envisioning your retirement early and eliminating debt asap.
The book would be titled "Financing Fun and Adventure" and it would discuss being a kid with a credit card and the dangers of racking up debt young as well as living abroad and finding the balance between the value and cost of exploration.
"Find a Penny, Pick it Up"
Excellent article. The optimists, those people in the "know",who are telling us that the worst is over, are the same people who failed to recognize the financial tsunami that has become a nightmare for millions and millions around the world. I will forever take what these "experts" say with a grain of salt.
As a new home owner, I believe this is a good idea. This water can definately used for different chores in and around the house. Currently my house has aluminium gutters which I believe will harvest less toxic water. I will have to do more research on the subject.
Thank you for sharing
My book title would be "Pay Your Bills On Time!" but it would be a very short book since I am not one to mince words. I wish people would just use common sense sometimes...
I would also love to write the "anti-Shopaholic" book since I'm sick of that sort of chick lit but that's another story.
@MrsCasanova - Thank you for the comment! Glad the article was useful.
@Guest (#2) - I am sorry if this article is a painful reminder of a less-than-ideal situation that you are evidently experiencing as a result of the economy. I must note that not all people in all the countries who read Wise Bread are feeling the financial pinch as much as others, and I try to write timeless pieces geared towards many applicable Wise Bread demographics. I think you will still find that Wise Bread publishes a number of articles that will still be very useful for you at this time.
@Raghuram Molla - Absolutely - if we could live off our lowest earnings, that would always be ideal. But with a truly variable freelance income, sometimes this is just not possible. Although the low income month numbers I chose for the example might be workable for some people, there are almost always months when it is not possible (as @Connie #6 points out).
@Kevin (#4) and Guest (#5) - Great discussion about what is required to live a retirement lifestyle. This is different for everybody, but it is indeed true that many of the expenses (both fixed and elective) disappear in retirement, depending on the choices we make.
@Connie - You bring up a valuable point; how do we deal with the zero months? This is partly why having a little history to rely on for determing your low income months is valuable. If your income swings wildly from $0 to $20k (as can happen), then being vigilant about squaring away the excess on the good months is crucial. You can still set a baseline automatic contribution schedule that you think you can handle (even over a stretch of $0 income months), since you will have money set aside to cover it, and you can continue to make manual contributions too. It is a matter of knowing yourself and how you specifically manage your finances.
Bohemian Flair on a Budget
Growing up in an artist's family meant I was surrounded by financially strapped folk who lived imaginatively. They pursued what they loved, interacted with stimulating people, and created beauty around themselves. Many consider this life the prerogative of the rich. Not so. It's a matter of discovering and embracing the possibilities.
At least it isn't getting worse. That is something to celebrate. I've never been the domestic type, I like eating out and travel. The recession trapped me in a place I don't want to live with no means of survival other than unsteady freelance work. I learned how to be frugal, how to cook at home, how to cut corners in some places. Though my haircare and skincare products are still as pricey, there's no way to cut corners there as I have learned the hard way when I tried it and woke up with a face full of zits and unruly, uncombable hair.
I learned the value of the clearance rack, how some people had to survive without getting clothes except for every six months including me now, how to take care of my things since there was no way to replace them, and how to be assertive to get what I need.
Now that the economy is recovering, we can celebrate! Even if it's slow at least we know we've survived the worst of it and there will never be another Bush in office. All of the pain is almost over and we may just finally get free health care. There's a lot we can hope for now.
I think it would be reasonable to let a sales associate, store owner, or manager that you are interested in a piece but want to snap photos of high-dollar items -- at least that would be the approach I'd take.
And being able to bring in photos of parts to DIY stores rather than bringing in items (which could seem as if you took the parts of the shelves and then removed their tags) could save you some trouble from security -- though I have heard the recommendation to take items to the customer service desk first to show that you are bringing items in rather than taking them out.
Title: Financial Independence Via Barnes and Noble
I was on fire after reading Terhorst's book, "Cashing Out..", Robins & Dominquez's "Your Money or Your Life", and "Rich Dad, Poor Dad", as well as all of Amy Daczsyn's (sp?) stuff: I paid off my mortgage, set up passive income as outlined by Dominquez, did everything " by the books" and was able to go to a celebratory luncheon when I was laid off from my job, go back to school to "finally" get my degree,( just for myself), drop in and out of the job market when I was interested in a particular project (software engineering), take care of my mother's needs in her final decline, and just in general lead a very flexible, low-stress life -