It may sound simple, but investing in a good pair of rain boots was a lifesaver to me. I walk to the train station to commute to work, and one day of working with wet calves was enough for a lifetime. They aren't something I wear every day and I had trouble rationalizing spending the extra money, but I had to walk through a flash flood a few weeks ago and they definitely paid for themselves. With the cold weather coming, I am pleased with my decision to splurge.
The smartest investment I ever made, was buying the townhouse I live in now. A friend talked me into it almost 25 years ago, when I could just barely afford it. Now the payments are really easy and the house has quadrupled in value.
I could survive without my cell phone, but not without a home phone, too. I don't do anything on my phone now, except make and receive calls, get voicemail, rarely text, take pictures, and keep important notes.
Going back to school and obtaining my Bacclaureate degree in Nursing was the best investment I've ever made. Despite the fact that I'm still paying off student loans, I nearly tripled my pre-college degree income after only having been out of college for five years.
The best thing I did for myself was enrolling in college classes while going thru a brutal divorce. It helped boost my sagging self esteem and gave me a reason to leave the house and be around other people. Even tho I was much older than most students and some people were skeptical, I continued to take classes and got 2 associates degrees. What I accomplished by myself cannot be diminished or taken away - I recommend any woman in a bad relationship to do something just for themselves and go back to school.
The smartest investment I ever made was in buying my first house. It was a bit fixer-upper. We improved it and we were able to sell it several years later doubling our initial investment (down payment) and having a place to live during that time.
The two best investments I have made are:
Learning how to cook from scratch. Bulk grains are cheaper and food tastes better when it is made by me. My household is gluten-free and gf prepared food is expensive. I make it, there is no cross contamination, and it is infinitely less expensive.
Learning Spanish. For whatever reason, this country does not embrace bilingualism. By speaking another language I am able to make myself more valuable in the job market.
I've never had a cell phone, and don't plan to get one. Life is better without giving someone the ability to contact you anytime day or night. To me, a cell phone is just one more hunk of junk to tote around. It'll never catch on ... :-)
The smartest investment I've ever made was in my first car. It was the worst vehicle that I have ever owned, which might make it seem like a stupid investment. However, it taught me the value of not skimping on items in which reliability is a requirement. I walked a lot of places, and probably ended up spending at least as much money on repairs over the two years I owned it as I had purchasing the vehicle in the first place. I'm happy I got to learn that on that vehicle when I had very few other financial obligations than I have through vehicles since.
The smartest investment that i ever made was in myself through education. The degree didnt matter so much as the confidence it gave me to go for the job i want and now a promotion
My best return-on-investment has been the nurturing and support that I've provided to my two sons. Today both are capable, skilled and thriving young men. I'm proud of them because they put themselves through school and work hard to stand on their own feet. They're the best investment I've ever made.
The best investment I ever made was owning a house . The reason it was the best investment was that I sold it in 2007 for as high a profit as I would ever get and now I can rent without worrying about home repairs or taxes anymore.
The best investment I ever made is actually one that I make 2-3 times a week - going to dance class! See, I'm one of those girls (can I still call myself a girl when I'm less than a month from 48 years old?) who did what I was supposed to do. I made straight As in school. I practiced piano 45 minutes a day because my mom wanted me to. I went to work, tried to be a good mom, and all those other activities responsible people do. However, about 4 years ago, I discovered something totally unexpected about myself. I went to a Zumba class - solely in an attempt to lose those stubborn last 5 pounds, but something in me changed that day. I discovered that I love to dance. I found a reason to love to sweat. And dance time is sacred. It's my time to let go of all of my stress and all of my expectations for myself...to get out of my head and into my body. To look in the mirror and make eye contact and smile with the other people in my class who finally let go of their self-consciousness and just move to the beat.
It's more than exercise though. Dancing has helped me say "No" to others' expectations for me - without guilt. Dancing has helped me say "Yes" to myself. I'm more likely now to be in tune with my body--resting when I need to, drinking water when I'm thirsty, exulting in what I CAN do instead of lamenting what I can't yet do. Dancing made me realize that my story is not completely written, and that's exciting!
Although some people have ended up with no retirement income besides Social Security—through poor planning or bad luck—no responsible person has ever recommended such a strategy.
My own guiding principle was to organize my own retirement around three main sources of retirement income: my savings and investments (in 401(k)s, IRAs, etc.), a pension (no longer an option for most people), and Social Security. My goal was to arrange things such that I could meet my goals as long as two of those three paid off. I think I was fairly successful, although only time will tell.
My smartest investment was buying a four letter domain name to use to start a literary website in 1995 (just before Yahoo went online). Almost as soon as it was launched, that literary magazine got so much positive attention that it led to me starting my own web design business which allowed me to finally work from home.
Years later, when I didn't feel like maintaining the literary site any more, I was able to sell the domain name for money that was used for the downpayment on a house.
Standard savings account, at a very low (but positive!) interest rate. Automatically insured by the federal govenment, which is better than watching it dwindle away in falling stocks.
My smartest investment was a cheap nickel stock called Time Warner Communications, it was $0.17 ea for a share. Now its worth $25 a share. I should have bought more.
The investment that most paid off for me was and investment of two years working two jobs when it graduated from high school. I worked as a receptionist for a hotel from 11pm-8am 5 days a week in order to pay for school and working part time at one of the computer labs for the community college that I was attending full time. I was able to pull it off and the things i learned during that time have helped me become better and gave me a better idea about what things I wanted for my life.
I agree that Social Security isn't a Ponzi scheme, but there's little doubt that it contains some very big promises that will be difficult to fulfill. In a way, it's best that we prepare for retirement as if it were a Ponzi scheme so we'll be ready for how ever things play out in the future. That means maximizing not only retirement savings, but also non-retirement savings. We should also work to lower expenses and get out and stay out of debt.
We should never have considered Social Security to be the be-all and end-all of retirement, what ever it's financial prospects.
This is perhaps somewhat out there, but my best investment has been my dog. He has taught my husband and I so much about life and about each other. He's taken care of us emotionally when some serious stuff has happened. And, most importantly, he's prepared us to be better parents in a few months.
It may sound simple, but investing in a good pair of rain boots was a lifesaver to me. I walk to the train station to commute to work, and one day of working with wet calves was enough for a lifetime. They aren't something I wear every day and I had trouble rationalizing spending the extra money, but I had to walk through a flash flood a few weeks ago and they definitely paid for themselves. With the cold weather coming, I am pleased with my decision to splurge.
Of course I could, but it's nice to have.
The smartest investment I ever made, was buying the townhouse I live in now. A friend talked me into it almost 25 years ago, when I could just barely afford it. Now the payments are really easy and the house has quadrupled in value.
I could survive without my cell phone, but not without a home phone, too. I don't do anything on my phone now, except make and receive calls, get voicemail, rarely text, take pictures, and keep important notes.
Going back to school and obtaining my Bacclaureate degree in Nursing was the best investment I've ever made. Despite the fact that I'm still paying off student loans, I nearly tripled my pre-college degree income after only having been out of college for five years.
My pool membership. Its an investment in my health. Swimming makes me healthy, feel young and helps me focus more on everything in my life.
The best thing I did for myself was enrolling in college classes while going thru a brutal divorce. It helped boost my sagging self esteem and gave me a reason to leave the house and be around other people. Even tho I was much older than most students and some people were skeptical, I continued to take classes and got 2 associates degrees. What I accomplished by myself cannot be diminished or taken away - I recommend any woman in a bad relationship to do something just for themselves and go back to school.
The smartest investment I ever made was in buying my first house. It was a bit fixer-upper. We improved it and we were able to sell it several years later doubling our initial investment (down payment) and having a place to live during that time.
The two best investments I have made are:
Learning how to cook from scratch. Bulk grains are cheaper and food tastes better when it is made by me. My household is gluten-free and gf prepared food is expensive. I make it, there is no cross contamination, and it is infinitely less expensive.
Learning Spanish. For whatever reason, this country does not embrace bilingualism. By speaking another language I am able to make myself more valuable in the job market.
I've never had a cell phone, and don't plan to get one. Life is better without giving someone the ability to contact you anytime day or night. To me, a cell phone is just one more hunk of junk to tote around. It'll never catch on ... :-)
The smartest investment I've ever made was in my first car. It was the worst vehicle that I have ever owned, which might make it seem like a stupid investment. However, it taught me the value of not skimping on items in which reliability is a requirement. I walked a lot of places, and probably ended up spending at least as much money on repairs over the two years I owned it as I had purchasing the vehicle in the first place. I'm happy I got to learn that on that vehicle when I had very few other financial obligations than I have through vehicles since.
The smartest investment that i ever made was in myself through education. The degree didnt matter so much as the confidence it gave me to go for the job i want and now a promotion
My best return-on-investment has been the nurturing and support that I've provided to my two sons. Today both are capable, skilled and thriving young men. I'm proud of them because they put themselves through school and work hard to stand on their own feet. They're the best investment I've ever made.
The best investment I ever made was owning a house . The reason it was the best investment was that I sold it in 2007 for as high a profit as I would ever get and now I can rent without worrying about home repairs or taxes anymore.
The best investment I ever made is actually one that I make 2-3 times a week - going to dance class! See, I'm one of those girls (can I still call myself a girl when I'm less than a month from 48 years old?) who did what I was supposed to do. I made straight As in school. I practiced piano 45 minutes a day because my mom wanted me to. I went to work, tried to be a good mom, and all those other activities responsible people do. However, about 4 years ago, I discovered something totally unexpected about myself. I went to a Zumba class - solely in an attempt to lose those stubborn last 5 pounds, but something in me changed that day. I discovered that I love to dance. I found a reason to love to sweat. And dance time is sacred. It's my time to let go of all of my stress and all of my expectations for myself...to get out of my head and into my body. To look in the mirror and make eye contact and smile with the other people in my class who finally let go of their self-consciousness and just move to the beat.
It's more than exercise though. Dancing has helped me say "No" to others' expectations for me - without guilt. Dancing has helped me say "Yes" to myself. I'm more likely now to be in tune with my body--resting when I need to, drinking water when I'm thirsty, exulting in what I CAN do instead of lamenting what I can't yet do. Dancing made me realize that my story is not completely written, and that's exciting!
Although some people have ended up with no retirement income besides Social Security—through poor planning or bad luck—no responsible person has ever recommended such a strategy.
My own guiding principle was to organize my own retirement around three main sources of retirement income: my savings and investments (in 401(k)s, IRAs, etc.), a pension (no longer an option for most people), and Social Security. My goal was to arrange things such that I could meet my goals as long as two of those three paid off. I think I was fairly successful, although only time will tell.
i like wisebread on facebook
tweeted http://twitter.com/#!/oshkoshbgosh123/status/116685222686363649
it would be very inconvenient but i think it's doable to live without a cell phone.
My smartest investment was buying a four letter domain name to use to start a literary website in 1995 (just before Yahoo went online). Almost as soon as it was launched, that literary magazine got so much positive attention that it led to me starting my own web design business which allowed me to finally work from home.
Years later, when I didn't feel like maintaining the literary site any more, I was able to sell the domain name for money that was used for the downpayment on a house.
Standard savings account, at a very low (but positive!) interest rate. Automatically insured by the federal govenment, which is better than watching it dwindle away in falling stocks.
My smartest investment was a cheap nickel stock called Time Warner Communications, it was $0.17 ea for a share. Now its worth $25 a share. I should have bought more.
The investment that most paid off for me was and investment of two years working two jobs when it graduated from high school. I worked as a receptionist for a hotel from 11pm-8am 5 days a week in order to pay for school and working part time at one of the computer labs for the community college that I was attending full time. I was able to pull it off and the things i learned during that time have helped me become better and gave me a better idea about what things I wanted for my life.
I agree that Social Security isn't a Ponzi scheme, but there's little doubt that it contains some very big promises that will be difficult to fulfill. In a way, it's best that we prepare for retirement as if it were a Ponzi scheme so we'll be ready for how ever things play out in the future. That means maximizing not only retirement savings, but also non-retirement savings. We should also work to lower expenses and get out and stay out of debt.
We should never have considered Social Security to be the be-all and end-all of retirement, what ever it's financial prospects.
This is perhaps somewhat out there, but my best investment has been my dog. He has taught my husband and I so much about life and about each other. He's taken care of us emotionally when some serious stuff has happened. And, most importantly, he's prepared us to be better parents in a few months.