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Another visit with the real Millionaire Next Door

Note: This article is from J.D. Roth, who founded Get Rich Slowly in 2006. J.D.’s non-financial writing can be found at More Than Money, where he recently wrote about how to be happy.

It was sunny last Friday afternoon, so I decided to go for a ride. Because Kim has been riding motorcycles all her life, I took a training class last August and now own a used Honda Rebel. When the weather’s nice in Portland, I like to do my errands on the bike so that I build skills and confidence.

Ask the Readers: What benefits have you seen from the Affordable Care Act?

This article is by editor Linda Vergon.

The healthcare landscape has certainly changed in the two years since J.D. asked “What Do You Want to Know About the Economics of Health Care?” back in August 2012. Now that the Affordable Care Act is being implemented, we’d like to hear what your experience has been so far and what benefits you’ve seen.

The power of profit margin

Note: This article is from J.D. Roth, who founded Get Rich Slowly in 2006. J.D.’s non-financial writing can be found at More Than Money, where he recently wrote about how to be happy.

After six months of work, my guide about becoming the Chief Financial Officer of your own life is ready for launch! Be Your Own CFO will be released on April 22. Over the next couple of weeks at Get Rich Slowly, I’ll share some background on this project, including excerpts and outtakes. Today, for instance, I’ll give you a taste of what I’ve written about the importance of profit.

The cure for vacation deprivation: A vacation budget

After a long and brutal winter in parts of the U.S., warmer temperatures and sunshine are finally heading our way. And, although it doesn’t seem possible, an entire quarter of this year is behind us already. In most places, schools are out of session — at least for a few weeks — which means that families are taking their first major hiatus of the year. And everyone seems to be on Spring Break … except for you.

Cultivate your X-factor before it’s too late

This article is by staff writer Sam. Sam spent 13 years working in Equities on Wall Street and discusses financial independence strategies on Financial Samurai. Sam is also the founder of the Yakezie Network, the largest personal finance blog network on the web.

Out of the 500 or so college graduates I interviewed over a 13-year period, practically every candidate was extremely enthusiastic about getting their butts kicked working 14-hour days in finance. When you can crack the six-figure mark after your first full year, why not bear torture to get ahead, right? Just don’t tell them they are working below minimum wage if you go by an hourly rate.

Breaking the credit score code

This article is by staff writer April Dykman.

When it comes to our credit, the experts have a long list of things we should be doing.  For example, we should:

  • Know our credit score

  • Work to improve our credit score, if needed

  • Request our free annual credit reports from each of the major agencies

  • Review them and dispute any errors

The problem is that most of us aren’t doing these things, at least, not consistently. As the American Bankers Association recently found, 56 percent of people do not know what their credit score is:

Spending less than you earn so the Joneses don’t keep up with you

This article is by staff writer Lisa Aberle.

Why spend less than you earn?

There are the obvious reasons. Spending more than you earn isn’t sustainable, of course. You can’t build your net worth unless you spend less than you earn. And spending less than you earn decreases your stress level.

But is there another reason to spend less than you earn … something that doesn’t benefit you at all?

Keeping up with the Joneses is a concept frequently mentioned on personal finance blogs. In fact, not keeping up with them is often heralded as one of the first steps toward turning your financial life around. And keeping your life headed in the right direction.

Reader Stories: The Notebook (Part 2)

Jim, a reader of our Facebook page, shared some of his personal finance journey in Facebook comments a while back. We reached out and asked him if he would elaborate so we could share his story with the Get Rich Slowly website readers. This is Part 2.

Some reader stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks with all levels of financial maturity and income. Want to submit your own reader story? Here’s how.

Ask the Readers: What’s on your personal finance syllabus?

This article is by staff writer Kristin Wong.

Happy Financial Literacy month!

I’ll be honest. Four or five years ago, “financial literacy” meant nothing to me. I was far from being financially literate, and I didn’t really understand why it was important. I’ve always been pretty good at being frugal. But I never truly understood it. And I never understood just how much there is to learn in order to achieve financial security and, ultimately, financial independence.

In 2011-ish, somehow I became more interested in my finances. A few things were responsible for this change:

The 10 habits of financially successful people

Note: This article is from J.D. Roth, who founded Get Rich Slowly in 2006. J.D.’s non-financial writing can be found at More Than Money, where he recently wrote about the relationship between action and fear.

A couple of weeks ago, a reporter from Kiplinger interviewed me about financial habits. “Do you think there are specific habits that make certain people more successful with money than others?” she asked.