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The cultural shift toward financial security

This article is by staff writer Kristin Wong.

In the past few months, I’ve had a noteworthy number of conversations about the trend toward frugality. More of my friends seem interested in finding ways to save, I can’t throw a rock at the Internet without hitting a money-saving “hack,” and, during a job interview, I had a lengthy discussion about how “personal finance is now trendy.”

Get Rich Slowly reader and money blogger Mrs. PoP noticed it too, and wrote about it on her blog:

“Recently I’ve begun to notice something a bit unusual. An interest in personal finance seems to be becoming more common, and dare I say, trendy… Maybe I’m just drawn to [friends'] comments because of our own interest in personal finance. But maybe, there’s also a chance that personal finance — in a non-gimmicky way — is actually starting to be ‘cool’.”

How will the new Small Business Capital Act affect you?

This article is by staff writer William Cowie.

Amid the hubbub of stock-market activity last week, the House of Representatives quietly approved a new law giving Wall Street an exclusive monopoly on funding for smaller businesses – including even your little side hustle. Sponsored by Stephen Fincher (R-Tenn.), it goes by the innocuous-sounding name of “H.R.3623 – Improving Access to Capital for Emerging Growth Companies Act.” (As with all U.S. legislation, you can find all the details on the official Congress website: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/hr3623-113/show.) There was enough support, apparently, to allow the bill to pass to the Senate for the next step in its passage.

What’s the value of work-life balance?

This article is by staff writer Honey Smith.

I was really struck by Kristin Wong’s recent article “Overwork and the illusion of a ‘high-paying’ job.” It’s not something that I’ve had to deal with personally, though I’ve seen people close to me wrestle with it. As an attorney, Jake makes a six-figure salary at his new job, but probably works 80+ hours in a week.

While this is undoubtedly tough (on his health, on his personal relationships, on his sanity), it’s also the norm in his industry. He tried going out on his own for awhile, but it turned out that he didn’t really work any less. He just spent his time on different things, primarily administrative tasks. And he was making less than half as much.

Reader Stories: The Notebook (Part 1)

Jim, a reader of our Facebook page, shared some of his personal finance journey in Facebook comments a while back, and readers commented that they’d like to hear his story. 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 1.

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: How many wedding gifts should you buy?

This article is by staff writer April Dykman.

Earlier this week, I wrote about the problem with trying to buy the perfect gift. Sticking with that gift theme, there’s a question that’s been on my mind: If you’re invited to an engagement party, a bridal shower, and a wedding ceremony all for the same couple, and you attend all three, do you give a gift at each event?

See, I’ve been invited to a few weddings this year. And it seems like the etiquette “experts” all agree that each event requires a separate gift, according to tradition. Here are some examples from around the web:

How you, too, can DRIP with cash!

This article is by staff writer William Cowie.

In my previous post, I listed three things you need to start investing. Number three was opportunities. Sometimes those opportunities are unique, one-off types of things; however, they can just as easily be something that’s always been out there but you just weren’t aware of them because you weren’t paying attention to investing.

Let’s explore one of those little-known opportunities — one that’s legit, good, and yet often overlooked because it’s a little, well, boring. It’s name, DRIP, doesn’t help either.

DRIP stands for Dividend Reinvestment Program. Simply put, participating companies (and there are hundreds) allow you to use the dividends you earn from them to buy stock directly from the company for little or no commission. (That’s how you reinvest your dividends.)

No, credit cards are not evil

This article is by staff writer Holly Johnson.

A little over a month ago, my husband and I were getting ready for a five-night trip to Jamaica. And as usual, we went to great lengths to budget for anything and everything. For starters, all but $97 of our airfare was paid with points I earned with my Chase Ink Bold Business Card, and that expense was taken care of months before. The fact that we were staying in an all-inclusive resort also meant that I didn’t have to budget for meals either, an added perk. The only expenses left to consider: round-trip transportation to and from the resort and money for tips. Once that was taken care of, I looked forward to a week of fun, mojitos, and beach time with my best friend.

When bad weather attacks

The problem with the “perfect” gift

This article is by staff writer April Dykman.

When it comes to gift-giving, I like to buy gifts that are exciting, maybe something that the recipient wouldn’t necessarily buy themselves because it’s not practical.

In fact, I so enjoy finding the perfect gift that I even have secret Amazon gift lists for my family members. When I come across something I think they’d like, I add it to their list for future gift-giving occasions. (Sound crazy? I got your crazy. I also have a “Gangsta Wrap” Pinterest board full of gift-wrapping ideas, so who’s crazy now? Oh yeah, still me…)

Why we aren’t saving for our children’s college educations

This article is by staff writer Lisa Aberle.

For a few years, I got to skip Dave Ramsey’s Baby Step 5. Save for our children’s college education? That was an easy one…since we didn’t have children, that answer was NO!

But now we have two kids (soon to be three), which means our days of delaying that decision are over. And since our oldest child is ten, we’ve already missed out on a decade of compounding.

Most personal finance experts, including Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman, recommend saving for your children’s college education only when your own financial house is in order. If you still have student loans, credit card debt, or anemic retirement savings, it’s much better to get yourself out of that hole.

Now casting: Money-help TV show

A few weeks ago, a TV producer in California reached out to us for help casting their cable TV show. They’re looking for a couple who are at a financial crossroad and need advice from a professional. (They don’t say who the “renowned money expert” is.) Obviously, you’ll need to open the books on your finances for this show. In return, you’ll get a plan for resolving your financial issue.

If you’re interested in participating, here’s the contact information and details.

Email castingfinance@gmail.com

In the email, provide:

  • Couple’s name
  • Contact number
  • Email address
  • City and state
  • Recent couple photo

And if you’re chosen for the show, we want to hear about it!