Money Tips Network

Wise Bread readers are masters at saving more and spending less. You know how to shop smart, how to stretch a budget, and how to find the best deals on just about anything.

But what about when you want to cut loose and relax?

Life, after all, is about balance and having some hobbies is a key component of living a happy, healthy life. If only those hobbies weren't so expensive.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to stay true to your frugal principles and still have a good time in the process. Here are 35 ways to enjoy yourself without breaking the bank. (See also: 20 Free Ways to Relieve Stress)

This article comes from Nate Segall from the Quicken Loans Zing! blog.

Traffic – we despise it, we can’t stand it and we’ll do anything to avoid it. You can catch the morning news before you head out to work, tune in to the traffic updates on the radio – or you can download a traffic application on your smartphone. These apps are here to help you elude bumper-to-bumper driving, accidents and any other annoying traffic hazards. Some of these apps may be better than the rest, but each app has its own advantages, so it’s worth trying them out to see which one you like best. Below are a few of the best apps out there to help you evade that pesky traffic.

WAZE

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.

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’.”

A few weeks ago, someone pulled out a gun and shot four people in a Detroit tax preparer’s office over a late income tax refund. Though such outrageous reactions are rare, thankfully, there is a surprisingly emotional division among people on the issue of whether it is best to aim (no pun intended) for a tax refund or not:

• The “Yes” camp believe it is best to shoot for a refund
• The “No” camp don’t even think about it

Which camp do you think is bigger? The answer might surprise you. In 2011 (the latest available — I know, the IRS isn’t too fast when it comes to updating their stats), a full 78 percent of all individual tax returns received a refund. Clearly the “yes camp” is the greater. The average refund? $2,872.

One topic I see referenced quite often in personal finance books – especially books focused on retirement – is the idea of rebalancing. It’s often discussed as though the writer assumes that the reader knows what rebalancing is, but given the confusion I sometimes see in reader emails, I don’t think the idea of rebalancing is often clear to people.

So, let’s walk step by step through the story of rebalancing. I’m going to look at this with regards to retirement savings, but it’s true for any kind of investments.

It All Starts With Risk

Finding a cheap life insurance policy that offers the right amount of coverage is at the forefront of any first-time buyer’s mind. The same goes for someone who’s simply looking for a better rate.

If you want to get the most affordable life insurance, there are several things you can do to minimize costs. I have six tips to help you find cheap life insurance, which I’ll be sharing with you in this article.

It’s true there are factors you have less control over when it comes to the cost of life insurance, but there’s a lot within your control too.

Here are the 2 basic starting points for getting cheap life insurance:

1. Target a term life insurance policy.
2. Get quotes from multiple providers.

For your convenience, I’ve included a quote tool below so you can find the most affordable life insurance in your area.

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.

Motivation is the better part of getting things done. You can be the most organized person in the world and keep all the lists that you want, but if you can't motivate yourself, you're not going to get anything done. The reverse is also true. Increase your ability to motivate yourself, and you're going to get a metric tonne of things done, from the small tasks that crop up every day to the big ones that make you a superstar on the job and around the house. (See also: Go From Busy to Getting Things Done)

So if all you need is some motivation, where do you find it?