Save $1,000 Challenge

I am not really one for gimicky challenges, especially when they come from an online source. However, with the economy on a downward trend and extreme socialism about to be instituted in the US (if Obama wins), I think it is important for everyone to spend their money in smart ways.  The Save $1,000 in 30 Days Challenge might just help us out.

While a little late starting, the challenge has already offered 4 tips that may or may not inspire you.  The best one I think is packing your lunch for the rest of the week.  Typically, going out to lunch will cost $7, whereas a healtheir lunch can be had from leftovers or a trip to the store for $3.  This will save you $20/wk ($4/ day times five days).

I would encourage everyone to at least take a look at the tips offered.  After all, 54% (315/640) of respondants surveyed are willing to spend an hour per day to save money.  Let’s see how this comes out!

Buy Nothing Day

Black Friday is traditionally the largest shopping day of the year.  Retailers add to the hype with door buster offers and ridiculously early opening hours.  This year it seems that a majority of the retailers will open at 4am!  yes, 4am!  If you are crazy enough to go shopping at that hour, there is definitely something wrong with you!!   Then, to think that in the end, your car is crammed full of stuff that people probably already have and/or don’t need and your credit cards are maxed out, is just wrong.

But, this isn’t a post about crazy shoppers trying to get the last Pizza Elmo or save a few bucks at the expense of lost sleep.  No, this is about the opposite; protesting materialism, consumerism, and insane marketing.  Buy Nothing Day has been increasing in popularity, especially in the UK.  It is very simple, on Black Friday (this year, its November 23rd), don’t buy anything.  You can participate in this protest simply by not participating in the world’s busiest shopping day of the year.

AdBusters.org actually ask you to go one step further and consider a Buy Nothing Christmas.  Before you freak out, read the following quote from their website:

    “Buy Nothing Christmas is not really about refusing to spend a dime over the holiday season. It’s about taking a deep breath and deciding to opt out of the hype‚ the overcrowded malls‚ and the stressful to–do lists. It’s about reminding ourselves to really think about what we are buying‚ why we are buying it‚ and whether we really need it at all.”

Since every Christmas is a Buy Nothing Christmas for me, I will go one step further on Black Friday; not only will I not be buying anything, but I will also not start my car and consume any gas.  If I need to go anywhere, I will walk or ride my bike.

Here are some links to get you started:

Buy Nothing Day UK 

Buy Nothing Day via AdBusters.org 

Components of 21st Century Success

While I was in Texas, I spent a fair amount of time contemplating what success is. Prior to this, I had struggled through college and rushed into a job to pay the bills and found it extremely difficult to find work in my field. I was demoralized. Heck, I couldn’t even get a basic retail job in Texas. So, I started a period of serious reflection and thought hard about what success is and what life was about. More specifically, I formulated the following question which I thought was key:

“What factors are important to living a healthy lifestyle, both mentally and physically, while being successful in the 21st century?”

In July 2005 I made a number of mind maps focused around this topic. The mind map below is a high level look at the basic components of what I felt made success for someone living in the 21st Century. From being in good mental and physical condition to networking with the right people, these are the basic components as I saw them in 2005. This is a reproduction from my notes using a program called Freemind. (click below for the larger image).

Looking at it today, I think I would add a sustainability component along with a mention of goals and the role of music. If you have any feedback regarding the map, please feel free to comment or email me. Note that the above mind map is not to be reproduced without my written permission.

Cheers!

Credit Check Today… Wow!

Just thought I would share the news.  I checked my credit report for the first time in 18 months, today.  I usually try to check it every year, but I just plain forgot about it.  Checking it every year is a good reality check and always makes me stay focused on my debts and motivates me at the same time.

So, how did I do?  Well, the big news since I last checked my credit score is that I payed off my car loan.  I didn’t think this would offset my high revolving credit card balances, which have gone up in recent months.   Boy did I get a surprise. The average of Transunion, Equifax, and Experian was in the high 700′s.  The score has gone up significantly.  The main problem that each report points to is my high revolving “non-mortgage/installment” balances, i.e. credit cards. This I total agree with and have recently reworked my budget to help make paying them off my next big financial goal.  However, the trick is going to be keeping them payed off.   Wish me luck!

On a side note, I always use myFico to check my credit report.  They have been great and are well worth the $47.85 cost for the three detailed reports.  My brother swears by freecreditreport.com, but I’ve heard some not so great things about them.  One thing I don’t like is the fact that you only get your Experian score for free and still have to pay for the other two.  For me, Experian was the highest where as Transunion was the lowest. The difference puts me into two different interest rate categories, which could mean thousands of dollars in the long run.

Net Worth, as of October 2007

I finally bit the bullet and forced myself to sit down and calculate my net worth. After tallying both of my credit cards, student loans, and various retirement accounts, I have a number and it was not as painful as I thought.

Net Worth = -$13,526.46

Yeah, its negative, but you know, I am not as bad as other people I have seen. Most of this is student loan debt with a 1.75% interest rate. My projections indicate that at the current rate of payments, I will eliminate all debt in 3.42 years! Hopefully with proper budgeting and a little discipline I will be able to eliminate it sooner. All it takes is simple motivation.

One note, the average net worth for someone of my age is $2,125. That means that I am $15,652 below average. Man… that sucks. Welcome to my reality!!

Those pesky receipts…

The other night I was thinking about my large piles of receipts.  Really… I have numerous types of piles too.  I have a stack of overstuffed envelopes, a chinese takeout box overflowing and my “inbox” has some that linger, too.  What the heck do you do with all of them?  Well, I found an interesting discussion of receipt “systems’ over at Fivecentnickel.com, where the blogger posted the same question.  You must read the comments before you continue!

After reading them, it is clear that my collection habit is pretty good, but could use some more discipline.  Only collecting about 95% of the receipts is not good enough since its that other 5% that I usually have a question about.  But what I realized is that the problem is with what you do after you reconcile them.  I really don’t have an effective filing system for receipts, let alone knowing which ones to keep and toss.  I might give some of the techniques posted a try.  Afterall, I really need to be tracking every cent before I can really start getting ahead.

Tough weekend!

This weekend has been an endless experience coping with endless mishaps and near misses.

1) I am house-sitting this weekend and I think the cats hate me.  They are urinating and defecating all over the house.  This happened a few months ago, so much of the furniture is still covered in plastic.  Before the home owner left, she assured me there have been no recent incidents and there is nothing to worry about. However, the cat strikes again.  I wonder if this behavior is due to the cats showing their dissatisfaction with her leaving and me coming on duty.  I can’t wait until the home owner gets back on Monday!

2) Whenever I am driving somewhere, some airhead isn’t paying attention and either cuts me off, turns right in front of me, or just tries to run me off the road.  Do they not see me?  Am I the one that doesn’t get it?

3) My “old” PC died.  No more games or major graphics until I get a replacement. I custom-built it in 2002 and it was top of the line then.  It has been through thick and thin and crossed the US twice.   I already miss it, especially flight simulator. RIP old friend.  I will say that I am not going to build another PC and will replace it with an iMac.

4) It is hot.  For autumn, we are still quite warm.  I have been ready for winter ever since the beginning of summer.  Taking a vacation up to the Pacific Northwest made me appreciate the cooler temperatures.

However, it wasn’t all a bust.  First, I opened my INGDirect Orange savings account today.  This is one important step toward financial freedom, saying goodbye to debt, and planning for the future.  It is nice to accomplish a goal!

Second, I got a new job.  I am with the same company and same department, but am taking a new position with more responsibility doing more or less what I do now.  Of course, the pay is much, much nicer.  The downside is that my commute is going to get longer as I have to move to a building farther away from home!

Cheers!

Kicking Bad Habits Saves Money

There is a very cool article over at the Motley Fool that talks about “soft addictions” and ways to overcome them. (article here)  Like many articles I’ve seen, this 0ne also asks you to review and add up the cost of your premium cable and your daily trip to the coffee shop to save money.  Of course, reviewing your expenses is a great way to cut out the fluff, but it is only part of reality.

This is where the article is a little bit different. When they asked you to write down your expenses every day, they added one key step; go back an hour later and describe how that purchase made you feel.  This I think is really the key to finding soft addictions as a lot of the fluff expenses are emotional.  You buy a latte because you have nervous energy or you shop when you are feeling lonely.   Once you understand the patterns, you can take action to avoid spending money. When you feel lonely, go to the library or take a walk in the park.  If nervous energy is making you have too much coffee,  focus you energy on a new hobby.  In essence, take control, shun consumerism and get out of debt!

While you are at the Motley Fool,  take some time to check out other parts of their website.  They have tons of great information on investing, savings, and money tips.

Cheers!

A Simple Productivity Tip…

A while back I had read a post over at Lifehacker that really intrigued me.  The post talked a productivity tip from Jerry Seinfeld.  The thing was, it was so simple, I had a major Duh! moment. Jerry’s tip was to take a wall calendar with the entire year on it and put it on a prominent wall.  Then take a big red marker and cross out the day everytime he accomplished a task like writing daily. Each time he crossed off a date, he extended a chain of red marks.  The key is not to break the chain.  Simple?  Yep!

For me, my task was to not have more than one cup of decaf coffee per day.  I printed out a calendar I found on the internet, and have been building my chain ever since.  This would be useful for reaching your goals and/or trying to learn something, like SQL.  If I spend 30 minutes each day  studying SQL, then after a few months, I would not only have an impressive chain on my calendar, but I would also have a pretty grasp of SQL.

This would be good for those that are trying to get out of debt and are on a tight budget.  Did you make your budget for that day?  Yes, build the chain.  If not, you broke your chain and have to start all over again.

I encourage everyone to try it.  It is quite motivating!

Paying off Debt… satisfaction.

While debt can be a real burden on the borrower, the flipside is the satisfaction, motivation, and sense of freedom you get when you pay it off.

My top priority goal was to payoff my car loan early, freeing up more cash for other debts and savings.  Well, this past week, I mailed in the payoff for my car loan. Five years and four months after signing on the dotted line, my car is paid for.  I must say that the car feels different; it almost goes down the road that much smoother.

Now I can take the money that was going to the car loan and make a large dent in my credit card and student loan debt.  Paying off the car loan shines a bright light at the end of the tunnel that is now a lot closer.

Wow…  its better than a Snickers bar!