Anyone in their 40’s going through what I’m going through? Anyone feel like they’re going through a mid-life crisis? Anyone reminiscing the good ol’ days? Anyone looking at the younger generation and wish we were that young again? Anyone hooked on watching”van life” videos? There are so many things that have been going through my mind and I’m wondering what is going on! Mid-life crisis! I watched movies back in the days where middle aged men would go out and…
Creating multiple income sources can help you reach financial independence which means reaching a state where you have enough income to live off for the rest of your life. Depending on your lifestyle and depending on your goals, how you get to financial independence differs from one person to the other. One might say they want to build as much savings as possible and live off of that. Another might want to get to a state to comfortably replace their…
Rewards programs are great and essential to saving you money! I leverage a number of rewards programs whether for travel, cash back, store credit, or other points. Businesses are competing for your business and will want to keep you shopping with them. Before you commit to a rewards program, keep these in mind before signing up. Will The Business Be Around? A number of businesses are closing during this pandemic because of the economic impacts. If a business files for…
Being diagnosed and living with chronic disease and pain for many years, I realized there’s no better investment than investing in your health. I wrote previously about how to save money by being healthy but it’s not just for money reasons. Living with heath conditions such as chronic disease is miserable. When I was young I thought I was invincible, not going to the doctors regularly, eating whatever I wanted, not taking time to understand nutrition, and not consistently exercising….
The pandemic forced us to change the way we live in so many ways. It’s been a difficult time of change but we have to live with this new normal. From social distancing and distant learning to cancelled trips and vacations, we all had to make changes. What are some of the changes you’ve made that are saving you money? Here are some inexpensive changes I’ve made to help entertain the family at a minimum cost. Play Board Games Pre-pandemic…
I consider myself to be a pretty savvy shopper and I try to find the best deals as much as possible even if it means going with a generic brand. Have you stared a products, a brand name and a store brand, and asked yourself should I go with the less expensive brand? I find myself doing this all the time and my answer to the question is, it depends. It depends on a number of factors and the worst…
The economy has been like a roller coaster, going up and down, up and down due to worries over the pandemic. We are now officially in a recession. The market had a huge loss on 6/11/2020. What has my roller coaster ride been like? As the economy was falling in March 2020, I had a loss of approximately 18% in my investments. That’s a huge hit! As I experienced from the last recession, my thoughts are that the economy will…
Do It Yourself (DIY) projects are a good way to learn some new handy techniques, do some needed fixings, upgrade the aesthetics, and best of all save money that you would have paid someone else to do it. I’ve had my share of DIY projects like house painting, backsplash, hardwood flooring, and plumbing. And there will be DIY tasks that you learn and do on a regular basis like car oil changes, changing filters, patching drywall, and anything else that…
Are you one who likes the latest gadgets or like upgrading to the latest model of anything? Like a car, phone, camera, or computer? An article about the iPhone 12 was posted and I’m sure many people who like iPhones will enjoy the new design and features. You’ve probably seen the images of consumers waiting in long lines. This got me thinking about how can we enjoy the latest models of a phone, car, camera, computer, or any other item…
In a previous post I wrote that I opened up 529 plans for my children during the COVID-19 pandemic when the economy was impacted. I made the decision to open up these accounts because I thought the economy was going to recover and it was a good time to invest. The reason I opened a 529 versus an individual account is because of the potential tax breaks and that the gains are not taxable if used towards education. I didn’t…