5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #3: True Savings

April 10, 2009 in Money  

5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #3: True Savings

I think there is a common misunderstanding about saving money. In our consumer society, saving has come to mean spending less, as in “this shirt was on sale so I saved $10.”

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5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #2: Earn With Contentment

April 8, 2009 in Money  

5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #2: Earn With Contentment

You have more control over your spending than your your income, but there are still practical things you can do to help protect and grow your income.

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5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #1: Mindful Spending

April 6, 2009 in Money  

5 Foundations of Personal Finance, #1: Mindful Spending

Shopping is easier than ever. You can compare prices online, find online coupon codes, “windows shop” — you don’t even have to get dressed. Shopping has become a form of entertainment. How do we become mindful of our spending?

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Savings Tip for Online Shopping

March 13, 2009 in Money  

Savings Tip for Online Shopping

Retail Me Not is my way to save a few dollars when I need to shop for something online. It’s a website that provides coupon codes, but the format and reliability is much better than other coupon sites I’ve seen.

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Breaking the Frugal Rules

March 3, 2009 in Money  

Breaking the Frugal Rules

I go out for coffee about three times a week. I usually hesitate to admit that, since the Latte Factor has made coffee the epitome of thoughtless spending.

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Lessons From a Pro: How to Get a Better Deal on Big Purchases

February 23, 2009 in Money  

Bargaining was something I always avoided. I didn’t want to offend anyone. Then I wondered what savings I had missed out on because I had been too nervous to ask for a better price.

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Goodbye Clutter, Hello Cash

January 29, 2009 in Money  

Photo by guldfisken
Do you ever sell your old stuff?
Most of the time, having clutter out of my home is reason enough for me to give something away, without the cash incentive.
It simply feels good to have the stuff gone, like how Taylor mentioned it “gives you a psychological boost,” and kitchendoor said it “feels like losing dead weight.”
Lately we’ve been [...]

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Finding the Motivation to Make a Change

January 5, 2009 in Money  

Photo by JasonGoodger
 
I read an article recently that mentioned the problem with a budget is that it doesn’t give someone the incentive to save money.
It’s not really supposed to. A budget is a tool. It doesn’t make you save money.
A diet plan doesn’t lose weight for you.
A home management notebook doesn’t clean your house.
An alarm clock doesn’t [...]

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Save Money With a “Fun Allowance”

November 3, 2008 in Money  

Photo by dno1967
Looking around at the stores and malls everywhere, it’s easy to see why shopping is one of America’s biggest sources of entertainment.
Carly decided to stop shopping for two weeks as a project for her Sociology class. Her assignment was to make a lifestyle change and observe how it impacted the people around her. She [...]

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$30K to $0: How We Became Debt-Free in One Year

October 13, 2008 in Money  

10 ways we became debt free in one year. How we lived on less, payed off debt, and faced our finances in marriage.

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