I’m a huge fan of lists: to-do lists (yes, I sometimes add things just so I can check them off), best-of lists, pros and cons lists and yes, top 10 lists. Want a reading list to take you through the end of the year? Without further ado, here are my top 10 favorite money-related articles of 2015:
I used to think that the need for Americans to save more was pretty uncontroversial. That was before I read this article called “The pernicious ideology of personal finance scolds.” The author lambasts financial advisors for “scolding people for not saving enough money” and calls the “ideology of savings scolds…ideologically pernicious.” Continue reading “In Defense of “Personal Finance Scolds””
What has been on your reading list so far this summer? Last week, we looked at some recent financial blogs to help add some balance to your summer reading list and hopefully improve your finances along the way. Since I am often asked about recommended personal finance books, I figured why not summarize some books that my colleagues and I have read in the past few years. The good news is that many of these books are located at your local library so you can check them out for free. Continue reading “Welcome to the Financial Finesse Book Club”
I’m not warning you away from cereal, but from ChexSystems – a consumer reporting database used by 80% of financial institutions that determines whether you will be able to open a checking or savings account with a bank or credit union. Any past banking issues within the last 5 years can appear on the report, including overdrafts, unsatisfied negative balances, fraudulent check deposits, or suspicious account activity. Unfortunately, low income individuals who are more susceptible to overdrawing their accounts are often barred from the traditional banking system and forced to use high cost check cashing options or pre-paid debit cards. Continue reading “Stay Off the Chex”
My eight-year old daughter Caroline recently made an observation that in her opinion, I simply don’t read enough. This of course is coming from an up and coming 3rd grader who absolutely loves to read and is currently breezing through J.K. Rowling’s entire Harry Potter series along with countless other books. Although I will acknowledge that I never was a bookworm growing up, it must be noted that her definition of reading does not include financial journals, academic research studies, personal finance blogs, IRS tax code, or financial planning books. I am impressed that my daughter balances her reading preferences and also reads non-fiction books to learn about various topics ranging from history, Bible stories, and Golden doodles. Continue reading “Balancing the Summer Reading List”
With my colleague Greg Ward’s post yesterday about teaching his children the value of a dollar and Father’s Day still in my recent memory, I reflected on what financial lessons my own father passed on to me. After all, he was a former stockbroker and is now a successful investor. Here are some that have stuck with me: Continue reading “Financial Lessons From My Father”
So far I’ve learned a lot about my two oldest children in the last couple of weeks. I’ve learned that Rachel is a spendthrift and sees money as a means to necessities. David, on the other hand, is a value hunter and wants to know that whatever he spends his money on is going to last. Continue reading “A 9 Year Old’s Perspective on Money”
“We can do better” was the phrase I heard in an athlete’s interview. Surprisingly, the words came out of the mouth of three time Olympic volleyball player and two time gold medalist, Kerri Walsh Jennings. Kerri and her partner, Misty May-Treanor, have never even lost one set in two Olympics games – Athens in 2004 and Bejing in 2008 – and they are working toward their third in London. So when I heard the phrase from Kerri, I wondered, how can you do better than never losing a match? How can you do better than gold? How can you do better than being the best in the world? Continue reading “Financial Lessons from Olympic Volleyball Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings”
The Brady Bunch is coming back!!! I was very excited to read about that!!! As a kid, I was a huge Brady Bunch fan and if I see it on when I’m scrolling through the channels, I almost always stop and watch for a little bit. I even think Marcia Brady might have been my first celebrity crush. The show is just an absolute classic. My kids even like it. And, I can still sing the theme song without hesitating on the lyrics. (For your own protection, I absolutely won’t link an MP3 file here so that you can hear my rendition; your ears would bleed…) Continue reading “The Brady Bunch and My Observations On a Younger Generation”
“Is it better to save part of my annual bonus each year for my son’s college or save monthly?” was the question I fielded from a caller to our financial helpline. The image of seven cameras in my downstairs closet popped into my mind. You might ask what a pile of cameras has to do with college funding. A lot actually – in fact the decision making process behind the pile of cameras may be a major determiner of success in saving and investing for college (or any other goal for that matter). Continue reading “What I Learned About College Savings from Being a Hoarder”
I received a helpline call last week that reminded me of why it is so important for all of us to be financially independent. I’m not talking about having so much money that you can do whatever you want, but rather being in a position to manage your own financial affairs if and when the need should arise. Continue reading “The Importance of Being Financially Independent”
Last week I wrote about 2 young men who are living very different lifestyles. One is frugal now and is saving substantial sums of money and the other is living for the day with the assumption that when he gets married and settles down, there will be plenty of time for saving later. As I was writing it, I was reminded of the epic tortoise v. hare race. In the blog post, I raised some questions about the lifestyles and choices that these men are making. Some of those questions are at the very heart of the field of behavioral finance and some of the questions could lead some of us to “judge” the choices that they are making. This is where understanding each guy and how they are “hardwired” regarding financial decisions can be helpful. Continue reading “A Tale of Two Choices Part 2: Which is Right?”
When you look in your mailbox these days, there is some kind of a tax form waiting for you just about every day. Most people simply glance at them to verify there are no mistakes but then they go into the current year’s tax file. After filing taxes, who pulls out their W2 and goes over it with a fine toothed comb? Not too many people I would assume. Most of us are so glad to get our taxes filed and over with that we are done and ready to move on to other things. Continue reading “Don’t Simply File Your W2 – Analyze It!”
You don’t have to look shabby just because you are on a budget. That is exactly what we told my son Rick, I was going to say the family gave him some tips but it was actually more of an intervention than that. Rick was planning a trip to Spain to see his girlfriend who was spending the year abroad – Rick had the money for the plane ticket and got some spending money for Christmas but otherwise is a frugal college student living on a very limited budget. His older brother took him aside and said something like, “You can’t go to Spain to see your girl looking like that – seriously. She is around all the European men and you need to measure up, man.” Continue reading “You Don’t Have to Look Shabby Just Because You are Frugal”
I was reviewing my notes on the last 10 people that I have talked to about debt levels that they feel are overwhelming enough for them to contemplate filing bankruptcy. Along with having high levels of debt, there is something else each of these 10 individuals have in common. Knowledge. They all knew that they were spending more than they were making. They all knew that credit card interest rates are high. They knew they should save for retirement and create a household budget. They all had knowledge, lots of it; these are smart people. We’ve all been taught that “knowledge is power,” but knowledge alone isn’t enough. This article, Financial Literacy Won’t Fix Everything, talks about the limitations of financial literacy programs and how lots of knowledge doesn’t always equal sound financial behavior. Continue reading “Why Financial Knowledge Isn’t Enough”
Winning the lottery is every worker’s dream, but for Holly in Idaho that dream is about to become her nightmare. If you haven’t heard the story, Holly recently bought a winning lottery ticket worth $190 million. Who could be more lucky? How about her estranged husband, who heard about Holly’s jackpot from a reporter. Even though they have been legally separated for years, most attorneys are saying that the continued marriage means the husband gets half the winnings. If Holly tries to fight his claim, her winnings could be tied up in court for years and unfortunately she already quit her job 6 days after the winning numbers were announced. How could this mess have been avoided? Continue reading “Financial Education: Avoiding a Mega Millions Mess”
