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Money Attitudes: Secrets of the Millionaire Mind

Occasionally I read books about money. Usually these are books about how to save pennies, like The Dollar Stretcher. Sometimes these books are about how to live a simple life. Occasionally these books are about investing. T. Harv Eker’s Secrets of the Millionaire Mind is really none of these things. I found it on the bookshelf during one of my annual Christmas purges of unused stuff. I decided that it would be worth a read before it went to the thrift store. The Millionaire Mind is about how your attitudes towards money affect the way you spend money – and … Continue reading →

Interview: John Hauserman on 401k Retirement Funds

Today I’m continuing my interview with John Hauserman of RetirementQuest.com. Yesterday we chatted about the money that was withdrawn from 401k plans when the economy took its tumble. You can read the full article here. John, you indicated that pulling money from our 401k accounts might have been action spurred by the emotions of the moment. Can you tell us a little more about this? Savvy long-term investors might have noticed something—history tells us very clearly that panic-driven dips generally turn out to be an unusually rewarding time to be buying stocks (assuming you have time to wait out the … Continue reading →

The Debt Snowball – A Good Strategy For Any Season

Over the past few days, a few more inches of snow has fallen where I live. Yesterday while I was outside, I realized that the recent snow is the kind of snow that makes good snowballs. This means that it is a good time to talk about one sensible strategy for getting out of debt – the debt snowball. I first heard about the debt-elimination method called the debt snowball when I read Dave Ramsey’s book, “The Total Money Makeover”. It is an effective method for getting out of debt, and I think that part of its effectiveness is that … Continue reading →

Basic Financial Education for Kids

When I was growing up, money meant security. I grew up with the fear of not having enough, not because there wasn’t enough but because that was the gist of my parents’ conversations around money. I learned that you needed to get a good job, which meant one that paid well. Even though I was a fairly talented musician, this meant that a career in the arts was certainly out. When I was growing up, I also had positive experiences with money. My parents balanced their checkbook every week in full view of the kids. I got an allowance and … Continue reading →

The Allowance Quandary

Should you give your children an allowance? I do. For small children who can’t make a lot of money, an allowance gives them a sense of autonomy and choice. I use the allowance to divert my daughter’s “I wants”. Instead of buying items for her, when I do not feel like the item is necessary I suggest that she get it with her allowance money. For older children, there are a number of questions to consider when you begin to give an allowance. What constraints will you put on what is purchased with the allowance? While we might hope that … Continue reading →

Should the Kids Get a Job?

Last summer, my daughter got a job. She’s five. Now granted, this job was selling lemonade and homemade crafts on the front porch, but she did it for long, grueling hours in the sun every day. She also washed cars with her friends. After a month of this on and off work, she’d made enough money to purchase a Playmobil camper. Then she quit. Poor child. If I hadn’t refused to buy her a camper, she would have spent her summer hours engaged in other endeavors. Or would she? I think that even small children get great satisfaction out of … Continue reading →