We have a natural gas outdoor grill which I really like because I don't need to use a propane tank. It is a small grill with very basic features which I purchased at a year-end clearance for $150 seven years ago. While the body is still in very good condition, the internal heating elements are in very poor shape. For the past couple years, I've been checking local stores for another natural gas grill, but only found models which required a natural gas conversion kit. However, I didn't want to pay $400+ dollars for a new natural gas grill.
By chance, I noticed a phone number for the manufacturer on the serial number plate of the grill. I called and found out that the company sold replacement parts for my grill. For about $60, I was able to replace all the heating element parts. For another $50, I decided to order a few additional new parts such as grill racks and a spark ignitor box. Within a couple hours, I was able to install the new parts and have essentially a new grill on the inside. (For reference, the spark ignitor box appears to be the wrong part, and I will need an exchange.)
Today, we used the grill and it worked like it was new. Hopefully, the refurbished grill will give us five more years of use:-)
For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.list
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Reducing our Stock Investments
In November 2010, I stopped selling into the rally and began adding significant funds into stock investments. I continued to make large new stock purchases via managed accounts through January 2011. I made some additional small purchases in April and May.
With the recent market weakness, I am becoming concerned about a major correction. To me, the market conditions feel like early 2008, when major issues, such the Bear Stearns and sub prime collapse, were being dismissed. In 2008, I stayed in the market, expecting a soft landing. Boy, was I ever wrong and my savings and retirement accounts fell by 40%.
I am not making the same mistake again.
This week, I will start reducing the amount of funds we have invested in stocks. However, I won't completely cash out. For now, my plan is to get our percentage invested in stocks back to pre November 2010 levels.
For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.
This is not financial or investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
With the recent market weakness, I am becoming concerned about a major correction. To me, the market conditions feel like early 2008, when major issues, such the Bear Stearns and sub prime collapse, were being dismissed. In 2008, I stayed in the market, expecting a soft landing. Boy, was I ever wrong and my savings and retirement accounts fell by 40%.
I am not making the same mistake again.
This week, I will start reducing the amount of funds we have invested in stocks. However, I won't completely cash out. For now, my plan is to get our percentage invested in stocks back to pre November 2010 levels.
For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.
This is not financial or investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Sunday, May 29, 2011
It's a New Beginning
In October 2007, the economy and stock market was doing great. Early retirement seemed like a great idea. Analyses of various scenarios showed that retiring early was unlikely to be a failure.
Now, three and a half years later, the world is very different from my expectations of late 2007. The economy went into a great recession and the stock market crashed concurrently with significant declines in house prices. My retirement and savings accounts were reduced by 40% before recovering to being down about 25%.
Needless to say, early retirement for me has been a bumpy road :-)
So here's my new financial scenario for retirement:
Retirement in the next 15 years won't likely be as "easy" as retirement was in the 15 years prior to the Great Recession. The past three years have been a difficult lesson in retirement economics. We've adjusted our retirement plans significantly and in 2013, we'll learn if the right adjustments were made.
For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.
This is not financial or retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Now, three and a half years later, the world is very different from my expectations of late 2007. The economy went into a great recession and the stock market crashed concurrently with significant declines in house prices. My retirement and savings accounts were reduced by 40% before recovering to being down about 25%.
Needless to say, early retirement for me has been a bumpy road :-)
So here's my new financial scenario for retirement:
Retirement in the next 15 years won't likely be as "easy" as retirement was in the 15 years prior to the Great Recession. The past three years have been a difficult lesson in retirement economics. We've adjusted our retirement plans significantly and in 2013, we'll learn if the right adjustments were made.
For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.
This is not financial or retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Life Principles from Kindergarten
In my daughter's kindergarten class, the student were given three principles for their behavior in class:
I thought these were great principles, not only for kindergarten, but for life. The best part is that my daughter can recite these three principles verbatim. Thus, if there is ever a coaching opportunity, I can refer to these three principles as a foundation.
For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
I thought these were great principles, not only for kindergarten, but for life. The best part is that my daughter can recite these three principles verbatim. Thus, if there is ever a coaching opportunity, I can refer to these three principles as a foundation.
For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Timeless Articles from the Archives #41
It's been over four years since I started My Wealth Builder. As I think about topics to write , I often remember, "I've written about that before," and decide to find a new topic. However, since many principles of personal finance are timeless, I want to include them in a recent post on My Wealth Builder. Therefore, I have started a series called "Timeless Articles from the Archives" which highlights posts from the same week in 2007-2010.
2007
A Retirement Strategy - Die Broke - I learned about selling our house and buying an annuity from this book.
The New Entrepreneurship - I read this article by Penelope Trunk when I was still working. She was right about having control over my work and a flexible lifestyle making me happier. For reference, my approach is to work part time jobs that have very flexible hours.
Risk Allocation In A Wealth Portfolio - I'm still working on reducing my aspirational portion :-)
Having Children When One Is Older - I'm still happy that we had a child when we were older.
2008
Twelve "Best Ever" Financial Tips From MSN Money - I thought these were great tips.
Consider More Than One Scenario When Making A Decision - Unless, of course, one is always right:-)
Financial Readiness For Early Retirement - Here are some of the elements that we considered when deciding about early retirement.
2009
Saying Bye Bye to our Mortgage - Here's why we paid off our mortgage.
Investing for the Next Bull Market - Some good tips on putting money back into the stock market.
We've Achieved Zero Debt - Paying off our mortgage made us debt free.
2010
Life Extending Habits - Here how changes in these four areas can reduce the risk of death.
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
2007
A Retirement Strategy - Die Broke - I learned about selling our house and buying an annuity from this book.
The New Entrepreneurship - I read this article by Penelope Trunk when I was still working. She was right about having control over my work and a flexible lifestyle making me happier. For reference, my approach is to work part time jobs that have very flexible hours.
Risk Allocation In A Wealth Portfolio - I'm still working on reducing my aspirational portion :-)
Having Children When One Is Older - I'm still happy that we had a child when we were older.
2008
Twelve "Best Ever" Financial Tips From MSN Money - I thought these were great tips.
Consider More Than One Scenario When Making A Decision - Unless, of course, one is always right:-)
Financial Readiness For Early Retirement - Here are some of the elements that we considered when deciding about early retirement.
2009
Saying Bye Bye to our Mortgage - Here's why we paid off our mortgage.
Investing for the Next Bull Market - Some good tips on putting money back into the stock market.
We've Achieved Zero Debt - Paying off our mortgage made us debt free.
2010
Life Extending Habits - Here how changes in these four areas can reduce the risk of death.
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
The Wealth Builder Carnival #40
Welcome to the fortieth edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival. The purpose of this carnival is to collect articles from the blogosphere on building, preserving and keeping enough wealth for a comfortable retirement. For reference, I have tried to keep the carnival content tightly focused on wealth building and did not include submissions that were off topic. For reading convenience, the posts are listed with a brief summary or comment by the submitter and organized them into seven categories: Earning, Insuring and Protecting, Investing, Living Frugally, Retiring, Saving and Taxes.
And now onto the Carnival:
Ted presents Do You Really Want to Make Money Writing? posted at Authority Articles, saying, "Writing at home is a perfect business for many that need to keep watch of their children but still want to earn a decent income."
Tarik presents Anything worthwhile needs 8 hours of continuous work.. posted at Success starts today, saying, "There are many types of work that may take from a few minutes to a few hours, but valuable work needs time. Time needs to be booked without interruption for long periods. To be able to make progress on all my activities and improve my earnings, I use several techniques to block and reserve my time and work on my most valuable goals. Here are three tips on how you can create blocks of time that will make every day of your life worthwhile."
MyMaria presents Niche Site Profits April 2011 posted at My Work at Home Mom Blog, saying, "One way that I earn money is through writing my own niche content sites. Here's how two of my sites earned last month."
Writers Coin presents The Value of Stress Avoidance posted at The Writer's Coin, saying, "We all hate stress, so how much of your salary would you be willing to sacrifice for perks that helped cut into that stress?"
My Journey presents What Do You Have to Do Mathematically to Get to Your Goal posted at My Journey to Millions, saying, "It doesn’t work for everyone but breaking down larger goals into smaller, obtainable short-term goals provides me with an incentive to get to that smaller goal."
Steve presents Small Banks Vs. Big Banks: Which is Better for my Business posted at FastSwings, saying, "Going with the big banks was the ideal solution for small business prior to the recent financial crisis."
Susan Howe presents Are Mom's Really Worth $61,436 a Year? posted at Insure, saying, "Flowers and cards can never quite repay mom for all she's done, but have you ever thought about how much she's really worth?"
David Leeman presents Simple Investing in Index Funds, One of the Best Ways to Invest Money posted at Financial Freedom Blog to Change Your Life, saying, "For many people, investing in index funds is a smart option to consider. It is a simple and frugal investing alternative when compared to building a portfolio of stocks or actively managed mutual funds."
Dividends4Life presents 18 Stocks Meeting The Goal Of Higher Dividends posted at Dividend Growth Stocks, saying, "I have stated many times that my goal is to create an ever growing income stream from dividend growth stocks. Secondarily, it is my desire to beat the S&P 500 over time. With that said, I rarely look at the capital performance of individual stocks. What I do watch is the ability of the stocks I own to sustain their dividend growth."
Mike Piper presents Assessing Your Risk Tolerance: Need and Ability posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, "The first step in creating an investment portfolio is to assess your risk tolerance."
Joe Morgan presents How to Survive (and Possibly Thrive during) Stagflation. posted at Simple Debt-Free Finance, saying, "Rising inflation and stagnant growth could be making a return visit to the U.S. economy. Here's how to position yourself financially to survive it."
The Amateur Financier presents Choosing the Right Investment Firm posted at The Amateur Financier, saying, "A guide to choosing the best investment firm for you to begin your investing career and start to build up your portfolio."
Investor Junkie presents Firstrade Review posted at Investor Junkie, saying, "Firstrade was exactly the kind of discount broker I was looking for. The fees are low, customer service is excellent, and the website is always trouble free. I have been satisfied with Firstrade and will probably stay with them in the foreseeable future."
Hussein Sumar presents What Can Bankruptcy do for you and what can it Not do? posted at Chapter 7 bankruptcy, saying, "Bankruptcy is an effective tool for thousands of Americans who are struggling with all kinds of debts. However, it is important to know what type of debts bankruptcy can discharge you from (in other words what types of debts it can ‘free’ you from) and what type of debts are NOT discharged through bankruptcy."
Control your Cash presents Why pay someone when I can do it myself? posted at Control Your Cash: Making Money Make Sense, saying, "If you can afford to hire someone to do something for you instead of doing it yourself, you probably should. Here's why."
Tom presents Are All Coupons Worth It? posted at StupidCents, saying, "I’ve been starting to feel the drag of spending 30-45 minutes each week searching for printable coupons I could use at the grocery store. I started to question whether or not all coupons are worth it."
Rock & Roll Accountant presents Now, about those goals ... posted at Rock & Roll Accountant, saying, "This is a post about setting financial goals in a smart, efficient manner."
Boomer presents Using E-post To Organize And Manage Your Bills posted at Boomer & Echo, saying, "I signed up with e-post several years ago after becoming frustrated with receiving, storing and tracking all of my monthly bills that came in the mail."
Jim Yih presents Retirement Planning Mistakes posted at Retire Happy Blog, saying, "When people get concerned about their preserving money and having enough of it and wanting to keep it close to the vest, what types of investments do they often make?"
None
Pamela King presents 24 Ways to Save on Your Tax Preparation Fees posted at Generation X Finance, saying, "ome of these so-called “organization” tips may seem like common sense, but the truth is, not being prepared for tax time can cost you quite a bit of money. If you have an accountant do your taxes and throw a shoebox full of receipts at them, it’s likely they will charge you the extra time required to get it organized – especially if it’s something you could’ve done yourself."
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: the wealth builder carnival, blog carnival.
For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, earning, insuring, investing, living, retiring, saving, tax, or wealth building advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
And now onto the Carnival:
Earning
Ted presents Do You Really Want to Make Money Writing? posted at Authority Articles, saying, "Writing at home is a perfect business for many that need to keep watch of their children but still want to earn a decent income."
Tarik presents Anything worthwhile needs 8 hours of continuous work.. posted at Success starts today, saying, "There are many types of work that may take from a few minutes to a few hours, but valuable work needs time. Time needs to be booked without interruption for long periods. To be able to make progress on all my activities and improve my earnings, I use several techniques to block and reserve my time and work on my most valuable goals. Here are three tips on how you can create blocks of time that will make every day of your life worthwhile."
MyMaria presents Niche Site Profits April 2011 posted at My Work at Home Mom Blog, saying, "One way that I earn money is through writing my own niche content sites. Here's how two of my sites earned last month."
Writers Coin presents The Value of Stress Avoidance posted at The Writer's Coin, saying, "We all hate stress, so how much of your salary would you be willing to sacrifice for perks that helped cut into that stress?"
My Journey presents What Do You Have to Do Mathematically to Get to Your Goal posted at My Journey to Millions, saying, "It doesn’t work for everyone but breaking down larger goals into smaller, obtainable short-term goals provides me with an incentive to get to that smaller goal."
Steve presents Small Banks Vs. Big Banks: Which is Better for my Business posted at FastSwings, saying, "Going with the big banks was the ideal solution for small business prior to the recent financial crisis."
Insuring and Protecting
Susan Howe presents Are Mom's Really Worth $61,436 a Year? posted at Insure, saying, "Flowers and cards can never quite repay mom for all she's done, but have you ever thought about how much she's really worth?"
Investing
David Leeman presents Simple Investing in Index Funds, One of the Best Ways to Invest Money posted at Financial Freedom Blog to Change Your Life, saying, "For many people, investing in index funds is a smart option to consider. It is a simple and frugal investing alternative when compared to building a portfolio of stocks or actively managed mutual funds."
Dividends4Life presents 18 Stocks Meeting The Goal Of Higher Dividends posted at Dividend Growth Stocks, saying, "I have stated many times that my goal is to create an ever growing income stream from dividend growth stocks. Secondarily, it is my desire to beat the S&P 500 over time. With that said, I rarely look at the capital performance of individual stocks. What I do watch is the ability of the stocks I own to sustain their dividend growth."
Mike Piper presents Assessing Your Risk Tolerance: Need and Ability posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, "The first step in creating an investment portfolio is to assess your risk tolerance."
Joe Morgan presents How to Survive (and Possibly Thrive during) Stagflation. posted at Simple Debt-Free Finance, saying, "Rising inflation and stagnant growth could be making a return visit to the U.S. economy. Here's how to position yourself financially to survive it."
The Amateur Financier presents Choosing the Right Investment Firm posted at The Amateur Financier, saying, "A guide to choosing the best investment firm for you to begin your investing career and start to build up your portfolio."
Investor Junkie presents Firstrade Review posted at Investor Junkie, saying, "Firstrade was exactly the kind of discount broker I was looking for. The fees are low, customer service is excellent, and the website is always trouble free. I have been satisfied with Firstrade and will probably stay with them in the foreseeable future."
Living Frugally
Hussein Sumar presents What Can Bankruptcy do for you and what can it Not do? posted at Chapter 7 bankruptcy, saying, "Bankruptcy is an effective tool for thousands of Americans who are struggling with all kinds of debts. However, it is important to know what type of debts bankruptcy can discharge you from (in other words what types of debts it can ‘free’ you from) and what type of debts are NOT discharged through bankruptcy."
Control your Cash presents Why pay someone when I can do it myself? posted at Control Your Cash: Making Money Make Sense, saying, "If you can afford to hire someone to do something for you instead of doing it yourself, you probably should. Here's why."
Tom presents Are All Coupons Worth It? posted at StupidCents, saying, "I’ve been starting to feel the drag of spending 30-45 minutes each week searching for printable coupons I could use at the grocery store. I started to question whether or not all coupons are worth it."
Rock & Roll Accountant presents Now, about those goals ... posted at Rock & Roll Accountant, saying, "This is a post about setting financial goals in a smart, efficient manner."
Boomer presents Using E-post To Organize And Manage Your Bills posted at Boomer & Echo, saying, "I signed up with e-post several years ago after becoming frustrated with receiving, storing and tracking all of my monthly bills that came in the mail."
Retiring
Jim Yih presents Retirement Planning Mistakes posted at Retire Happy Blog, saying, "When people get concerned about their preserving money and having enough of it and wanting to keep it close to the vest, what types of investments do they often make?"
Saving
None
Taxes
Pamela King presents 24 Ways to Save on Your Tax Preparation Fees posted at Generation X Finance, saying, "ome of these so-called “organization” tips may seem like common sense, but the truth is, not being prepared for tax time can cost you quite a bit of money. If you have an accountant do your taxes and throw a shoebox full of receipts at them, it’s likely they will charge you the extra time required to get it organized – especially if it’s something you could’ve done yourself."
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: the wealth builder carnival, blog carnival.
For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, earning, insuring, investing, living, retiring, saving, tax, or wealth building advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Monday, May 23, 2011
Wealth Builder Ratios - Q1 2011 Update
Here is our Q1 2011 Wealth Builder Ratios update. During the first quarter of 2011, the Dow, Nasdaq and S&P500 indices continued to rally and advanced 6.4%, 4.8% and 5.4% respectively. Unfortunately, our investment portfolio returns were negative at -4.3% due to a decline in my company stock of 4.3% return during Q1.
For more details on the relevance of these ratios, please see this How Much Is Needed To Be Wealthy - The NUMBER.
My financial goals for 2011 are:
1. Continue to maintain an Investment Income to Salary ratio > 0.8. (off track)
2. Maintain a Savings to Salary ratio of 20. (off track)
3. Maintain Debt to Salary Ratio at 0. (met final goal of 0)
(For reference, Salary refers to gross salary just prior to early retirement in October, 2007.)
Both #1 and #2 were directly correlated with how well our stock, bond, and CD investments returns. With the poor performance of my company stock and the high proportion of cash, our portfolio returned less than the indices in Q1.
It has been very challenging retiring at the beginning of a bear market. Our short term expenses (next 3-5 years) are invested in CDs, bonds and money markets. So we can wait for the stock market to continue an upward trend, hopefully through 2012. I continue to be concerned about volatility of our investment portfolio, but believe there is more upside than downside potential going forward.
I continue to have the same financial goals for 2011. Hopefully, the markets will continue to rebound in 2011, and allow our retirement investments to further recover.
For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
For more details on the relevance of these ratios, please see this How Much Is Needed To Be Wealthy - The NUMBER.
Ratio and Target | Q4 2010 | Q1 2011 | |
| Investment Income to Salary Target=0.8 2007=3.41 2008=-5.47 2009=-1.38 | 2011 has started out poorly due to a negative return for my company stock. As my company stock (hopefully) advances, we plan to continue selling shares and increasing diversification, primarily in large cap dividend paying stocks. | ||
| Savings to Salary Target>20 2007=23 2008=16.7 2009=15.3 | For now, it feels like our retirement savings have stabilized which gives me some confidence of better returns coming. | ||
| Debt to Salary Target=0 2007=1.51 2008=1.46 2009=0 | We said bye-bye to our mortgage on May 20, 2009. Eliminating a mortgage payment has reduced our expenses by 24%. |
My financial goals for 2011 are:
1. Continue to maintain an Investment Income to Salary ratio > 0.8. (off track)
2. Maintain a Savings to Salary ratio of 20. (off track)
3. Maintain Debt to Salary Ratio at 0. (met final goal of 0)
(For reference, Salary refers to gross salary just prior to early retirement in October, 2007.)
Both #1 and #2 were directly correlated with how well our stock, bond, and CD investments returns. With the poor performance of my company stock and the high proportion of cash, our portfolio returned less than the indices in Q1.
It has been very challenging retiring at the beginning of a bear market. Our short term expenses (next 3-5 years) are invested in CDs, bonds and money markets. So we can wait for the stock market to continue an upward trend, hopefully through 2012. I continue to be concerned about volatility of our investment portfolio, but believe there is more upside than downside potential going forward.
I continue to have the same financial goals for 2011. Hopefully, the markets will continue to rebound in 2011, and allow our retirement investments to further recover.
For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Un-Retirement Miscalculations
When I decided to un-retire for nine months, I initially expected there wouldn't be significant, unexpected disruptions to my retirement life. The role allowed me to work from home and was expected to take 15-20 hours at the beginning and transition to 40 hours per week at the end. I knew that the last few months were going to be a full time job and was prepared for that situation. However, after three months, I've learned that I've made two miscalculations:
To correct for my miscalculations, I am starting a standard work week, i.e. Monday to Friday from 9am - 5pm. This will provide me the discipline of separating myself from the work by limiting most of my work effort between those times. I expect this change to improve my work and non-work situation for the remaining time of my employment contract.
For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement or career advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
© 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
To correct for my miscalculations, I am starting a standard work week, i.e. Monday to Friday from 9am - 5pm. This will provide me the discipline of separating myself from the work by limiting most of my work effort between those times. I expect this change to improve my work and non-work situation for the remaining time of my employment contract.
For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement or career advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
© 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Saturday, May 21, 2011
My Perfect Retirement Job
Based on the part time jobs done in retirement, I've identified the following elements as being important for my perfect retirement job:
So far, I've found two jobs that meet these criteria: teaching enrichment classes, and seasonal tax preparation. A third job, tutoring for college entrance exams (SAT/ACT), is not seasonal but meets the other criteria.
I look forward to working only these jobs again, when I go back into retirement again later this year :-)
For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.
This is not financial or retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
So far, I've found two jobs that meet these criteria: teaching enrichment classes, and seasonal tax preparation. A third job, tutoring for college entrance exams (SAT/ACT), is not seasonal but meets the other criteria.
I look forward to working only these jobs again, when I go back into retirement again later this year :-)
For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.
This is not financial or retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Made my College Freshmen Weight
Today, I weighed myself and the result was less than my starting weight as a college freshmen, which was almost 35 years ago. That is a 10% reduction in weight since I retired in October 2007. My next goal is to reach my heaviest weight in high school which will require another 5% reduction from my October 2007 value.
Unfortunately, I haven't regained any of the speed, stamina or toughness that I had as a college freshmen :-) Still, I am glad to have loss the weight.
For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial or weight loss advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Unfortunately, I haven't regained any of the speed, stamina or toughness that I had as a college freshmen :-) Still, I am glad to have loss the weight.
For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial or weight loss advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Timeless Articles from the Archives #40
It's been over four years since I started My Wealth Builder. As I think about topics to write , I often remember, "I've written about that before," and decide to find a new topic. However, since many principles of personal finance are timeless, I want to include them in a recent post on My Wealth Builder. Therefore, I have started a series called "Timeless Articles from the Archives" which highlights posts from the same week in 2007-2010.
2007
Is Anything Really NEW In Personal Finance? - The personal finance principles I follow are simple and timeless.
2008
Greater Focus On Retirement Transition - A reminder of why I should go back to early retirement :-)
Thanks Mom For The Financial Training - I owe a lot of thanks to my Mom for my success in personal finance.
(Early) Retirement - The Final Frontier - Little did I know how much of a frontier it would be :-) Early retirement is a lot more challenging that when I wrote this post in May 2008.
2009
This Recession has been a Wake Up Call - The 2007 - 2009 recession has been a wake up for many people, including those with good personal finance skills.
My Epiphany about being Self Employed - Being a successful business owner is 85% about acquiring customer leads for the business.
2010
Securities I Won't Buy - I avoid publicly trade partnerships.
Spend Less Earlier or More Later - Here's my rationalization for paying with cash right away instead of over time.
Parents Are No Longer Super Human - For me, there was a time that they were :-)
Getting Old isn't for Wimps - My body parts break down more frequently and heal more slowly as I've become older.
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
2007
Is Anything Really NEW In Personal Finance? - The personal finance principles I follow are simple and timeless.
2008
Greater Focus On Retirement Transition - A reminder of why I should go back to early retirement :-)
Thanks Mom For The Financial Training - I owe a lot of thanks to my Mom for my success in personal finance.
(Early) Retirement - The Final Frontier - Little did I know how much of a frontier it would be :-) Early retirement is a lot more challenging that when I wrote this post in May 2008.
2009
This Recession has been a Wake Up Call - The 2007 - 2009 recession has been a wake up for many people, including those with good personal finance skills.
My Epiphany about being Self Employed - Being a successful business owner is 85% about acquiring customer leads for the business.
2010
Securities I Won't Buy - I avoid publicly trade partnerships.
Spend Less Earlier or More Later - Here's my rationalization for paying with cash right away instead of over time.
Parents Are No Longer Super Human - For me, there was a time that they were :-)
Getting Old isn't for Wimps - My body parts break down more frequently and heal more slowly as I've become older.
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Timeless Articles from the Archives #39
It's been over four years since I started My Wealth Builder. As I think about topics to write , I often remember, "I've written about that before," and decide to find a new topic. However, since many principles of personal finance are timeless, I want to include them in a recent post on My Wealth Builder. Therefore, I have started a series called "Timeless Articles from the Archives" which highlights posts from the same week in 2007-2010.
2007
Retirement Planning By Age - Retirement planning and saving does different by age group and also depends how much has been done at earlier ages.
The New Work-Life Balance - Think Choices - To me, the term work-life balance is an oxymoron, a non sequitur, and a misnomer.
Real Estate Decline? - Reduce One's Property Tax - A silver lining, although a small one.
Retirement Planning - Focus On SPENDABLE Net Worth - If I can't spend it, it's not worth much :-)
Lessons From My Daughter - Have Fun - I like learning from kids.
2008
Properly Assessing Risk - A common error is that estimates of the future are often grounded in the present.
Avoiding Annual Membership Overload - We're down to zero annual memberships.
2009
On Surviving Early Retirement during the Financial Crisis - We survived, although I did do some part time work to reduce our withdrawal rate.
2010
None
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
2007
Retirement Planning By Age - Retirement planning and saving does different by age group and also depends how much has been done at earlier ages.
The New Work-Life Balance - Think Choices - To me, the term work-life balance is an oxymoron, a non sequitur, and a misnomer.
Real Estate Decline? - Reduce One's Property Tax - A silver lining, although a small one.
Retirement Planning - Focus On SPENDABLE Net Worth - If I can't spend it, it's not worth much :-)
Lessons From My Daughter - Have Fun - I like learning from kids.
2008
Properly Assessing Risk - A common error is that estimates of the future are often grounded in the present.
Avoiding Annual Membership Overload - We're down to zero annual memberships.
2009
On Surviving Early Retirement during the Financial Crisis - We survived, although I did do some part time work to reduce our withdrawal rate.
2010
None
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
The Wealth Builder Carnival #39
Welcome to the thirty-ninth edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival. The purpose of this carnival is to collect articles from the blogosphere on building, preserving and keeping enough wealth for a comfortable retirement. For reference, I have tried to keep the carnival content tightly focused on wealth building and did not include submissions that were off topic. For reading convenience, the posts are listed with a brief summary or comment by the submitter and organized them into seven categories: Earning, Insuring and Protecting, Investing, Living Frugally, Retiring, Saving and Taxes.
And now onto the Carnival:
Dr. Dean presents Nursing Career: Pharmaceutical Sales Rep-An Interview! posted at Dr. Dean's TheMillionaireNurse.com Blog, saying, "Finding the perfect career is key to building wealth. If you aren't happy in your job or it simply doesn't provide for your needs, you may need to take a second look at your path. Here's one to consider."
Boomer presents Assessing Your Estate Plan posted at Boomer & Echo, saying, "Before making an appointment with your lawyer take some time to assess your situation and review your estate plan."
Admin presents Cut Your Auto Insurance Premiums by Telecommuting posted at Auto Insurance, saying, "One of the best ways to build wealth is to stop spending it. Here are ways to cut your auto insurance premiums by telecommuting."
Odysseas presents 15 Items that Impact the Cost of Homeowners Insurance posted at Wallet Blog, saying, "I explain a number of ways you can try to decrease your homeowners insurance. There are a variety of things you can change, alter or improve in order to reduce your annual premium."
Dividends4Life presents 10 Dividend Stocks Paying More Cash posted at Dividend Growth Stocks, saying, "Payback is the amount of time needed for an investment to earn its cost, undiscounted. Though not very sophisticated, payback can still help you screen for good, solid dividend growth stocks. Once you earn back your investment, some might say you are in a no-lose situation."
Jessica S presents Finance Definitions: Principal posted at MomVesting, saying, "In finance we hear the term "principal" quite a bit -- but we all know we're not talking about our favorite education professional. So when talking personal finance, what is principal?"
Ken Faulkenberry presents Benefits of Risk Management in Stock Market posted at Arbor Asset Allocation Model Portfolio (AAAMP) Blog, saying, "Risk management in the stock market is an essential part of building wealth through investing."
Hussein Sumar presents S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats of 2011 posted at Best Dividend Stocks, saying, "The S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index is the most honorable list of dividend paying stocks as measured by the S&P 500 Index that have consistently increased their dividends for the past 25 years, without missing a single dividend payment. The index measures the performance of large cap, blue-chip companies within the S&P 500 that have a market capitalization of at least $3 billion."
The Amateur Financier presents Frugal Friday – Honeymoons posted at The Amateur Financier, saying, "Advice on how to keep your honeymoon frugal, so you can start your life together with your partner on the right foot."
Mike Piper presents Social Security Strategies for Married Couples posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, "By knowing the rules for Social Security benefits, a clever married couple can increase their benefits at no cost to them."
Jason Price presents Baby Boomers Retirement Poll Results | Are You Ready for Retirement? posted at One Money Design, saying, "A recent baby boomers retirement poll shows how ready people are for retirement and the results were not good. Are you ready for retirement?"
Alex Almendes presents Wealth Strategy - 6 Simple Tips posted at Financial Tips|Personal Money Management|Investment Guide, saying, "I have summarize some of simple tips for creating our wealth."
None
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: the wealth builder carnival, blog carnival.
For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, earning, insuring, investing, living, retiring, saving, tax, or wealth building advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
And now onto the Carnival:
Earning
Dr. Dean presents Nursing Career: Pharmaceutical Sales Rep-An Interview! posted at Dr. Dean's TheMillionaireNurse.com Blog, saying, "Finding the perfect career is key to building wealth. If you aren't happy in your job or it simply doesn't provide for your needs, you may need to take a second look at your path. Here's one to consider."
Insuring and Protecting
Boomer presents Assessing Your Estate Plan posted at Boomer & Echo, saying, "Before making an appointment with your lawyer take some time to assess your situation and review your estate plan."
Admin presents Cut Your Auto Insurance Premiums by Telecommuting posted at Auto Insurance, saying, "One of the best ways to build wealth is to stop spending it. Here are ways to cut your auto insurance premiums by telecommuting."
Odysseas presents 15 Items that Impact the Cost of Homeowners Insurance posted at Wallet Blog, saying, "I explain a number of ways you can try to decrease your homeowners insurance. There are a variety of things you can change, alter or improve in order to reduce your annual premium."
Investing
Dividends4Life presents 10 Dividend Stocks Paying More Cash posted at Dividend Growth Stocks, saying, "Payback is the amount of time needed for an investment to earn its cost, undiscounted. Though not very sophisticated, payback can still help you screen for good, solid dividend growth stocks. Once you earn back your investment, some might say you are in a no-lose situation."
Jessica S presents Finance Definitions: Principal posted at MomVesting, saying, "In finance we hear the term "principal" quite a bit -- but we all know we're not talking about our favorite education professional. So when talking personal finance, what is principal?"
Ken Faulkenberry presents Benefits of Risk Management in Stock Market posted at Arbor Asset Allocation Model Portfolio (AAAMP) Blog, saying, "Risk management in the stock market is an essential part of building wealth through investing."
Hussein Sumar presents S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats of 2011 posted at Best Dividend Stocks, saying, "The S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index is the most honorable list of dividend paying stocks as measured by the S&P 500 Index that have consistently increased their dividends for the past 25 years, without missing a single dividend payment. The index measures the performance of large cap, blue-chip companies within the S&P 500 that have a market capitalization of at least $3 billion."
Living Frugally
The Amateur Financier presents Frugal Friday – Honeymoons posted at The Amateur Financier, saying, "Advice on how to keep your honeymoon frugal, so you can start your life together with your partner on the right foot."
Retiring
Mike Piper presents Social Security Strategies for Married Couples posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, "By knowing the rules for Social Security benefits, a clever married couple can increase their benefits at no cost to them."
Jason Price presents Baby Boomers Retirement Poll Results | Are You Ready for Retirement? posted at One Money Design, saying, "A recent baby boomers retirement poll shows how ready people are for retirement and the results were not good. Are you ready for retirement?"
Saving
Alex Almendes presents Wealth Strategy - 6 Simple Tips posted at Financial Tips|Personal Money Management|Investment Guide, saying, "I have summarize some of simple tips for creating our wealth."
Taxes
None
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The Wealth Builder Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: the wealth builder carnival, blog carnival.
For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, earning, insuring, investing, living, retiring, saving, tax, or wealth building advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Friday, May 06, 2011
A 50% Raise
"If you want something, ask for it. The worst that can happen is the answer is 'no.'" ~ me
On May 1, 2011, I received a 50% raise. How did I get it? The simple answer is that I asked for it. However, the story is a just a bit more complex than that :-)
First, the raise was not a surprise. As part of my employment contract, I negotiated 50% raise after 3 months and a 33% raise after 6 months. The raise was part of the agreed terms in the offer of employment I accepted.
Second, my initial salary was below market rates. I was willing to start at a lower salary since the organization is a non-profit with a mission for which I have passion. However, the longer I am employed, the closer I want my salary to be at market rates. For reference, I am filling the role while the organization is doing a search to hire a permanent employee for the position.
Third, the job is only for a limited time. So the magnitude of raises do not need to be maintained for an extended period. For me, the job will end by 2012 or sooner, if a permanent employee is found to fill the position.
For now, I am still enjoying the job, even though I way underestimated the initial work load by about a factor of two. The 50% raise does help increase my satisfaction and motivation. However, I am still looking forward to returning to retirement at the end of 2011.
For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
On May 1, 2011, I received a 50% raise. How did I get it? The simple answer is that I asked for it. However, the story is a just a bit more complex than that :-)
First, the raise was not a surprise. As part of my employment contract, I negotiated 50% raise after 3 months and a 33% raise after 6 months. The raise was part of the agreed terms in the offer of employment I accepted.
Second, my initial salary was below market rates. I was willing to start at a lower salary since the organization is a non-profit with a mission for which I have passion. However, the longer I am employed, the closer I want my salary to be at market rates. For reference, I am filling the role while the organization is doing a search to hire a permanent employee for the position.
Third, the job is only for a limited time. So the magnitude of raises do not need to be maintained for an extended period. For me, the job will end by 2012 or sooner, if a permanent employee is found to fill the position.
For now, I am still enjoying the job, even though I way underestimated the initial work load by about a factor of two. The 50% raise does help increase my satisfaction and motivation. However, I am still looking forward to returning to retirement at the end of 2011.
For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
Timeless Articles from the Archives #38
It's been over four years since I started My Wealth Builder. As I think about topics to write , I often remember, "I've written about that before," and decide to find a new topic. However, since many principles of personal finance are timeless, I want to include them in a recent post on My Wealth Builder. Therefore, I have started a series called "Timeless Articles from the Archives" which highlights posts from the same week in 2007-2010.
2007
A Capital Gains Tax Break For Retirees - I like a 0% tax rate:-)
Our Brains Make Change Hard - Perhaps we are wired to be the way we are.
I Won't Follow This Advice #1 - There are some ideas I won't follow.
Making Bonds Part Of My Portfolio - It's tough to find good bond investments now with the interest rates so low.
2008
Compost and Mulch At A Big Discount - $25 versus $300.
Advertising Mind Tricks - Here are some of the mind tricks that cause me to think past the advertising before buying.
2009
Outsmarted by a Four-Year Old - My daughter has become quite the negotiator.
2010
Understand the Rules First Before Bending Them - One should understand the principles of basic financial concepts before venturing into more complex financial products.
A "None of the Above" Option is Needed - What our election system needs is a "none of the above" voting option. That way we give the political parties and their candidates a reality check since I believe "none of the above" would be a winner in many races :-) .
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, political or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
2007
A Capital Gains Tax Break For Retirees - I like a 0% tax rate:-)
Our Brains Make Change Hard - Perhaps we are wired to be the way we are.
I Won't Follow This Advice #1 - There are some ideas I won't follow.
Making Bonds Part Of My Portfolio - It's tough to find good bond investments now with the interest rates so low.
2008
Compost and Mulch At A Big Discount - $25 versus $300.
Advertising Mind Tricks - Here are some of the mind tricks that cause me to think past the advertising before buying.
2009
Outsmarted by a Four-Year Old - My daughter has become quite the negotiator.
2010
Understand the Rules First Before Bending Them - One should understand the principles of basic financial concepts before venturing into more complex financial products.
A "None of the Above" Option is Needed - What our election system needs is a "none of the above" voting option. That way we give the political parties and their candidates a reality check since I believe "none of the above" would be a winner in many races :-) .
To me, the content of these posts are still relevant today and worth reading again.
For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.
This is not financial, retirement, parenting, political or saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.
Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC
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