Author: Lazy Man

[Last year I posted these tips to save money. I’m disappointed in myself for not being able to come up with more original ideas. I’m going to pay that penalty with my wallet. The person with the idea that I like the best will earn $25 via Paypal, Amazon, or Ebay gift certificate (winner’s choice), from me. Just leave your idea in the comments before Monday noon Pacific Time to qualify.]

Save Money on Valenties’s Day:

• Write a Love Note – This was suggested by a couple of people. I did that last year. I was reading a book on writing that mentioned the 10 most beautiful adjectives in the English language. I found a way to work them all in. I think it came out a little forced, but still worked. It’s the thought that counts.
• Surprise Him/Her – Writer’s Coin comes up with probably the best tip I didn’t think of. He mentioned a treasure hunt around the neighborhood which works well. He also mentioned a hot air balloon which doesn’t really fall in our frugality goal (I’ve looked into them, not cheap).
• Celebrate at Home – There were a few suggestions that could work together for a romantic time at home. My caveat with this is that you really have to make it special because the venue is simply ordinary. However, if you can pull it off this idea has big dividends as you are already near closed doors.
  • Breakfast in Bed – Marie astutely noted that Valentine’s Day is on Saturday, which makes this a definite possibility. I give a couple of bonus points, due to the location… can’t get much better than bed.
  • Cook a Special Dinner – Erica and Fitwallet suggested that you cook at home. She suggested lobster, a great steak, or shrimp scampi (Richer and Slimmer suggested heart-shaped pasta. We’ve done the steak before for special dinners. In the past they were gifts from Omaha Steaks. We haven’t done the seafood, because I’m not a fan. I’d rather take her out just to not have to deal with the kitchen smelling like seafood. Also, alcohol is much cheaper at home, so this can be a big savings.
  • Cue up a Movie – Kosmo suggests buying a cheap DVD or package of them as part of a Valentine’s gift. Amanda mentioned that if you belong to Netflix, you could go that route.
  • Cue up Music and/or Cut a Rug – Fitwallet brought up the idea of dancing. I’m not big into dance, but I could probably brush off some ballroom tricks from classes a few years ago. Also, my cable television has all sorts of commercial-free romantic music. Momma suggested an iTunes playlist of meaningful songs to the two of you.
  • Massage Oils – Looking for something after dinner? Erica suggests breaking out the massage oils.
• Do Some Chores – Penelope Pince mentioned it as a tip. I really thought this would have gotten forgotten as it’s not typically thought of as romantic. However, I’ve personally found it to have its rewards. The smell of bleach equals clean to my wife… and clean equals sexy. When I invent bleach-scented cologne and make millions that last sentence won’t sound so weird. This wouldn’t be the only Valentine’s gift, but it would be work well in combination with the Celebrate at Home package previously mentioned.
• Go For a Picnic – Someone (didn’t leave a name) mentioned this idea for those in warmer climates. Sandwiches, good scenery, and a bottle of wine (which may or may not be legal in your area) all add up to a good time.
• Do Fixed Price Activities – Fitwallet also mentioned that museums are typically the same price any time of year. Thai or Indian food could work as well.
• Tour the Romantic Places of the Past – Penelope Pince mentioned you can go to where you had a first date or first kissed or other milestone.
• Rent a Hot Tub – Erica gave this suggestion which I hadn’t thought of. I don’t know how I forgot renting a hot tub as part of my secret Elimidate fantasies. Too much information?
• Plant a Rose Bush – I’m a little surprised that this would get a great reaction, but Marie said it was one of her favorite gifts.
• Celebrate a Different Day – Abigail suggested that we celebrate Valentine’s Day on the 15th. It makes sense because the date itself doesn’t seem to represent anything special. We often go out the weekend or two before. It’s not as crowded and we get into the places that we want to without paying any special markups. For Valentine’s Day itself we’ll do something small like takeout.
• Exchange Small Practical Gifts – Marie noted that her husband likes to grill and would appreciate silicon brushes for sauces. I would love this gift if I didn’t already have a couple of silicon brushes. I like them quite a bit for grilling.
• Have an unValentine’s Day – One of my favorite trips also comes from Abigail. She mentioned this for the single folk out there. Rent some bad unromantic movies and eat fast food.

As for me and wife’s plans… we agreed to book a weekend in Cambria, CA – a place we’ve been to in the past. It’s not overly frugal, but we are driving so it’s cheaper than some vacations. We’ll visit wineries which have free tastings much of the time (though we’ll have to get a chauffeur to be safe). One day we’ll have a picnic with some wine that we picked up from the previous day. We’ll also go to the nearby Hearst Castle if we can fit it in.

[Editor’s note: I wrote last paragraph last year. However, it is true for this year as well. We are looking to book a weekend at the same place and do the same things. Looks like it’s becoming tradition.]

Related posts:

1. Valentine’s Day Contest Results The deadline for submitting entries for my Valentine’s Day Contest…
2. Win $20 on Ebay or Amazon By Giving Your Best Frugal Valentine’s Day Tip (2 Prizes) Valentine’s Day is almost upon us. Guys, if you are…
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I love it when a blog post writes itself. I’m that Lazy. For instance, watch this commercial for Public Storage:

I saw this yesterday. Fortunately, through the magic of DVR, I was set it up for my wife to watch. I asked her if she could guess why I wanted her to watch. She said, “But you have dogs playing Blackjack, not poker.” (Can I get a frugality award for having a reprint or a knock-off?) Once I gave her the raised eyebrow of “okay be serious”, she knew I was going at it from the personal finance perspective… and she nailed exactly what I saw.

Public Storage doesn’t solve this couple’s problem as it claims. What it really provides is a way to pay a monthly fee or the rest of the their lives (assuming their marriage is forever) to ignore the problem. Is it just me or does this seem like an unusual marketing angle?

Related posts:

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I got a request a couple of weeks ago from a company to see if I wanted to review a business book. I get a lot of these as my email address seems to have gotten out on some public relations circles. Usually, the pitch goes something like:

PR Person: Would you like a copy of [Insert Writer X]’s [Insert Book Title]?
Me: Sure, but I must warn you, I get a lot of books and have little time to read between a full-time job, this blog, and other side projects.
PR Person: It’s okay, we’ll ship you out a book and if you get to it, you get to it.

They are almost always happy to send out the book. They figure that if they get 100 potential maybes, it’s worth it. Anyone who subscribes to Paperback Swap knows that media mail is fairly cheap and the physical cost of the book is cheap. If a few influencers write about the book it is likely to generate more sales and thus be more successful. (I feel like Malcolm Gladwell in the Tipping Point)

The request, I got recently was a little different. It was still a request if I wanted a book. However, the company wanted me to read it and review it within a certain time in a “book tour” with other bloggers. Out of curiosity I decided to visit this company’s website as they didn’t seem to be the usual PR folk. The company had a “Services” tab, which always draws my attention. This is where I learned that this company is basically the middle man between the author and bloggers. They charge authors around $40-45 (depending on bulk pricing) to get bloggers to review their books.

This left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. However, before I go down that road, I will lift a curtain and let you see a little behind the scenes at Lazy Man and Money. I get dozens of requests a day and it’s not possible for me to service them all. When that happens, one of the first things you get really good at is asking two questions 1) “What’s in it for me and my readers?” and 2) “How much time/effort is this going to take from me?” If it’s giving away tax software to readers, that benefits you and indirectly benefits me (hopefully you become slightly more engaged or loyal readers and spread the word of how you won terrific tax software from this awesome blog). It’s also easy to give away tax software. It’s difficult for me to review books. It will often take me 8-10 hours to read a book and then another couple of hours to write the review. In those 10-12 hours, I can write about 7-8 posts. Unless it’s a book that I’m really excited about reading such as The 4-Hour Workweek and Malcolm Gladwell’s What the Dog Saw, it’s not a really efficient use of my time and doesn’t (IMO) maximize value of the content for the reader. You, the reader, get one post on a book that you may or may not like, versus 7-8 posts on other topics that you may or may not like… at the odds are more likely you’ll find something useful in those posts.

So back to the bad taste in my mouth. I see what’s in it for the author (more promotion). I see what in it for the company organizing the bloggers. They get paid for their time and effort. However, at the end of the day, the product provided is the blogger review… so isn’t it natural to ask what’s in it for the blogger? It seems to me like there should be. I posed this question back to company organizing the bloggers.

Their take was that they can’t offer to pay bloggers, because then their reviews would be likely be biased and thus not honest. That seemed to be a very reasonable explanation. For instance, if you knew that an author paid for a review in a book review column in the NY Times wouldn’t that cloud your judgment a bit? I think it might cloud mine.

I’ve gone back and forth on this a few times. If I was watching Siskel and Ebert (assumes I have access to a working time machine), I would have expected that they aren’t paid by the movies themselves for their movie reviews. I think there’s a difference between my website and Siskel and Ebert. (Well, there are a pile of difference, but one important, relevant one). If Siskel and Ebert weren’t reviewing movies they’d have no sponsorships and no show, right? No one seems to care if I don’t do book reviews. I still tend to get advertisements and have content (at least at times) for the “show.”

So I went back and thought about it some more. Here was the workable solution I proposed… knowing full well that it wasn’t going to happen as it’s against the public relations’ business model. I suggested that they paid bloggers a reasonable fee for their time to read to the book… not for a positive review. Any blogger looking to attract an audience is not generally selling their opinion for a reasonable price anyway. Bloggers would have to disclose that they’ve been paid for their time to read to the book. I figured this payment is a bit like bumping the book to top of my priority list. If you don’t want to pay it, then you are free to give me the book anyway, but I make no promises on where it will fall with the dozens of other books that I received last year (which again fall after the books that I actually WANT to read).

As expected the company balked at that proposal and simply said that there are hundreds of other bloggers that would be happy to review it if I didn’t want to. That kind of response seemed a little Grapes of Wrath-like, but it was truthful. With probably more than 100 active personal finance blogs out there, there should be no problems in finding 10 or 15 that will accept the terms.

So I ask the readers… what do you think? Was my proposal fair… on a scale 1 (completely off-base) to 10 (dead-on) where would you rank it?

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I’m trying to spread the word of HaitiHealth.org. It’s an organization that people close to me have been supporting with their time for more than a dozen years. If you are able to donate some money, it’s a worthwhile cause.

[Update: A reader passes on that they have the highest rating (4 stars) at Charity Navigator]

I don’t want to distract you from that message, except with a bunch of personal finance links:

Money Writers:

• Brip Blap ponders whether life is fair.
• Digerati Life discusses work from home jobs: how to find legitimate opportunities.
• Frugal Dad posts the lesson Susan Boyle taught the world.
• Generation X Finance warns about credit cards and the minimum payment – don’t fall into the minimum payment trap!
• Million Dollar Journey blogs claiming extended warranty with your credit card.
• Money Smart Life shares information on tax return deadlines.
• My Dollar Plan goes through and finds the budget busters from last year. What are yours?
• The Sun’s Financial Diary explains the dangers of frugality.

Top PF Posts:

• Some frugal advice at Free Money Finance on how to save money when traveling to Europe.
• Wealth…Uncomplicated says the difference between finance and personal finance – the Grand Canyon of outcomes.
• The Smarter Wallet writes beyond the annual credit report: should you monitor your credit?
• Rich Credit Debt Loan offers this guide on how to save time, money and space in over 80 ways.
• Mighty Bargain Hunter posts a retirement attitude adjustment?
• Five Cent Nickel on life without a mortgage.
• Consumerism Commentary says don’t tell others how to spend their money.
• Investor Centric Blog writes about China’s growing influence in the global oil market.
• A 5 dollar dinner mom shares a few of her secrets at Bill Eater.
• Darwin Finance shares his scammy experience in online ticket purchasing.

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3. Personal Finance Links (Dallas Advice, Anyone?) This week my wife and I are traveling to Dallas…
4. Battle in the Bayou (and Personal Finance Links) While I should probably be looking for some Cyber Monday…
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My friend from Rich Credit Debt Loan asked me a simple, but thought-provoking question last week. I’m probably going to tease you with the actual question for a little while. We decided the best answer for the question was to create a calculator and I haven’t had the time to do such a thing. However, the question centered around his plan to save enough money to put his children through college.

In order to answer any question like that, you have to start by gathering information. “How much would tuition be now?” was a key question we had to answer. Often, you can’t know where things are going if you don’t know where they start. Then we looked to how long he had to save for his children. Then we tried to model how his investments would perform over that span. Lastly we searched the web to see how much college costs are likely to go up while his kids grew. The sobering fact hit us over the head… hard. We found a few sites that estimated costs to go up between 6 and 9%… which was exactly what we estimated as the growth on his investments. In other words, compound interest isn’t likely to help him save for college.

There’s some debate about whether putting a child through college a parent’s responsibility. No matter which side you are on with that debate, I found it refreshing to see someone plan their finances far in advance. It makes me wonder what those who aren’t thinking 10 to 15 years ahead are going to do when college comes around. I know there are always loans and scholarships, but wouldn’t it be nice to not have to think about that?

I wish Rich Credit Debt Loan some luck on whatever path he chooses. It looks like he’s going to need it.

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As I do every now and again, I steal ideas pay homage to Football Writer Peter King and the 10 Things I Think I Think part of his column. Most of the time the thoughts are on football, but there’s always a section where he talks about any non-football thoughts.

I thought I’d use my late link round-up as an excuse opportunity to get some of those out.

• Busy, Busy, Busy – I feel like I’ve been running around with my head cut off recently. Just dealing with my hosting company to keep this site alive has been a ginomous chore. If you have e-mailed me and I haven’t got back to you in a timely manner, try again in 7-10 days.
• Haiti – A side effect of being busy is that I haven’t been able to say much about this. If I can get a few minutes, I’m going to try to do some fund raising for a charity in Haiti that is particularly close to me and my wife.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day – I hate to let this holiday go unrecognized, so here’s a little shout to that. Interestingly, on the day of remembering one of the greatest supporters of equal rights someone called our house to ask for our support against same-sex marriage. No matter where you stand on the issue, it seems very odd timing to try to advocate that some people shouldn’t have equal rights.
• Mo’Nique’s Golden Globe Speech – I don’t typically watch the Golden Globes, but I got sucked into it this past weekend with the wife. I really liked Mo’Nique’s speech. I actually yelled out, “any girl who can stand up, will stand up” as I flashed back to the relevant episode of Buffy.
• My Stupid Dog – While on the topic of that episode, I can’t remember a day that’s passed where I haven’t said, “That’s my dog, always doing the stupid thing.” For those who watched Buffy, you know this is a term of endearment, not one of chastising.
• The Patriots – With the Patriots season long over now and the Jets still keeping their Super Bowl parade reservations, things couldn’t be much worse for a football fan in Boston. Many are predicting the end of the franchise’s competitiveness. I have about 3,000 words to say on that topic, but I’ll reserve that for another blog and let you know if I get a chance to write it.
• The Celtics and Red Sox – Boston shouldn’t feel too down. They still have the Celtics who seem to be one of the best 3 or 4 teams in the NBA. The Red Sox added Lackey, Beltre, and Cameron in the offseason basically increasing their ability to prevent runs about 7000%. Losing Jason Bay gives some of that back, but I think they still come out better than they were last year.
• Taco Bell’s Hidden Value Item – Taco Bell is playing an interesting trick on their menu. If you order the Fresco Ranchero Soft Taco, it will set you back $1.89. It’s one of their more healthy options so I bet a lot of people order that. Most people don’t know that you can just order their $0.89 Chicken Soft Taco from their Why Pay More menu and ask for it Fresco Style. Looking at the menu the difference seems to be that Rachero has southwest chicken while the one from the Why Pay More menu is savory chicken. It seems that the more expensive one is negligibly healthier for you, but I don’t think it’s worth the huge premium.

With all that off my mind… Here are the links from last week that I promised you.

Money Writers:

• Brip Blap posts the two-income myth.
• Digerati Life asks need a job? Job resources and employment statistics!
• Frugal Dad wonders are you saving money just to save, or saving with purpose?
• Generation X Finance says new law makes it harder for teens to get a credit card starting February 22
• Million Dollar Journey discusses workplace culture shock: adjusting to a new company culture.
• Money Smart Life provides a lost credit card Q&A.
• My Dollar Plan shows how you can score free stuff on your birthday.
• The Sun’s Financial Diary provides readers with tips on how to save money on heating this winter.

Top PF Posts:

• The Smarter Wallet blogs yard sale deals: where to buy cheap treasures!
• Get Rich Slowly shares a reader story: how I cut 16 years from my mortgage in just one hour.
• Five Cent Nickel asks joint or separate: which checking works better for you?
• Free Money Finance talks about 10 things not to buy in 2010.
• All Financial Matters posts Question of the Day – The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
• FruGal Totally Money asks what’s the worst thing you’ve read on a PF blog?
• Consumerism Commentary says that American Express membership rewards points can be used to pay taxes.
• Learn to invest in 2010: 4 steps to educating yourself by Wise Bread.
• The Consumerist interviewed an anonymous Facebook employee and says network keeps track of whom you stalk most.
• Investor Centric Blog shares 10 predictions for investors in the new decade.

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Given the situation in Haiti over the last week, I thought it was appropriate to revisit this post that I originally wrote on January 8th of 2008. We took a little time this weekend to look at our emergency plans and realized that we didn’t update them for when we got a dog. We added some canned dog food to our emergency pack as well as a leash. The leash is in case we have to carry him out in an earthquake, we can leash him once outside in safety).

Last weekend San Francisco encountered a huge storm. Prior to that, the news buzzed about how it was the worst storm in more than two years. It was difficult for me to take news of 6-9 inches of rain seriously. I grew up in Boston where there’s often a foot of snow at a time. While that storm did not impact me, the threat of an earthquake always looms in San Francisco. We know we need to be ready in the case of an emergency.

If you want to succeed at any venture, the first step is to have a plan. Here are some steps we are taking to be prepared:

• Buy an Emergency Kit – We went out and purchased this one . It has everything that the American Red Cross suggests for two people to live for three days. If you want to really safe, you might want to consider this deluxe version.
• Buy an Emergency Radio – We haven’t pulled the trigger on purchasing a radio yet, but we will soon. I have my eye on this radio. I love that it can be powered simply by cranking a handle. As far as features go, it is weather resistant, can charge a variety of cell phones, has a powerful flashlight, an AM/FM/NOAA/VHF radio, and an emergency siren. If you are on a budget, you might want to consider this radio instead.
• Buy a Multi-tool – This can be either a Swiss Army knife or a Leatherman-type tool. For less than $10, plus shipping, I like this cheap version” of a Leatherman tool. Like anything else, there’s a deluxe version. This one is currently around $65 and seems extremely well-made with many features.
• Buy Extra Miscellaneous Items – My kit didn’t include a way to start a fire; waterproof matches or a lighter should work. I will also look to add the following: paper and pencils, resealable sandwich bags, duct tape, super glue, a sewing kit, and a small compass.
• Prepare Important Documents and Irreplaceable Items – If you have to evacuate your home in a hurry you’ll want to gather a birth certificates, social security cards, house and car deeds, and passports. I would look to have a portable hard drive with any documents that you need.
• Upload Important Data to the Internet – We will not grab our wedding album – or any pictures in our home for that matter. By having all our pictures uploaded to the Internet, we can retrieve them when the emergency is over. It can’t hurt to scan copies of all the documents mentioned above and upload them as well.
• Have Emergency Cash Available – If there’s a true natural disaster, you might find that your credit card and check book aren’t accepted. A couple of hundred dollars could go a very long way.

Now that I have a plan, it’s simply a matter of execution. Putting all the above supplies together should take only 2-3 hours and less than $200. I have only one problem. Where do we store the final kit? Do we store it in our home and hope that in an earthquake, there is time to grab it and go? Or should we store it in one of our cars? In the later case, we can immediately get out with just our car keys and not have to worry about something collapsing on our heads.

Is there anything that my emergency plan is missing? Where would you store your emergency kit?

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Ever have to buy a gift for a person that has everything? That’s my mom. So this holiday season, I thought for a long time of what to get her. Remembering that she enjoys going to movies, I decided some movie gift certificates would be appropriate.

I decided to go to the first movie website that I thought of and see what they have to offer. That’s how I found Fandango Bucks. I saw the tag line of “Perfect for all occasions. Good for any movie, any time, on Fandango.com.”

I have to admit, I was excited. This was going to be the easiest and best gift I’ve ever sent her. It was a simple instant e-mail. I checked to make sure that Fandango had the theaters near my mom’s Boston suburb. I knew it would be a deal-breaker if she couldn’t go to the theaters that she was used to. I might as well buy her an In-N-Out Burger gift certificate (sorry, California reference). Fortunately, I saw that Fandango had all the theaters and listed all the movie times… it was a movie, at a time, listed on Fandango.com. So with piece of mind, I made my purchase.

My mother sends me an e-mail a few days later that while it was a good idea, the certificates aren’t accepted at any of the 8 theaters she goes to. They are only accepted at four theaters in Boston proper, which is not only a bit of a drive, it’s also tough parking. That didn’t seem right, so I read things a little closer and realize that the “Perfect for all occasions. Good for any movie, any time, on Fandango.com.” is pretty much an out-and-out lie. There’s some fine print that says that not all theaters accept it because they are either not partnered with Fandango or don’t have the means to accept online ticketing.

I decided to e-mail customer support and ask what’s up. Though a response was promised in 48 hours, a week later I have heard nothing (not even an acknowledgment that they have received my e-mail. I send another e-mail thinking the first one must not have gotten through. Still no response. So yesterday, I decided to call them up and see what’s going on.

The customer service representative was really, really nice. He said that they have 3000 e-mails from the holidays and their 10 person team is a little undermanned to get back to everyone in time. He understood my problem and looked into the Boston theaters and admitted that most of the theater chains there partnered with their competitors. He suggested that my mom e-mail me back the certificates and I can use them in Silicon Valley. That’s not a terrible solution, but it really doesn’t speak to the main point: They promised one thing, didn’t deliver, and now are giving me a response they might (or might not) be able to refund me the cash.

I will admit that I could have spent a little more time reading the fine print. However, shouldn’t the fine print be a clarification or further definition of what is promised and not a complete contradiction of it?

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That’s very, very close to the most sensationalistic title I’ve written in a long time… but it’s also one of the most accurate titles I’ve written.

My friend at Weight Loss Journal alerted me to this Time article, which tells the story of Healthy Wage, a website that will pay you to lose weight. Go read the article… I’ll wait. Back? Awesome!

You may note that this service is fairly similar to the article I wrote about StickK nearly two years. That was my impression 30 seconds after Weight Loss Journal sent me the link. However, I’m glad that I continued to read the article. Time makes the great point that people can subvert StickK very, very easily. While StickK provides a path to accountability, it does not enforce it.

Healthy Wage enforces it. That’s half of the reason it’s a great idea. When I read that you have to call your physician to verify your weight it was a moment of clarity for me. Long ago I had the idea of a weight loss system where you report your progress in some kind of Internet forum. The Biggest Loser has something like that. However, the missing piece of the equation for me was that I couldn’t figure out the accountability.

The other half of the idea is that there is a signficant reward. You can win $100 by just losing the weight… or you can risk $300 to win $1000. That’s not exactly “chump change” for doing something that will likely save you much, much more in the long run.

If you are interested, act quickly. You need to sign up by January 20th.

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4. End of Your Rope? Phases 2 and 3 Yesterday I wrote about some emergency measures you should consider…
5. My Friend is Brainwashed by Get Rich Quick Schemes, Help! I got a very interesting e-mail this morning… almost 1800…

I’m really not a big reader of books. Perhaps it’s my short attention span, but web articles usually work best for me. However, I’m starting to read Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek, a gift that I got for Christmas. I’m a really slow reader and time has been at a premium so I’m only around page 70. I’ve found myself nodding and agreeing with most of Tim Ferriss’ reasoning. A lot of it is what I was trying to get at when I started this website. However, on page 34, there was one suggestion that has had me puzzled over the last week:

Emphasize Strengths, Don’t Fix Weaknesses.

Ferriss’ explanation for this logic is this:

“My body was built to lift heavy objects and throw them… I tried swimming and looked like a drowning monkey. I tried basketball and looked like a caveman…. It is far more lucrative and fun to leverage your strengths instead of attempting to fix all the chinks in your armor. The choice is between a multiplication of results using strengths or incremental improvement fixing weaknesses that will, at best, become mediocre.”

I understand what he’s trying to say. The odd thing is that he uses his physical body as an example, when he’s mostly talking about mental attitude. Is this a universal truth? I suggest it’s not.

For instance let’s say I want to become a great calligrapher (you know those people who can hand-write perfect wedding invitations and such). I give it a shot and I’m really good with most of the letters, but I have a real problem with the letter “S”. Should I just focus on taking clients who have no need for anyone to write the letter “S”? No, I should work on that weakness, so that I can be a great all around calligrapher.

Here’s another example… this time from baseball. The Boston Red Sox have a player known as David Ortiz. He’s particularly famous for hitting ball only to right field. When he steps up to the plate, the opposing team will shift the defense to right field so that they will be more likely to have a defender there to play the ball. While David Ortiz is often good enough to hit it by this defense, it will still stop him a good percentage of the time. One of David Ortiz’s weakness is that he is not a good bunter (when you attempt deaden a pitch in the infield). If he was a better bunter or if he made a conscious effort to hit it to the other side of the baseball diamond, he’d have a much greater chance at a hit (since the defense has shifted to the right). If Ortiz focused on his weakness, the defense would have to respect that aspect of his game, and the result would be more opportunities to get hits in right field.

You also see this all the time in football. The most successful teams are not one-dimensional. The team is a good running team, a good passing team, has good defense, etc.

Now, I’m not suggesting that the calligrapher trains his/her non-dominant hand. Nor am I suggesting that David Ortiz train to be faster (he’s a very big and slow player). However, I think you need to use basic judgment to figure out if improving a weakness is pay you a multiplication of results or incremental results (to borrow Mr. Ferriss words).

In personal finance, I almost always find that it’s better to improve your weaknesses rather than focus on your strengths. If you are really good at being frugal, there’s not a to be gained by being extra frugal. It’s the law of diminishing returns. However, if you are a shopaholic, some quick gains can be made to bottom line with some minimal effort. I like to say it’s low-lying fruit.

So what do you say, maximize strengths, minimize weaknesses, a little bit of both, or does it depend on the situation? Let me know in the comments.

Related posts:

1. David Ortiz Home Run Auction Even though I’m in California now, I’m still a big…
2. What I Learned from the 2001 New England Patriots With the start of the NFL football season this week,…
3. Finding Value Where Others Don’t I woke up yesterday to some of the best news…
4. Maximize Your Prosper Lending with RateLadder.com I had mentioned RateLadder.com in the past, but Kevin has…
5. Of Footage and Foosball My new job has a foosball table. That’s probably a…

This is coming a little late, but I wanted to make mention that if you haven’t seen Avatar you should definitely go. I didn’t really have much interest in it, nor did I know anything about the story, but after seeing it three times I can say it’s a great, great movie. The biggest reason I saw it three times is that I’ve never seen effective 3D before. I think the last movie I saw in 3D was Jaws. This really felt like 3D. I don’t know if I can justify it as a good financial decision to see the same movie three times, but consider that I typically don’t go to the movies much, it seemed reasonable for a splurge.

Before we get to the personal finance links, I’d like to suggest that you check out Money Crasher’s contest. There will be over 100 winners. I’m personally offering $50 in Paypal cash.

Money Writers:

• Here are 8 questions to ask [yourself] before buying ‘stuff’ from Brip Blap.
• Digerati Life talks about setting goals: 5 financial milestones to aim for by age 30.
• Frugal Dad says delaying Roth IRA contributions one year could cost you $74,000!
• Generation X Finance asks would you willingly lose 25% of your money? Chances are you already do!
• Million Dollar Journey writes on financial values: spending more & spending less. What are you un/willing to spend money on?
• Money Smart Life posts avoiding tax return fees & penalties.
• My Dollar Plan examines Prosper versus Lending Club.
• The Sun’s Financial Diary shows you how you can indulge your resolutions without breaking the bank.

Top PF Posts:

• Get Rich Slowly shares a reader story: how I paid off $18,500 in debt.
• Five Cent Nickel blogs save then buy vs. buy now, pay later.
• Free Money Finance on the love of money.
• The Mighty Bargain Hunter warns not tracking our spending has repercussions.
• Bill Eater writes “Pay as you Drive” technology enables new car insurance discounts.
• Consumerism Commentary shares some alternatives to high-yield savings accounts.
• One Million and Beyond posts year of less.
• The Smarter Wallet presents 8 new or changed 2009 tax credits that can save you hundreds!
• Roni Deutch shares the top 10 tax stories of 2009.
• Wise Bread reveals 12 cool things to do with used dryer sheets.

Related posts:

1. Weekend Personal Finance Links (Tuesday Edition) If it’s good enough for Sheryl Crow (“He’s got a…
2. Battle in the Bayou (and Personal Finance Links) While I should probably be looking for some Cyber Monday…
3. Personal Finance Links (Harvey Milk Edition) As I write this, I’m watching Milk. So far it’s…
4. New Moon (and Personal Finance Links) Today, I made good on my promise to take my…
5. Personal Finance Links (Dogs Rule Edition) This weekend I watched the movie UP. I think it…

[Note: I’m republishing this article from last year with minors edits as it is once again relevant]

It’s 5 days into the new year… how are your New Year’s Resolutions coming along? Maybe I’m just Lazy (wait, I am), but this is around the time each year that I start running into troubles. This is around the time that work starts getting going again. Right now, I’m trying to write articles in advance (failed on this one), starting a new job, battling cold, and hundred other things. That’s the problem with New Year’s resolutions, you get busy, put it off, and then it gets forgotten. The best way to stop that from happening this year is by being SMART with your goals.

SMART Goals

Many of you have heard about SMART goals in the past. It’s common in the realm of project management. SMART is simply an mnemonic device to help you remember the steps necessary to achieve your goals. Though some of the specific terms are debated (more on that later), one interpretation is that stands for:

• Specific – What is the goal that I want to accomplish? Do I want to get my TPS reports submitted with coversheets? Do I want to get that T.G.I. Friday’s Chotchkie’s waitress to go out with me? Or do you want to just want to get your red stapler back? (Note: Those goals won’t make sense unless you’ve seen Office Space)
• Measurable – How do I measure the goal? Am I successful if I submit my TPS reports with coversheets 80% of the time? Sounds like a good start. Having I gotten to know what the Chotchkie’s waitress likes? Am I successful if I find that she likes kung-fu? Yep.
• Attainable – Is my goal reasonable? If my goal is learn to fly by flapping my arms, I need to go back to the drawing board. In this case it is possible to acheive the TPS report/coversheet goal… and contrary to what any logic in my head says, I guess it’s finding Jennifer Anistons working at Chotchkie’s and get them to go out with you is “attainable” (maybe this is where my Office Space analogy breaks down).
• Relevant – Does the goal matter to you and your life? Do you really care about achieving the 80% TPS report/coversheet goal? No you don’t. Does going out with Chotchkie’s waitress matter? I’m going to go on a limb and say that in example it’s something worth caring about.
• Time-bound – When do expect to reach this goal? Maybe you want to start out with getting your TPS Reports up to par for just a month… then raise it to a fiscal quarter… then go for the full year… Maybe you want to find out three things that the Chotchkie’s waitress likes in the next week.

I mentioned earlier that there are some variations to SMART goals. Some use Appropriate and Realistic instead of Attainable and Relevant. If you think about it, Appropriate is similar enough to Relevant, and Realistic is similar enough to Attainable that it doesn’t really matter. As long as you cover the main five concepts you are ready to tackle any goal… or are you?

SMARTER Goals

I’ve noticed some people are getting a little clever with SMART Goals and trying to make them even SMARTER Goals. They do this by adding a couple more steps such as

• Exciting – Your goals should exciting you. I think this is captured in Relevant step mentioned above. This could be debated, but in the example above, I think it’s safe to say that Peter should be excited about the idea of taking Jennifer Aniston’s character on a date.
• Recorded – You should record your progress at set intervals. I like this one. It’s a little like Measurable, but reminds you to go back and look at how you are doing

Another variation is:

• Evaluate – Same concept as the recorded above – evaluate your goal progress on an on-going basis
• Re-do – After evaluating your goal’s progress, go back and adjust your goal accordingly. You know some things that the waitress likes, ask her to come over and watch the Kung-Fu marathon on channel 39.

SMARTEST Goals

I’m not going to revise the acronym again. Instead I’d like to add a couple of important tips for achieving your goals that I believe get lost in the steps above:

• Assess Where You Start – Before you create a goal, you should assess where you stand currently. It will help you with various steps in the process.
• Divide and Conquer – You may need to break big goals into smaller ones. Some goals may seem break the “attainable” guideline, but in smaller chunks it becomes easier. Paying off $100,000 of debt a year may not be attainable to some people, but paying of $15,000 may be possible.
• Get Some Motivating Help – How do I keep up with my goals? Here are some things that I’ve found helpful:
  • StickK to Your Goals – This website can help make you accountable for not achieving your goals
  • Buddy System – My wife and I are implementing a buddy system for going to the gym. She motivates me to go to the gym and I motivate her. Together we improve the chances of accomplishing our goals.
  • Reminders – It can be easy to forget your goals. I would recommend setting up reminders on a regular basis on Google Calendar or 30 Boxes. If you are low-tech type, you could put a picture that reminds you of your goal on your bathroom mirror.

If you take just one thing away from this article, I hope it’s this… Lazy Man has seen Office Space far too many times.

Related posts:

1. My 2008 Goals In case you missed it, I wrote about my 2007…
2. A Look Back at 2007 Goals You know how to take the [rental car] reservation, you…
3. 2008 Goals: A Look Back Yesterday I got a little ahead of myself as I…
4. StickK to Your Goals Have you ever made a goal and resolution only to…
5. Planning and Goal Setting Week: Lazy Man’s 2007 Goals Almost like a great high school guidance councilor Flexo has…

[Note: Last year I published this article and was fairly popular. I think it’s as relevant this year as it was last year, so I figured it’s worth a reminder.]

The Most Important Key to Success

• Do What You Love – You aren’t going to be successful at something you spend all day dreading. When I was excited about software engineering, I was good – perhaps even above average. When I got stuck on a project that didn’t interest me, I was honestly a poor software engineer.

Preparation and Planning

• Make a List of Short, Medium, and Long Term Goals – Each night before I go to sleep, I try to write down 5-10 things that I want to accomplish the next day. I make sure that at least 3-4 are things that I can complete that day and purge from my to-do list. I also make sure to add a couple of small parts of medium or long-term projects. Here’s an example. I’m looking to write an eBook. One day my goal was to create an outline of the book – 9-12 chapters and 3-5 things that I wanted to cover in each chapter. The next day one of my goals was to write at least one of those 3-5 things in one chapter. In 1-2 months, I’ll have my eBook written.
• Catalog Your Progress – I started this blog to keep me accountable. I can’t go out and buy a Ferrari on credit and then write about it here. Instead, I catalog my alternative income progress here. Each day, I think about how I’m going to grow that so that next month I don’t have to live up to my moniker.

Learn These Skills

• Sales / Marketing – Even if you don’t think you have a product to sell, you do… yourself. I’ve learned that sales and marketing are not easy skills to learn. You can’t shout “look at me!” or people will think you are obnoxious. You have to find people who might be genuinely interested in what you have to offer. I always find it best to be open and honest with what I have to sell. If the product is of value, you price it accordingly, and have the right buyer, it should sell itself. I’ve found that if you have to “sell” to hard, it’s probably going to be a sale you regret making.
• Public Speaking – I might be one of the most shy people on Earth. Talking to someone one-on-one often ties my stomach in knots. Imagine how I must feel about public speaking. I remember it was a required class in high school. I started off horrible, but by the end, I had earned an A. It’s really a case were practice means everything. I suggest an organization such as Toastmasters.
• Writing – Even if you are crafting a short e-mail, try to use proper grammar. You’d be surprised how many e-mails I receive where people make 6 mistakes in 6 sentences. Perhaps it shouldn’t, but poor writing skills on the first impression impacts my view of the person’s intelligence and/or professionalism – and not in a good way. A person who can write great commands my respect and my trust.
• Networking – Get out there and meet new people in your areas of interest. When you know a lot of people, opportunities multiply. To go back to my eBook example above, I found someone who already has a successful eBook. He’s in the process of getting it translated into an audio book now. He could definitely be a great resource for me to learn from. He’s newer to blogging and doesn’t have the number of readers that I have. I can probably give him a few tips and help him out. Now if I knew 100 people like this guy, I’d have a solution to almost every question I’d ever have at my fingertips.
• Read More and Faster – I have always been a very slow reader. I simply don’t scan text very well. Perhaps I’m afraid I’ll miss a critical word or something silly like that. This is one area that I’m going to work on in the new year. Much of my time is spent reading, you’d think I’d at least be good at it.

Take Action

• Help Someone with Something Everyday – This may sound like some kind of “Pay It Forward” hype. In some ways it is. I estimate that I’ve given guidance to around 50 or 100 bloggers who are just getting going that were looking for advice. Some of them became successful bloggers and some stopped blogging. The successful ones have returned the favor 100 times over or more. They link to my articles, they comment on my site, and fill me in with opportunities that I would have otherwise missed. This isn’t limited to blogging. If you mentor someone, you’ll be seen as a natural leader. I’ve always seen a strong correlation between leadership and success.
• Make Mistakes – When I just got out of college, I took a job with a top ten Internet company. It was a very high profile job as I managed the search engine myself. It was about 20% of this 2 billion dollar company’s traffic. The thought that I’d make a mistake scared me to death. I spent each day walking on eggshells until the day that I made a mistake. A strange thing happened. No one got upset with me, and we were able to recover pretty quickly. From that experience, I learned to always have a back-up plan. This allowed me to take some risks, experiment more, and eventually produce ideas that made the company millions. Just as importantly, I realized that I should tolerate other people’s mistakes.
• Surround Yourself with Like-Minded Individuals – There are studies that show an individual’s income will be somewhere around the average of your closest five friends. That formula works for me and my closest friends – or it did until I decided to build my career from websites. There are also studies that show your weight will reflect those who you hang around with. It makes sense if you think about it. If your circle of friends likes to bounce business ideas off each other while playing a game of pickup basketball, you’ll probably put yourself closer to the path of prosperity than if you tell fart jokes while eating Bon-Bons.
• Exercise – Whenever I work out, I am all pumped up with endorphins for hours. It feels like nothing can stop me – as if I could tackle a bear. Instead of tackling a bear, I focus that energy on my list of goals and churn through it like never before.
• Start a Website or Blog – It’s easy to talk the talk, but what matters is if you can walk the walk. A website or blog not only makes you accountable for the goals that you set, but can also help you network and gather useful information. For more inspiration read how personal finance blogging helped me.

Be More Productive

• Don’t Get Wrapped Up in Television – I love television. However, I try to watch shows that you don’t have to follow too closely. This way I can work while it’s on. You won’t see me watching a lot of Law and Order because it requires too much of my focus. However, having the Red Sox on the background doesn’t distract me from accomplishing what I’m trying to.
• Commute with Books on Tape (or Podcasts) – Most of the people I know have a 30-60 minute commute to work each day. You can listen to some morning talk show or a shock-jock DJ or you can learn some of the skills that I mentione above. I’m not saying that you should throw away all entertainment, but if you are looking to increase your productivity, utilizing this downtime is a great start.
• Declutter and Organize Your Home and Work Area – I used to waste a lot of time looking for stuff. The problem? I had stuff everywhere. I couldn’t find the stuff that I needed from the old stuff that was piled around it. It’s amazed me the number of things that I had around the home that I didn’t use. Finally I simply said “Stuff It!” and got rid of most of the stuff that I didn’t use and put other special stuff in a closet that I’ll probably ignore for another years. Just like in What About Bob, “baby steps…” I tell myself.

Think Your Way To Success

• Think Positively – I’m not going to get Stuart Smalley, Motivational Speaker on you, but making the conscious decision to focus on being financially successful is extremely helpful. Bringing finances to front of my mind, instead of the back has made a huge difference in my finances.
• Don’t Hate Money – Lose the thinking that money is the root of all evil. Start thinking about it as a key to freedom to do whatever interests you. Think of it as a way to help friends, family, and charities important to you. Think about how you could use money to make the world a better place.
• Appreciate What You Have – Schedule a day to just appreciate yourself. Appreciate the things that you do have. The fact that you are reading this likely means that you are much better off than others in the world.
• Be In A Good Mood – One of my favorite lines from Say Anything is when Lloyd Dobler (played by John Cusack) says to his sister, “Why can’t you be in a good mood? How hard is it to decide to be in a good mood and be in a good mood once in a while?”

Related posts:

1. Make a New Year’s Resolution for SMARTER Goals This Year [Note: I’m republishing this article from last year with minors…
2. A Look at 2008 Goal Progress One of the best ways to accomplish something is to…
3. What We Can Learn From a 12 year old Football Fan [Note: While this post is football-related, it translated to any…
4. My 2008 Goals In case you missed it, I wrote about my 2007…
5. 2008 Goals: A Look Back Yesterday I got a little ahead of myself as I…

[Note: While this post is football-related, it translated to any sport… and I tie the story back to money… I promise]

I’ve always believed there is something we can learn from everyone. This past weekend professional sports organizations may have learned a lot from a 12-year-old young gentleman in the stands football game… and he didn’t have to say a word.

To understand where I’m going with this, let me set the scene a bit. The story starts with one player for the New England Patriots, Randy Moss. While no one has ever really doubted his talent, questions about his work ethic have followed him through his career. Two weeks ago he had one his worst games. A player on the opposing team said Moss “gives up a lot” and that he “laid it down during the game.” The game was so bad that it’s garnered a whole paragraph on his Wikipedia page. Almost every analyst opined on the subject (with a vast majority agreeing that Moss didn’t play hard) until it because one of the biggest stories of the NFL that week.

Moss, as you might expect, probably didn’t take it so well. He didn’t say anything, but instead let his coach and quarterback defend him. Most people ignored their biased testimonies. After all, the coach and quarterback are supposed to support their teammates. And that’s where the story stayed until the next game (last week).

In that game Moss didn’t set the world on fire by getting a lot of huge stats. However, when the Patriots needed him, he scored. After Moss’ third touchdown of the day (an unusually great day for any player in the NFL), the referees reviewed the video to make sure he crossed the goal line. While they were doing that, the Jumbotron caught a 12-year-old, Josiah Shumaker, wearing a Randy Moss mask in the stands. And here is a YouTube video of that interaction.

What you are seeing here is the young man performing Randy Moss’ signature touchdown celebration. He’s doing it so well that the crowd got excited and Randy mocks him with a real version of the celebration. Players on the sideline are laughing and all the talk of the previous week disappeared from everyone’s minds.

I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of a professional sports player interacting with a fan via a Jumbotron before, but the timing was impeccable. While Moss would have been in good spirits with his three touchdown day, anyway this is what really lifted his spirits. He admitted that his last performance “wasn’t too hot” and that having the fans and the stadium behind him meant a lot to him. Sometimes I forget that while these professional athletes are extremely talented, they are people with feelings too.

So now that I’ve got all the sappiness out of the way, let’s get to what you came here for… the tie-in with money. Professional sports is big business. If your Hall of Fame player isn’t performing, there is the potential that millions of dollars will be wasted. Now I’m sure this wasn’t staged (or am I?), but if they wanted to how much would have cost the Patriots to stage it? It could be done for under $100. If you own a sports team and have a struggling star, why not try something like this, right?

Related posts:

1. Finding Value Where Others Don’t I woke up yesterday to some of the best news…
2. Compounding Interest in the NFL Yesterday, I explained how the Patriots trade for Randy Moss…
3. Personal Finance Links (Football is Back Edition) It feels good to have the NFL back in gear….
4. Your Financial Football Team I have mentioned in the past that I’m a huge…
5. Follow the NFL at 30,000 Feet for “Free” A couple of weeks ago, on our trip to The…

A couple news stories caught my eye yesterday. (To be entirely honest one caught my ear… I was driving.) It’s not often that I find two related stories (and relevant), however this is the exception.

The first story that I heard about is Good Riddance Day. The idea is to take something in the past year and put it where it belongs… in the past. It could be your ex or maybe a grudge you have against your boss. How does it work? You have to create a paper represenation of that thing you want to get rid of. So you can write that ex’s name on a piece of paper. Or you can take that big credit card bill and put that in there. This might be a New York City holiday, but I can see it expanding. I could also see it morphing into saying good riddance to some physical objects that you don’t need anymore. I have a couple of laptops and desktops that fit that bill.

The other story that I read is a lot more vague. I apologize that I couldn’t get more details on it, but I still thought it was worth sharing. Someone, somewhere, (see, really vague) came up with the idea of collecting unwanted Chirstmas gifts and giving them to the soldiers. Finally a way to bid good riddance (see the connection now), to that ugly sweater. You don’t even have to feel bad about regifting it… it’s going to a good cause. I wish I could find more details on this, but my Internet sleuthing has come up empty. Maybe a helpful reader can find more details on it.

So as the new year approaches, what are you going to say good riddance to? I think I’m going to focus on saying good riddance to my procrastination… Actually, I’m a little busy this time of year, so maybe I’ll say good riddance to it next month.

Related posts:

1. The Worst Gifts We Have Ever Gotten Sometimes I have an idea for a particular article and…
2. My Favorite Last Minute Gifts Similar to last year’s post, I still believe that Amazon…
3. Morning Links: What Do you Want for Christmas this Year Edition For those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you…
4. Personal Finance Links (Christmas Gifts Edition) I thought I’d recount some of the Christmas gifts I…
5. How My Wife and I Celebrate Valentine’s Day – Past and Present Valentine’s Day – there are few holidays like it. You…

I thought I’d recount some of the Christmas gifts I received of note. However before I get to that I have to recount the ones I gave. On the positive side, realizing that my wife had Boxing Day off to go shopping turned my numerous gift cards into one of the smartest gifts I could give. On the negative side, bungee cords, not the gift to give your wife, even if you think she could use them in various hobbies of hers. I think the positives outweighed that negative though.

I received, oddly enough for those who know me, mostly books. Of note were The Biggest Loser’s Simple Swaps… I always like to see that I can exchange a piece of bacon for a pile of Canadian bacon. I also got the new Malcolm Gladwell book (expect a review in a few months when I get a chance to read it) as well as The Four Hour Workweek a book that I’ve had on my list for a few years. I got a few Buffy the Vampire SlayerSeason 8 comic books (the only comic books that I ready). Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I got a New England Patriots’ Snuggie (well not a real Snuggie since it’s not from the company that ones that trademark). I’m now going to be pillar of fashion in my living room… or not.

Here are the links that I thought were worth checking out this week.

Money Writers:

• Brip Blap says you know, you might be a personal finance redneck if…
• Digerati Life asks is college worth what you pay for it?
• Frugal Dad creates a a frugal diet plan for 2010.
• Million Dollar Journey writes about the tooth fairy economy.
• My Dollar Plan writes a plan now to make the most of post holiday sales.
• What are some of the best car deals for your money? Money Smart Life will tell you!
• The Sun’s Financial Diary tells readers to freeze up the savings… literally.

Top PF Posts:

• A guest blogger at Free Money Finance talks about small businesses pulling an Ayn Rand or Going John Galt.
• It’s Just Money exclaims— I just overdrew my checking account!
• Get Rich Slowly posts start saving for next year’s Christmas today.
• Five Cent Nickel asks can you retire with (out) a million dollars?
• Wealth…Uncomplicated shares how to get the most out of your electronics – laptop, hdmi cable, hdtv, netflix and more.
• Finance For Youth talks to the young people of America… about health care.
• All Financial Matters is bidding farewell to a crappy decade…
• Consumerism Commentary asks can you ever have enough money?
• A Private Portfolio comments on the money lessons of a lost decade by WSJ.
• The Simple Dollar shares six great FREE games to dig into over your holiday break.

Related posts:

1. Battle in the Bayou (and Personal Finance Links) While I should probably be looking for some Cyber Monday…
2. Personal Finance Links (Bandwagon Red Sox Fans are Free Now Edition) Since 2004, I’ve seen fans of Red Sox Nation quintuple…
3. Last Day For CollegeAdvantage Free Money (and Some Personal Finance Links) Today (May 31st) is the last day to claim your…
4. 8 Things I Think I Think (and Personal Finance Links) As I do every now and again, I steal ideas…
5. Personal Finance Links (Dogs Rule Edition) This weekend I watched the movie UP. I think it…

Quite a few years ago, one of my friends unknowingly started an unusual tradition. He found himself with a little extra time on his hands that holiday season and decided to take advantage of it. With a beer in hand, he set out to write something a little whimsical. It turned into the most entertaining piece of email I’ve ever received. Each year, there’s a request for a new edition.

The e-mail was an adaption of Twas the Night Before Christmas where he recounts the happens of the year of everyone in the whole college crew. I decided I’d borrow the idea, but made it into a year-end financial review.

Twas the Night Before Christmas and all through the States
Nothing was stirring, especially not interest rates.

The year we speak was two thousand and nine
And more people than found themselves in the unemployment line

This was the year Obama had to really perform
We saw stimulus, CARD act, and Healthcare reform

The real estate problem got more exposure
As more homes started to go into foreclosure.

Bernie Madoff was not cool like Fonzie
Instead he reminded us of a man named Charles Ponzi.

Time’s Person of the Year seemed a little wacky
On the cover was a man named Ben Bernacke.

CEOs from car companies wanted bail out from debt
So they all went to Washington in their own private jet.

The insurance company AIG said, “money, please loan us!”
“We have all these international executives that need a big bonus!”

So the Feds granted that bailout and it was quite a ton
Even more, the Feds cried, “give them vaccines for H1N1.”

Cash for Clunkers was really a great plan
It boosted the economy – especially for Japan.

Searching for green electronics became such a pity
Especially as we had to say goodbye to Circuit City

Think positively, the year gave us many a gift
Captain Sully, The Hangover, and country star Taylor Swift.

Related posts:

1. So this is Christmas… and what have I (financially) done? It’s nearly the end of the year, so it’s a…
2. The Amazon that Stole Christmas For those who celebrate Christmas, this is a special time…
3. Morning Links: What Do you Want for Christmas this Year Edition For those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you…
4. My Wife and I Robbed Black Angus Last Night For those that don’t know Black Angus is a steakhouse…
5. Personal Finance Links (Christmas Gifts Edition) I thought I’d recount some of the Christmas gifts I…

I got a heads up the other day that Amazon has a deal on free lifetime phone service through Ooma for $150. Before you jump on the deal, here is a little bit what you need to know. The Ooma Telo service looks highly rated based on the Amazon reviews. While the Ooma name isn’t exactly a brand like Apple that jumps off the page, Vonage wasn’t always a big name.

I bring up Vonage, because the device seems to work a lot like Vonage. You simply plug it into your high speed Internet and plug your phone into that. Unlike something like MagicJack (which does cost $20 a year), you don’t need to have a computer on and active to use it. That seems to be all there really is to it. You get free US calling and cheap international calling through your regular phone handset (my picture shows an optional Ooma handset which is not included in this deal).

Why jump on this deal? The Ooma device usually costs $250. It’s on sale for $200 on Amazon… but if you buy from the first link I mentioned, you get a $50 Amazon gift card for free. I consider Amazon gift cards to be very close to cash since you can buy almost anything (and usually at a competitive price). By the time you are done it’s effectively paying $150 (hence the title). You only have until December 26th to get in on it. They might go quickly, so it’s probably not worth waiting.

This is an offer that I’m seriously considering. Ooma has a very handy cost savings calculator. I currently pay around $17 a month for 500 Vonage minutes (more than I ever use, but that’s the cheapest plan they offer). In the first year, it says that I’d actually lose $46. This is actually incorrect since I’d be effectively paying $150 via Amazon rather than the $250 retail price. I’d be coming out ahead before the first year. And since Ooma is free while the Vonage bills keep coming, I’d be saving $258 by the end of the 2nd year. In the third year, I’d see $462 worth of savings. If I can save that on my very cheap phone service imagine what you might be able to save if you pay more than $17… and the savings would continue to add up for the life of the device. I imagine this device would live for a long time as well, since there’s no motors or moving parts.

There are very few opportunities to take a monthly recurring cost and turn it into a fixed cost. Getting them to pay off in the first year is even more unusual. If you can grab a deal like this… well, it seems like the deal of the year.

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Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin said a week ago that he’d trade his Hall of Fame inclusion and his 3 Super Bowl rings for a perfect season. Earlier this past Sunday, he went into more detail on his reasoning, which many found curious. Irving said that there have been very few players who can say that they’ve been part of a perfect team. Since you can’t live a perfect life, if you get a chance to perfect in your professional life, that’s worth it. He made a point that it wouldn’t be an individual accomplishment like the Hall of Fame one either.

I can’t rationalize his logic. I think he’s trying to be humble and say the right things from a public relations standpoint… but I’m going to put more focus on it. Giving up 3 Super Bowl rings is significant… few people have ever done that (even fewer than people who have been part of perfect teams). If you are going to try be the “ultimate teammate”, what about taking the 3 Super Bowl rings away from your teammates such as Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith? Also if you give up your Hall of Fame credentials and opt to be another cog in the system of a perfect team, do you have a job with the NFL Network? I think no. How many of the 1972 Dolphins (the only other team agreed by all to have a perfect season) worked in broadcasting after their career?

My other thought here is that there’s too much focus on “perfect” in the NFL. It’s a by-product of the league not having too many games. You never hear a basketball, hockey, or baseball team even consider the prospect of going perfect. In baseball in particular, I think few (if any) teams ever go 11-0 in the postseason (probably due to the competition and the fact that you can’t throw your best pitcher each game). So when a team like the Dolphins finish their 17 games without a loss, it’s a great accomplishment… but I don’t think it’s any more an accomplishment than the Patriots winning 18 to start a season. We’ll never know one way or the other if the Dolphins would have won if they had to play two more games. It’s also of note that the Colts have now won some 24 regular season games in a row… an accomplishment that I consider to be way ahead of the 1972 Dolphins – especially in free agent era.

I guess I see any talk of a perfect season in the NFL, much ado about nothing. Then again, I was the one who wrote quite a bit about it a couple of seasons ago… so maybe I’m just subconsciously playing it down in hindsight 😉

Here are some personal finance links from last week:

Money Writers:

• Brip Blap says never underestimate the influence of a teacher.
• Digerati Life points out the 12 days of Christmas Price Index barely budged.
• Frugal Dad asks are we ever done [financially]?
• Generation X Finance shows how [you can] live a rich life without spending a fortune in today’s economy.
• Million Dollar Journey discusses charitable contributions: deciding where to give.
• Money Smart Life talks about the ShareBuilder promotion on kids investment accounts.
• My Dollar Plan shares 9 ways to save money this holiday season.
• The Sun’s Financial Diary writes using your credit cards can improve your credit score.

Top PF Posts:

• Free Money Finance explains why a high income often doesn’t translate into a high net worth.
• Mighty Bargain Hunter reveals five hidden ways to find extra money – even when money is tight.
• The Dough Roller shows don’t let irregular expenses wreck your budget (or drain your emergency fund).
• Her Every Cent Counts posts if you’re a parent, don’t be like my parents.
• Wealth…Uncomplicated writes taking out the trash – the single best method to a great life.
• Consumerism Commentary warns that bonuses could be taxed at a rate of 50%.
• Wise Bread shares the cell phone app that’s saving me a small fortune.
• The Smarter Wallet blogs online retailers, business outlook for 2010.
• Realm of Prosperity posts how to hide naughty credit card purchases.

Related posts:

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2. NFL Draft (And Some Personal Finance Links) This was a big weekend in Boston sports. With the…
3. Super Bowl Pick (and Personal Finance Links) The Super Bowl starts in some 45 minutes as I…
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I caught an article on the Simple Dollar yesterday: Investing without Goals Is Like Golfing without a Putter…. It’s a great article (Lifehacker even picked it up) if you want to know the basics of having goals and investing. At first, I thought that analogy of golfing without a putter was brilliant.

Note the words “at first.”

I thought about it a little more and the analogy seemed off. It took me a few minutes to put my finger on it, but I think I have it. When I make it goal, it’s so that I have some direction – so that I know where I’m trying to go. The equivalent of this in golf is knowing where the hole is. Also, how I arrive at that goal depends entirely on the goal. Like with any goal you pick the right tool for the job. In the case of golf, the right tools usually include a driver and a putter. With investing the right tools may include mutual funds or CDs. Setting a goal is the answer to “Where?” while using a tool is the answer to “How?”

The other thing that got me with the golf-investing analogy is that it’s bad to overshoot the hole in golf. I don’t know too many people who are sad that they overshot their goal for an investment… it’s not like you are trying to reach a certain dollar figure. If you have Tiger Woods’ money (even with the sponsors leaving him) then certain goals are almost solved for you. For example, he doesn’t have to worry how he’s going to afford his son’s college education. For the rest of us, that would be a very reasonable goal.

There is a great golf analogy to make with investing though. I hinted at it early. An investment is like a golf club. There are aggressive investments that are essentially drivers. When you are far away from your goal, you may choose to sacrifice a little direction (volatility) to pick up large gains to try to get to the hole quickly. Then there are conservative investments that are like putters. When you get close to the hole, direction is the most important (minimized volatility) thing, not strength.

Related posts:

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