Archive for January, 2009

“The Week in Review: Money Issues” is my weekly blog research on financial topics that define us as Americans, and shape the way we should do business.

My back is killing me today!

It’s been this way the whole darn week too. I think it started when I was out goofing around last Saturday with the neighborhood kids and their damn pick-up game of football! I don’t know if I ever told you this or not, but I have a great arm (actually two great arms, since I’m ambidextrous) but can’t catch a ball to save my life — hence the fact that I filled in as the Universal QB for two hours of touch football (I wish all the players got that memo, before they started to tackle me a few too many times). Man, I have to keep reminding myself that I’m not 25 anymore, or else I’m going to enter the Pearly Gates a few decades early (if that’s how my cards play out, of course)!

Well, here goes the best of what I found for you this week: Continued

Children become more aware of money as they grow older. Fortunately, they also start to develop an awareness that it’s smart to save and to shop carefully.

The current economic downturn is a perfect time to promote these life lessons. According to Eric Tyson, author of Personal Finance for Dummies, you shouldn’t feel guilty if you do not want to buy your kid a video game system. Don’t feel guilty at all. In fact, Tyson says this is a great time to instill important financial lessons, including that budgeting really works. Continued

Why do we, as humans, only seem to chase after what we don’t already have?

Really … we never seem to be content with anything in our possession! Some would answer, “This is what makes mankind come up with new things … better things … the latest inventions,” and I would kind of agree with that statement, but would also have to add that it’s a character flaw that exists in a LARGE majority of people, which causes way too many regrets down the road. “What am I talking about,” you ask? Well, read on …

I can’t count how many people I have spoken with, over the short years I’ve been on this planet, who have told me that they felt trapped by the whole “climbing the ladder” thing! Most of them have said that they started off with good intent (to get a better job, to have a better life, etc.) only to look back and have some serious regrets. I would guess that most of us can think back to a time in our lives where we didn’t have that great of a job, or didn’t have too many things to call our own. However, I would also guess that those times were filled with peace and contentment. If you don’t remember those “good old” days, let me remind you of what they were like … Continued

Teaching our children the value of a buck is just as important as teaching them how to read!

It’s no big secret that what we learn in our childhood carries over with us for our whole life. Knowing this, what parent doesn’t want their son or daughter to venture out on their own and become a success story by themselves? Ok, there are some who try to force their kids into things they don’t want to do, and most of the time it’s the wrong approach, but one thing is certain: teaching kids, from an early age, how to make cash is the best thing one can do to ensure the success of their children!

Most parents of very successful people have always had one distinct advantage over the other parents: Their kids started working at an early age! Think I’m kidding? Well, I’m not (so there). These same parents routinely showed their children how to work at something that was appropriate for their age and skill level. Most importantly, they tried to make the kid’s work environment fun and exciting. Then when these same kids grew up, they knew what to do on their own! Continued

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting pretty sick and tired of being told, by everyone, how bad the economy is getting!

Ok, enough is enough … we’re going to have to cut back on some things — I get that, I really do. And I know things are going to get worse before they have a chance to get better! However, what I don’t get is why the media feels the need to drone on and on about every little issue that they can get their claws on … why do they try to scare us so? I think I have some real answers to these puzzling questions: 1) they do it for the ratings, 2) they do it so we stayed glued to their network, with a promise that more and more of the story will be coming up shortly (note: the rest of the story usually winds up being just a lame excuse, and a waste of airtime) and 3) they are being paid by company-sponsored dollars, under the condition that they will only tell the one side of the story (the one that the corporations tell them to)!

While some of this garbage, which they force-feed us every day, may actually turn out to be true, and even though it most certainly does not help us much in terms of our own personal financial situations (most of the times, the news doesn’t pertain to the average citizen) I thought, just in case a blind squirrel finds a nut, I would share some practical advice on what we can do now to ensure that our families survive the current economy either way. Want to get started? Ok … Continued