Updates

Attention all Personal Finance addicts: now you have even more ways to satisfy your obsession with money management. MoneyRemix.com has launched their Official Facebook Fan Page!

Join Facebook today and you can connect directly with our staff and other MoneyRemix fans! We have many plans for what we’ll be doing with our Fan Page, this is just a start!

As promised, Jimmy finally sold off his very entertaining Money Remix. We were the takers, but don’t fret. We are not some corporate entity that is going to wring all the fun out of the site (as they usually do). No, we’re just three crazy guys who love swimming in the ocean of finance. “We loved Jimmy” you say? Well, we do too, which is why we’re going to offer you the same kind of feel, the same sort of material, and the brief escape from your daily ruts as he used to. Who knows, he might even make a guest appearance from time to time!

Honestly, we loved what we saw in the site, and when it went up for sale, we knew that we were the right men for the job. The following bios should explain who we are and what makes us tick: Continued

First and foremost, let me aplogize for the ten-day delay in posting – I honestly feel terrible about that. It’s the same lame excuse every other M.I.A. blogger tends to come up with, but let me just tell you – things have been pretty hectic around here lately.

I won’t bore you with every single detail, but I do have a bit of news that I feel obligated to share with you. I’ve spent the last week negotiating the sale of MoneyRemix. Yes, you read that correctly – after spending countless hours pouring over thousands of lines of HTML and personal finance news articles and despite the strong encouragement from friends and family, I may be offloading MoneyRemix in the coming days.

The sale was actually supposed to have been completed by now, but there is a holdup with the funding and now that I’ve had a week to sit and think about letting go of a project that I put so much effort in, I think I’m having second thoughts about the sale. Of course I don’t intend to go back on my word to the buyer, but let’s just say that if the funding doesn’t work out, I’m not going to be terribly upset.

Again, I apologize for my lack of communication. As soon as there are any noteworthy developments, you’ll be among the first to know. As always, your comments are sincerely appreciated.

I just wanted to take a minute to wish everyone a happy and safe 4th of July. Make sure to lather on that sunscreen and run like hell when you light those firecrackers!

I’m back home, in Virginia Beach, taking a much needed vacation and spending some time with friends and family who I only get to see once or twice a year. The 4th of July and the week of Christmas are the two times each year that I can completely forget about finances and the stresses of work, so you better belive I’m outside, making the most of it!

Anyhow, I’ll be back to the grind on Tuesday the 8th. Until then, I hope you have a fabulous 4th!

As I was putting the finishing touches on the design of MoneyRemix, I sent an email out to my family and closest friends, asking for their feedback on various aspects of the site. Nearly everyone had nothing but positive and encouraging comments, however my dad brought up an interesting gripe. He told me that I should remove my NetworthIQ badge because displaying my net worth was a little too personal.

Initially, that comment took me by surprise, but the more I thought about it, the more I began to see his point of view and understood where he was coming from.

First of all, my dad is twice my age and isn’t quite as in-tune with various aspects of social media as my generation is. I literally grew up online and have used bulletin board systems, chat rooms, and forums for nearly two decades, so sharing information with complete strangers all over the world is second nature to me.

Second of all, he’s right – personal finance is, in fact, personal. That can be taken two different ways though. The way he sees it, if something is personal, it should be kept to yourself. On the other hand, I see it a little bit differently. I see this blog as a creative outlet for myself that lets me connect with readers all over the globe. When I sit back and really think about the mass of knowledge and stories that people are sharing with each other over the internet, it absolutely blows my mind.

Granted, there are plenty of other ways to connect with people over the internet without revealing your personal finances, but these are the reasons I choose to do so:

I love receiving feedback
When I first began using NetworthIQ to track my net worth, I received a comment from a complete stranger who told me what a fantastic job I was doing with my retirement savings. Call me crazy, but something as simple as that comment made my day. Over time, feedback from others, either positive or negative, keeps me intensely motivated to stay on top of my finances.

I’m held to a higher level of accountability
If I decide to go to the mall next weekend to treat myself to a shopping spree and max out all of my credit cards, you all are going to notice…(and will hopefully rip me a new one)! One of my goals with MoneyRemix is to be 100% transparent to my readers so you know the exact state of my finances and can detect causes of fluctuations. By doing so, you’ll be able to compare your finances to mine and discover just how well, or worse off yours are.

I want you to learn something
Like I said, nothing would make me happier than for you to learn something useful from MoneyRemix that you could use to better your financial situation. I could sit here and write generic, personal finance articles until the cows come home, but I think personal stories can really help to drive lessons home.

Final Thought

All this leads me to wonder – am I completely naive or crazy for divulging my finances to the entire world? According to the Wall Street Journal, I may not be as 16 million households are expected to track and/or share the state of their personal finances in the next ten years.

So let me ask you: Do you currently or would you ever make your finances public? Why or why not?

Photo by: Joshua Davis