It should go without saying that you should treat everyone you interact with during the day with respect and consideration even if there weren’t any benefit to doing so. It’s simply the nice (and right) thing to do. The fact is, however, that being considerate to others can often result in you saving money. Here [...]
Long before the financial gurus with their TV shows and persona finance books to sell were around, Benjamin Franklin was giving down-to-earth, sound money advice to anyone who would listen. The advice was so sound that it’s still relevant and applicable to this day. Here are ten money lessons from Ben Franklin that you would [...]
By Dr. Charles Richards Why is it that just when everything seems to be going well financially and you feel like you’re getting ahead, something seems to crop up that alters your plans? In my practice as a psychotherapist, I’ve seen this pattern play out in clients and others many times. If this has become [...]
Whether you’re a single parent or one of two that work to make ends meet, child care can take a big bite out of your paycheck. Study results vary widely, but in the US, it’s not unusual for wage earners to spend 10% to 25% of their income on childcare. Many working moms reported spending [...]
In the interest of protecting the innocent (and the guilty) in this piece, I’m calling the couple in this story Jake and Joan. They are people I know in real life, but I’m not going to say whether they’re friends, family, or acquaintances. All I’ll say is that I was closer to Jake than Joan [...]
Nothing is quite as exciting to a child as a birthday party. We may lose the desire to celebrate as we get older, but to a child, a birthday is a magical thing. As parents, we want to make those occasions special and sometimes that wish can lead to a big dent in our finances. [...]
Growing up, I was always told not to talk about religion, politics, or money. These three topics of conversation inevitably lead to hurt feelings, jealousy and/or a defensive stance that’s nearly impossible to overcome. My parents always told me that if I had to discuss these things, to stick to generalities. That way, no one [...]
You may have seen the recent studies that indicate that people who are friends with overweight people tend to be overweight themselves. This is often because you do what your friends do. If your friends eat a lot of fast food and do nothing but sedentary activities, chances are that is what you will do, [...]
A woman that I know casually from church recently lost her husband. He died after a long illness at the young age of forty-two. Any way you look at it, it’s a tragedy. However, there is one bright spot. The husband had a large life insurance policy in place and, since the couple was frugal [...]
There’s a lot of talk about how parents can prepare their kids for financial independence, but it’s just as important to point out ways that parents can unknowingly hurt their children’s financial success. If you haven’t started teaching your kids about how to be financially responsible, now is the time to begin. It’s never too [...]
