In Investing in Socially Responsible Mutual Funds, I explained that most socially responsible funds provide subpar returns compared to traditional funds. I also talked about how you may not agree with many of these funds’ definition of socially responsible. If you’d like to invest only in companies you support or try to achieve better [...]

Spend less than you earn. Pay yourself first. Save 10 percent of all of your earnings. These are some of the most basic principles of personal finance, yet millions fail to do this. There are hundreds of personal finance books that talk about these financial basics, and more are on their [...]

I never pay any of our bills. Neither does my husband. But they get paid. Every month and on time.
Now I’m not advocating ignoring your bills and racking up a ton of debt. That would be stupid and begging for bankruptcy. What I am advocating is never physically going through [...]

I saw “DWI — You can’t Afford It” written on road signs along Interstate 40 as we passed through Texas on our recent vacation. What an interesting angle, I thought. I guess that since the fact that the risk of killing innocent people, as well as themselves, isn’t enough of a deterrent for drunk [...]

Working in the web development industry, I get a chance to go to at least one conference, seminar, or training class every year. This way I can keep up with the latest technologies and our company benefits from my acquired knowledge. However, convincing the company my conference of choice is worthwhile can be a [...]

Last week, eBay sent me a message urging me to contact my state representatives in support of a bill that would exempt eBay sellers in Pennsylvania from having to get auctioneer licenses. “You may have heard the Pennsylvania State Board of Auctioneer Examiners is lobbying for eBay sellers to be licensed under the state’s outdated [...]

My husband and I just returned from a 17 day, 5,500-mile road trip westward from our home in South Carolina. Even though 4.5 million visit the Grand Canyon every year, we still felt like bold adventurers because it was all new to us.
And, I have learned that as a white person, apparently I can [...]

I didn’t pay anything for Radiohead’s download: “I didn’t pay anything to download Radiohead’s In Rainbows last Wednesday. When the checkout page on the band’s Web site allowed me to type in whatever price I wanted, I put 0.00, the lowest I could go. My economist friends say this makes me a rational being.”
Consumers [...]

You may not be able to sleep at night knowing that you own a tiny piece of Halliburton, nor will you be able to sleep at night in 25 years if you can’t afford to send your kids to college. Investing is essential to your future financial security — even if you manage to [...]

While I can’t guarantee that these are the absolute top 10 ways you can waste money on e-Bay this week, they certainly deserve some attention and possibly some laughs…
10. A rubber band: No joke. You can get a regular rubber band for $1 with free shipping.
9. A million ants: You can adopt an [...]