Seeing Opportunities That Others May Miss

Two years ago, my son’s soccer team didn’t have a coach for 1 particular season, so our soccer organization asked the parents of my son’s team if one of us wanted to become the coach for that season.  I wanted to do it, but my wife talked me out of it because of my lack of experience.

So instead another dad took over, but he knew less that I did.  Now two years later he is the coach and unfortunately not the best choice.  I missed my opportunity, but it’s my own fault and although it’s a small regret, I kn0w that I will regret it for the rest of my life.  Believe in yourself, even if others don’t…  they don’t know your capabilities and passion!

So today when I was reading an article at www.freemoneyfinance.com called Would You Waste a Year of Your Life for $100k?, I saw an incredible opportunity, but not for me at my current stage in life.  The deal was the coupon site Groupon would pay a person $100,000 if they try and live on coupons only (no cash) for a year.

Now personally, with me having two kids I couldn’t do that, but if I were a college student, this would be a great challenge!  Especially if the student could take a few classes online.  The company payed for the person to stay in a hotel for a year, so living accomadations was taken care of.

Most of the freemoneyfinance commenters shot this down, but I think this opportunity requires a 2nd look, and below is a list of reasons why:

  • This person (a male) would learn to be an frugal expert via saving with coupons!
  • The company might pay him after the fact as a spoke person
  • TV show might find him appealing and so he might get paid interviews after the experiment.
  • He would write a book about what he learned since he would be the ultimate coupon using expert!
  • He might even develop a seminar that taught others his tricks.
  • He gets $100,000 and free living conditions!!!
  • The limited contact with others would enable him to concentrate on his studies (this would be like getting payed to study… a win win)!
  • Did I mention that he gets $100,000?  That’s a lot of money for a college student!
  • Fame!!!  This is definitely a feather that you could put in your hat.  At the very minimum, it would be a great family story!!!

So, I think this would be a great opportunity for a college student, especially if he could do that college year via online classes!  I would take some of my hardest classes that period, since I couldn’t do much else!

Yes, while I couldn’t do it now (wife, kids, etc), I would definitely do it as a college student.

What I make of it after the experiment is over and I have $100,000 in my pocket…, would depend on how ambitious and creative I was…

So, do you think this is a hidden opportunity, a diamond in the rough so to speak?

-MR

Saving Money By Staying Healthy

No, I’m not writing about jogging 10 miles a day, nor am I writing about lifting weights either!  What I’m talking about is avoiding getting sick via colds, flus and other germs…

First, a little background about me…  The last 10 or so years, I’ve have been sick a lot!  At first like any great parent, I blamed it on my kids (and when they were very young, I’m sure they had an impact).  But now that they are older and don’t put hands in their mouths so much.  So now, I think I’m primarily getting sick from work.  So, I stopped putting my cube neighbors’ mice in my mouth (lol),

Here is what I now do:

  • I use my sleeve to open the doors if I don’t have a napkin or tissue.
  • I take a napkin (from fast food places) out of my car and use it to open the doors at work.
  • I always use purell after using someone keyboard, or after someone uses my keyboard.
  • I have have a special routine for going to the bathroom.

 

I know, you are thinking “a special routing for going to the bathroom?”  As you well know, not everybody washes their hands after going to either “of the options” when they go to the bathroom (how that for PC?).

This might be pushing the envelope a bit, but I’m going to tell you about my “special routine” anyway!

  • I open the door to the bathroom by pushing it with my forearm if I’m wearing a long sleeve shirt. (sometimes I push the door open with my foot if I don’t have a long sleeve shirt on).
  • Next, I take my magic napkin out of my pocket, tear a long inch wide strip of it and open the bathroom stall door. 
  • The typical activities are performed…
  • Use another long inch wide strip from my napkin to open the stall door.
  • Wash hands vigorously (as the signs that I see around demands that I do, surprisingly the sign is not in our bathrooms…  I guess we are suppose to know…).
  • Leave the water running (only for a sec) as I reach for a paper towel and dry my hands
  • Then use the towel to turn the water off. (Yeah, I’m being picky, but it works for me)
  • Grab another towel and use the bottom half to dry my hands fully.
  • Then as I go to the door, I use the upper half of the towel to open the door.
  • After the door is open, I toss the towel in the trash can besides the door.
  • Don’t tell anyone, but I’m the one who put that trash can there… 🙂  So far nobody has asked why, and tons of people now use it (I’m such a trend setter)…
  • Now I go back to my cube healthy!  Hurray!!!

 

I know this isn’t as glamorous or as exciting as practically any of my previous personal finance posts.  But believe it or not, this post has a lot of value… if you use it, you too will get sick much less often, saving you money!  This technique could also help you advance more quickly in your career.  If you are sick less, you are at work more and you are able to perform at a higher level vs. if you were sick all of the time.

The past few years, I’ve hardly been sick…  I attribute my good fortune to what we jokingly call the “hand something“, but since my kids read this, I’ll leave the name to your imaginations…  Just think of hand protection 😉

 Oh, I also use my napkins for getting water from the filtered water dispense at work, and the elevator buttons, and any surface that I can think of that other people touch frequently.  If you use small strips of the napkin like I do, not many people will notice either…

What do you think?  Am I over doing it?  Do you use similar techniques?

Respectfully, 

-MR

How Credit Cards Helped Me To Become Debt Free

Do I sound like Bizarro?

Hi I’m Reasons Money, oh wait… that’s Bizarro!    

I know, my title doesn’t make sense on the surface, but hear me out!    

It’s true, my credit cards helped me get out of debt quicker than if I hadn’t used them!    

First, let me set the background.  For the last 12 years, I’ve only owned reward credit cards (Sony,Upromise,  GM, Citi, Schwab, etc).    

Secondly, I almost never (hard to believe huh) carried credit card debt longer than a month.  I like to pay my balance in full each month!  The only time that I didn’t pay my credit card balance in full was when I bought a computer with a best buy card that had a 0% interest deal (and even with this card I paid it off early).    

I only own reward credit cards, and usually ones with pretty decent paybacks percentages!    

So how did (and does) that help me pay off my debt any quicker, you might ask? 

Well, first I get a discount on my purchases, typically anywhere from 2 to 5%!  If you pay with cash, you will incur that additional cost!  This is better than I did in the stock market last year! (Laughing, but really crying inside…).  This alone make the reward cards a great deal!    

You might not think this make a big difference but it does!  Instead of saving that money, we used it to help augment our Christmas presents!  We have also used it to rewards ourselves for being so frugally minded.  Yes, purchasing goods with credit cards is frugal (there, I said it!)    

The amounts saved via reward credit cards is like a forced savings plan.

Now, I’m not really Bizarro, and I know that in many ways having Credit Cards for some is like giving a beer to a recovering alcoholic.  But if you have the displine or if you create a budget to control your debt, Reward Credit Cards could be used for good instead of evil (another corny superhero cartoon reference).    

Credit card are a lot like guns!  Guns don’t kill people, people kill people, same with credit cards!  Creadit cards on’t get you in debt!  People get themselved in debt!   

I know what I typed runs against the grains of popular opinions out there!      

What do you tkink?    

-D 

One Caveat:  If you are married, your spouse must be frugal and on-board with paying the credit card in full each month for this to work!!!  My wife is and it has worked great!

Frugal Idea: How I Take Money From My Kids!

Taking Money from my kids

Taking Money from my kids

I’ve mentioned in the past how my kids get a weekly allowance based on their ages (son, age 9 = $9, daughter, age 6 = $6).  It’s been an inconvenience getting their allowance money to the bank.  It’s never been a fun task (unlike counting the money in their piggy banks!). 

So now I’ve decided just to take their money, and then transfer money from my personal bank to their UTMA brokerage accounts.  UTMA stand for (Uniform Transfers To Minors Act), and it’s a mechanism that will allow a minor to have an account in their name, but controlled by an adult.

 

I have a Schwab brokerage account, and two Schwab UTMA brokerage accounts (one for each child).  I also have my primary bank link to my brokerage account so I can do transfers between my bank and my Schwab account. 

Since starting my Lunch Experiment, I have reduce my spending by typically over $40 a week!  I no longer have to withdrawal as much money from my bank!!!  Now I take their allowance money, and then transfer the exact amount of allowance money out of my bank account to my Schwab account, then to their UTMA accounts (whew!). 

I know what you are thinking… This sounds like a hassle, and well if I did it weekly, it would be.  However, I only do this once every 3 to 4 months.  This makes the task very bearable!

Now for the green icing on the cake! :

  • I no longer drive to the my son and daughter’s banks to deposit their allowance money!!
  • I don’t withdrawal money out of my banks as much, since I just take their money.
  • This was a chore that use to take over an hour, but now only takes 5 minutes!
  • I’ve effectively reduced my carbon footprint, by cutting out the “out of the way” drive!
  • My kids get a better rate of return, since I invest their money in a diverisified portfolio of stocks.
  • I feel like I’ve created an opportunity for them to make more money this way… It’s a good feeling!

Little things like this add up, and in this case, in multiple way!  This is another win-win for us! 

Do you have any small but clever ideas that make your life better or enable you to save a little money, that you’d like to share?

 

 

 

 

UPDATE:  A reader asked me how difficult it was to setup the Schwab UTMA accounts for my kids, because they didn’t see any UTMA reference on the account types.  Well that’s because it’s called a “Custodial Account” at the Schwab website and semi-hidden under the category “College Savings”.   Below are the steps that I followed to get to the Custodial Account application:

  • Go to www.schwab.com (Open a browser and type that text in).
  • Click on “Open an Account” in the brownish? bar.
  • Next click the white tab that is labeled “See all Account types
  • Next under College Saving (I’m not sure why the have it there…), on the right click “Custodial Accounts
  • Under the “Apply Now” text, choose one of the 2 options.
  • I think it’s best to click the mail the application to you (This is a good way to do it!, after all what’s the rush?)
  • If you choose to “Download the Application“, then…
  • If you read the form, it states that this account doesn’t necessarily have to be used for educational purposes.
  • Fill out as much of the form as you feel comfortable with (I choose not to  fill out any of it, I printed it out in first, then filled it out for security reasons, but I a wee bit paranoid).
  • Mail it to the address that was on the screen.  And then wait a week or so…
  • Okay, so it was a bit more complex than I remember.  Once it up and attached correctly, it’s sweet!