Profitable Ideas: Cars That Last, Why It Matters Who Made Your Clothes, and More

A weekly roundup of helpful personal finance articles.

Should you buy Bitcoin? Ask a different question first (Sketch Guy – a NY Times blog). Are you winging it with your investments or do you have a plan?

Here’s to doing what matters — a manifesto (Coach Carson). An interesting way to find motivation by visualizing the time you have left.

The top 15 cars that people keep for 15 years or more (Clark Howard). This year marks the 15^th year we’ve owned our Toyota Sienna. If you’ve kept your vehicle a long time, what are you driving?

Here’s how parents can raise successful children, according to a Stanford dean (World Economic Forum). There are some ideas related to money at the end of the article, but the whole piece has implications for teaching kids about money—and so much more.

Beyond rice & beans: Budget dinners that aren’t boring (Pretend to be Poor). I can’t remember ever linking to an article with recipes, and yet food is one of the biggest budget categories for most people. So, give this one a read. You’ll find lots of ideas.

Why people conveniently ‘forget’ that child labor made their jeans (Moneyish). I’m drawn to this topic — avoiding buying products from companies with harmful labor practices. But it’s complicated, and a lot of people don’t want to make the effort.

How hiring a housekeeper saved my sanity and my marriage (The Simple Dollar). I like posts like this, showing that sometimes trying to save money by doing everything yourself ends up costing more.

The encouraging truth about how Americans are covering the cost of college (Wise Bread). Don’t let the scary headlines about the high cost of college discourage you.

What are your thoughts on any of the above? Let me know by leaving a comment below.

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