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Profitable Ideas: Money as a Hobby, Happiness Habits, and More

Weekly roundup of recommended personal finance articles from around the web.

The internet turned “money” into a hobby (Vox). Call me a spoilsport, but for a lot of people this will not end well.

How Robinhood’s psych experiment backfired horribly (Wired). It was the stock trading platform of the pandemic, but “…unleashing the ‘move fast and break things’ philosophy on a generation’s savings was bound to create some problems.”

Conscious consumerism has bounced back after a pandemic low (Fast Company). I like the idea of conscious consumerism, but not the name. How can any phrase with the word “consumerism” in it be positive?

Is college really worth it? Here’s why it’s so hard to figure out the return on investment (CNBC). Our kids should pursue the vocation they sense God calling them to, and the cost of their education should be considered in light of how much they’re likely to earn.

75% of people who bought a home during the pandemic have regrets: here’s why (Acorns). For anyone tempted to rush a home purchase because of rising interest rates, this should give them pause. There’s more to consider than the monthly mortgage, insurance, and taxes.

Why you need to re-shop your car insurance this year (Clark Howard). Rates are headed up, even if you’ve never had a claim.

Own less stuff. Solve more problems in the world. (Becoming Minimalist). Less stuff to tend to means more time for impact.

The seven habits that lead to happiness in old age (The Atlantic). Spoiler alert: none of the habits involve buying stuff.

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3 Responses to Profitable Ideas: Money as a Hobby, Happiness Habits, and More

  1. Laura February 18, 2022 at 2:07 PM #

    I liked the article “75% of people who bought a home during the pandemic have regrets”. The reasons for the regret are reasonable, except the last one. “Didn’t do enough research” I suspect, if people were being really honest, would be a much higher number.

    I really appreciate your service of rounding up interesting articles for us. You came to my church once for a seminar, probably in 2005 or so….and I’ve been subscribed ever since! Thank you!

    • Matt Bell February 18, 2022 at 3:37 PM #

      Thanks for staying connected all this time, Laura! And I agree about the “Didn’t do enough research” number. In fact, several of the numbers seemed low based on conversations I’ve had with people soon after buying a home. Like being unprepared for hidden costs.

      • Laura February 18, 2022 at 4:31 PM #

        The main one that jumped out at me was “bad location” — I mean how do you accidentally buy a house in a bad location? Yikes! That would be a nightmare!! Hopefully they are all ok. Location, location, location. 🙂

        Take care.

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