Money Lessons From a Long Run
My wife and I recently ran the 13-mile Chicago half marathon. For us, it was the accomplishment of a very challenging goal. Over the past 10 years, we had never run anywhere close to that distance. As we trained for the event, I noticed a lot of similarities with pursuing a tough financial goal like […]
The Money/Happiness Connection Revisited
It’s a timeless question: does more money translate into more happiness? A new study by researchers at the Center for Health and Well-Being at Princeton University shows that happiness does increase with income – to a point. At $75,000 per year, happiness levels off. But the study was actually more nuanced than that. The researchers […]
Recession Lessons: The Importance of Family Support
The number of children being raised by a grandparent spiked during the onset of the recession, growing nine percent between 2007 and 2008 to nearly three million kids. That’s according to new Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Of course, a far greater number of grandparents provide some help with childcare as […]
More Opting for Uncations than Staycations or Vacations
More than half of American workers do not use all of their vacation time, according to a new survey, and more than a third of those who do take time off regularly check in with their office while they’re away. A spokesperson for StudyLogic, the company that conducted the research, believes the high unemployment rate […]
Flexible Spending Accounts Becoming Less Flexible
If you have a Flexible Spending or Health Savings Account, some new rules will soon go into effect that you’re not going to be happy about. Beginning next year, you will no longer be able to use such accounts to pay for many over-the-counter medicines or drugs (allergy and cold medicines, antacids, acne treatments, etc., […]
Best of Money Carnival #67
It’s my pleasure to serve as host of this week’s Best of Money Carnival, a weekly listing of the top ten personal finance blog posts. As always, there were many great submissions. Here are my picks for this week’s top ten in countdown order. 10. The New Frugality posted at Reasonably Rich: Lauren writes about […]
Is Frugal the New Cool?
In today’s budget-conscious era, frugality is in. But for singles, how does penny-pitching play on the dating scene? As reported in The New York Times, ING Direct recently asked 1,000 people (presumably single people) what words would come to mind if they were fixed up for a date with someone described as frugal? The most […]
New Credit Card Rules Take Effect
Credit card companies are now under new rules that, in most cases, put a $25 limit on how much they can charge customers who pay their bills late. The Wall Street Journal reported that the restrictions could wipe out billions of dollars in annual fee revenue. That has left credit card issuers doing what they […]
How to Find a Good Résumé Writer
If you’re searching for a job but hiring managers aren’t exactly jamming your phone line, you may benefit from having your résumé written by a pro. However, with a growing number of writers pitching their services for anywhere from $100 to $2,000, which one should you choose? A recent Wall Street Journal article offered some […]
Five New Financial Normals
Writing about the “new normals” brought on by the Great Recession has become, well, a new normal for many media outlets. Adding to the conversation, Fortune magazine has come up with five new normals that it believes really will stick. Here they are, along with my thoughts. 1. Long-term unemployment. For those who have jobs, […]