My friend Mel has a very full life. She runs a great homeschooling blog, has written a novel, homeschools SIX! kids, has a great marriage, a great body and loads of friends that she spends a lot of time with. Every day we use the site idonethis.com to write to each other ...
How to get freelance or contract work
In the last few years I've had half a dozen different contract jobs ranging from corporate tax work (ugh) to budgeting (twice!) to winding down companies (love it) to bankruptcy work (fascinating but sad) to financial statement work (high pressure). Most people don't want to do contract work because it involves a fair amount of uncertainty ...
With friends like that, who needs enemies?
My son's friends are frustrating me. Some borrow money - and don't pay it back. Some let him pay for them whenever they go somewhere. I admire his generosity, but... Most are just actively trying to talk him out of pursuing his goals - to work less and save less. I don't get it. Your 20's is when ...
Financial security and choices
Six or seven months ago I had lunch with one of my good friends. At lunch, she told me that she had a potential job for me at the company where she works. In September when I got back from holiday, she emailed to confirm that I wasn't working yet – and again in October, ...
59 Seconds to Financial Goals
I've enjoyed every one of Richard Wiseman's books - the latest being 59 Seconds. There's so much nonsense advice handed out in the self-help world nowadays (and it's been made worse by *some* bloggers IMO), it drives me crazy. Books like 59 Seconds or research-based blogs like PsyBlog (who has had a
Quick and (sort of) dirty retirement calculators
Oops, I don't mean "retirement" calculators - since use of the R-word is fraught with controversy. Let's call them financial independence calculators. Besides, I don't even have a category called "retirement", only "financial independence". Here's an offering for Canadians from the Globe and Mail: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/pages/retirementplan/ This nifty little tool also allows you to ...
Running the Numbers
I have a problem with OCD. That stands for "Obsessive Compulsive Doodling." Bill at Credit Card Assist put together a very complimentary interview with me over on their site for their Best of the Best Blogger series – here it is: Interview with me. In the interview, I suggested that people at least ballpark their ...
