finances
Organise
Trim Your Budget By Reclaiming The Special Treats
9:00AM Lifehacker US Edition | What happens when something that was once a special treat, slowly becomes an expected part of your daily routine? Trent, over at frugality blog The Simple Dollar, noticed that things he had previously done as a treat of sorts had become necessary components of his day much to the determent of his wallet. Describing how his enjoyment of the a local coffee shop had changed: More »
Organise
Get the Best Price with the 15-to-20 Percent Rule
7:00AM Adam Pash | NBC’s Today Show web site rounds up tricks for talking anyone into anything, whether you’re negotiating over price, persuading your spouse, or influencing co-workers. A lot of the tips are more about simple manipulation, but the price negotiation tip offered a solid rule-of-thumb: If you are the buyer, offer the salesperson 15 percent to 20 percent less than what you can really afford. For instance, if you absolutely can’t spend more than $6,000 on a used car advertised at $7,000, try offering $5,100 (15 percent less than $6,000). More »
Organise
4:20PM Angus Kidman | Jetstar is currently running its 30 cent fuel discount offer, which provides a one-time voucher offering 30 cents a litre off if you book a flight before August 28. While this might represent a useful bonus if you booked a flight you were planning to take anyway, there’s a danger that people will buy tickets they didn’t otherwise plan to get, thus eliminating any real savings. A similar logic applies to the extra 2 cents off you can get in many servos if you purchase $2 of goods — if that’s not stuff you needed to buy, I figure the saving is illusory. But what do Lifehacker readers think? Are fuel cost saving initiatives worth pursuing, or are you better off trying to cut the amount of car travel you undertake? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Is an airline ticket worth a 30 cent fuel saving?
4:20PM Angus Kidman | Jetstar is currently running its 30 cent fuel discount offer, which provides a one-time voucher offering 30 cents a litre off if you book a flight before August 28. While this might represent a useful bonus if you booked a flight you were planning to take anyway, there’s a danger that people will buy tickets they didn’t otherwise plan to get, thus eliminating any real savings. A similar logic applies to the extra 2 cents off you can get in many servos if you purchase $2 of goods — if that’s not stuff you needed to buy, I figure the saving is illusory. But what do Lifehacker readers think? Are fuel cost saving initiatives worth pursuing, or are you better off trying to cut the amount of car travel you undertake? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Work
8:24PM Angus Kidman | With an estimated personal fortune of $US17 billion or so, Dell founder and CEO Michael Dell probably doesn’t need to do a lot of personal budget balancing. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t recognise the fiscal benefits of getting organised, as he emphasised while speaking at a Dell launch in India this week:
When companies or economies are under cost pressure, one of the things that tends to happen is that people look for ways to become more productive.
Dell’s immediate emphasis in this area was on PCs that can boot faster and run more efficiently, which is certainly something I can relate to (rebooting my soon-to-get-the-toss current notebook is a 10-minute-plus process). But there’s lots of ways you can improve your PC productivity to save money (or earn more of it). What tactics have worked for you? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Michael Dell on why tight times help your productivity
8:24PM Angus Kidman | With an estimated personal fortune of $US17 billion or so, Dell founder and CEO Michael Dell probably doesn’t need to do a lot of personal budget balancing. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t recognise the fiscal benefits of getting organised, as he emphasised while speaking at a Dell launch in India this week:
When companies or economies are under cost pressure, one of the things that tends to happen is that people look for ways to become more productive.
Dell’s immediate emphasis in this area was on PCs that can boot faster and run more efficiently, which is certainly something I can relate to (rebooting my soon-to-get-the-toss current notebook is a 10-minute-plus process). But there’s lots of ways you can improve your PC productivity to save money (or earn more of it). What tactics have worked for you? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Warren Buffett: Prioritise Career Building Over Market Studying
1:30AM Kevin Purdy | Fortune magazine drops in on a Q&A Warren Buffett offered to 150 business students, and the advice dispensed by the Oracle of Omaha on investing and money in general is elegantly simple. When one student asked Buffett how to best spend his free time to further his investing knowledge, Buffett avoided generalised advice and told him to stick to what he knows. Fortune paraphrases: For most people, the bulk of their income is going to come from earning power in their chosen profession. Therefore, from the standpoint of building wealth, free time is better spent sharpening one’s professional skills rather than studying investing. More »
Invest in Yourself and Retire Rich
4:00AM Tamar Weinberg | Following simple investment rules can turn into considerable riches. Men’s Health explains that one of the most important things is to invest in yourself. Set your savings on automatic. Allocate some of your work compensation into an index fund, low-fee variable annuity, or a diversified mutual fund. Allocate another small sum of money into a foreign index fund. Why should you do this? If you ever want to amass a lot of liquid assets–that is, money you can spend today if you want–you need to set your savings to automatic, as well. This is an easy way to make good money without having to consistently be monitoring your financial progress. As the saying goes, “set it and forget it,” and over time, you’ll accumulate wealth that you hadn’t previously foreseen. 10-Minute Tips to Help You Retire Rich [Men's Health] More »
Use Separate Accounts to Automate Your Finances
1:00AM Lifehacker US Edition | There are many benefits to setting up an automated personal finance system, as Gina has previously shown us, and with the new year still fresh, it’s a good time to get your own system set up. The Get Rich Slowly finance blog offers one guest writer’s solution—set up two checking and two savings accounts, to get the most interest out of savings and keep bills and expenses in separate compartments. One benefit of his system: … If there are billers who need to (draw from) a checking/savings account, I can completely isolate what they have access to. I can also make sure that the money is sitting in savings until the last possible moment but gets automatically transferred over in time to pay the bill without incurring a late fee. Have a lean and mean system for automated saving and bill-paying? Share your set-up in the comments.Photo by Roland. How to Automate Your Personal Finances [Get Rich Slowly] More »
Afford Anything
9:00AM Tamar Weinberg | Photography aficionado Ken Rockwell recently shared some insightful information about how he’s able to afford thousands of dollars in camera equipment. His key point: prioritise and only buy what you really want. If you really want something, buy it, or wait until you can. More »
Accounting 101 for Freelancers
12:10AM Kevin Purdy | The Freelance Switch blog tackles a few of the most important money management practices for those just starting out in a freelance venture. Along with getting a good billing/invoice system in place and getting serious about your expense tracking, guest writer Allan Branch drops one of the most important tips to ensure your security as an independent worker: Step 4 – Don’t use your personal bank accounts to make purchases for the business.Have at least one business bank account and use it exclusively. If you violate this rule you risk “piercing the corporate veil.” Which means you lose your business and your house and your car and money if you got into legal hot waters. Sound advice, and it makes sense organizationally, too. For more Freelance 101, check out previous tips on pricing freelance work and the 7 Habits of Successful Freelancers. Photo by miguelb. Accounting Basics for a Freelancer [Freelance Switch] More »
