Five years ago, we decided to shut off the satellite television service we had subscribed to for over ten years.
When people find out we don’t have television service, most are aghast. They can’t imagine life without American Idol, Two and Half Men, Judge Judy, or True Blood. They look at me like I belong to some strange religious cult or have a sub-zero IQ. But what they don’t know is that shutting off the TV has enriched out lives – and it’s saved us enough money to pay for a Caribbean cruise.
We were paying $49 a month for DirecTV access, and on average, we watched about 2 hours of TV a day, mostly at bedtime. That equates about $0.80 an hour for entertainment, which isn’t a bad price, but…
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I’m one of those people who is constantly enrolled in some class or another. That doesn’t necessarily mean I’m pursuing a degree at all times (after all, a degree isn’t always beneficial), but I find that I do better at learning some topics in a class room environment than on my own. Having the resources that go along with taking a formal class — like an instructor who is a subject matter expert — makes the process that much easier.
Actually, certain classes are especially effective when you take it with an instructor, rather than teaching yourself out of a book. Add to the fact that some of these classes actually help you get ahead in the world, and the worth of a good instructor makes certain classes worth going back to school for. Here are 6 that I highly recommend you consider:
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Many people have a dream of retiring early so they can enjoy their time away from the grind. However, it is important to realize that there are some very real drawbacks to early retirement. The main issue is that you can’t begin taking distributions from your tax advantaged retirement account, penalty free, until you are 59 1/2. That means that early retirement can really puts your saving ability to the test. There are some strategies you can employ, though, to help you as you get ready for early retirement. Here are a few for those thinking about taking the leap one day.
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In the ten years since I graduated from college, I held no fewer than nine jobs. Now, to be fair, some of those positions were held concurrently when I was working multiple part time jobs and at least one of those jobs only lasted 2 days, as it became clear very quickly that I was in the wrong line of work. However, there’s no getting past the fact that the longest I have ever held a position is four years and that I generally get itchy for a job change after about a year.
Contrast my attitude to that to my husband, who worked for nearly a decade at the same company and only moved because our peanut was on the way and the new company offered more work-life balance.
It used to be much more common to see workers like my husband – find a good job and stay with it for a very long time. But the new generation of employees tends to have a shorter attention span and companies no longer reward loyalty in the same way that our parents’ employers once did. Though job-hopping has plenty of downsides, there are some definite advantages to being a career butterfly:
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When you already have an insurance policy, it’s easy to become complacent about what you have. You pay the premiums, you have coverage. But, if you don’t look around for better deals, you might find yourself paying more than you should for your policy. Whether it’s home, health or auto insurance, it’s a good idea to comparison shop every so often.
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Are you throwing money away by spending more on products that have little to no lasting effect on your life? If we examine the why behind a purchase decision closely, we might find that just because mother paid $4.99 for Mead writing tablets, it may not be the wisest shopping choice today. One of the quickest ways to run up a shopping bill is to splurge on name brand or specialty consumables, so let’s take a look today on the 5 worst products to spend more on and reduce that bill.
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