When I last talked about my future plans I mentioned that I contacted two local schools. A State School where I’d earn a teachers certificate. A Private School where I’d become a Rad Tech. Option #1 would take 3-4 semesters. Option #2 would take 3 years. Option #1 would cost about one third of what option #2 would cost. Option #1 would also make considerably less than option #2 upon graduation. Hmmmm. I decided to be a teacher. Almost everyone who I talked to this last month when I explained my choices has said, “you’d make a good teacher” or [...]
Read MoreChasing Dreams
This week’s stroll around the personal finance posts revealed a great list of articles. We start with two great articles that talk about on of my most important adjustment to many financial plans, figuring out why you are changing your financial habits and using that to create motivation to carry you through. Frugal Dad shares identifying the why and RC @ Think Your Way To Wealth talks about developing burning desire. A second Frugal Dad post explores his path to financial maturity by getting rid of his new truck. Especially relevant, because DD is considering selling his car to aid [...]
Read MoreI wrote earlier about the moment/idea that marked that turned around our financial journey. Today, I wanted to talk about the moment when the momentum for positive change became unstoppable. This is the moment when I felt like our plan finally came together. Where all the hard work finally culminated in an unburdened, energized, free to pursue my dreams fist pumping YESSSSS! type feeling. What was the moment? It was about 4 and half years from when we decided to get out of debt when we finally had 6 months expenses locked away in an ING direct account. We had [...]
Read MoreThis post is in response to Free From Broke’s tipping point contest. For those that don’t know a The Tipping Point is a book and term coined by Malcom Gladwell in 2002. It refers to “the level at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.“[1] The term was an attempt to quantify and understand what makes certain phenomenon and ideas take off. Why does an unknown book vault into the best seller list or a website like I Can Has CheezBurger go viral. Click Here for the link to the book on Amazon and here for the book preview from [...]
Read MoreI know that title probably doesn’t encompass your financial dreams, but take a second to think about your idea of financial success? A nice car, comfortable life, paid for house, retire at 50? We all usually have either vague notions or uber-grandiose ideas about our financial future. It is rare that I talk to any who has given thought to envisioning the desired outcome of all their financial planning and debt reduction. Have you? I am not talking about random daydreaming, but rather devoting serious mental energy to picturing and defining a vision for your financial future. Your financial vision [...]
Read MoreI mentioned a few weeks that I wanted to further simplify my financial system and closing extra accounts is a big part of that. Well…I closed my NJM Bank Checking account. I have been putting this off for about a year, because the prospect of having to pay the occasional ATM fee made me cringe. Yes, I can be that cheap. The $8.00 a month ATM fee reimbursement was the sole reason I kept the account around. The ironic part is that the extra interest I will earn by having the money in ING will more than cover the extra [...]
Read MoreThe Rock Garden went vacationing this past weekend to Pocono Mountains of Pensylvania just outside of Jim Thorpe, PA. We got a great a good deal on a modern three bedroom house with a scenic view that I will post about later. Despite a wash out on Saturday and some allergies, it was a great vacation. I am not here to talk directly about the vacation though, but rather something peculiar that I noticed. The Satelitte TV wasn’t working in the house and there was no internet. The amazing thing was that after the 36-48 hour withdrawal period, I began [...]
Read MoreFirst was an article on Life Hack called Personal Development, Canine-Style. It is a long read, but well worth the time. It is written from the perspective of a man’s dog while the owner’s life and finances grow over the years. It shares some of the potential dangers that come with chasing our dreams and getting on top of our finances. Great life perspective with an funny amusing edge. Second, I wanted to highlight one of the best Personal Finance blogs on the net, The Simple Dollar. This story is quite inspirational. Just about two years ago he hit financial [...]
Read MoreIf this is your first time visiting, feel free to look around. You can join the others by subscribing to my RSS feed or you can receive updates via email so that you don’t miss The Happy Rock’s articles! Welcome to the 149th edition of the Carnival of Personal Finance! Below are 86 personal finance articles from the last week or so. In the articles you will find awesome information, but the real question is…”why do we care”? What motivates us to spend less and save more? Without being lead by our dreams and desires our enthusiasm and motivation can [...]
Read MoreThis past Sunday I handed in my final paper for my MBA degree(Marketing concentration) at Drexel University’s Lebow College of Business. The finality is so fresh that the end of my long two and half year journey hasn’t sunk in. It is starting though…Tuesday is my normal class night and I got to stay home with my family! The first question most people will ask is “was getting an MBA worth”? On a personal level, it was a truly great experience. One that has given my a lot of confidence, motivation, purpose, and energy. On a business and pure learning [...]
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