Bulletproof Ways of the Long Distance Little Money – A Weekend Review

This week has been rather frustrating at work. For some reason, we have way more employees than we have work, so I’ve only worked every other day. It definitely contributes to some of the stress and strain that Saving For Serenity is attempting to relieve.

However, I did get a chance to go and see the movie Up!, which was a fantastic film. I highly recommend you go and see it yourself. Also, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup! Congrats to them, I am really glad that they managed to come back from being down 0 games to 2, and beat The Wings in Detroit. Very cool.

On Saving For Serenity, I have been writing a series of posts on the phrase “spend less than you make”. It’s been quite interesting to take the time to really dissect each word, breaking it down and seeing what it really means. I wrote an article on spending, less, and you. Make will come on Monday to finish the series.

Searching For Serenity

Two of my posts make it to the front page of Tipd, the one on spending, and the one about you. I was also linked to by Canadian Finance Blog, Financial Methods (who said I was one of his favorite new blogs!), and Oregon Live linked to my post on Debt Repayment.

Personal Finance From Around the Web

One of my favorite articles that I read this week came from MoneyNing. Bulletproof Ways to Minimize Unexpected Consequences got me right from the title. In the article, David addresses the initial enthusiasm we often have when starting new and exciting lifestyles – like debt repayment or frugality. Sometimes when you jump so far ahead, you get burned, so this article 3 great ways to reduce risk. My favorite was

Tip Your Toes First – In business, we learn to minimize risk by not changing the companies we deal with too often and starting out small even if we have to switch vendors. On an individual level, we need to do the same. Every time we try something new, don’t go all out. Be patient and learn the ins and outs on a small scale.

Its the one that I think is most effective, and the one that I struggle with the most.

It’s pretty cliche to use physical fitness as an analogy for personal finance. None do it better than JD Roth of Get Rich Slowly, as his article The Loneliness of the Long Distance Debtor can illustrate.

I run first thing in the morning. I get it done early so that I can spend the rest of my day on other things without the need to run hanging over my head. And having done this, I feel great. When I’m done with a 12-mile run on Saturday morning, I feel like the king of the world. I’m filled with confidence. In the same way, I felt empowered when I learned to pay myself first, to save and invest for my future before I paid my bills.

Its a great look at personal finance from a running perspective. It provides insight into the life of JD, while also sharing how one can become financially fit as well.

Finally, how does one spend very little money? Jacob from Early Retirement Extreme shows us how he does it. This article is an almost voyeuristic look into the life of a man who really doesn’t want much. His time is taken up with hobbies, which are productive and don’t cost anything. He’s trained himself not to want extra stuff. For example

I darn a sock. I get matching socks. That way if I lose one in the wash, I don’t have to throw the other one out.

No time for movies. I got a book to write. I rearrange a couple of sections for the 5th time.

It is not what a lot of us would consider “normal”, and that is what makes it so interesting. I heartily recommend you check it out, and see if anything Jacob does could be applied to your life so that you can spend very little money as well.

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• 1 More Reason You Should Spend More Than You Earn
• Why Save Money?
• A Frugal Home Owner Sacrifices IKEA - A Weekend Review
• Uses for your Tax Refund
• The Credit Crisis Explained
• Time, Money, and So Little of Either
• Guest Post @ Moolanomy
• How Much Should You Tip Your Waitress?
• What Kind of Money Do You Want?