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Mandatory Savings vs. Mandatory Financial Education

Here is a 3 step process to start as early as possible in one’s working years:

Make money
Spend less money than you make
Take the difference between the two above, otherwise known as savings, and invest it.

Do this regularly from early on, and you’re on your way to increasing net worth. You’re also on your way to being far, far ahead of the average American in terms of putting yourself on a path toward being able to eventually retire voluntarily.

I say that because it seems as though the average person out there is simply not taking these 3 steps above. According to this article at MarketWatch, only about 66% of Americans are estimated to save a portion of their paycheck. What’s unfortunate is that for over half of the people saving money, the amount saved is under $25,000.

That’s simply not going to cut it for retirement. I wonder how so many people are going to be able to handle their retirement years. If there is no money, what do they do? I’ve often wondered, and to me, it seems like they have to work deep into their senior years, until physically or mentally unable to do so. Or, until they are no longer wanted in the workforce in any capacity. Avoiding this type of scenario is a huge source of financial motivation for me.

The article I mentioned brought up the topic of mandatory retirement savings, and whether or not that should be put in place. On the surface, I can see the appeal to it. If people are forced to save, they might find themselves in a much better position down the line. Lack of discipline might be made up for by the imposition of required responsibility. That’s part of the benefit of automatic savings, right?

What are your thoughts about this?

To me, the notion of forcing people to do things isn’t one that seems like a viable long-term solution, nor does it seem to be a good fit with our way of doing things here. I think that it’s up to each of us to figure out our own way to make savings and ultimately retirement happen. We have the freedom to choose, whether it’s the freedom to be responsible or the freedom to lack personal accountability.

That being said, I do think that teaching people how to be financially responsible is something that would be a good idea. A way to make that happen is to really take seriously the notion of comprehensively teaching personal finance in schools, to make sure that people graduate high school with a really strong foundation in how to approach money. Frankly, if many parents don’t have a clue, how can the kids be expected be different without intervention or some exposure to teachings about money?

This would help many people avoid taking on out-sized student loans without really understanding the concept of return on investment. People might then spend based on needs vs. wants, thus building wealth earlier in life through the 3-step process noted up front.

It could go a long way to increasing that overly modest sub-$25,000 savings amount that many folks have!

My Questions For You

What do you think about those findings, about 2/3 of people saving and more than half of those having less than $25,000 actually saved?

How in the world are most people going to handle paying for their needs in old age?

Do you agree that mandatory financial education is better than mandatory savings?

Learning From Successful People Can be a Great Shortcut

By Squirrelers 8 Comments

Shortcuts can be great. Instead of doing something that takes a long time, we can often take part in shortcut activities that lead us to the same result in a shorter period of time. Instead of walking on a long, winding footpath to a front door, we could cut through the lawn and get there faster. A straight line, “as the crow flies”, can be better than taking the long road.

One example I’ve been thinking about lately has been using shortcuts to learn from others, instead of learning from personal experience and trial and error. Learning vicariously has its merits, to be sure. It can be learning from others’ mistakes, but it can also entail modeling successful behavior.

As I look at my own life, I take pride in what I’ve been able to do. Keep in mind that I haven’t done anything that I would say is extraordinary, as I’m just a regular guy. But still, I’ve worked hard and am constantly trying to improve and get better while having fun with everything along the way.

Nevertheless, in most areas of life, I know people within my circle of friends that have done something much better than me. Maybe the same person hasn’t done better in every area of life, but possibly in one or a few areas. While “success” can be subjective, I like to at least try to be realistic in being able to acknowledge to myself that I can learn from others who have reached some goals that I haven’t (yet, anyway).

So, in certain situations, I think “what would he (or she) do?”

For example:

If I’m dealing with a specific professional situation, I might think about how someone I know has successfully handled it in the past.
If I have to make a big presentation, I’ll think about one person in particular who was a great presenter and used great public speaking skills to help career growth. How would she have handled such a presentation? Given that this is not an area in which I’m naturally super talented, asking this question gets me to think about how I could approach things and learn from her successful approach.
When looking at how to grow net worth, I’ll think about one of my friends in particular. He started with nothing, and has built up a really good financial situation by some good habits. I think about what drove his success, and try to identify one or two things he’s done differently than I have.
If I’m trying to get back in shape – actually there’s no “if”, as this is actually what I’m trying to do – I’ll think about some things that one of my friends has done to stay in great shape. Those little things he’s done every day/week, over time, have allowed him to be in phenomenal health for someone his age.

In other words, I think we if we want to succeed at specific tasks or reach certain goals, we should pay close attention to how those who have succeeded actually went about making it happen. This means not stubbornly holding onto “my way” of doing things, but accepting that the way we may regularly approach something may be less effective than how another person would do it.

Admittedly, I’ve been one to take occassionally pride in the “my way” approach. However, I’m now embracing the idea that it’s way more profitable to directly examine how another person has achieved great success with a given endeavor, and try to model it.

While personal experience can be invaluable, sometimes shortcuts can be efficient and effective 🙂

My Questions for You

Do you ever try to learn from and model an approach of anybody you know, for a given task or goal?

If so, what do you try to emulate?

Do you agree with the notion that it’s sometimes a more profitable shortcut to learn from others successes (and failures) than investing your own time and effort to get the same wisdom?

The Best Money Moves for New or Recent College Graduates

By Squirrelers 11 Comments

When I was younger, and just out of college, I felt like I had finally hit the “real” world. Not that being any younger means that you aren’t in the real world, but for some people, it seems like there is some kind of bubble they’re living in all the way through 22 years old. It’s all about academics, having fun socializing, and preparing for the future for some people, it seems. Yes, I was one of those people. I know that many of you reading this weren’t (or aren’t) but I was.

I was fortunate enough to have a full-time job right out of college, having been recruited for the role. After that, it seemed like things had changed. All of a sudden, I had my own apartment with no roommates, along with a salary. I also had some basic responsiblities, such as taking care of my place, paying the bills, and routine things like that. Otherwise, I was free to do as I pleased.

How times change! Being older now, with kids and much bigger responsibilities, I can look back and think about how I handled myself back then and the moves I made. Overall, I think I did fine, and really worked hard in some areas of life. I wouldn’t have gotten to this point without that hard work, and the good decisions that I did make.

However, I certainly didn’t have all the answers back then. Not that I do now, of course! Yet I do have the benefit of life experience and perspective now, and can make some assessments on what moves I could have made. Based on my own life, as well as the experiences of countless others I know, I have some thoughts as to what financial moves would be good for people in their early 20’s to consider.

Here are my ideas for 5 top money moves for people in their early 20’s recently out of college:

1 ) Build Your Career.

Now, I say this knowing that not everyone knows exactly what they want to do. Some people go straight from undergrad to grad school – medical school is one example. Such people were probably highly driven early on, very bright, AND knew what they wanted to do. There are many other people with the first 2 traits, but maybe not the notion of what they want to do. This is okay, as we often need experience in order to figure some things out. But figure it out we must.

For many people the first big hurdle these days is finding that first full-time job. Once obtained, this the time to gain experience and work the long hours to get ahead. Later in life, with kids in the picture, you won’t have as much time or energy to do this. Get a foothold, build a professional network with value, and start making your mark. This early experience can be a great building block for the rest of your career or even future entrepreneurial efforts. Speaking of which, you shouldn’t be stopped from entrepreneurship early on.

2) Live Modestly

I could say live appropriately, but what I mean is that we should avoid spending excess money on pricey apartments. Now, this doesn’t mean we should compromise safety or other basic, or purposely sign up for some rotten commute. Rather, let’s try to spend as little as possible for housing.

I actually rented at a very nice apartment complex right away, and it was the very best one in the area. I could have saved a fair amount of money by living elsewhere, but I wanted to live in a certain place. Live and learn, I suppose!

A good alternative might also be getting a roommate. Splitting rent and utilities can really help with savings efforts. An even better move might be living with parents, if it’s comfortable enough and they’re okay with it. I have to say, I don’t understand the mentality that many people have around their newly grownup kids not being welcome to come back home. While I moved out on my own when young, I also realize that in many cultures it’s totally normal and perhaps expected for multiple generations to live together. If parents and their kids could wrap their heads around the massive savings possible for the kids, instead of viewing it as shameful freeloading, people could really save money and build a financial foundation.

3) Drive a “Good Enough” Car.

Nobody needs a really nice car when just starting out. I have 2 friends who made the mistakes of spending a ton of money on new vehicles. One guy bought an expensive sports car that was probably 2/3 of his annual income, then traded it in for different one that was just as pricey. He is now a successful high net worth individual who drives a 12 year old car, and says that he will drive that car into the ground. Clearly, he figured out what is important.

Another friend bought an expensive SUV when he got his first job, and told me he “needed” it, and wanted to “feel like I’ve arrived”. He’s now doing quite well, and seems really responsible.

There’s a good post worth checking out, with a car buying rule, that fits the concept of driving a “good enough” car.

4) Don’t Waste Time on Mr. Wrong or Miss Wrong.

This might not seem like a money tip, but it is. I’ve seen people waste untold amounts of time and money on people who were not right for them. It might have been apparent to others, but not them. Just imagine if they would have valued what they as individuals brought to the table, and didn’t settle for something less?

A big thing is choosing to live in a city you don’t want to live in, just to follow someone. Okay, maybe that can work out well and I know it does for a lot of people. But tread carefully! I know one guy (who was actually in his later 20’s) who found his dream job with pay that – from what I heard second hand – was truly exceptional and well beyond what he was making before. He took the job, then quit and moved away after 1 month to be with his “true love”. Well, the true love ended up dumping him within 1 week. Yes, 1 week! No love, no job, and back home he moved with his finances severely hurt.

He threw away a great career and life opportunity. Now, I haven’t kept in touch with the guy in a few years, so I don’t know what he’s up to now. Little consolation for him, but hopefully others can learn from his fiasco, and not lose valuable time, money, and financial potential on a situation that’s not a great fit.

On the bright side, what if you do find Mr. Right or Miss Right? You’re blessed, and don’t let go!

5) Don’t Carry ANY Credit Card Debt

Credit card debt is not good to have. Sometimes people can get into difficult situation that requires them to pursue debt as help. However, many people carry credit card debt because they aren’t able to discern wants from needs. When they figure it out, it can be painful.

There was a guy I worked with who also bought a nice car that was beyond his means – I suppose we can add him to the two I mentioned above, as I just thought of him now. Anyway, this guy not only had that car, but also went to all kinds of expensive concerts and sporting events. We were joking around with him at lunch about him not knowing what a savings account was, and he just brushed us off with a smirk and said he didn’t care about any of that stuff. Life is too short, he said! By the way, this guy was a financial analyst. Go figure.

Well, a few years after that, he told me that he would be stuck paying bills until he was 30. He later met a woman who he ultimately married, who shaped him up financially. Over dinner, he told me how she hated any and all debt, and how she forced him to change. He went on an introspective tangent where he stated that he must have learned his habits from his parents, who simply used credit as an easy tool to get money when needed for anything. It was great to see him learn his lesson, but clearly it took him years to recover, and a smart wife to teach him how things work!

How it All Ties Together – collectively, these moves involve making sure we earn money, and then ensuring that we avoid common traps that cause us to overspend. Ultimately, main idea here is to save as much as possible when younger. Then, we can invest intelligently and let compounding work its magic. Later in life, you’ll be VERY glad you saved and invested. I know I am.

My Questions for You

Did you follow (or are you following) any of these tips on money moves in your early 20’s?

Which ones have worked best for you, and what do you wish you could have done differently?

Do you have any more to add?

6 Reasons Why Public Speaking Skills are Important to Your Career and Finances

By Squirrelers 11 Comments

Do you enjoy standing up in front of a crowd and making a presentation, with all eyes and ears on you?

Many people have a real fear of public speaking. Some people get phobic about it, and dread being up there with everyone paying close attention to them. This can be understandable, as there are real risks to messing up. You might create a memorable experience that make you unforgettable for the wrong reasons.

That being said, we can’t avoid public speaking. Believe me, when younger, I absolutely detested it. I felt uncomfortable with public speaking, and was not anxious to do so. I got through situations at school by simply taking a “get it over with” mentality, and being glad when the speech or presentation was over.

These days, it’s still not something I find exciting, but I’ve taken a different approach to it. Given that one must be able to make presentations at work and get comfortable standing in front of a room, it’s something to look at as an opportunity instead of something to avoid.

A good way to become more comfortable with public speaking is to learn some public speaking skills. The more developed your skills become, the more confident you will feel as you approach the podium. Since much of the nervousness that comes along with public speaking is a fear of not being able to engage the audience, having the necessary skills improve your overall experience. If you take a look at Leading Authorities’ speakers on innovation, you will see a group of people who have mastered the art of public speaking. Those who are looking to join this group should develop their public speaking skills as much as possible.

Here are 6 reasons why good public speaking skills can impact your career and finances:

1) Demonstrates knowledge. If you can clearly articulate your thoughts, it’s a good way to show your knowledge. It can be said that knowledge is of limited value if it isn’t applied, and if key people with you work don’t know that you have it. By being good at public speaking, you can show that you’re knowledgeable on the job.

2) Increases knowledge. This one may be a bit counter-intuitive, but by preparing for a presentation, you actually have a chance to become more in tune with the subject matter itself. One of the best pieces of advice I got from a manager much earlier in my career was actually very simple. He said, before a presentation I had to make to close to 50 people, that “the key to making a good presentation is knowing your stuff”. Very simple to the point of sounding nearly ridiculous, but it makes sense when you think about it. Along those lines, not only does knowing the subject matter inside and out help lead to a winning presentation, you make yourself understand it better.

3) Develops and shows confidence. If you can effectively speak to a large group, it can only help develop your confidence in some way, right? It did for me in the workplace. Also, a good presentation that is effectively delivered with confidence can help your standing in the workplace. People often gravitate toward confidence, as long as it isn’t excessive of course!

4) Differentiates you in the workplace. Not everyone is good at public speaking, depending on what job you have or where you work. If you can stand out, you can only help your career.

5) Helps you avoid career risks. If nothing else, being at least competent versus being terrible at it doesn’t put you at a disadvantage! I remember seeing a joint presentation by two colleagues some years ago, both speaking for about an hour. The subject matter they each spoke about was related. The first guy was a good presenter, engaging and able to keep the attention of the room. The second guy seemed to be much less dynamic, had way more “uh” and “um” filler, and was quite simply much less polished as a presenter. I walked away thinking more highly of the first guy than the second guy. It may not have been fair, and frankly my opinion at the time didn’t matter much anyway. But a few other people in the room were more senior-level people, and I have a hard time believing that they didn’t see the difference too.

6) May make you more promotable. At senior levels of leadership, people will need to be comfortable making presentations to the point of being polished and persuasive. Having good public speaking ability can be a good attribute to help you position yourself for a move up.

My Questions for You:

Do you agree that public speaking skills can be helpful to one’s career?

How are your public speaking skills, and do you have to use them in your career?

Have you ever seen any people make a strong impression – either really good or really bad – with their public speaking skills?

The Tim Tebow Hype and Money Lessons

By Squirrelers 15 Comments

At any point in time, there are usually a few people, products, or just topics in general that simply generate a ton of buzz. Lately, there has been a lot of hype over Tim Tebow, who you may know is a pro football quarterback who has been mentioned in the media quite a bit. This is a celebrity who seems to generate opinions and commentary from many fans and media, regardless of their views. As a personal finance enthusiast, I’ve managed to see this “Tebowmania” phenomenon and pull out a few personal finance lessons!

First off, this post isn’t about any kind of judgement on Tebow, or those who either like the hype or don’t like the hype. That’s outside the scope of personal finance and this blog. So, I won’t go there. Rather, what caught my attention – and what I’ll discuss below – are 2 money lessons that I think we can take from the Tebow hype.

Where there’s hype, there’s opportunity

This came to mind as I just happened to randomly come across a link to a story on Deadspin, which was about someone’s attempt to make some money off Tebowmania. Apparently, an ad was placed on Craigslist that offered for sale a set of 4 envelopes that were postmarked on the day Tebow was born – August 14, 1987. These envelopes seemingly have no actual direct connection with Tebow, other than having a postmark sharing that particular date. The way it was described, one had a Florida postmark, another was West German, another Dutch, and the final one was from the U.K. Again, they aren’t specific to the athlete – just postmarks from that particular date.

According to the article, the asking price was $90.

As I saw that, I thought “hey – that’s a real entrepreneurial, opportunistic move!”

Clearly, there’s hype, and it’s built up to the point where there’s a market for stuff like this. We’ve seen stuff like this before with products – beanie babies come to mind. Random stuffed animals were sold for astronomical figures and become “collector’s items” to many people. This happened with Cabbage Patch dolls many years ago too. We’ve also seen this with tech stocks in the late 90’s, and real estate in the early 2000’s. Some things just get red hot in popularity at certain times.

This reminds me of a story I read (or heard) a few years back, when gas prices shot up and people were concerned about prices potentially going up to astronomical levels. This increased interest in hybrid cars, and at that time where the buzz was around gas prices, some people were actually reselling used hybrids for a profit. That goes against conventional practices with cars, as they usually depreciate with use – and can do so quite quickly. But in that time of hype, some people capitalized by using these cars for a while and then selling them for more later. Pretty nifty, right?

If you ride the wave, you can profit from the hype! The hype may not be long-lived, and items may end up crashing in value and popularity quite suddenly. The wave doesn’t continue forever. However, while momentum picks up in the early to mid stages of it, you can jump on board and opportunistically make money!

The lesson: watch what’s trending, hustle, and you might find quick opportunistic money making situations!

Being Polite has high ROI

One thing I’ve noticed about Tebowmania is that no matter what people think of him, no matter how polarizing he might be, most people seem to acknowledge that he come across as being polite and well-mannered. He’s not foul-mouthed, surly, or getting in trouble like some other celebrities. That alone just has to help with popularity, right? There are other talented athletes out there who have been successful in their profession for years, but don’t seem to get this type of attention. Taking this to fan attention, just look at the example I provided above on postmarked items that were reportedly per that story being hawked for $90.

The lesson: if you’re likable, you open more opportunities than if you aren’t likeable. Being pleasant and personable doesn’t cost much, but can offer good rewards for minimal investment. So, why not be pleasant!

My Questions for You:

Have you ever taken advantage of any hype or buzz, and profited from it? This could include collectibles, real estate, or just about anything that was riding a wave of great popularity at any point in time.

Do you also agree that just being likeable can open up many more opportunities for a person exhibiting that characteristic? Do you see it as a high ROI action that most of us could take?

The Pareto Principle: How the 80/20 Rule Can Apply to Your Money

By Squirrelers 21 Comments

The Pareto principle, sometimes known as the 80/20 rule, is a concept that has many applications. The main idea is that 80% of the effects are resultant from 20% of the causes. Or put another way, 80% of the results come from 20% of the effort. Lately, I’ve been giving some thought to how this way of thinking can be applied to our lives in terms of money.

The Pareto Principle and Business

The Pareto principle is often included in many business decisions. When working on selling a particular product, it’s generally not a good idea to try to be everything to everybody. In other words, your product will a good fit for some people, and not as good of a fit for others. Plus, there might be some potential customers that can be influenced to buy your product, and some that will be resistant to buying it. Thus, it’s important to target sales efforts for a product (or service) effectively, so that your resources are used wisely. It’s often cost prohibitive to mass market most products.

The result: we might see that a large percentage of our sales come from a small concentration of customers. To apply the Pareto principle, we would say that 80% of sales come from 20% of customers.

Or, you could discover the following:

80% of sales come from 20% of marketing channels
80% of advertising-sourced revenue comes from 20% of your advertisements
80% of your customer complaints come from 20% of your products
80% of your productivity comes from 20% of your employees
80% of your referrals come from 20% of your customers

If you’re a blogger, to take another example, you might find that a significant percentage of your referrals come from a small percentage of referring sites.

The Pareto Principle and Personal Finance

While the Pareto principle has been oft-discussed in terms of business, I think it might be underutilized in personal finance.

In terms of how we spend our time with respect to improving our financial situation, and working toward our money-related goals, there are different ways to go about it. A common theme I see throughout the blogosphere, as well hear in conversations, is the use of money saving strategies. People come up with all kinds of ways to save a few bucks, and will frequently take interesting measures to do so.

For example, you just know there are people that would drive an extra 10 minutes each way – 20 minutes round trip – to buy gas at place that’s 5 cents per gallon cheaper. They just can’t stand the thought of intentionally paying more for gas when a cheaper alternative is available nearby. The thought of spending 20 minutes to save maybe 75 cents is quickly rationalized, if thought about in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve engaged in some unique practices too. My idea of picking up pennies at the drive-thru might be a bit extreme , though at least I donated what I found :). Additionally, as I’ve shown in the Squirreling Gone Wild series, there are plenty of interesting things people do to save money. There’s no shortage of wacky schemes out there!

Those schemes are often harmless and fun. Ok, admittedly (and obviously) and I get a huge kick out them:)

However, it’s when people invest a lot time into saving a few pennies or even dollars, I wonder if that’s the best use of time in terms of meeting money goals. Now, of course saving is great, and is vital to personal finance success. You can make all you want, but if you don’t save anything, you have nothing to show for your accomplishments. But in order to save, don’t we have to make money too? It’s all a balance.

This is where I’m going to start thinking a bit more about what’s the most impactful use of my time:

If I’m spending 20 minutes going to a certain store to save money, how much is that really yielding?

If I’m spending an hour looking for an online bank that pays $0.001% more in interest, how much extra is that really getting me?

If I’m spending all day at work trying to get a routine task perfected, how far is that getting me? Could I do a visible, value-added special project instead?

What I’m getting at is that I suspect that many of us spend a lot of time doing things that ultimately don’t yield big results. Even when aggregated, the little wins don’t always equal the big wins. Should we be focusing on getting better ROI on our time, spending it where we can truly get results?

In other words, maybe we should apply the Pareto principle (80/20 rule) to our efforts to grow our savings and net worth. Focus our efforts where results will happen, instead spending time on low-yield activities.

Now, I’m not saying that I’m going to let making money guide my life, or choose daily activities in this way. I’m only talking about time that’s actually spent in the pursuit of money, one way or another. Admittedly, after some reflection, I could probably improve in this area quite a bit.

My Questions for You:

What do you think of this concept of the 80/20 rule?

Do you ever think about this in your own life?

Do you have any additional examples of the Pareto principle to share?

First Job Lessons Learned

By Squirrelers 18 Comments

Way back in the day, little did I know that an adventure was just beginning.

My first job of any kind took place back in high school, back in the late 80’s. Just typing that makes me feel a bit ancient, though I’m young at heart:) Anyway, I was reaching an age where people started to take on part-time jobs in high school, or at least summer jobs. Frankly, I hadn’t given much thought to working, as my mind was elsewhere at the time. Of course once I started to see others work and how they were actually making money, it got me interested in making some for myself.

The Search

I had applied for a few jobs, and didn’t hear back. These were at the “glamorous” locales at the time, which meant interesting restaurants and other service establishments. Keep in mind the immediate town in which I grew up was solid, but the surrounding areas were all declining rust belt type of places without too many great opportunities. Anyway, one place did call back, and asked me if I’d be interested in a “porter” job. It was a donut shop of all places. The guy told me that the most important part of the job would be regularly cleaning the bathrooms. That certainly didn’t sound too glamorous and I didn’t pursue that any further!

Then, a friend told me about an opportunity….

The Job

The buddy of mine had told me that he worked occasional weekends at a banquet hall. Why occasional weekends? Well, he apparently didn’t have a car of his own, so he had to get a ride there from parents or others. That meant he couldn’t commit to a regular schedule.

Enter The Squirreler.

My friend told me he could get me a job at this banquet hall for work every weekend, and asked if I could drive him there. I thought about it, and decided “why not?”. The kicker for me was the pay: $5 per hour. Yes, the boss man at this place paid me $5 per hour but I thought I was pulling in some decent money for a high school job. In reality, I actually was making decent money. Most of the people I know who held these part-time jobs were making under $4 per hour, so I thought I was lucky! Plus, we got to eat a “free” meal during a break, which was usually decent food.

In case you’re wondering what I did there, it wasn’t too exciting: I washed dishes. However, I have to say, it wasn’t quite that bad. It was pretty routine, getting plates put in front of you as you then washed them and sent them through a washing machine. All these years later, I can still practically feel the steam coming from that machine, it seems like just yesterday.

It wasn’t just my buddy and I, but his younger sister was there as well sometimes. I recall another kid there too, and he seemed pretty cool. We worked hard, and were ready to go home at the end of the night! However, we did joke around and make the best of it.

The Lessons Learned

Well, upfront I can tell you that my biggest lesson learned was that I needed to get an education! It actually wasn’t a bad job at the time, but I didn’t want to be washing dishes my whole life. Even though it was barely physical labor, I realized that my future needed to be based on other type of work that required some kind of thinking or analytical ability. Even at that age, I somehow thought that I wouldn’t want to be old and have to do that!

I also learned that sometimes it’s who you know that can get you something. That job, while seemingly no big deal to many readers I’m sure, was actually higher paying than anybody else’s job at the time from what I remember. I was almost embarrassed to admit that I made $5 per hour believe it or not. What happened to that good fortune since then, tell me? Anyway, I wouldn’t have gotten this job if it wasn’t for my friend, whose family seemed to know the boss man over there at the banquet hall.

Also learned that your enjoyment on the job can often be strongly enhanced from working with people you like. I liked hanging out with my buddy, and his sister was pretty cool too as I remember it. Had there been some jerks working with instead, I probably wouldn’t be looking back at this so favorably.

Finally, I learned how hard people sometimes have to work in order to make money. I didn’t make big money there, as my work hours were pretty modest: something like 10 hours per week, which amounted to $50. Even though I was a kid and not responsible for bills around the house, even I realized that just utility bills alone wouldn’t be paid by such income.

This was a long time ago, back in the day…..but I still remember!

My Questions For You:

What was your first job like?

What lessons did you learn from it?

Who Pays on the First Date: A Financial Lesson Learned

By Squirrelers 16 Comments

The following is an article that’s part of a collective effort of a group of blogs to write on the topic “Financial lessons learned from my first boy/girl friend.” The genesis for this idea was the blog First Gen American, while the article is my own.

Do you remember your first girlfriend or boyfriend? Or, more importantly, your first date you ever had?

For me, it’s been many years, but I do recall the first actual, formal date I went on. I was much younger, it was more than half my life ago

But I do remember. There was a girl who I knew a bit, who was a friend of a friend, who I came to find out liked me. You remember those days, right? Well, from what I knew at that time, she appeared interesting to me too. Good looking, smart, nice. So, I thought about asking her out.

I was more shy back then, so the idea that she already “liked” me helped ease my fears of rejection. That’s a good thing, because I absolutely did have those fears. At the time, Mr. Squirreler wasn’t Mr. Suave, but somehow was a man of mystery at times because I would get shy when I was interested in asking out a good looking girl. Apparently though, I found that when a guy is comfortably conversational yet doesn’t ask someone out it meant he was intriguing. Go figure. I was just shy and trying to figure things out, but the perception worked for me at the time.

Anyway, I asked this girl if she wanted to go out for a move, and then get ice cream. This might as well have been the 1950’s, as it was such a wholesome date. Now, keep in mind I was raised by my parents to be a gentleman and to operate by their views of chivalry. This meant stuff like no swearing around girls (or ever, really), holding the door for them, doing the driving, etc. Maybe it’s old fashioned, but that’s how they raised me.

Interestingly, nothing was said about spending money on girls. Now, I don’t know if they just assumed that I knew who pays on the first date, or what the case was. But we didn’t discuss the money part of it. Just being a gentleman in the other aspects I had mentioned.

So, I took the girl on the date, and I guess I just thought I would probably pay. I didn’t think much about beforehand, and just brought my money. Keep in mind that at the time, I was a kid in school and not working any kind of evening or weekend job at the time – though I had previously had a part-time minimum wage job. The girl, while also at the same school, did have some kind of part-time job. So she was working, I wasn’t.

Anyway, on the way to the local theatre, she was telling me about some funny things that happened to her at her job. No talk about mutual friends we had, or anything like that – just some brief stories on her job to break the ice.

I didn’t have my own current minimum-wage job stories to share, so at this point it’s even more clear that she’s working and I’m not. Which is fine at that young age, though I felt it then.

Then we got to the movie theatre, and went up to the counter to get the tickets. I asked for 2 to whatever movie we saw, and then was told the price. At that point, I quickly glanced over at her and she was just standing there.

There it was. A first date. And it was clear that I had to pay.

We both were just kids, both good students, her family seemed like they may be well to do, but one thing was certain: she was working and I wasn’t.

Yet, when it came time to pay, she didn’t flinch. So, I definitely noticed that and obviously remember it. But really, all I could think about at the time was how good she looked

After the movie was over, we continued the 1950’s-style wholesome theme and went to a local place to get ice cream. She then asked me if it would be ok if she got a root beer instead. Of course, I said. I really like root beer too, so I told her I’d get one as well. Then, we sat there and talked for a while.

Oh by the way….I paid for the soda too. Which is fine.

Then it started to get late, and I went to drop her off at home. The young Mr. Squirreler considered the night to be a success, as I did date her for a little while after that.

Anyway…that said, that episode got me thinking about money. Specifically, my need to have money.

You see, the whole evening made it clear that there was a “pay to play” approach to dating. If you’re a guy, you pay. If you don’t pay or you hope she pays her part, you’re not “manning up”. How could you ask a girl out and then expect her to pay her share – let alone the whole thing?

You couldn’t do that.

So, the young Mr. Squirreler had the lightbulb turn on. It became clear to me that for me to date, I would need some money. As I fast forwarded in my mind to the days when I’d be older and had a college degree and a “real” job, I figured the dates might get more expensive. I didn’t want to hurt my chances, so I thought I needed to figure out a way to make money.

In the mind of a younger guy, this was the kickstart I needed. And, it gave me insight into what drove many men to achieve wealth. Sure, we have our basic needs like food, shelter, transportation, medical, etc. But to many younger guys, there’s extra motivation of impressing girls and eventually women. Thank goodness I never made any stupid moves like buying a cool car to impress anyone.

Eventually –and thankfully – I also came to realize that not all girls are interested in how much you make or how much you spend on them.

Currently, as an adult, my motivator is retirement and child’s college expenses. But the dating example was the beginning of my being motivated to money for a specific reason, and with that I learned two things:

Work toward a goal, it helps drive your money making pursuits
You have to hustle to make money or get what you want; if you don’t, someone else will

Additionally, from that one evening, I did learn a lesson that stays with a guy:

On your very first date with a woman, you pay. It doesn’t matter if she has more money than you, or makes more money than you. The respectable, honorable, and practical thing to do is for you to pay. Later, after more dates and a relationship starts, this doesn’t have to be the case. But on that very first “real” date when you ask her out, you should expect to pay for everything and let her pay for nothing.

Yes, this is coming from the same guy who posted on gender equality recently. Which I stand by totally, as I think opportunities should be equal for both boys/girls and men/women. Girls can work toward any level of education and employment and should not get held back by any preconceived notions about their abilities or appropriateness in certain jobs or careers. It’s all equal.

For first dates though, it’s a different situation. Some might strongly disagree, but the lesson I learned that the guy pays.

What did you learn about finances from your first girl/boy friend?

Do agree or disagree with me on my thoughts about the guy paying for a first date? Am I too old-fashioned here?

“Swamp Finance”

By Squirrelers 8 Comments

The following is a guest post from Jason, the proprietor of Live Real, Now, a blog focused on spending–and saving–in the real world. It was written for a blog swap run by the Yakezie personal finance blog network to answer the question “What is the best financial advice or tool you have found or been given?”

Once upon a time, there was a young man–an arrogant man barely out of childhood–who thought he new more than anyone he had ever known, trusted, or respected. In his arrogance, he left his family and friends behind to enter the wilderness in search of a long lost teacher.

He found the teacher. He even managed to convince the teacher to accept him as his pupil.

However, he didn’t change his ways. He insolently ignored the fundamental lessons, assuming he already understood them. When he was rebuked by his teacher, his only defense was to whine that he was “trying”.

“Do or do not. There is no ‘try’,” replied Yoda.

These words of wisdom represent one of the most fundamental rules of personal finance, or even life, itself. If the best you have to offer is a half-hearted “try”, you will never succeed.

When my wife and I decided that it was time for our debt to die the death of a sad specter of self-loathing hiding in a cave, we went at it with a relish that would have launched a poor astromech droid to the freakin’ moon!

We never said we’d give it a shot for a month and see how it went. We knew that we either needed to succeed or we’d have to file bankruptcy. We didn’t try, we did it. Rather, we are doing it. Friends told us it was impossible to live without credit; that we were foolish to try. They were right, so we didn’t try.

Similarly, when it was time to get started on a college fund instead of hanging our hopes on scholarships, we just did it. Sure, we started the fund with just $10, and it is only growing by $10 per month, but it’s there and it’s growing. When we get our debt paid off, we’ll see exactly how close we can get to giving our kids a self-funded full ride to college.

When it comes time to get the things done that you know need to be done, the trick is to do it. Don’t make excuses. Don’t “try” to find time. Just make it happen. Cut up your credit cards, make your budget, or sell the stuff you don’t need. Whatever it is, do it.

There is no try. There is only DO!

Editor’s Comments: Reading this guest post, I have to agree that if something needs to get done, just get it done without excuses. Do it. Those that can take this approach tend to reach their goals quicker, in my experience.