http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/5-ways-to-make-your-dollars-make-sense
BECOME YOUR OWN BANKER
There is one absolutely guaranteed place where you can get a rate of return well over 7 percent —in fact, often over 15 percent or 20 percent. Pay off the damn credit cards and stay out of debt! As the Sage of Omaha, Warren Buffett, says, “Nobody ever goes broke that doesn’t owe money.” Besides being expensive and self-destructive, credit card debt winds up sucking money out of your community and into the hands of distant banks, back offices, and collection agencies.
[Caveat - In the middle of a deep recession and financial crisis, if your job is uncertain or your home is in foreclosure, it is a good idea to pay only the minimum balance on credit cards so that you can save cash in case of unemployment, as even your credit cards can be frozen by the banks.]
Another consideration underscoring the value of keeping a modest reserve of cash is that we are entering turbulent times. In the last few years, both the stock market and the housing market have tanked and many serious analysts fear that both could crash again, perhaps even more catastrophically. ..... a hedge against uncertainty so he can control in his own federally insured bank account. - and put it in a Locally owned bank and you receive additional dividends as that money will be invested locally in the community, thereby creating more jobs and a more stable local economy -
INVEST IN YOURSELF
Warren Buffett says, “Generally speaking, investing in yourself is the best thing you can do—anything that improves your own talents. Nobody can take it away from you. They can run up huge deficits and the dollar could become worth far less, you’re gonna have all kinds of things happen. But if you’ve got talent yourself and you’ve maximized your talent, you’ve got a terrific asset.”
Think of how many educational courses you could take, how many new skills you could acquire, or how many new degrees you could complete that would increase your earning power. Forget about enrolling in an expensive private university. ....classes to broaden your skills. If .... more than $4,800 in additional pretax income, your education will generate the needed 16 percent rate of return to do better than your tax-deferred IRA. Adrianne McVeigh, a management consultant and clinical psychologist in Atlanta, tells her clients that “the most successful executives and managers invest time and energy in their own self-development.”
INVESTING IN YOUR HEALTH
Everyone knows that prevention of health problems is more cost-effective than treatment. The assumptions required to work out the cost–benefit numbers are admittedly rife with speculation, but there are plenty of low-cost ways most of us would agree would save us more than 16 percent per year. If you’re a smoker, for example, investing several thousand uninsured dollars to quit can pay off in years of longer life with fewer maladies and health-care costs, as well as immediate savings by eliminating hundreds of dollars of cigarette purchases each year. There are similar, if perhaps less dramatic, payoffs by investing in whatever it takes—nutrition classes, exercise programs, spending more cooking healthy meals—to reap the myriad benefits of a healthier you. - cooking classes -
Your reduced electricity bill will not pay your grocery bill after you turn sixty-five. To make this analysis work, you have to be committed to capturing your savings and placing them into some kind of savings account or asset that ultimately pays you an income stream. ....
Read the whole article .....
http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/5-ways-to-make-your-dollars-make-sense
My mom's favorite reminder when I was growing up was: "The only thing that can never be taken from you is your education.". She would know. Communism took away the family businesses, incomes, even the relationships between friends and families changed for the worse when Community Reporting Brigades were established to spy on neighbors.
<>
No comments:
Post a Comment