Hard Way Frugality

Tis the season,  The holidays are always a time for reflection. As for me, I like to take this time of the year to review a career roadmap I have documented. One specific quote I read a while ago has stuck in my brain as I think about all that will be pursued throughout the next year. "Most people live their lives chasing paychecks, pay raises and job security because of the emotions of desire and fear, not really them. It’s just like the picture of a donkey dragging a cart with its owner dangling a carrot just in front of its nose. The donkey’s owner may be going where he wants to, but the donkey is chasing an illusion."  - Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki Have you asked yourself this same question? Are you chasing an illusion? Being busy working for the sake of work is not productivity. When is the end? Meaning, when can we stop working for someone else. Or, when can we stop making someone else wealthy and start making ourselves wealthy? What wou...

I remember it just like it was yesterday. It was on a hot summer day many years ago and a 14-year-old Joey traded 5 hours of back-breaking labor-intensive yard work for about $90 of cold hard cash. This newly obtained wealth was glorious.  A little suburban yard work was always a piece of cake for me. This is because the average lot size of a suburban yard in my neighborhood was just a tiny fraction when compared to the 10 acres of property I had to maintain growing up in the South East.  But I am getting ahead of myself. Here is a little context first. As a teen, I had a little side hustle lawn business in addition to my McDonald's job. I was killing it financially. I also played a little football in the neighborhood from time to time. Here is where things started to get a little tricky. One day, I was playing wide receiver. I had just caught the ball after an amazing throw. I then started running towards the goal for a touch down full speed ahead! One kid grabbed my arm ...

Hello Everyone,  Today's writing will be about gold. More importantly, is gold a wise investment alternative?  Instead of just writing about gold's performance, I am also going to dabble in a little speculation. This can be a risky subject because I am going to make a prediction based on history.  My prediction is strictly for entertainment purposes, please do not use my discoveries as a rational to gamble your hard earned dollar. Only time will tell how my prediction holds up. So I guess we will check back here in a few years and share my discoveries.  The purpose of this post:  Education is the focus here. I am writing about gold's performance over the last 100 years. The idea behind this post is to get us thinking about non-traditional ways of investing. Yes, investing in the Stock Market is generally a wise move. I personally have some of my retirement in the Stock Market. But I believe, we are due for another recession soon. I am not saying...

Quick Summary, The Federal Reserve raising interest rates just means that bank lending to the mass population will slow down. So if you have cash and you are looking to buy a home or a car you have less competition! This means you can haggle a better deal. This is also true for smaller priced items like electronics etc. Bond rates will lower. Bonds follow the market, so when interest rates go up, Bond prices go down. People always claim that bonds are solid investments, but I don't fully understand that claim since interest rates will go up in the future. Scary time to invest in bonds since interest rates can't really go any lower. Do your own research , don't just take my advice. The sky is not falling unless you are in debt and were counting on a lower interest payment on your loans. Aside from that, this post is just another reminder that Cash is king! I am going to post a series of blogs that explain all the benefits of a debt free lifestyle in the future. Stay ...