How to "Find" More Money

I know people who earn less than $15,000 per year and still manage to save, while others who earn over $100,000 a year are living paycheck to paycheck. How can this happen? Because some people know how to control spending habits.

It's not the big expenses that keep a person living on the edge - it's the nickle and dime stuff. Most people spend small, insignificant amounts every day, without even noticing. But what they do notice at the end of the week is a shortage of ready cash, or a lack of savings.

For example, if you get your lunch each day from the office vending machines for about $4.00, that comes to a whopping $1,000 a year. The daily paper, at 50 cents, comes to another $150/year. And that $3.00 cup of gourmet coffee of cappuchino every workday - that's another $750. And a weekly movie, at about $10, adds another $500. Just these few small things can reduce your discretionary cash by $2,400 per year. Not much, you say? But invested, and earning 10% per year, that small amount accumulates to over $51,000 in just 10 years.

Places where most money is wasted:

* Shopping without a purpose (shopping for fun)
* Impulse purchases, especially in the grocery store or department store
*ATM fees
*Late fees - credit cards, utilities, video rentals etc.
*Items purchased because they were on sale, but not needed
*Miscellaneous items, like that cappuchino

To get your spending under control, spend one week tallying up every dime spent that you do not have to spend. At the end of the week, that is the amount you should strive to save each week. And pay yourself first! If you wait to save "what's left" at the end of the week, rest assured nothing will be left.

If an item is necessary, such as lunch, opt for brown-bagging at about $1.00 a day, and save the extra $3.00 from not using the vending machines. Rent a movie for a dollar rather than spend $10 at the theater. And instead of the newspaper, get the news for free, online, or on the radio or TV.

Understand this: until you know exactly where your money is going, you can never get your spending under control. And if your spending is not under control, you will never have as much wealth as you could have had.

Burn Calories With Water

Did you know that plain water can help you shed pounds? You already know that water can fill you and quench your thirst without any calories, because there are no calories in water. But just as important, drinking water increases your metabolism, causing your body to burn more calories. And the colder the water, the more calories your body burns, trying to warm it up to body temperature.

Increasing water consumption by a 1.5 gallons a day for one year would help you shed 5 pounds by burning 17,400 calories. Now, that may not seem like much, but if you couple that with the calories burned by chewing food at least 20 times, and eating more slowly (see archive post, April 2007), you can shed 10 pounds a year without dieting or exercising.

Studies have also shown that tea drinkers tend to have 20% less body fat than non-tea drinkers. It is thought that tea increases metabolism, and lowers absorption of sugar molecules.

"Nuts" to Adult-Onset Diabetes

Tens of millions of Americans will develop adult-onset diabetes after age 45. The SAD diet (Standard American Diet) is primarily responsible. But you can take a simple step to help protect yourself from developing this disease - eat a handful of nuts (or a tablespoon of peanut butter) a few times each week.

Rich in fiber, magnesium and unsaturated (good) fats, nuts help facilitate insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism, and reduces cholesterol levels (all good things). Reducing simple carbohydrate intake (white breads, sugar, soda etc.) will help to almost insure that you will escape this disease.

Negotiate Real Estate Commissions

Few home sellers are aware that the Realtor commission for selling their home is negotiable. You should consider the broker's "offer" for the commission to be a starting point for negotiation. Why?

The biggest reason is due to such high property values. When the average home is $280,000, a 6% commission is a whopping $16,800. While Realtors will want that much, seldom would they object to getting paid a "mere" $11,200 (4%). And some "discount" places like ZipRealty and Assist-2-Sell only charge 1-2%.

So, if you are selling your home, don't be afraid to negotiate that commission - it can put thousands of extra $$$ in your pocket. Especially with more and more homes reaching the $500,000 value.

The "Secret" of Happiness

By Bill Vaughn

Actually, it's not really a secret - it simply goes unnoticed. So, take notice!

The most valuable things in life, such as love, happiness, and respect, are what you might call "enigmas". They are not what they seem. Such things cannot be gathered, chased, or taken. They cannot be held. In order to have such things, you must give them away!

You heard that right. If you want to be loved, you must first give love. If you want happiness, you must first give it away. If you doubt this, consider the following:

I was really in the dumps. A recent divorce and other disasters had me ready to give up. It seemed that happiness was not in the cards. While feeling sorry for myself, I stopped into a coffee shop to drown my sorrow in 100 proof caffeine.

A young girl who could not have been more than 16 waited on me. She was visibly upset, and I could see she had been crying. I asked another waitress what the problem was, and was informed that the girl's boyfriend had broken her young heart. I paid for my coffee and left.

Within 30 minutes, I returned with a single rose, handed it to the girl with the broken heart, smiled, then turned and left. As I reached the door, I turned and saw that she was smiling, and bouncing over to another table where an old man sat, alone. There was a spark of renewed happiness in her, and strangely enough, in spite of all my own troubles, I, too, was feeling happier for having given happiness to another. But my happiness soon faded as I watched her give that rose to that old man. I felt "used".

A few days later I returned to that coffee shop. The girl bounced over to me, all smiles and bubbling over with apparent joy. I told her that I was happy to be able to make some small difference in her mood that day, but was disappointed that she so readily gave away my gift. She smiled sweetly, grabbed my hand gently, and whispered, "Don't you know? You should, because I learned it from you. Happiness spreads when you give it away. You gave me the rose, and with it, happiness. I saw that lonely old man who had lost his wife last fall, and gave the rose to him, so that he, too, might share in the happiness. In giving him the rose, I found happiness a second time that day. And he returned next morning to say he gave the rose to a lady in the complex he lives in, and they are now spending time together. And that made me happy a third time. So, you see, the more happiness you give away, the more you have. I thought you knew!"

Thanks to the wisdom of that little 16 year-old girl, I have not had too many days without finding some happiness. All I have to do is give some away...

It works! And it's easy. Try it.

Getting Things Done

Some folks find it difficult to get everything done when needed. Others find it hard just to get started, or to finish. Whatever it is that keeps you from getting things done and move forward toward your goals, you may want to take a look at my system. It works for me.

First, keep a pocket-sized notepad and writing instrument handy at all times (or some electronic gadget that can take notes). Every time a task that needs to be done rears its head, and you cannot do it right now, make a note of it. All too often we try to rely on our memory to get things done. That will almost always result in things not getting done, causing frustration and stress.

Now, before you go to bed each day, choose those tasks that are most important and those that must be done soonest. Choose more than you believe can be accomplished the following day - that way, you will not waste part of the day without accomplishing something. Also, make sure you include something that you enjoy, and include at least a couple of breaks - they are worth their weight in gold.

Now schedule this list, as follows:

The very first task should be the most difficult, dirtiest job on the list. By doing that first, you take greatest advantage of being fresh and having your most energy of the day. And by getting that out of the way, you benefit from the reduced stress of not having that dirty job to look forward to all day. The day gets easier as you go along. Of course, the second worst task should follow the first, ensuring your day does get easier.

During the day, make certain that the most important tasks are taken care of at the earliest convenience, or according to any necessary schedule. If necessary, postpone less important tasks and reschedule them in your notebook.

Whatever you do, make certain that you schedule part of each day for your own enjoyment and relaxation. All work and no play will make you a bore, and will age you before your time. Use this time as a reward for having accomplished so much during the previous day.

Before retiring for the evening, go over the list of things you accomplished during the day. By doing this, you strengthen your sense of fulfillment and satisfaction. All too often we fail to take inventory of a job well done, or a day well spent. If you do not take a few moments to notice the strides you have made and the small successes of the day, you could easily become discouraged. The main idea here is to not go to bed until you know that you have taken at least one positive step toward your long-term goals. Hear this: there is only one reason we even bother trying to accomplish anything - we are striving for happiness. But you will never find happiness if you do not take the time to appreciate what you have done. Some call it "smelling the roses along the way".

Then, after realizing you have done well, put together tomorrow's list of tasks, starting with the hardest, dirtiest job first.