Personal Profitability

Personal finance for hustlers and entrepreneurs

Yakezie

My Biggest Financial Mistake

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This is a special post from Shondell at Call Me What You Want Even Cheap as part of the Yakezie blog swap. This week, we are all discussing our worst money mistake. Check out my post on the same topic on her site.

I can't even count the number of money mistakes I've made in my life. Although I recently paid off my mortgage, it didn't come easy or without making mistakes on the way. Now that I look back, there are several things that I should have done differently which would have put me in a better position today. In any case I am still extremely grateful for my mortgage pay off.

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Don’t Buy Cheap

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This is a post from Money Beagle as part of the Yakezie blog swap. This week, we are all answering the question: “What are things you never go cheap on and why?” You can see my post on the same topic at his blog.

Hi, Narrow Bridge readers.  I'm Money Beagle, a personal finance blog with a ‘bark' that focuses on my everyday experiences and thoughts on topics like shopping, coupons, debt, retirement, and the economy.   Eric and I are ‘swapping' blogs today. When shopping, there are things where it's OK to buy the cheapest alternative out there and not get burned, then there are things where you don't want to buy the cheapest version.

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15 Random Tips For A College Freshman

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This post is part of the Yakezie blog swap and was written by SB from One Cent At A Time. You can also see my post on the same topic at his blog.

University of Colorado dorm Farrand Hall
Farrand Hall, University of Colorado – Image by apasciuto / flickr

As you enter a new chapter of life, freshmen, this is the perfect time for you to prepare to either change the world or be changed by the world. Only you will decide your course in either of these two directions.

You're probably out on your own for the first time in your life. Well, enjoy the world with the eyes of a free soul. It's very easy to get caught up in activities that could make you ashamed later in your life. Don't get carried away as your identity takes shape in college – the lessons in life take shape in college as well.

Now I am going to present you a few random tips that, if followed, could make you a better human being, a better student, and a successful person.

Choose your career according to your passion

Do not choose your career based on the income it can generate. If you don't like the subjects you're learning, your education will not be complete and your career will suffer. Find your passion and build your career around it.

You cannot be the best at everything

Don't try to be the best in studies, sports, and music. Choose one of them you are passionate about and try to do your best compared to others in it. Don't try to be Jack!

Remember the Golden Rule

Be good to others, including the fellow you least like in your class or dorm. Treat others well and you will be treated well!

Practice punctuality

Your parents are not there to wake you up at 6 o' clock, so get up at a set time every day, exercise, get yourself clean, go to class, and study.

Participate in sports

You are almost getting to your prime in terms of athletic abilities. Sports are a very good means of regaining bodily power and mental energy. You need both in your college days. Your body is still growing and you need stimulus for that brain, which has started accumulating knowledge that should sustain you for decades.

Take care of your finances

Learn to live below your means. Your education is perhaps going to put you in debt from the very first day you step out of college. Try to save as much money as you can from your student loans. Walking out of the college debt free is the best gift you can give yourself.

Save as much as you can

There are various ways of saving money in college on books, tuition and food. There are ways of earning extra money while in college by means of part time jobs. Find out your options and get going!

Don't miss out on a scholarship

Apply for all the scholarships you can; you might be successful if you apply for many. You will be surprised to know students don't even apply for many of the available scholarships. You could get lucky by virtue of just applying for them.

Share with others

Share your room and furniture and cook with roommates; they save you serious money! You can also get exposed to a different way of thinking, different cultures, and different types of food.

Study in groups

Form a study group, share your books. Help others in their study and get help in return. Many tough subjects seem easier to comprehend when discussed in a group.

Take no further debt beyond student loan

Get over the temptation of getting credit cards, auto loans, and all other ‘buy-now-pay-later' schemes.

Make friends

You could probably make the best friends of your life this year in college.Watch out for the people your best friend is mixing with; sometimes people act as recruiters for gangs (whatever be the reason of forming gangs, basically gangs are bad!). At the first hint of something “off,” stay away from this new best friend.

Don't be hesitant in seeking help

Seek advice from parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, grandparents… Basically those to whom you used to go for help so far in your life. Call them up whenever you need advice. You are not matured enough to tackle every problem in your life alone; there's no shame or harm in seeking help out.

Let it loose some days, sometimes

When being good gets boring, it feels good to let go occasionally. Late night parties, beers (if law permits) and members of the opposite sex can make your college life memorable. Many such parties and nights will give you something to brag about in the future.

Okay, you partied last night, you're happy, now be good again

At least for a few more days. No more partying today, you are in college for only one purpose, that is..to learn! Partying is just to take time off and rejuvenate your energy level.

Interview: Jason at Live Real Now

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Welcome to the newest installment of the Yakezie interview series. Today, we have questions answered by Jason at Live Real Now. Jason has been making major strides cutting his debt and has chronicled the journey at his site.

How did you get started in personal finance blogging? What was your inspiration?

In April 2009, my wife and I were on the verge of bankruptcy.  We weren't behind on anything, but we were in over our heads.  While researching bankruptcy attorneys, I discovered Dave Ramsey and decided to give that a shot, first.   For the next 6 months, I wouldn't shut up about money and decided I should share my journey with the world and stop annoying my friends and family with it.

What changed in your financial life after you were married and had kids that was a surprise? If you could instill one financial value in your children, what would it be and why?

I was shocked by how much nickel and dime crap there was to pay for with our house.   Everything from getting the sewer main snaked to replacing the screen in the window to buying gas for the snowblower to having to own a snowblower.  It all costs money and adds up, but nobody ever thinks about that before they get a house.    The one financial value I am trying to drill into my kids is a pure loathing for debt, specifically interest payments.    Kids, don't carry debt.  If you can't control yourself, don't get credit cards!

On your site, you mentioned that you are trying to change your lifestyle. You are trying to get in shape and downsize your stuff. Have those efforts made a financial impact in your life? If you could start those efforts again today, what would you do differently?

I managed to cut my finances down pretty severely before I picked up my other projects, so I don't think weight loss or downsizing has had much of an impact financially.    The one thing I would do differently is to remind myself not to cheat.  I can't cheat just a little.   Guaranteed, if I eat one cookie, there will be 3 more following it.   I need to follow a strict set of rules, or I will definitely fail.

What is the biggest personal finance lesson you learned the hard way?

This one's tough.  I've always had a compulsion to learn every possible lesson the hard way.   The biggest?  Get your husband/wife/partner/lover/leprechaun on board before you dive headfirst into any life-changing project, be it debt repayment, massive weight loss, or self-employment.   Life is so much easier when you've got their support to fall back on and so much happier when you aren't fighting over who bought what.

Outside of blogging, what has been the biggest change you made to your financial life that made a difference? (i.e. making more money, frugal changes, budgeting, investing)

Credit.  Rather the shunning of.   Over the past 27 months, we've paid down $40,000 of debt.   We couldn't have done that if we were still charging our lives away.   This spring, we got surprise with a $4000 bill for my son's vision therapy and managed to pay it off without paying a cent of interest on it.   That would have been impossible with our old spending habits.   Our money is doing what we want it to do now, instead of demanding it be spent on garbage like a new TV we didn't need and couldn't afford 3 years ago.

Completing The Yakezie Challenge

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Some of you may remember a post a long time ago about my joining the Yakezie Challenge. Since that time, you have seen many Yakezie related posts and guest posts. Today I broke the 200,000 Alexa ranking benchmark and “officially” completed the challenge. Here is a note I sent to my friends in the Yakezie. I thought I would share it here with you as well.

On October 7, 2008, I started a new project called Narrow Bridge Adventures. At that time, it was hosted at Blogger and I knew enough about blogs to start them but not to grow them.

On March 8, 2010, I joined the Yakezie Challenge. Inspired by Well Heeled, I joined the “wolf pack” (think Hangover) and posted my Alexa ranking of 1,297,451. (I was the 53rd comment on Sam's ‘Alexa Ranking Challenge' post)

As the Yakezie evolved, I was grandfathered in because of my old school involvement, though I never quite broke the 200,000 mark. My PageRank was growing faster than my Alexa ranking was falling, so I was happy. But I knew I was not really part of the wolf pack.

My ranking continued to drop and never took any major steps backward. Over the last fifteen months in the Yakezie, I have built friendships and relationships that have had offline and online interactions. But I still never quite broke 200,000.

I never really cared that much until I got an encouraging e-mail from Sam one day a few months back encouraging me to make an extra effort to hop over the hurdle (I was sitting around 250,000). That was around the time I ran the Yakezie March Madness and started the Yakezie blog swap. My ranking was sitting around 210,000 at that point.

So I kept plugging away, commenting, networking, doing what I know works but seemed to work very slowly for me. About a month ago, I had the opportunity to meet Sam in person and got a few ideas to cross the last 10,000 mark and officially “beat the challenge.”

I am proud to say that today my Alexa ranking is 197,535.

While my path to get here was long and unorthodox for Yakezie standards, I made it. Thanks to all of the friends I have made along the way. Thanks to all of the links, roundups, support, referrals, guest posts, blog swaps, Tweets, Stumbles, Tip'ds, shares, e-mails, Diggs, and virtual high fives.

You are all an amazing group of people. I am proud to be apart of it. And now I can confidently say that I belong with this group of amazing bloggers. As always, if you ever need help with anything, you will get it unconditionally from me.

-Eric

I don't have a big goal to lower my Alexa Rank to 100,000, but if it were to happen I wouldn't complain. As always, my goal has been to write useful, original content to help you in your personal finance endeavors. We will see what happens in the future. Thanks for reading and supporting the site.