Slow Cooked Food is Extra Special

Food is good.  Basic healthy food.  Nothing fancy.  Nothing expensive.

With all the trends and foodies around, we can get lost in expensive ingredients and complicated recipes.

The goodness is in the way you cook and how you prepare your food.  My grandmother was a fabulous cook.  With Nanie, the main ingredient was always her loving care.  And the slow simmering of what was a poor cut or end of meat transformed into a melt in your mouth delicacy by dinner time.  And leftovers were her specialty.  Only at her home did I relish having leftovers as she turned her hand to create a special meal when turning it over in her magic fry pan.

Time and thoughtfulness can transform food.  Think about the using the basic ingredients and creating something that tastes good because you took time and focus to shop, chop and show love.  That flavor makes a huge difference. 

Apply this to money.  Because slowly acquiring, saving and investing is really the secret to success when it comes to money taking care of us.  Slow money is the equal to savory slow cooking. 

Try this approach sometime when your goals seem out of reach.  Start saving change.  Stop spending a dollar a day.  Or pick up the generic product.  See over time what that does to your pocketbook.   And then your savings.

You certainly can take the approach on both financial savings and an extra special meal:  Buy the lower quality cut of meat but let it simmer all day. 

Enjoy!

Your Money is Not Your Life, Your Choices are. Choose Wisely

Your money is not you. However your money represents you.  How you treat yourselves, how you take care of yourself.

Money in itself is not a value for most people. It is however a tool about how we take care of our lives. Watch any good craftsman from carpenter to visual artist. Their tools of their trade are cleaned and put away for their next use. A carpenter knows with the right tools at the ready they can construct anything. What they conceive they can build. The tools are not their life or livelihood, but they are an access point to creating what they want. Likewise, for you a strong money system is caring for yourself so money can take a back seat but build the life you envision.

Your money leaves clues. Clues are everywhere.  Here are a few to get you started looking for yours, but this is only a limited list:

Your wallet and the material and contents say a lot about you. No, it does not mean go buy an expensive designer wallet.  Rather, look deeper.  Beyond Capital One’s catchy commercial with “what’s in your wallet?” is the inside information you need to understand more about your money habits.

A shabby leather one or a lovely vegan leather overstuffed with credit cards, or no wallet, just a phone with an id on the slot in the back.  These all say a lot about who you are and how you treat your money.

What does your checking account say about you?  Always running on empty?  Or is it stuffed to the gills with money you do not know what to do with?  Are you balancing it- reconciling what the bank has and you have? Or checking it on the fly, trusting whatever the bank says at the moment?  This second approach is oblivious to the scheduled transactions coming or the withdraws not yet hit the account.

Or you may have everything on auto pay so you are not thinking about your checking account at all? But do you ever really know how much you have?

What about your savings account? How does that work?  Do you have one? Do you contribute regularly withdraw often?  Or rarely?  That reveals a bit about you.  Don’t have a savings account? That is a statement revealing your money habits too.

Where are your retirement funds? Don’t have any? Don’t know how your 401k or IRA is invested? Then, you may be ill prepared for what lies ahead. Your future matters.

Your money matters to your life. How you treat it today has implications throughout your life.   

Without a doubt, health and family count.  We have all learned that this year with the pandemic.   Your money is essential to maintain your critical parts of living.

Too many people say they will wait until they make more money or win the lottery to learn more or organize their money. Like sharpening their saw, this money is a tool and a key element to improving your situation. The spiritual truth is key here:  Take care of what you have to get more. Start with your current money and build to a financial resources – get organized, get a system, understand what you have and where it is. 

Start simple by cleaning your wallet today. 

June is Meant for Brides: What About the Weddings?

So many weddings have been postponed, cancelled or changed. But LOVE is not postponed.

What is to happen to the joy of celebration? Will our ideas about getting married change as a result of this pandemic? That is yet to be seen. However, there is a lot less money being spent on this event. The wedding business may suffer as so many are.

Time will tell. Just remember, love and commitment have not gone out of style.

Money is Energy - And Use that Energy Well

What you do with your money, your money does to you.

Money is a manifestation of your dreams, your energy and yourself.  People who have money are not “better off.”  That is an expression that we humans developed to attach to our envy stages.  People with more money are not necessarily happier or healthier or clearer with their life purpose. They just have more money.

The important things to address are how you view money. The language you use will give you clues on these views.

To help you contemplate deeper on Money and Happiness and Your Attitude, spend five minutes with this video. Then, reflect, write in a journal or talk to a friend about what Money Energy is doing in your world and your mind.

https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p07vts5j/the-surprising-psychology-behind-being-rich

Getting Good Value

Last month I wrote my newsletter about cost versus convenience.  There is so much we pay for in the name of making our lives easier in this fast paced world.  Time is money is the often repeated mantra.

Many times we know the added price of purchases we make for convenience.  The already cooked chicken at the grocery store or the take out meal rather than making dinner.  Sometimes the added cost is more subtle - a few dollars extra to fill up at the local gas station or two dollar fee at the nearest ATM.  

Other times we just feel pressured or have no time to do a bit of footwork to find a better price - whether it be a shoe store with our size, the book on-line or the cell phone insurance better covered by our home owners policy.  The fact of the matter is these costs do add up.  For those who are moving fast, the $80 a month in extra costs means close to a thousand dollars less in our pockets at the end of the year. 

The next time you feel the push of time, ask your self:  Can this wait?  Is there another way to pay?  The secret to good financial management is conscious spending.  Slow down and spend wisely.

Personal Finance Tips from Bernie Sanders Campaign

None of us can avoid the attention the election is commanding on the television, radio or social media.  With the results reported, analyzed and criticized yesterday, I could not help but reflect on the winners and their financial strategies.  So Trump and Sanders won big in the New Hampshire primary.  What can they teach us?  

No matter what political stances you have, I believe they are demonstrating solid financial principles in their campaigns.  Some of their money principles we know.  Some we need reminding.  

Trump has the money to finance his campaign.  The reminder: Money can buy you what you want. Or think you want.  This is no news in our society.

Bernie beat out Hillary Clinton.  His financial strategy?  Build a campaign treasure chest from small donations from individuals. This demonstrates two financial principles immediately. First, he is using the cash mentality.  Have cash, spend cash and reap the benefits.  Second, he is taking the slow but steady approach to make big change.  

This principles are so important to us all.  Whether we want to get out of debt, save for a home or get ready for retirement, Bernie's campaign financing is a good reminder that complicated strategies are not needed.  

Want to learn other lessons from Bernie's Campaign?  There are several more life-long money lessons he is demonstrating.    Stand by here for more or sign up for next week's newsletter to understand more: www.moneypeace.com/email-newsletter-archive

Unexpected Benefits

With this new behavior of not entering stores, I realized that I use stores to kill time.  I do not call this activity shopping persay.  This is unplanned time in stores because I am early to get somewhere or I need a mental break on my way to a meeting.  More times than not, I do not spend money but there are times I do.  And the real issue is that I find things I did not want before I entered the store.  So I may go back to get them.  Or think I “need” because I saw something new. 

The truth is the less time I spend in the stores, the better off I am – financially and mentally.  There is nothing rolling around in my mind or making it to my shopping list that I think I just have to get. 

There is an additional benefit as well and I discovered last Wednesday.  I was downtown Burlington after a meeting and had an hour before a class I was taking that night.  A short walk around town without going into a store was lovely, but I was not going to push my luck with the temptation around me.  I got in my car and headed up to UVM campus still arriving more than a half hour early.  As I headed to our meeting place, I figured I would have some quiet time to read alone. 

Instead I was met by another student who was arranging the classroom.  As I helped her set-up the chairs, we had a wonderful conversation.  When another student joined us, the conversation even got better.  When the fourth member of our class came in lamenting her need for a new job and struggle with a cover letter, we all offered to help review it for her.  The connection was fun and light and engaging.  Best of all the time flew. 

What I discovered was that that this time was so, so much better than the quiet time of walking aimlessly through a store.  I felt much more recharged and engaged in the world.  And I did not have the feeling that I was missing something or in need of something.  I had found something.  In the time that I had opened up, I had come to realize the personal connection that is very much needed to maintain my balance in the world.

I may just consider arriving early to a few more places in my life.

Getting Easier...Or Did I Forget My Wallet?

Not going in stores is getting easier.  Yesterday I found this commitment easiest to keep.  I had left my pocketbook with my money and credit and debit card at home.  Yes, given I was going to a ski area to ski, not shop.  However, the absence of these tangibles meant that there was no dilly dallying on the way home.  No reason to stop anywhere. 

At the ski lodge, there is a wonderful little ski shop.  I literally stood at the entrance and walked in two steps when I remembered my commitment.  Two steps out and I was back on track.  How does one spend a day without a spending while skiing?  Well, since I was volunteering for Vermont Adaptive - a fabulous program - I did not need to pay for my ski day.    But also keeping snacks and a water bottle in the car makes it manageable.  The water bottle can be refilled in the cafeteria and one really can survive for a day without money, especially if they are doing something fun.

The weather was fabulous, the snow soft and the people wonderful.  I will treasure all week the smile on the lucky young man I got to ski with yesterday.  He loves to go fast, do bumps and enjoys the gates.  He will be ready for the Special Olympics next month.

Money had nothing to do with yesterday.  How would you survive a day without money?

Stopping Shopping...More Time

Okay so it has been three days since I have entered a store.  This plan of mine does not include groceries stores, as our family has to eat.  But I will not cheat and buy things more than the food we need when I am grocery shopping for the next 28 days.

What have I learned just this weekend without shopping?

Time saved: I do not need to read the advertisements in the Sunday paper.  They can go right to recycling.  I am not entering a store because there is a sale.  This includes the flyer I had already put in my car because there was a good deal.  I recycled that flyer and took stopping at that store off my list of things to do.

Key Found: Since I had a bit of time and was in my car without driving to grab and dispose of the dangerous store flyer, I decided to clean it up a bit.  To my surprise, I found a key under the seat that I had been looking for during the past month.  Yes, I had already looked under the seat.  I was about to get another one made.  As it was my business post office box key, I saved $9 because of yesterday's discovery.

Web Browsing:   Yes, Internet shopping is shopping to me.  Without shopping and browsing on the web, I have found several great sites on my other interests.  So fun to read more about genealogy and Irish history - all for free.

Stop Shopping to Save Money

Pondered today what I heard about not going into shops.  This was on the radio by a behavior psychologist.  When we go into shops we see things that we did not know we needed.  Then we increase our wants and desires.  The psychologist suggested we do not go in stores to curb spending. I have done this successful at different times.  Maybe I will try this again now.  I had already slowed down the process by taking both my credit cards out of my wallet – the one for business and for personal.  They sit home in my office.

Why not revisit this idea?  I decided on Friday the 23rd of January to not shop for a month. 

I can do my one month without shopping at stores.  Without going into stores.  I can do that.

Standby for an up date...Or join me in the pledge!

Spending Consciously is as Important as Saving...

I am thrilled this month to be mentioned in the professional journal Investment Advisor.  

This article on behavior and money may make you think as you plan for your future.  

http://www.thinkadvisor.com/2015/11/02/advisors-give-your-clients-permission-to-spend

Travelling Overseas? Some Tips to Remember:

Three simple tips to make your trip smoother:

Have some Local Currency: Not every place will take credit cards.

Notify Your Credit Card Companies: They can turn down a transaction if it is not in your normal routine.

Be Aware when you use ATM machines.  This is a quote for a US government website on travel :

ATM skimming devices. These devices are attached to legitimate bank ATMs, usually located in tourist areas, and capture the account information stored electronically on the card’s magnetic strip. The devices consist of a card reader installed over the legitimate reader and a pin-hole video camera mounted above the keypad that records the customer’s PIN. ATMs with skimming devices installed may also allow normal transactions to occur. The victim’s information is sold, traded online, or encoded on another card, such as a hotel key card, to access the compromised account. Here are some helpful hints to protect against and identify skimming devices:

·         Use ATMs located in well-lighted public areas or secured inside a bank/business.

·         Cover the keypad with one hand as you enter your PIN.

·         Look for gaps, tampered appearance, or other irregularities between the metal faceplate of the ATM and the card reader.

·         Avoid card readers that are not flush with the face of the ATM.

·         Closely monitor your account statements for unauthorized transactions.

Simple New Year's Resolutions

Our intentions are good but sometimes the grandness of the season takes over. We make elaborate promises or set large momentous goals to create change in our lives. 

This year I ask you to consider setting a small and simple money goal for 2015. Here are suggestions to change your behavior and bring some financial order to your life:

·         Create a money folder or basket – both on line and a tangible one at home.  Each piece of mail that arrives related to your money, whether bill or income, drop into the file basket.  Now, even if you have not taken the time to file the information, it will all be in one place when you go looking.

·         Decide to unlink your credit card from your favorite shopping sites.  Yes, that means every time you go to Amazon or QVC or Target, you will have to enter your card information.  This one step will slow down the shopping process and downsize your bill in the process.

·         Balance your checkbook once a month.  Yes, that is right.  People do still balance their checkbooks.  The reason why is clear: People who keep track of their money, actually have more money.

·         Build and enact a giving plan.  Charitable giving tends to be a spontaneous on the fly experience.  Before you can make a decision to give in a heartfelt manner, you have to know how much you can give.  No matter how much you have, you can share some bit with others.  The amount is not important, the sharing is.  Giving from a positive place on a regular basis makes the giving circle complete.  Your choice of charities is personal. 

True change happens one step at a time.  MoneyPeace is a process that allows all of us to feel abundant.  Desire a more peaceful life?  Commit to just one money change listed above or come up with one of your own.  Taking the time to make one change will change you. 

So today you have two simple tasks:

1.       Choose something to change in your money behavior moving forward.

2.       Leave the past behind.  No more excuses, self punishment or negative talk.  We are moving our money into a New Year and a New Place.

Here is to a fresh start in 2015!

Saving Money In 2015?

Here are some tips and thoughts on saving money during this New Year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmopG-tgLFY

Auto Pay or Auto Pilot?

Our money world has changed dramatically over the past two decades.  We can pay electronically, automatically and periodically.  We do not have to even click a button to make a monthly payment.  Like magic, our credit card or utility bill is paid.  Such options are advertised as saving us time and money.  After all, no stamps or envelopes are involved.

Yet, most people do not have a handle on their finances because everything is happening so quickly financially.  No more time to write out a check or count out the cash when in line for groceries!  Instead, we swipe and go. This mentality challenges our record keeping.  Good recordkeeping is key to keeping some money for you. 

So we all like the automatic transaction.  But do you know where your money is going?  Could you tell me today how much money comes out of your checkbook automatically each month?  Most people cannot.  Then, the amount of auto pays from their credit card needs to be understood as well.

Your task for today is:

Find out which auto pays come out of your checkbook.  Then, from your credit card.Looking at a recent credit card and bank statement will give you this information.

Then, total the amount. Make a note and keep the amount handy for later this week.

This is part of your gaining not only an understanding of your spending, but your consciousness around how and what you spend on.  MoneyPeace means knowing where your money goes and having a system.

If you have this simple way of paying bills, consider who benefits in the long run.  I believe it is the company getting paid, not you.  However, there is a way to make this easier to track.  In the future we will talk about how a MoneyPeace system will help you frame your money decisions better. 

Thinking ahead, one thing I always say is “People with money have accounts.”  So if you want some more money in your life, consider a different way of managing it.  For now, you do not have to make any changes, just explore the possibility and any resistance you may have to the change.

Here are some more thoughts on “People with Money Have accounts.”  For less than four minutes of your time, check out this MoneyPeace video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zuF3Dc0Hns