If You’re Self-Employed, Wouldn’t a Job Be Better?

After working there for almost 2 years, the company CTO pulled me aside and told me they had to let me go.

They simply couldn’t find enough paying contract work for my skill set.

I wasn’t shocked — they’d let a valued colleague go a couple of months earlier; and this was in a company small enough to fit everyone, from the lowliest tech to the CEO, in a single bus.

I wasn’t angry — they’d kept me on overhead for several months, given me 3-weeks’ notice, told me I could use that (paid) time to look for my next…

Big Tech Employers Cut Pay for Remote Employees

If you’re an employee of some of the largest tech companies, you may have recently faced a tough choice.

According to a Reuters report, Google recently informed employees that if they choose to work remotely, their pay could be cut significantly — some employees report cuts as high as 25%!

Other large tech players such as Facebook and Twitter also cut pay for remote employees who move to lower-cost areas.

Why Accepting A Pay Cut May Be the Right Choice (for Employees with No Better Options)

Making of a Millionaire creator and editor Ben LeFort just published a piece, “If You’re Asked to Take a Pay Cut to Keep Working from Home, Do it,” where he…

In the Good Debt vs. Bad Debt Debate — Both Sides Have It Wrong

Debt.

All of us know people who got in over their heads, to the point that they don’t see a way out. They just keep paying far too much of their income just to “service” that debt, i.e., paying the minimum, which guarantees they’ll pay the most possible to their creditors.

In fact, there are so many people in that group that I wouldn’t be shocked if this includes you.

So, is debt bad?

Good?

Some of both?

Depends who you ask…

“Debt Is Dumb” — Ramsey Solutions

We all experience things in life. Some of those experiences get seared so deeply into us that they…

Sometimes, People Want to Seem Creative, but End Up Making No Sense

First, a disclosure — I’m not an investment or real estate pro.

I’ve just been investing for close to 3 decades, with my portfolio outperforming the S&P 500 for much of that time.

And oh yes, I’ve also owned 3 homes and an office condo (most of which I still own, and most of which I lease out to others).

How I Define Assets and Liabilities

Based on what I read and my investing experience, my definitions of assets and liabilities are pretty straightforward and (I thought) not very controversial.

Simply, an asset is something of value that you own, while a liability is something you…

How Given the Right Circumstances, Liabilities Turn Into Assets

I’m sure you’ve seen them.

Over and over and over again, so-called personal finance gurus railing against debt. But as I pointed out before, they’re dead wrong (in most cases). That’s why rather than being concerned, I’m actually happy to keep paying 3 mortgages into retirement (2 of which may outlast me)!

Why Paying the Minimum on Mortgages Is Smarter than Aggressively Paying Them Down

If you don’t want to spend 3 minutes reading the full details in the above-linked article, here’s the short of it.

For years, mortgage rates have been only marginally higher than long-term inflation, so your real cost of interest is much lower than it seems. For example, if…

Having a Good Relationship with Money Is a Crucial First Step to Building Wealth

This morning I was going through a morning ritual — reading interesting Medium stories.

One was from Ed Luo, “I achieved FIRE at 31–5 factors to consider or you might get burned.” An interesting read in general, it included this one line that really resonated:

“Our world is materialistic and revolves around mass consumerism, more so than ever before… We compare our spending to our friends and neighbors and fall into the trap of the hedonic treadmill. This is a poor person’s mentality…” — Ed Luo

My Reaction to Mr. Luo’s Writing

This reminded me of a well-known quote about poor money habits. According to the…

The Most Crucial Lesson About Investing Is the Importance of Starting Early

This is a lesson I wish I’d learned much earlier than I did.

It’s not that I didn’t have any investments, but it wasn’t much, I didn’t add to them consistently, and I wasn’t the one managing them.

Before I get to the 5 reasons why your first year investing is the most important you’ll ever have, let me tell you a bit about how my investing experience went. This is important, to show you that I’m not some genius investor who knew from childhood how it’s done. I was just like you, if not worse — clueless.

It’s my…

If You’re Self-Employed, Heed This Advice or Suffer the Consequences

It snuck up on me.

One innocuous-seeming “yes” at a time.

First, serving my financial strategy coaching clients took about an hour a week.

Then, my wife found this great opportunity to participate in a high-end coach training program, and the cost would be covered by another program I’d already paid for. No-brainer! It’s only 6 hours a week. Easy!

Next, my main consulting client asked me to add a couple of hours a week. Who wouldn’t agree to that, especially when I enjoy the work and love working with this client?

Then, a former client asked if I could…