I Beat The Market in 2009

The stock market just closed for 2009, and I had a great year! I am very happy with my Stock Trading Riches system.

My portfolio is up 44%, compared to +19% for the Dow and +23.5% for the S&P500.

Here are my returns for the last 5 years vs. the S&P 500:

Year, Me, S&P 500

2005, +13%, +4.91%

2006, +14%, +15.79%

2007, +22%, +5.49%

2008, -40%, -38.49%

2009, +44%, +23.5%

I have thus had a cumulative five-year return of +35.79% vs. a loss of 2.66% for the S&P500.

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Seth Godin's Internet Advice For "Mom and Pop" Businesses

I was reading Seth Godin's blog and came across this simple and elegant advice for small, local businesses that want a web presence.

This will give the business just what it needs - without having to spend a fortune and lots of effort on internet marketing and web design.

It's a couple of years old, but I think it's still great advice.

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Saw Avatar Yesterday in Imax 3D

I braved a snow storm yesterday, and went to see Avatar at an Imax theater. The movie is awesome!  It's really great.  James Cameron made Aliens, Terminator movies, and Titanic.  He knows how to make high budget special effects movies that still have compelling stories.

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How Proper Marketing Saved Zestra - the Female Viagra

Forbes has an interesting article called Passion Play, which tells the story of how two female ex-consultants bought the maker of Zestra out of bankruptcy, and used female focus groups to change the way it was marketed.

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Bought Juniper Network (JNPR)

Today, I was doing my end of year re-balancing on my portfolio.  I had a lot of profits, and my cash exceeded 30% of my portfolio, so it was time to add new positions. I decided to buy Juniper Network (JNPR) at $26.43.  The stock has already doubled since March, but it is a growth stock which analysts feel is still undervalued.  Juniper and Cisco dominate the market for network equipment, and the manager of the T. Rowe Price Global Technology Fund mentioned in Forbes that he thinks it is poised to get a lot more business from big companies. They are teaming up with Dell to sell secured network hardware and software under Dell's PowerConnect brand.  They are also partnering with IBM in cloud computing. The company has $5 a share in cash, and its earnings should grow 40% next year.  Companies like AT&T are interested in Juniper's new MX 3D Universal Edge Router, which can handle data traffic at 1.4 terabits per second. Even if I've slightly overpaid for the stock, my Stock Trading Riches trading system will self-correct my position over time.

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Movie Payoff: $300 to $30 Million in One Weekend

An unknown producer from Uruguay shot this alien robot invasion video for $300 and uploaded it on YouTube. The production values are so high that it went viral over the weekend and he created a bidding war with Hollywood producers.  Sam Raimi (Evil Dead, the Spiderman movies) offered him a $30 million contract. Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dadPWhEhVk

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"Stock Trading Riches" Now On Sale at Barnes and Noble

My book has been picked up by Ingram for wider distribution - so it is not just available from Amazon.com any more. I just saw that Barnes and Noble is selling it.  They have it on sale for $8.63 (28% off). Here is the link.  It's exciting!

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Fw: The Muppets: Bohemian Rhapsody

Date: Monday, December 14, 2009, 10:10 AM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgbNymZ7vqY

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Raffle Winner Sells $1.2 Million House at Discount

A Colorado woman bought two $50 tickets at a Washington D.C. charity raffle and won a $1.2 million house in January. After that, she lost her job and wanted to sell the house before Dec 31, because she had a $300k tax bill due and was paying $600-800 per month for insurance/utilities. She finally sold it to a church for $650k (part of the deal was that she donated back $200k, so she actually got $200k in deductions and $450k in cash). After all that, she ended up making $200k after taxes.  Clearing $200,000 on a $1.2 million prize sounds disappointing, but really she ended up making $200k off $100 in raffle tickets.

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Smallest Studio Apt in Manhattan?

A couple bought this tiny Apt for $150k. It's one room and only 14.9 feet long and 10 feet wide. Their queen size bed takes up 1/3 of the space. The bathroom is extremely small. They live there with 2 cats. They don't cook, and they store their clothes at dry cleaning shops and their offices. It works for them because they like to be out, enjoying the city.  It would not be good for someone who likes to stay home. The benefit of their unconventional home is that they are living in Manhattan, will pay off their home in 2 years, and they have money to travel.

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Fw: Batteries Made of Paper?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8401566.stm

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Updated "Stock Trading Riches" Now Available at Amazon.com

My publisher just released "Stock Trading Riches" with my 2009 updates.

This new, updated version is now available. It has replaced the old version.

I'm excited about the updates because they came directly from reader's emails from the last 2 years.

The book is better than ever. It has been expanded with Excel spreadsheet download links, material on "The Great Recession", and more information on topics such as: stock picking, funds, market analysis, and IPO trading strategies.

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Free Ebook: Stock Market Secrets

You can now download a free copy of "Stock Market Secrets", which provides a taste of my book "Stock Trading Riches".  I don't even ask for your email address.

You can download it from this link: http://www.box.net/shared/l7ui8ibaxr

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Carnival of road to financial independence #13

My post on Buying Hyatt (H) was included in the Carnival of road to financial independence #13.

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Money Hacks Carnival #90

My post on Buying Hyatt (H) was included in the 90th edition of the Money Hacks Carnival.

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Just Bought Hyatt Hotels (H)

Hyatt Hotels had a successful IPO on Wednesday.  The opening price was $25, and the shares ended up $3 - at $28. This morning, I bought some Hyatt at $27.92. I think Hyatt is a good long term investment that should climb in the near term because I think a lot of mutual funds will be attracted to Hyatt.  It will take them weeks or months to accumulate a position, and that should drive up the price. I like IPOs of brand names that are following a strong competitor by going public.  For example, I successfully bought the Chicago Board of Trade after it followed the Chicago Mercantile Exchange by going public.  I also was successful with the Visa IPO, which followed Mastercard. In this case, Hyatt and Hilton are the two strong hotel brands.  Hilton was a public company until profitably taken private by the Blackstone Group.

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Good Article and Analysis of Lichello's AIM System

Doug Burke has done a great job with this article explaining and analyzing Robert Lichello's AIM system, which is a stock trading system that is a lot like the way I trade.

This is a good article to read.

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Have A Belated, but Frightful Halloween

A little late, but the link is good: Golden Oldie  …   Click below..... Happy Halloween!

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Carnival of Financial Planning - October 30, 2009 Edition

Just in time for HALLOWEEN, it's my privilege to once again host the "Carnival of Financial Planning"!

As with previous editions, this carnival has been expertly edited by The Skilled Investor and takes a long-term view of personal financial planning for individuals and families. The focus is on efficient and sustainable personal financial planning practices that can lead to lifetime financial security.

The carnival is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently.

You're in for a TREAT, as you learn some new financial TRICKS:

Budgeting

20smoney presents Two Jobs Where You Can Put Away A Ton Of Money posted at 20s Money, saying, "Two employment opportunities that allow above average savings."

Susan Savering presents Personal Budgets posted at Family
Financial Planners,
saying, "When you don't understand how much you spend and how much
you save and invest, you do not have a financial plan. This
dramatically increases your family’s long-term financial
risk."

Economics

Zach Scheidt presents Mortgage Crisis, Part Deux posted at ZachStocks,
saying, "Commercial Mortgages continue to clog bank balance sheets and
losses do not appear to have been recognized. Watch for weakness in
regional banks with heavy exposure to commercial real estate loans."

Estate Planning

Bucksome presents The Importance of a Living Will posted at Buck$ome Boomer's Journey to Retirement, saying, "A personal story about a parent on life support without a living will."

The Financial Blogger presents Estate Planning: 5 Reasons Why You Should Have A Professional Among Your Liquidators posted at The Financial Blogger,
saying, "managing an estate is more complicated than simply writing a
few checks! Fortunately, for those who can afford it, you can name a
professional among your liquidators."

Financial Planning

Jeff Rose presents Can You Reverse/Undo a Roth IRA Conversion? posted at Jeff Rose.

The Dough Roller presents Enough Practice – Make Your Credit Score Perfect! posted at The Dough Roller,
saying, "A FICO credit score can determine a very large number of
decisions in your life. Where you live, what you drive, where you work
and where you and or your kids go to school can depend on a 3-digit
magic number."

MoneyNing presents Help Your Children Visualize Money Mangement with the Four Jars Approach posted at Money Ning, saying, "I was taught the four jars approach when I was young to learn personal finance. How about you?"

Tom Drake presents A Look At Ponzi Schemes In Canada posted at The Canadian Finance Blog,
saying, "With the current condition of the economy, there have been a
couple ponzi schemes that have unraveled, leaving investors wondering
what happened to their money."

Patrick @ Military Money presents How Much Life Insurance Do Military Members Need? posted at Military Finance Network,
saying, "Military members may have different life insurance needs than
civilians. Here is information regarding how much life insurance
military members should buy, and some resources for finding the best
life insurance deals."

Dividend Tree presents Building Core Competency for Long Term Survival posted at Dividend Tree,
saying, "whether it is running a business or individuals’ investment
portfolio, it is important to build a core competency for long term
sustainability. In my case, I focus on good quality companies that
consistently pay or have potential to pay growing dividends over time."

Susan Saverton presents Financial Advisor Pasadena California posted at Pasadena Financial Planner,
saying, "Appropriately setting your personal asset allocation in line
with your personal risk tolerance is a critical decision for every
investor. The percentages that are allocated to various asset classes
tend to change slowly over time, so it is important to get it right at
the outset."

Allan Inocente presents Top 10 best personal finance books of all time! posted at Rich Money Habits, saying, "Rich Money Habits' top 10 best personal finance books of all time!"

FaithAllen presents How to Rollover Your 401k Plan to a New 401k Plan | eHow.com posted at FaithAllen, saying, "This is an article how rolling over your 401k to another 401k. It has step by step instructions on how to do that."

Financing a Home

Colin Robertson presents When Do Mortgage Payments Start? posted at Mortgage Tips and Credit Help, saying, "New homeowners often wonder when mortgage payments
start, as there’s sometimes a considerable gap between closing and the due date of the first monthly payment."

Brandon Laughridge presents How Much House Can I Afford? posted at Mortgage Loan Place, saying, "Check out our new widget that helps home buyers estimate how much they can afford."

Alex Fotopoulos presents When to Refinance a Mortgage? posted at My Trader's
Journal, saying, "Some key points to consider when
refinancing your home."

Financing Education

Praveen presents Will Education Follow the Housing Bust? posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, "Tips for students to avoid excessive loans and debt"

Health Care

Lisa Taylor presents Top 10 Best Free and Cheap Ways to Quit Smoking posted at Dental Assisting School,
saying, "With the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act
only five months old, associated issues have once again become pushed
to the forefront of society’s consciousness."

KCLau presents Withdraw EPF Fund to Pay Insurance Premium? posted at KCLau's Money Tips, saying, "Vincent Lee from Penang generously shares an idea to use your EPF"

Income

Linders presents 8 Ways the Internet Can Make You Richer posted at Money Hacker - Australia's Personal Finance Blog,
saying, "Hello there, this article suggests a few easy ways to make
some money via the internet, some tips are well-known, others are not.
I hope you enjoy the read. And thanks for considering the post. All the
best, Linda"

Dividend Tree presents Three Companies with Sustainable Dividends posted at Dividend Tree,
saying, "Even in soft economic environment, there are companies out
there that are continuing to increase dividends for their shareholders.
While dividend increase is good, it is more critical to make sure we
understand that companies can sustain their dividends."

FMF presents The Top Ten Turnoffs About Networking posted at Free Money Finance,
saying, "Networking is a key part of making the most from your career.
This piece lists some of the circumstances that keep people from
reaching out to others."

Investing

Darwin presents The Gold-Dollar Correlation Explained and Why it Broke Down posted at Darwin's Finance,
saying, "With the daily gold price capturing headlines, it's worthwhile
to understand how the decline of the US Dollar is correlated with gold
and which investments are actually better suited to reflect this
trend."

Engelbert Hudson presents The Definitive Oil ETF Guide (Five Minute Edition): Crude Oil ETFs posted at ETFdb.

Super Saver presents Why Stocks Still Make Sense to Me posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, "I still believe stocks are a great investment."

Praveen presents India Fund (IFN) Trade Example posted at My Simple Trading System,
saying, "An example of how having a trading system gives you
an edge, and let's you take advantage of market moves outside of your
control."

ABC presents Stock Purchase – Bid/Ask Prices posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Bid and Ask prices - Information if you are buying or selling a stock."

Ray @ Financial Highway presents Gold Investment posted at Financial Highway,
saying, "With increasing Gold Prices, investing in gold has become a
hot topic. Although I do not like gold as an investment, here are some
reasons why people do invest in gold."

Investing Toolkit presents Why Trade In The Forex Market? posted at Investing Toolkit, saying, "Some thoughts on why forex trading may actually work well for some people."

Manshu presents What is an ETF? posted at OneMint, saying, "A post explaining what an ETF is and its similarities with stocks and mutual funds."

Jules Wells presents Best Investment Strategy posted at Financial Planning Software,
saying, "Personal investing seems incredibly complex, but the best
investment strategy also tends to be a more simple investment
strategy."

The Skilled Investor presents Investing Strategy posted at Personal
Investment Manager,
saying, "Investors more easily understand investment costs that are
directly measurable, such as fees deducted on investment statements.
However, many investors ignore or are unaware of the opportunity costs
of their sub-optimal investment behaviors. Opportunity costs are
usually much more difficult to measure directly, but these investment
costs can be even higher than more visible investment fees."

Tomas Escent presents Professional Investment Management posted at Nerds on Wall Street,
saying, "Think of this book as sort of a Hitchhiker’s Guide to Wired
Markets. There are no robots parking cars for six million years, but
there are robots trading millions of shares in six milliseconds, so
maybe that’s close enough."

Curt presents More Debt is Not Going to Help Small Business posted at PennyJobs.com.

Stacie Young presents 100 Best Blogs for Future Investors posted at Online Schools.

Evolution Of Wealth presents It's Just 3 years posted at Evolution of Wealth,
saying, "Most people underestimate the difference a few years can make
when investing. Let's look at what it costs you in the long run. Did
you realize early years come off the end?"

Tushar Mathur presents Can't Control the Markets? Try controlling the Costs posted at Everything Finance,
saying, "As 2008 proved, the financial markets are prone to
unpredictable periods of turbulence. That can make investing feel a bit
like a roller-coaster ride. The disappointing results that many mutual
funds posted in 2008 and at the outset of 2009 may have left you
feeling concerned over your financial future. You're not alone."

The Smarter Wallet presents Lending Club Review: Lending Money For Profit posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, "Alternative investing using a lending platform."

Frank Vertin presents Low Cost Index Fund posted at Best Index Fund,
saying, "Buying an S&P 500 index fund through an investment
counselor can substantially increase your initial purchasing costs and
and drive up your annual management expense fees. Unfortunately, the
vast majority of individual investors buy mutual funds and ETFs through
brokers and investment advisers. Rarely do financial advisors recommend
that you buy index funds with low fees. This is because low cost, no
load mutual funds do not pay them as well as loaded, high fee mutual
funds."

Zach Scheidt presents First Cash Financial Reports Strong Earnings posted at ZachStocks,
saying, "First Cash Financial Services (FCFS) announced earnings for a
very strong third quarter. The pawn shop expansion into Mexico is
driving profit growth and investors appear to be ready to push the
stock higher."

Soo-Young presents How To Choose An Online Stock Broker posted at Bullishness.com, saying, "A comprehensive, unbiased, ad/affiliate free guide to finding the perfect online stock broker."

The Financial Blogger presents The Financial Blogger » Blog Archive » Canadian ETFs That Pays Dividends – Am I in Heaven? posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, "There are a lot of people that love dividends. There are 2 major reasons why so many investors love them.

#1 they are usually issued by very stable companies which mean less volatility in a stock portfolio.

#2 they pay quarterly income, which is great for revenue seekers."

Larry Russell presents NoLoad Mutual Funds posted
at Best No Load
Mutual Funds,
saying, "Taken as a whole, the vast body of investment research studies
show that there really are better approaches to buying and owning
mutual funds and ETFs. You do not need to frantically chase fund
performance. Performance chasing simply does not work."

FMF presents Bond Primer: Yield vs. Total Return posted at Free Money Finance, saying, "The basics of investing in bonds."

ABC presents More Exciting Facts About Stock Indexes posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Some interesting facts about stock indexes."

Joe B presents 5 steps to follow to make sure you do not lose everything to the next Bernie Madoff posted at Gather Little By Little,
saying, "Here are 5 steps I would personally recommend to reduce the
possible exposure/loss but also to avoid investments in fraudulent
funds.
#1-Don’t believe everything friends and family tell you
#2-Know what you own
#3-Fund & Returns history
#4-Fund Allocation
#5-Diversify managers"

Dividends4Life presents 15 Hot Dividend Increases posted at Dividends Value,
saying, "Dividends from a quality, well-diversified portfolio are much
more predictable than capital gains and good companies routinely raise
their dividends well in excess of the inflation rate."

Managing Debt

April presents Should You Stop Funding Retirement to Focus on Debt? posted at Get Rich Slowly,
saying, "Whether you should halt your retirement contributions in order
to focus debt is one of the most heavily debated dilemmas in personal
finance. Variables such as age, career, risk tolerance, and even
personality type make each situation unique."

jim presents Chase Blueprint Payment Program Review posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Best 0% APR Credit Card Offers posted at The Digerati Life, saying, "Some ways to reduce debt: use lower interest credit cards!"

MoneyNing presents Credit vs Debit Transactions with Your ATM Card posted at Money Ning, saying, "Are there any difference with saying credit or debit when you hand over an ATM card?"

The Smarter Wallet presents How To Get A Credit Card That's Right For You posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, "How to shop for the right credit card."

FMF presents Make Sure Your Credit Card Has Smart Features posted at Free Money Finance, saying, "Use the right credit card and make it work FOR you -- not against you."

The Smarter Wallet presents How 0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards Can Save You Money posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, "You can save money with the right kind of credit cards!"

KCLau presents Case Study: Consolidating Personal Loan, Mortgage and Credit Card Debt posted at KCLau's Money Tips, saying, "Managing debts"

Miscellaneous

Tyler Tervooren presents Is Life Getting in the Way of Your Life? posted at Frugally Green,
saying, "Lately I've been deep in debt, but not with money - with time.
Funny thing is, the feelings associated with time debt aren't that
different from money debt. Overwhelm, stress, and frustration can get
the best of us when we get behind with anything. Here are the steps I'm
taking to solve my own time management problem. Hopefully you can apply
them as well."

nissim ziv presents Business Analyst: Interview Questions for Business Analyst Position posted at Job Interview Guide, saying, "The Business Analyst job description may vary from one company to another.
And the job requirements of a person filling the Business Analyst position depend on the business nature of a given company.
This article provides sample of job interview questions for or business analyst position."

No Load Bond Funds presents Low Cost Bond Funds posted at Bond Index Fund,
saying, "Simply put, if you pay higher bond mutual fund fees, then
these bond management expenses tend just to be a deadweight loss to
you. The best bond fund buying strategy is to pick only very low-cost
no load bond funds."

Susan Savering presents Personal Financial Strategy posted at Family
Financial Planner,
saying, "When pursuing optimal financial planning and investing
strategies and controlling your costs and capital gains taxes, you also
need to establish a time-efficient system to monitor, adjust, and
adhere to your financial plan."

Roshawn Watson presents Should You Buy A House Outright? posted at Watson Inc,
saying, "Suppose you find yourself in the somewhat unique predicament
of having the resources to purchase your house outright without a
mortgage. Is it then financially-wise to make the purchase?"

FMF presents The Basics Will Make You Rich posted at Free Money Finance, saying, "If you follow a few, simple steps, you will become wealthy."

Retirement Planning

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Where Do You Get the Best Roth IRA Rates? posted at Cash Money Life,
saying, "A common question people ask is where to find the best IRA
rates, which doesn't really have an answer because IRAs are an
instrument for investments, not an investment themselves. This article
explains more."

Top Stock Index Mutual Funds presents Stock Index Funds posted at Top 10 Index Fund,
saying, "To build your retirement portfolio, buy some of these top 10 very low cost no load S&P 500 index
mutual funds directly. You do not have to pay the heavy added expenses
of buying through a stock broker, financial adviser, investment
adviser, or investment counselor." 

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents 2010 Roth IRA Contribution Limits posted at Cash Money Life,
saying, "The IRS recently released the 2010 Traditional and Roth IRA
contribution limits. Now is a great time to get started on your
retirement and tax planning for next year!"

Risk Management and Insurance

Patrick @ Military Money presents COBRA Benefits 2009 Economic Stimulus Recovery Act posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "The 2009 Economic Stimulus Plan includes additional COBRA and unemployment benefits."

Mary Jones presents Top 10 Most Stolen Cars and 10 DIY Ways to Keep Them Safe posted at Online Criminal Justice Degrees,
saying, "The Insurance Information Institute estimates a car is stolen
every 24 minutes. To help keep your car from ending up like these top
ten, we have also included the top ten DIY ways to keep them safe and
protected from thieves."

Jeff Rose presents Term Life Insurance Vs. Cash Value Life Insurance: What Is the Difference? posted at Jeff Rose, saying, "Depending on what your needs are will decide if term life insurance vs. cash value is better in your situation."

Savings

Four Pillars presents $8,000 Credit For First-Time Homebuyers Extended 6 Months – Not Increased To $15k posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "Home buyers credit extended 6 months." 

FIRE Getters presents The Witch of Wall Street - Henrietta "Hetty" Green posted at FIRE Finance,
saying, "Over the last couple of years folks have become increasingly
cautious about spending. For good reasons that is - losing employment,
sinking portfolios, negative house equities and the list goes on.
Frugality is in - big time!"

Four Pillars presents Back To School Cell Phone Deals posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "Comparison of the best cell phone deals for students heading back to school."

Taxes

Jeff Rose presents 2010 Traditional IRA to Roth IRA Conversion Tax Rules posted at Jeff Rose, saying, "Tax implications of converting from a Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. Don't forget the after-tax contributions."

Super Saver presents End of Year Tax Planning - Deductions posted at My Wealth Builder,
saying, "For me, October is a good time to review my 2009 financial
status for tax return filing purposes. It gives me a few months to make
any changes that can lower my taxes." 

That
concludes this
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Arnold Schwarzenegger Hidden Message?

Some think that Arnold encoded a message to his political opponents when he sent a note about a bill he recently vetoed.  His office dismisses it as a weird coincidence. Here is the letter: To the Members of the California State Assembly: I am returning Assembly Bill 1176 without my signature. For some time now I have lamented the fact that major issues are overlooked while many unnecessary bills come to me for consideration. Water reform, prison reform, and health care are major issues my Administration has brought to the table, but the Legislature just kicks the can down the alley. Yet another legislative year has come and gone without the major reforms Californians overwhelmingly deserve. In light of this, and after careful consideration, I believe it is unnecessary to sign this measure at this time. Sincerely, Arnold Schwarzenegger In case you missed it, here is the possible message highlighted: To the Members of the California State Assembly: I am returning Assembly Bill 1176 without my signature. For some time now I have lamented the fact that major issues are overlooked while many unnecessary bills come to me for consideration. Water reform, prison reform, and health care are major issues my Administration has brought to the table, but the Legislature just kicks the can down the alley. Yet another legislative year has come and gone without the major reforms Californians overwhelmingly deserve. In light of this, and after careful consideration, I believe it is unnecessary to sign this measure at this time. Sincerely, Arnold Schwarzenegger

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Utah Government's 4 Day Work Week Saved Money - But Not The Way They Thought

Utah's State Government switched to a 4 day work week (four 10-hour days vs. five 8-hour days) when gas prices were at the peak.  They thought they would save $3 million a year through less spending on energy (less gas for government vehicles, being able to shut down buildings, etc.) The program just finished its first year. Gas and energy costs dropped since then, and they only saved $502,000 from energy savings.  About 1/6 of what they expected.  They also saved $200,000 on janitorial expenses. But - as an unexpected surprise - they saved a whopping $4.1 million on overtime!  It turns out that working 10 hours in a day allowed employees to get things done and, after 10 hours, they wanted to go home. From this data and feedback from employees, it looks like a four day work-week is very productive and a good work-life balance.

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Man gets credit card offer with 79% APR.

This isn't a typo: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/around-town/shopping/No-Youre-Reading-That-Right-64173667.html It's a bad deal aimed at people with bad credit scores.

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2016 Olympics - How They Voted

The first-round: Madrid 28, Rio 26, Tokyo 22, Chicago 18.

Second round, Rio 46, Madrid 29, and Tokyo 20.

Last round, Rio 66 and Madrid 32.

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Rio Got 2016 Olympics! Chicago Out in First Round!

It was disappointing that Chicago was eliminated in the first round of voting.

People thought it would be between Chicago and Rio. Instead, it was between Rio and Madrid.

But, all four cities are world-class, so it was a close contest.

I'm just glad that Chicago took a chance and got some international exposure.

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2016 Olympics Voting Process - Go Chicago!

Tomorrow is The Day! We will find out if my hometown of Chicago gets the 2016 Summer Games.

The candidates are Chicago, Rio, Madrid, and Tokyo.

Each country will get a final hour tomorrow (45 minute presentation, followed by 15 minutes of question/answer). Then, the voting starts.

The voting process is interesting. There are up to 5 rounds of voting. After each round, if one country does not receive a majority of the votes, then the team with the lowest number of votes is eliminated.

At that point, IOC (International Olympic Committee) members from that country can join in the voting. Also, members who voted for the eliminated country have to vote for their next choice (which is why cities still lobby members who are known to favor a different country - they want to be the member's second choice).

This makes things unpredictable. Many times in the past, the country that received more votes in the early rounds ends up not winning in the final round.

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Fw: Bicycling Band

Seems to fit with the Oktoberfest season. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvjPz4X7jqw

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FW: hey Cobol fans - COBOL Turns 50

Software written in COBOL still processes 80% of all financial transactions   http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Enterprise-Applications/20-Things-You-Might-Not-Know-About-COBOL-As-the-Language-Turns-50-103943/?kc=EWKNLBOE09252009FEA1

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Advice From the Oldest Man in The World - Skip Dinners

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-09-24-oldest-man-diet_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip He is 113 years old and attributes it to eating only 2 meals a day: a big breakfast and lunch, then skipping dinner.  He also eats a lot of fruit, drinks a lot of water, worked until he was 99, and keeps his mind sharp.

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Secretary by Day, King By Night

I think this story would make a good movie: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/15/AR2009091503393.html?g=0

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Southwest Airline's Creative Alternative To Baggage Fees

Southwest Airlines is feeling the pressure to raise extra revenue.

In 2009, they might experience their first losing year since the 1970's. Analysts believe Southwest is losing hundreds of millions by not charging for checking in bags.

Now, Southwest came up with a creative alternative. Since they don't assign seats, they will allow customers to jump ahead in line by paying an extra $10.

It's possible that Southwest may start charging for bags in the future, depending on the economy. But, for now, they have substituted a voluntary source of revenue - as opposed to mandatory baggage fees.

It woudl be nice if the government could "think outside the box" - instead of raising taxes or piling on debt, they could keep a simple government and charge people add-ons they could voluntarily pay.

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Plexico Burress: The Government is More Afraid of Citizens with Guns than Drunk Drivers

The Libertarians and NRA should support him and work to get him free. "Consider the nonautomotive case of Plaxico Burress, who accidentally shot himself with an unregistered, concealed gun. Stupid? Yes. Illegal. Yes. End result? A painful leg injury (to himself)—and two years in jail. Now compare that with fellow NFL player Leonard Little, who in 1998 ran a red light and smashed into a car whose driver died the next day from her injuries. Little was found to have a BAC of 0.19, more than twice the legal limit in the state of Missouri. Stupid? Yes. Illegal? Yes. End result? Another person lost her life. Little's sentence, compared with Burress', was minor: 90 days. He missed only eight football games and was able to keep his license." From "In Praise of Traffic Tickets" by Tom Vanderbilt

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Warren Buffett's Children and Philanthropy

When Warren Buffett donated $30 billion to the Gates Foundation, he also gave $1 billion to each of his children's foundations to give away.  He challenged them to actively get involved in giving away the money and making a difference. Fast Company has an article on the lessons they have learned since then.

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Very Well-Written and Researched Article on The Healthcare Crisis

In "The New Yorker", Atul Gawande has a very good article on the health-care crisis.  It is 8 pages, but well-worth reading. Basically, he looked at McAllen, Texas which is a border town that has the highest medical expenditure in the country.  Why are the prices high?  Texas has medical tort reform.  Because of poverty, there is a high amount of alcoholism and obesity, but about the same rates as El Paso, which spends a lot less. Ultimately, he concludes that it comes down to the doctors and their mentality.  In McAllen, the doctors are entrepreneurial, and look at patients as a source of revenue.  More than in other cities, the doctors own partnerships in for-profit hospitals and diagnostic centers and tend to schedule more diagnostic tests and follow-up visits. At the Mayo clinic, by contrast, they have some of the cheapest and best heathcare.  There, it is set up that doctors are on salary and profits are pooled and distributed.  They put patients first over maximizing revenue.  The critical thing is that doctors meet and brain storm together, as an alternative to ordering more tests. Gawande feels that all the current proposals (having private insurance companies vs. public options vs. single-payer vs. health savings accounts) are all missing the point.  The only way to reduce costs and improve health care is to provide incentives for physicians to privately form associations to work together. I think he is probably right that unnecessary tests are why healthcare is expensive and, since TX has tort reform, it's not that the doctors need to cover themselves, but because of profits. But, that doesn't mean entrepreneurship is the problem.  It's just that the doctors are clever enough to exploit the real issue - that the people who pay aren't the people who benefit.  If people were price conscious (paying out of their pocket, for example) it would be hard to sell extra, expensive tests. I saw one of Dylan Ratigan's articles where he also described this.  He said that no other form of insurance is tied to your employer.  He described health insurance like you and your collegues go out to lunch and know that the total bill will be split between all of you and your employer pays half and chooses the restaurant.  So you are limited to the choices there and will pick the most expensive option because you know that the cost will be split. Getting a plan independent of work is like dining alone.  You are responsible for the whole bill, so you might not take the most expensive package of benefits.

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Are European Stocks Currently Under-priced and Good Investments?

Forbes magazine recently recommended these ETFs:

Vanguard European (VGK)

Market Vectors Russia (RSX)

SPDR S&P Emerging Europe(GUR)

iShares MSCI Sweden (EWD)

All of these funds should do well through buy and hold, or by trading them according to the Stock Trading Riches system.

The middle two picks (RSX, GUR) might be especially volatile and, hence, generate a lot of trades in my system.

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India Fund (IFN) Trade Example

After I published my book on stock trading, I found that, when we would go to parties, people would start talking to me about the markets and finance.

Most asked for my opinions on the market, economy, and/or stocks.  Some people, though, would tell me things like investing in stocks is gambling, and that you have no control.

I don't agree because a good system will give you an edge. Instead of being like a gambler, you are more like the house/casino. As long as you set "table limits" (e.g. don't over-trade) you can build wealth over time.

Here is an actual trade that I experienced. It shows my Stock Trading Riches system (and its edge) in action:

I initially bought 142 shares of the India Fund (IFN) at $14.07 in January, 2005 and then turned over the management of this position to my formula.

Here are the buys/sells that the formula recommended in January of each year:

2005 Buy 142 shares @ $14.07
2006 Sell 72 shares @ $28.27
2007 No Trade @ $28.61
2008 Sell 19 shares @ $39.05
2009 Buy 66 shares @ $16.97

Even though IFN went up 21% from 2005 to 2009, the formula was up 82%.

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Another Example of How Government Censorship is dumb and useless

http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/aug2009/bw20090820_237166.htm Alabama banned a California wine because they thought the label was too racy. All it did was explode interest and sales for the winery...

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Jet Blue's All-you-can-jet

Jet Blue is selling $599 all you can fly passes until Aug 21. It will let you fly unlimited domestic and international trips between Sept 8 and Oct 8. You only have to pay taxes for int'l trips. You can only take one flight per day, and each trip must be booked 3 days in advance.  Other than that, there don't seem to be any catches. It's interesting!

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Les Paul, A Major Influence on Modern Music Technology, Died

This article shows that Les Paul was a real tinkerer: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090813/ap_on_en_mu/us_obit_les_paul

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Fw: Flori "duh"

http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/specials/weirdflorida/blog/2009/08/oh_no_niceville_again_police.html

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Ben Stein, Creationism, and Roger Ebert

Ben Stein, former Nixon speech writer, funny in "Ferris Bueller", and host of the old Comedy Central show "Win Ben Stein's Money", turned cynically 180 degrees from being smart, and created a movie bashing evolution and praising intelligent design, so he can kiss up to the evangelical nut jobs in the republican party. Roger Ebert totally ripped on it: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2008/12/win_ben_steins_mind.html

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$100 Million Payday for Energy Trader?

Andrew J. Hall is the head of a small trading company called Philbro. He made a lot of money for Citigroup and now his contract calls for a nine figure bonus.

The problems are:

1. Will the government allow it? They probably will because it is well-documented in his contract.

2. If they pay the bonus, Citigroup may experience a public backlash.

3. If they don't pay the bonus, other companies will be happy to hire him.

I think this situation shows the complications and problems that arise when government gets too involved in business.

Citibank is at a big disadvantage with the government having a veto power over their bonuses. Other companies are already trying to lure away Citigroup's superstars.

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Sign of the Times: NJ Family are the ONLY Residents in a Luxury FL Condo High Rise

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090801/ap_on_re_us/us_lonely_highrise

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5 Tips For Article Writing and Marketing

This article gives 5 tips for effectively marketing your website and/or business through writing articles with resource boxes that can be distributed to article directory sites.

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Simplifying Complex Business Practices

Today, I came across this article called Simplicity Can Untangle Complex Business Issues.

It was written by Mark Gottfredson, who is a partner at the consulting firm Bain & Co, and is the co-author of "The Breakthrough Imperative: How the Best Managers Get Outstanding Results".

Gottfredson makes the same observation that I have seen in the corporate world - that the natural flow is for things to become more complex over time. Simplicity is something that managers must actively work on.

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I Posted 5 Quotes on Simplicity

On my Tao of Simplicity blog, I posted 5 quotations on simplicity from great historic thinkers.

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"Complicating Simplicity" - Great Business Article on BusinessMirror

I found this nice article by George Chua entitled "Complicating Simplicity".

It perfectly describes my experience in the business world - that companies and bureaucracies over-react to issues and problems - thus making things more complicated than they need to be.

This generates extra costs that must either be passed on to customers, or else absorbed (reducing profit margins).

I like this quote:

Many production and QA engineers tend to shoot themselves in the foot without realizing it by coming up with features and standards that their own customers don’t care about or are not even aware of.

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Simple, Elegant Way to Generate Secure Passwords

This article talks about creating secure passwords from mnemonic phrases that are meaningful to you and easy to remember.

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Living Simply For 10 Years Without Spending Any Money...

Here is an article on a man in Utah who lives in a cave and has not used money in 10 years...

His life is simple, but hard. He does not use welfare or food stamps.

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Carnival of road to financial independence #9

The Carnival of road to financial independence #9 is up with a lot of interesting articles.

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Amazon, Best Buy, and Negative Operating Cycle

I found a website called Doubletongued.org that defines new catchwords.

One of the definitions that caught my eye was negative operating cycle, because it uses a real interesting example of Amazon.com vs. Best Buy. I then did a Google search and found other sites that mention this.

It seems that Amazon.com is able to sell some things, like iPods, cheaper than Best Buy because Amazon turns its inventory faster (20 days vs. 74 days).

For example, let's say that both Best Buy and Amazon get a shipment of iPods at net 45 from Apple. So they each have 45 days to pay for the shipment. If Amazon can sell all the iPods in 20 days, they can afford to sell the iPods at cost, and make their profit by investing the money from day 20 through day 45.

Best Buy, on the other hand, has to borrow money from day 45 through day 74 to pay Apple.

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Clever Marketing Refrigerator Magnet

I'm visiting my sister-in-law in Newburgh, Indiana, and I just saw a magnet on her refrigerator for their local tax preparer.

The magnet is clever - it is a miniature 1040 form that has the name, address, and phone number of the company.

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On Why Things Are Not Simpler

I was just inspired to write a post on why simplicity is not valued more. This was a stream-of-conscious, passion type post, rather than thoughtful analysis.

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Recession Postponing Divorces

A lot of divorcing couples are having to find creative ways to live together until the economy improves.

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How To Handle Annoying Bluetooth Talkers...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp6H9hR4nIM

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Tips for Traveling in the South

Tips for Traveling in the South     --If it can't be fried in bacon grease, it ain't worth eating. -- If you run your car into a ditch, don't panic. Four men in the cab of a four-wheel-drive truck with a 12-pack of beer and a tow chain will be along shortly. Don't try to help, just stay out of their way -- this is what they live for. -- Don't be surprised to find boiled peanuts, movie rentals and fishing bait in the same store. -- Remember: "Y'all" is singular. "All y'all" is plural. "All y'all's" is plural possessive. -- Don't be worried that you don't understand anyone. They don't understand you either. -- If you hear a Southerner exclaim, "Hey, y'all, watch this!" -- stay out of his way. These are likely the last words he will ever say. -- If you see a turn signal blinking on a car with a southern license plate, you may rest assured that it was on when the car was purchased. -- Satellite dishes are very popular in the South. They are to be positioned directly in front of one's trailer, since it cost considerably more than the trailer and should, therefore, be displayed. -- As you are cursing the person driving 15 mph in a 55 mph zone, directly in the middle of the road, remember: many Southerners learned to drive on a John Deere, and this is the proper speed and lane position for that vehicle. -- You can ask a Southerner for directions, but unless you already know the positions of key hills, trees and rocks, you're better off trying to find it yourself.

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Aphorisms

APHORISM: A SHORT, POINTED SENTENCE EXPRESSING A WISE OR CLEVER OBSERVATION OR A GENERAL TRUTH   1. The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow. 2. Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail. 3. If you don't have a sense of humor, you probably don't have any sense. 4. Seat belts are not as confining as wheelchairs. 5. A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you're in deep water. 6. How come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night? 7. Business conventions are important because they demonstrate how many people a company can operate without. 8. Why is it that at class reunions you feel younger than everyone else looks? 9. Scratch a cat and you will have a permanent job. 10. No one has more driving ambition than the boy who wants to buy a car. 11. There are no new sins; the old ones just get more publicity.   12. There are worse things than getting a call for a wrong number at 4 AM. It could be a right number. 13. No one ever says 'It's only a game" when their team is winning. 14. I've reached the age where the happy hour is a nap. 15. Be careful reading the fine print. There's no way you're going to like it. 16. The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket. 17. Do you realize that in about 40 years, we'll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos? 18. Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comfortable to cry in a Corvette than in a Yugo. 19. After 70, if you don't wake up aching in every joint, you are probably dead! 20. Always be yourself because the people that matter don't mind, and the ones who mind, don't matter.

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Bad Credit? You Can Still Get A Cash Advance and Rebuild Your Credit

Did you know that, even if you have bad credit, it may be possible for you to get a cash advance line of credit?

There are companies that issue secured credit lines. The issuer would probably require you to deposit a certain percentage of the credit line.

A line of credit like this can be a useful tool to help you rebuild your credit history. The key would be to use some of it every month for necessary expenses, and promptly pay off your balances. As you build a history of successful repayments with the issuer, they should slowly wean you towards an unsecured credit line. Your credit report and score will also start to look better.

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Use Social Media to Drive Prospects to Your Blog

This good article on internet marketing talks about not using Facebook and Twitter as your main communication method for prospects. What if they shut down tomorrow? You would then lose the fruits of all your hard work.

Instead, the article stresses using social sites like Facebook and Twitters as outposts. You drive traffic to your blog, and offer free reports, videos, etc. to capture email addresses.

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affiliate marketing and traffic building blog carnival

The July 10, 2009 edition of affiliate marketing and traffic building
blog carnival is out and it's large!

It's full of useful articles on internet marketing.

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Simple Presentations

The author of the Excellence in Presentations blog believes in simplifying your PowerPoint presentations to only having one idea per slide - with a short phrase and a picture.

Always avoid using bullets.

In this way, the presenter will be forced to converse with his/her audience, rather than recite ideas, point by point.

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Good Post on Simplicity and Marketing

This marketing blog has a good post on simplicity applied to marketing.

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Carnival of College Admission

The latest edition of the Carnival of College Admission is up with some great articles.

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2 Examples of Simple, Minimal Advertising

1. "Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Book Cover.

2. Imodium AD Billboard Ad.

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Money Hacks Carnival, Staying Cool Edition

The July 7th edition of the Money Hacks Carnival is up with interesting financial posts.

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Two New and Interesting Blog Carnivals

Carnival of Debt Reduction: Stale Brat Edition

Carnival of Investing Strategies #15

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Students Beware! Colleges, Tuition, Loans, and Debt - Will Education Follow the Housing Bust?

In many ways, today's college/tuition/loan situation parallels the real estate market before the bust.

With real estate, you had the government (through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and Wall Street (by bundling loans into securities) removing risk from the banks and other home loan originators. This caused them to get greedy and make excessive money available to unqualified home owners. The flood of money chasing homes caused prices to go up, thus causing a cycle.

The same thing has been occurring with colleges and universities. The government guarantees loans through programs like Sallie Mae, and Wall Street has recently been bundling college loans into securities. Lenders and for-profit career colleges (i.e. beautician schools) in urban areas have been pushing loans onto unqualified students. The flood of available money has allowed even distinguished colleges to bloat their bureaucracies and raise tuition faster than the inflation rate.

Students and their parents need to protect themselves:

1. Think twice before piling on excess college loans.

2. Aggressively pursue scholarships. Many scholarships go begging, or have only a handful of applicants. Use sites like Campus Scholarship Site to track them down.

2. Expect to be heavily recruited on campus with credit card offers, and resist temptation.

3. Research state colleges and universities. Their in-state tuition is many times cheaper than private schools.

4. Take part-time employment. If your finances are really tight, onsider if full time employment / part-time school might make more sense than going into debt.

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new Sears Tower 103rd floor glass balcony

pictures from the new Sears Tower 103rd floor glass balcony http://snipurl.com/skydeck

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Bill Gates Says That Warren Buffett Taught Him Simplicity

http://moneynews.newsmax.com/streettalk/buffett_gates_investing/2009/06/26/229277.html

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Why Multi-tasking Costs An Internet Marketer Money

Let's say that you have three internet marketing projects that you would like to implement - call them A, B, and C.

To keep the example simple, let's say that each one will take 3 full months to set up and, after that, each one will generate $100 per month passively.

What happens if we try to multi-task and set the three projects up simultaneously? Since we can only devote 1/3 of our time to each project, it takes 9 months before A, B, and C are up. At that point, we will make $300 per month. So, in the first year, we will end up making $900 ($0 for the first 9 months and then $900 for the last 3 months).

What happens if we single-task the projects? We get project A up after 3 months. Then, during the next 3 months, we will earn $100/month from project A while we set up project B. In the next 3 months, we make $200/month while we set up project C. Finally, we earn $300/month for the final three months of the year. So, in the first year, we end up making $1800 ($0 for the first 3 months, $300 for the next 3 months, $600 for the next 3 months, then $900 for the last 3 months).

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Two Recommended Stocks: ATVI and WOOF

The June 8 issue of Forbes included 2 interesting stock picks:

1. Activision Blizzard (ATVI) - This company was created last July with the merger of Vivendi's Blizzard Entertainment and Activision. Vivendi is now the largest shareholder, but Activision's boss, Robert Kotick, is the CEO.

After the merger, the company has three franchises: World of Warcraft, Guitar Hero, and Call of Duty.

The stock trades at $12.64, has no debt, and has $2.35 per share in cash. The company says it should earn 63 cents per share in 2009. Analysts predict it will earn 79 center per share in 2010, when it releases Guitar Hero Van Halen, DJ Hero, and Wrath of the Lich King in China.

2. VCA Antech (WOOF) - It operates 471 animal hospitals and 44 veterinary diagnostic labs. Unlike human health care, most payments are in cash and they don't have to deal with Medicare. It's bad-debt expense has averaged less than 1% for the last 3 years. Their revenues and profits were up 10% in 2008.

Revenue only gained 3% in the first quarter of 2009, but their managers are "rabid cost-cutters". The stock is up 22% in 2009, but they are still buying veterinary practices, and analysts feel it is a "recession resistant" growth stock.

These stocks should be good for buy/hold, but should work really well with my Stock Trading Riches System, which captures volatility through its re-balancing formulas.

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Money Hacks Carnival #70

The 70th edition of the Money Hacks blog carnival is up - with a lot of good financial and passive income posts.

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Did The Federal Reserve Force BofA to Buy Merill Lynch?

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Story?id=7920583&page=1

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First Look at Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/popup?id=7903321

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Carnival of road to financial independence #8

The Carnival of road to financial independence #8 is up and has a lot of good posts on money, wealth, and finance.

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From a Business Perspective, What's So Great About Twitter, Anyway?

Well, I joined Twitter a couple of weeks ago (SimplePraveen), and I would never ask that question anymore. I think that Twitter will become a new cornerstone in the internet, just like Facebook, My Space, Linked In, and blogging - thus Twitter will have just as much of an impact on business, marketing, and brand building.



The main difference between Twitter and these other social media sites is that these other sites are set up to build one-to-one networking links between people, and they encourage their users to post as much content as they want. With Twitter, the networking is more like one-to-many, and users are limited to 140 character messages.

This limitation forces people to be creative. It also fosters more usage, because people are drawn to Twitter's simplicity, and are less likely to get writer's block and procrastinate.

I think a good way to think of Twitter is that it combines the one-to-many aspect of email with the immediacy of instant messaging. You are basically sending 140 character (or less) instant messages to all the people who follow you. The size restriction means that Twitter is ideally suited to building relationships and branding - rather than hard sells.

Here are 2 inexpensive sources of information I am currently using to learn more about Twitter and marketing / brand building:

1. Joel Comm's new book Twitter Power

2. Twitter Traffic Machine course

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Puppy Survives Getting Flushed Down Toilet

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090616/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_flush_puppy

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Philosophy: Carrots, Eggs, and Coffee

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her  life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know  how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was  tired of fighting and struggling.    Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots  with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots  came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second  she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee  beans.. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.    In about twenty minutes she fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled  the  eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the  coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter,  she asked, ' Tell me what you see.'    'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.    Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the  carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother  then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After  pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.    Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee.  The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The  daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?'    Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced  the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently.  The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However,  after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and  became weak. The egg had been fragile.. Its thin outer shell  had protected its liquid interior, but after   sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however.  After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the  water.    'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When  adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a  carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?    Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems  strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become  soft and lose my strength?   Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but  changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after  a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other  trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look  the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?    Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the  hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When  the water gets hot, it releases the   fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when  things are at their worst, you get better and change the  situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and  trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another  level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg  or a coffee bean?    May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough  trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human  and enough hope to make you happy.   The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best  of everything; they just make the most of everything that  comes along their way. The brightest future will always be  based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life  until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.    When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you  was smiling.    Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is  smiling and everyone around you is crying.  May we all be COFFEE (beans) !!!!!! !  Love....Peace.....Joy

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Carnival of Cashflow Consciousness #3

The Carnival of Cashflow Consciousness #3 is now up, with lots of great posts on money, prosperity, and passive income.

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I'm Becoming Semi-famous!

I guess I'm becoming known for teaching stock trading because I saw today that someone is bidding on my name in Google Adwords.  If you do a Google search for Praveen Puri, their ad pops up with the headline "Avoid Praveen Puri" and then says to buy their stock trading system instead. That's so cool and I'm so flattered!

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Praveen Puri Interview

Praveen Puri, author of "Stock Trading Riches", is interviewed by Canadian freelance writer Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen.

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A Log Vacation Home

I was just thinking that, if I had the money, it would be great to have a large log home on a hill or mountainside - overlooking a stream with bright blue water.

Let's picture Montana - perhaps with a glacier or mountain in the background.

The log house would have an open floor plan and wrap around porch.

Inside, the house would be furnished with beautiful, hand crafted pieces of rustic furniture made with the finest wood. There would be large, over-sized, comfortable chairs and sofas.

It might be nice to have a high-quality, hand-made oaken rocking chair by the warm and massive fireplace.

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Money Hacks Carnival 68

The Money Hacks Carnival 68 - Stanley Cup Final Edition is now online with a lot of interesting financial posts.

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Fw: Elderly Woman Loses Life Savings After Daughter's Gift

I think that if they find the mattress in the stinky dump, they will have to do some "money laundering" ;-) http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com/2009/06/10/elderly-woman-loses-life-savings-after-daughters-gift/

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How to Generate Referrals

A lot of businesses and internet marketers reward customers and affiliates who generate leads and/or sales.

But, businesses can get more referrals (especially getting their existing customers to refer their friends) by giving a benefit to both of them.

This works especially great if you have a business providing goods or services that people buy more than once - for example, a massage therapist. In this case, it won't cost you much to provide free massages to new referrals - and the customers who referred them.

For example, I have my trading account with Scottrade. If I refer people to Scottrade and they open an account with my referral code (ZNTJ5666), then we will both get three free trades.

Another example I have seen is with a service called DropBox, which is an online storage site that lets you put folders on your computers and syncs between them. I am not a customer of theirs, but I saw someone promoting it and, it turns out, if you sign up, they give both you and the referrer extra storage space.

If you have a business (such as affiliate marketing) where customers don't buy the same good or service twice, you could create a rebate or discount program for other products, or a special report or course that would be given to both the referrer and the new customer.

You are only limited by your imagination!

The main takeaway is that both the referrer AND the new lead/customer are rewarded.

(Of course, it almost goes without saying that your business has to have integrity, and your products / services must be high-quality and give good value for the price, otherwise no gimmick will compensate).

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