Get In My Belly! Here’s How to Get a Free Shake Shack Burger This Tuesday

When I admit I’ve never had a Shake Shack burger, I invariably receive one of two possible responses:

“Oh my God, WHAT?! You need to put one in your face, like, yesterday.”

Or…

“I KNOW, me neither. I’m SO bummed we don’t have one close by!”

Although shakes are its namesake, burgers are this joint’s real claim to fame. Some folks even think they’re better than In-N-Out and Five Guys.

So whether you’re a veteran or in my unfortunate, “not quite yet” camp, if you’re near a Shake Shack this Tuesday, you’re gonna want to cancel your 11 a.m. meeting.

That’s because the first 100 customers to arrive at participating Shake Shack locations on Aug. 16 will each receive free single ShackBurger — or a burger of equal or lesser value.

Some things are just worth waiting in line for.

How to Get a Free Shake Shack Burger

Although no one wants to look a gift horse — or… grill? — in the mouth, you might be wondering what occasion wrought this joyful, juicy freebie.

Shake Shack’s celebrating the opening of its 100th location at the Boston Seaport, a serious benchmark for this 12-year-old chain that started with a single location in New York City’s Madison Square Park.

To share the love, all U.S. Shacks (except those in stadiums and ballparks) are handing out free burgers to the first 100 hungry guests to turn up at each location.

The burger-slinging starts at 10:30 a.m., and the offer’s good ‘til noon — though I’d be surprised if fewer than 100 free burgers have been served by then!

So if you can, skip breakfast and get yourself to a Shake Shack this Tuesday morning.

As for me down here in Shack-free Tampa Bay (please open one in St. Pete!), I’ll just have to promise myself a visit to the original location during my upcoming New York trip.

Your Turn: How early will you line up for your free Shake Shack burger this Tuesday?

Jamie Cattanach is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder who seriously regrets never having eaten at Shake Shack. Her writing has also been featured at The Write Life, Word Riot, Nashville Review and elsewhere. Find @JamieCattanach on Twitter to wave hello.

The post Get In My Belly! Here’s How to Get a Free Shake Shack Burger This Tuesday appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Free Food Alert: Here’s How to Score a Free Einstein Bros. Egg Sandwich

Ready to shake your mid-week blues? We’ve got just the thing.

You can get a delicious, fresh-cracked egg sandwich FREE with any Einstein Bros. purchase this Tuesday, Aug. 16.

Even better: For every sandwich they give away, the company’s donating a meal to a hungry kid in need.

So you’re basically morally obligated to take advantage of this freebie, amiright?

Happiness is a Warm Bagel Egg Sandwich from Einstein’s

Taking part in the Einstein Bros. free egg sandwich promotion is almost too easy.

And since the company just rolled out some brand-new options to choose from (including one with my all-time favorite: sausage, chorizo, and guacamole ), you’ll definitely want to.

All you have to do is head here and enter your email address to get the digital coupon, which you can then pull up on your mobile device.

Alternately, you can print the coupon, old-school style… but since it’s so easy to avoid, Einstein’s asks you to think twice before sacrificing a tree!

Psst — while you’re at it, sign up for their Shmear Society to get ANOTHER freebie delivered to your inbox, and a free birthday bagel, too.

Then, visit your local participating Einstein Bros. and snag your free sandwich with any purchase, be it your morning coffee, a bag of bagels for this week’s breakfasts or a second sandwich for a friend.

But be forewarned: This deal is only good on Tuesday, Aug. 16, and won’t work at college, hospital, hotel, airport or military-base Einstein Bros. locations.

But the offer might be worth it, even if it means you have to drive a bit: The company will automatically donate a meal to a hungry kid when you get your freebie, so your heart and stomach will feel full, warm and happy.

And in my book, that’s about as good as a Tuesday morning gets.

Your Turn: Will you #GetEgged this Tuesday? Which sandwich will you try?

Jamie Cattanach is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. Her writing has also been featured at The Write Life, Word Riot, Nashville Review and elsewhere. Find @JamieCattanach on Twitter to wave hello.

The post Free Food Alert: Here’s How to Score a Free Einstein Bros. Egg Sandwich appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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How to Become a Marketer Who’s Obsessed with Metrics

Back when I was an Internet newbie, I had no idea what numbers to focus on.

I would look at Google Analytics. I would see lots of numbers. And I would be confused.

So, what did I do?

I did what most people do. I focused on vanity metrics.

What are vanity metrics?

Vanity metrics are numbers. That might sound all data-driven and growth-hacky.

But vanity metrics are numbers that don’t lead anywhere. As Eric Ries said,

…they don’t offer clear guidance for what to do.

Examples of vanity metrics:

• Raw number of pageviews or site visitors
• Number of downloads
• Number of subscribers

I’m not knocking these metrics completely.

After all, if you are involved in the world of Internet marketing, metrics are one of the single most important things you can learn, understand, interpret, and act on.

If you’re not tracking your metrics, you’ll never be able to figure out how you can improve your marketing performance and, by extension, your revenue.

But you have to choose which metrics to focus on.

This is why establishing specific KPIs, or key performance indicators, is one of the most valuable things you can do for yourself, your team, and your bottom line.

But which metrics should you be tracking? And more importantly, which metrics should inform your marketing decisions?

This is the question I faced early on in my Internet marketing career.

What metrics do I focus on?

Eventually, I came around to the right perspective on things.

Here’s how it happened.

• First, I realized that revenue was my single most important metric.
• Then, I worked backwards to find out what numbers most impacted my revenue.
• I used those numbers—my KPIs—to track my progress toward revenue.

With so much variability in marketing techniques, it’s easy to get bogged down in minutia and focus on metrics that do not significantly affect your revenue.

To help you on your quest for maximum revenue, I’ve compiled a list of some of the most important KPIs you can track for maximum performance, maximum ROI, and maximum revenue.

Each of these metrics should be tracked on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis so that you can see the complete picture with regards to your marketing efforts.

Tracking them is only the first step.

Acting on these metrics is the real deal. 

1. Traffic

If you want to be able to develop effective content and digital marketing campaigns, you have to track your web traffic so that you can understand what’s working and what’s not.

Unless you are tracking your web traffic, you will never be able to truly gauge the effectiveness of your different marketing methods and increase the amount of traffic your website receives.

For example, by tracking your web traffic, you may find that when you are consistently posting on Facebook and LinkedIn, your traffic soars, but whenever you focus on Instagram and Twitter, your traffic plummets.

Luckily, tracking your web traffic is fairly straightforward.

By using Google Analytics, you can track the number of sessions and page views you get each day as well as the details such as bounce rate, demographics, and source.

“Traffic” is, of course, a pretty broad term.

Traffic can encompass a lot of the more detailed features of your website audience, all of which are important to pay attention to.

Your website traffic tells a story—a story of how engaged and active your audience is, how frequently they visit you, and how likely they are to purchase from you.

The better you know your traffic, the better you’ll be able to achieve your revenue goals.

2. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

This is one of the most important metrics any company, especially startups, should know.

Chase Hughes wrote about this metric on Kissmetrics. He called it “the one metric that can determine your company’s fate.”

I’d say that’s a pretty important metric.

So, what is the customer acquisition cost?

Here is a simple definition:

CAC: The price you pay to convince someone to purchase your product or service.

Don’t be deceived by the simplicity of that definition.

The CAC should include the cost of market research, software, team salaries, paid analytics platforms, and, of course, the price of any paid advertising.

If you want to be able to effectively grow your company through your marketing efforts, you have to know how much it costs to acquire a new customer.

In spite of its complexity, this is actually fairly easy to calculate.

All you need to do is add up the monthly marketing budget and then divide that number by the number of new customers you acquired that month.

For example, let’s say you spent $2,000 a month on marketing and acquired 5 new customers. This brings your total cost of customer acquisition to $400.

You can calculate the number on an annual basis, as in this example:

With this knowledge, you now know how to effectively budget for marketing, depending on the number of customers you wish to acquire.

Using the above example, if you wanted to acquire 20 new customers in a month, you would need to spend roughly $8,000 in marketing efforts.

While this number may vary month to month based on how effective your marketing campaigns are, averaging the cost of acquisition over three months will give you a good idea of what you need to spend on marketing to attract your desired number of new customers.

To better understand your CAC, it’s helpful to break down the specific channels you’re using to acquire customers.

For example, you may be using several marketing methods: paid search, social media, and email marketing.

Each channel has a different associated cost. Knowing how much you’re spending per channel gives you a more accurate assessment of your CAC.

Every industry will have a different method of tracking CAC. In some industries with a long sales cycle and more “touches” for customers, the CAC will be higher and more complex.

While it’s important to know your CAC, it’s just as important to know how to act on it.

If your CAC is too high, for example, you have a problem. The customer’s value must exceed the CAC in order for the business to function.

Navigating the delicate balance between CAC and LTV is something that marketers need to understand and take action on.

3. Social media reach

Social media marketing has become one of the most popular methods of marketing your content and your company.

With more than 2 billion people using social media around the world, there has never been—in the history of the human race—a platform that could allow you to have as much reach and influence as social media can today.

In addition to their massive reach, most social platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest, provide you with the tools to track your reach within the applications.

If you want to maximize the amount of revenue you generate each week, month, and year, you need to track the effectiveness of your social campaigns and understand the ROI of each platform.

How do you do this on Facebook?

Simple.

• Go to your company Facebook page.
• Click on “Insights” at the top of the page.

Facebook Insights provides you with data to help you fully understand what your audience is doing, how it’s interacting, and how it’s impacting your business.

When you know this data, you can develop a rock-solid social media strategy to maximize your reach and revenue.

4. Landing page conversion rates

If you truly want to maximize your revenue and send your conversion rates through the roof, you have to make sure that each of your landing pages is fully optimized.

You need to know which landing pages are leading to conversions and which ones are underperforming so that you can effectively craft landing pages that will increase your revenue.

You may find that one landing page has a high amount of traffic while another—with a lower rate of traffic—actually has a higher conversion rate.

For this reason, it’s crucial to track at least four major metrics on landing pages specifically:

• Bounce rate
• Exit rate
• Click-through rate (CTR)
• Conversion rate

Each of these numbers contributes to the overall picture of your conversion rates and keeps you from being locked into a skewed perspective.

One way to help broaden your perspective is to understand what an “average” conversion rate is. It’s hard to nail down an “average” because of the variety of industries, channels, and types of conversion that exist.

When you start, don’t expect to instantly explode with a 5% conversion rate. Most of us are lucky if we can get a 2% conversion rate.

Again, conversion rates vary a lot based on the channel. Here’s a breakdown of the range of variation of conversion rates by channel:

By monitoring all the important metrics around your landing page and combining the best working elements, you can create high-converting pages.

5. Email marketing metrics

Despite the growth of social media, email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to acquire and keep customers.

Email marketing allows for a more personal and targeted style of marketing, and if you are willing to pay attention to the metrics, it will lead to more sales and revenue than you previously thought possible.

It’s important to track all the metrics related to email marketing. Here are the ones I suggest you track:

1. Delivery rate
2. Open rate
3. Click rate
4. Conversion rate

What kind of expectations can you have for these metrics? Here’s Ciceron’s research:

Depending on the complexity of your email marketing, you may wish to analyze your metrics even further:

• Unique open rate
• Unsubscribe rate
• List growth rate
• Bounce rate
• Inactive user rate
• Forwarding rate
• Earnings per email
• Earnings per click
• Complaint rate

How do you take action on this kind of data?

If you see that you have a low open rate but a high conversion rate, you should probably work to improve your headlines or cut back on the number of emails you send.

Conversely, if you notice a high open rate with your emails but a low click-through or conversion rate, you should probably improve your copywriting within the email to incentivize readers.

Email marketing is still one of the most effective marketing methods. Plus, it’s one of the easiest:

It makes sense to use email marketing and then act on the data you glean from analyzing its performance.

Conclusion

If you can learn to effectively track the important metrics of your business, you’ll be able to see how your marketing efforts are affecting your revenue and have a better understanding of how you can improve and optimize your marketing efforts.

But like with anything in the business world, this is something you have to track proactively. You cannot just set it and forget it—track one or two metrics and then leave it for months at a time.

If you can be consistent with tracking your metrics, focusing on how every decision you make affects the bottom line, you can maximize your revenue and take your business to new heights.

Keep in mind that you are focused on one top metric: revenue.

When you lose sight of revenue, you’ll easily get distracted by meaningless metrics that don’t show you where you’re actually going. Worse, those metrics may fool you into thinking you’re making progress when you aren’t.

To be truly effective, your marketing metrics should show you a path forward—how to earn more revenue.

Metrics really are the magic key that can unlock marketing success. But they are a double-edged sword.

Read them wrong—and your marketing is doomed.

Read them right, act on them—and your marketing will push your business forward.

What are the most important KPIs you currently track?

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Doubts over Lifetime Isa launch

Marina Gerner

saving-money.jpg

The Lifetime Isa (Lisa), which is set to launch in April 2017, is in doubt following industry providers' warnings that too little detail has been provided by the government for them to launch the new Isa on time.

The Lifetime Isa (Lisa), which is set to launch in April 2017, is in doubt following industry providers' warnings that too little detail has been provided by the government for them to launch the new Isa on time.

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Pension freedom withdrawals 'sensible' at 4% a year

Kyle Caldwell

working-out-the-budget.jpg

Figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show that in the first full year since the pension freedoms began, the majority of retirees are being sensible.

Figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show that in the first full year since the pension freedoms began, the majority of retirees are being sensible.

Retirees taking advantage of the pension freedoms introduced last year are being sensible rather than reckless, according to figures released by the Association of British Insurers (ABI). 

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Questions About Travel Rewards, Water Bottles, Credit Card Balances, and More!

What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to summaries of five or fewer words. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question.
1. Earning more interest?
2. Carrying a credit card balance
3. Disabled and taking next steps
4. Travel rewards
5. US citizen investing outside US
6. Water bottle when flying
7. Purchase-generating media
8. Trusting international foods
9. Assets included in net worth
10. Pokemon Go as frugal hobby?
11. Selling an old record collection
12. Epicureanism?

My wife and I are part of what is called the “sandwich generation,” meaning that we’re at a perfect age to watch our children grow from infancy into adulthood while, at the same time, watch our parents retire and suffer some of the challenges and indignities of becoming older.

Over the past few weeks, I had the opportunity to travel with my parents and my children at the same time, with my parents taking what will likely be one of their last long trips that they take as they’re simply not getting around as well as they used to.

To experience both at the same time while traveling was both wonderful and exhausting. It was wonderful because I know the time period in my life when I get to still enjoy the company of my parents as well as the joy of my children is a fairly narrow time period. It was exhausting because the desires and interests of everyone were so divergent, with my children wanting to do one thing, my parents wanting to do another thing, and Sarah and I often trying to find balances.

Exhilirating. Exhausting. Thought-provoking. Memorable. The last few weeks of my life were all of those things, for sure.

Q1: Earning more interest?

I am earning 1% interest on my cash at my online bank. The money at my Fidelity IRA is in a money market fund earning near 0%. How can I earn 1% interest on my cash at fidelity. Is there an ETF I can buy that is like cash but takes advantage of the 1% rate of return available at many MMAs? My credit union also offers 1.25% on IRA money. Can I open an account at my credit union and then tranfer the money between the IRAs? Any help is appreciated and I know anything you tell me is not investment advice.
– Tina

I’m going to assume you’re retired, because if you’re not retired, you should not have retirement money in an money market account. (To tell the truth, I likely won’t keep my own IRA money in a money market account when I am retired.) If you’re not retired, you really need to have that money in something else that offers a better long term return than a money market fund.

It does look like Fidelity’s money market fund isn’t a high performer. If you just want to transfer the money market portion of your IRA to an IRA with a better money market fund, that does make sense, and if your local credit union offers that, moving that portion over can be a good move. It will require some paperwork and so on, but if you’re talking about a significant balance, it’ll be worth it.

Just make sure that a money market account itself makes sense for you right now, regardless of a 0.15% interest rate versus a 1.25% interest rate. Is this money that should be earning a higher average annual return, even with a bit of risk?

Q2: Carrying a credit card balance

I came across TSD while researching for my first credit card. I am currently an undergrad student starting off in the credit world. My question for you is in regards to Mistake #3: Making only minimum payments in your article (http://ift.tt/1kgvye5). I’m not quite sure I am understanding this section correctly.

What does it mean to carry a credit balance into the next month? Does it mean that I was not able to pay back what I spent that month on the bill?
– Lane

Exactly. If you carry a balance to the next month, that means you were unable or unwilling to pay off the full balance.

Most credit card bills have two different amounts on them. One is the total balance on your card, while the other is the minimum monthly payment. You’re only required to pay the minimum monthly payment.

However, whatever you do not pay is carried over to the next month. The amount carried over earns interest that’s usually compounded continuously, so that when you receive your next bill, it’s larger due to the interest that’s accumulated.

Because of that, it’s usually a good idea to pay as much as you can on your credit card bill each month. That way, the amount that carries over is smaller and thus there’s less money to build up interest.

Q3: Disabled and taking next steps

I have so many opportunities that I’m not sure where to begin. Please allow me an opportunity to let you know my needs and then you might be able to tailor a program to suit.

First, I have no cash. None. I have a small Disability check monthly, but it doesn’t allow for much. I was approved again for a $5,800 Pell Grant as well as a $9,500 loan. I’ve not used it yet in the 4 years since I’ve been applying. Business and family always came first. I am divorced now after 25+ years of misguided priorities and have recently remarried. I currently have two postal locations which are in Georgia as well as the Philippines. I want to get the easiest degree possible and even much, much, more importantly, the least expensive. I need to budget much of the left over monies to help with my household expenses as well as pay the books, tuition, etc.

Since there is a 12 hour difference in time between here and NY time, it’s difficult to speak to anyone on the phone (when it works). I can however email easily.

So, basically, I need to work online doing anything legally and ethically that generates money. The reason it needs to be online only work is that we travel plenty and I can still get work accomplished while we are in range if a cell phone and data towerwherever there is internet and possibly phone service. Please help me figure it out..

My background is I was a plumber since age 16. that gave me the money to go through 5 years of correspondence school (there was no online schools) at that time which gave me a BA in Education with a Minor in Finance. That turned out to be useless as the school lost its accreditation. (so basically toilet paper).

I worked as a teacher of science and special education at an inner-city high school for 6 years. I moved to Georgia and opened a mortgage and finance company for 8 years until the economy took a downturn. I was offered as a favor, the chance to work for Wells Fargo to which I took. it didn’t last too long as I got progressively worse with my diabetes. This led to complete kidney shut down requiring hemo-dialysis 3 times per 2 week leaving me exhausted. in 2012, I went through a routine checkup to get on the kidney transplant lists that I needed emergency bypass heart surgery. in 2013, due to the diabetes, I lost my leg. in 2014, I lost my best friend, mom at age 88. which devastated me. Finally in summer of 2015, my wife of 25 years decided to leave me.

I have a fresh outlook on life and a new bride. I want to fight for both of them but especially myself.

That’s the story. After you process this info, please refer a good recommendation to help. Don’t forget that I need the money to budget with my disability to make my budget.
– Tom

First of all, I would look at this list of low cost online bachelors programs for out of state students run by state universities. These schools are almost all smaller state universities, which usually means that they’re supported by the state they’re in, accredited, and offer a reasonably good education.

From there, I’d start examining career options. What kinds of things do you want to do? I’m not clear whether you just want an online education or you want to be in a situation to telecommute. My suggestion would be that, given your background, you either pursue something in education or something in business. So, I’d check out each of these schools, look at their online degree programs, and find one that matches the area you’re looking for.

I think that your grant, your loans, and your disability check can cover most of the cost of these degrees, given the pretty low cost per credit that these schools offer.

Q4: Travel rewards

I am looking to start earning travel rewards and I am trying not to mess up my credit score (which hovers just above 700). I currently have a Citibank Thank You Points card and a Discover It cash back rewards card. I have been happy (more or less) with these cards and I am not eager to change these cards because I am trying to build up a stronger credit history, but I want to get something with a different reward system (travel miles to be exact).

What card would be good for me? I do not want a card that charges an annual fee, but I want a card whose reward miles can actually be used at multiple airlines so I can start taking trips. I plan to pay all my monthly bills with the card to build rewards quickly and then to pay it off at the end of each cycle so if I could have one that earns miles with purchases and with payments that would be great!

Also, I’ve seen in your website that you recommend Discover It Miles card. If I transfer my account with discover from the Discover It Cash Back Rewards Card to the Discover It Miles Card, does that count as continuation of the same account (thus not affecting my credit score) or does it count as closing one account and opening another (thus lowering my credit score)?
– Thomas

The Simple Dollar has several different writers that focus on different areas. Personally, I rarely write about specific credit cards, as my credit card philosophy is that you should use one or two cards with programs that provide bonuses through the retailers you use the most, so I don’t have much reason to review lots of cards.

If I were to point at one single travel card, it would probably be the BankAmericard Travel Rewards card. I think it hits almost everything you’re looking for – flexible travel points, no annual fee, a good rate for earning points, and so on. Kiplinger Personal Finance magazine named it one of the best travel rewards cards of 2015 and it stood out because of the lack of an annual fee (something that many other travel cards have).

It’s a very solid card that would work well for what you’re looking for.

Q5: US citizen investing outside US

I would like to open an investment account, and although I am a US citizen with a US mailing address and a SS#, I do not reside in the US. I keep hitting a dead end because most of the companies I contacted will not take me. Do you know of any reputable companies that accept non-residents?
– Carl

You’re going to have a hard time finding such a company.

The reason is that, due to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), brokerages have a ton of additional tax compliance rules put on them if they operate outside of the United States. The reason for this is to keep American citizens from hiding money in offshore accounts, but the offshoot of that is that citizens living abroad have restricted access to financial services from American companies.

Although it will make taxes more challenging for you, your best approach is probably to use an investment house native to the country that you are in and simply deal with the tax challenges that will present. I’d look around for an investment house in your country and see if they will work with an American citizen.

Q6: Water bottle when flying

This is a comment to the story about expenses that can derail your travel budget. One of those expenses is buying beverages at an airport since you can’t bring any through security. When I fly, I bring an empty (reusable) water bottle with me and fill it up at the water fountain once I get past security. This saves a little money on each leg of my trip every time I fly.
– Tracy

This is a great tip that I should have included in the article because it’s something I do myself when flying; I just found myself mostly thinking about road trips when writing the article.

If you want to flavor the water, buy some of those little flavoring packets at the store that you can just dump into a container. They have lots of flavors and sugar levels and brands that you can try, and a single little bottle of flavor additive lasts for a long time and is small enough to go right through airport security (I’ve done it myself).

I prefer wide-mouthed Nalgene water bottles like these for airport and airplane use.

Q7: Purchase-generating media

I’m really struggling with spending too much on board games and I thought you could help. Like you board games are my favorite hobby so I play them three nights a week at board game nights and often read about them online in my spare time. What I have found is that even if I am not looking for new games I will see mentions of other games that I am unfamiliar with and in order to figure out what the person meant I find out about a new game that gets me really excited and fills my thoughts until I buy it and then I play it a few times and the cycle repeats itself. I’m just spending too much on games but I love this hobby so much and I don’t want to just quit it.
– Darren

The problem isn’t the board game hobby in general. The problem is the media related to the board game hobby. Sites like BoardGameGeek and Twitter and other discussion forums are really great for connecting with others who share your hobby, but that inherently means that conversations are going to swing toward games that you don’t have or aren’t familiar with. It just naturally comes with the territory.

My solution to that problem? Spend less time on the messageboards and spend more time with the games you have. If you’re at home, get off the computer. Read rulebooks. Bag and organize your components within the games. Set up games and play them solo. Find friends who will come over and play if you can’t leave the house.

If you’re at work and twiddling your thumbs, find something else to do. If you really want to engage in your hobby, plan out a game night and invite people. Maybe download a PDF of the rules for a game you want to play.

You’ll find that the hobby is just as wonderful as ever, but the endless desire for new games tends to trail off pretty fast.

Q8: Assets in net worth

What assets do you include in your net worth calculations? Do you include: (1) your house, (2) your car, (3) your collectibles?
– Avery

First of all, I don’t include any assets worth less than $1,000 unless it’s an account balance. It’s just not worth it to include lots of small and fairly random things when calculating net worth.

However, I do include any assets that I own that are worth more than $1,000, which would include our home and our car and some of our collectibles (among other things). These are all things that we could sell and continue our life.

The only asset that I might consider not including is our primary residence, because we do live there and we would need a roof over our head if we sold it. However, if we were in a situation to sell our home, we could simply move into an apartment and live there for many years on the generated cash, so we feel safe including it.

Q9: Pruning and life

I love your blog! As an avid gardener, the things you talk about on The Simple Dollar remind me of the practice of pruning. You’re basically treating your life as a plant, and when you practice frugality in the sense of cutting spending drastically on the areas that don’t matter, it’s much like pruning a plant. You’re removing the parts of the plant that are competing for nutrients so that the parts that matter get all of the nutrients you need. What happens after you prune? The parts you leave behind usually thrive! All of the lessons we need for life come from living things.
– Marilyn

That’s a great analogy! Frugality really is a lot like pruning. It’s not about tearing out everything, nor is it about leaving everything so that it all becomes overgrown and fails. Instead, it’s about carefully removing the stuff that doesn’t matter so that the stuff that does matter can really take off.

I pruned things out of my life like golf and expensive clothes and shiny cars because they just didn’t really matter to me in the big scheme of things. By doing that, I had plenty of resources left for the things that did matter – my family, my personal freedom, and a few hobbies that are deeply important to me.

Pruning isn’t about the things that you prune away. It’s about the things that you leave behind and how they’re going to thrive!

Q10: Pokemon Go as frugal hobby?

So for the last two weeks my husband and I have spent several hours on walks together playing Pokemon Go and just talking about life. It’s been wonderful. The app is free, gets us exercising! Highly recommended!
– Sara

Pokemon Go is a great little game to encourage people to get outside and walk around more. For those unfamiliar, it’s a game that can be played on smartphones that is location-dependent, meaning you have to actually move around in the real world and go to certain locations to play. Thus, it encourages you to go on walks.

It does have the drawback of having in-app purchases, but you can most certainly play the game to a high level without even considering those purchases provided you have an area to walk around in that’s active with Pokemon Go locations.

It also does require some kind of mobile data plan, but my son played many, many hours of Pokemon Go and used significantly less than a gigabyte of data, so you don’t need extensive data plans to play.

Seems like a good bargain to me!

Q11: Selling an old record collection

I inherited a large collection of records from the 1960s and 1970s. It’s mostly pop and hard rock stuff like The Beatles and Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. It has been in boxes for years and I would like to sell it but I don’t know where to start. How do I sell this and not get scammed?
– Gary

You probably have at least some value in your collection. The artists you mention all have people who avidly collect their records and memorabilia.

First of all, you’re going to want to evaluate what you have. Records usually fall into four categories – 78s, 45s, LPs, and 12″ singles. The easiest way to do this is to just sort them by size – 7″ records (45s), 10″ records (78s), and 12″ records (LPs and 12″ singles), and then by artist.

You’ll also want to note the condition. Condition is extremely important when it comes to records. If you see much wear at all, the value is drastically reduced – and I mean drastically. A scratched record is unplayable. A damaged cover isn’t as interesting for artistic purposes. Condition is critical.

Make a list of everything that looks like it is in very good shape. Note the artist, the title, and any identifying markers on it (like the number of the record if you can find it). I’d focus on musicians you’ve heard of as those are ones with lots of collectors.

At that point, I’d visit an online record collector’s forum and explain your situation. Include a list of what you have. Ignore any private messages sent directly to you as those people are probably scamming you. Look for public responses and figure that the average value is somewhat accurate. People will probably want high resolution images of the more valuable stuff.

From there, you can move on to individually selling the records or selling them in bulk. Good luck!

Q12: Epicureanism?

Loved your posts on stoicism. Really in line with the other stuff you talk about? Have you ever talked about epicureanism? I think you would find some great stuff there, too.
– Lisa

From Wikipedia: “Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. [...] Epicurus believed that what he called “pleasure” was the greatest good, but that the way to attain such pleasure was to live modestly, to gain knowledge of the workings of the world and to limit one’s desires. This would lead one to attain a state of tranquility (ataraxia) and freedom from fear as well as an absence of bodily pain (aponia). The combination of these two states constitutes happiness in its highest form.”

That sounds pretty appealing to me, actually. The goal is a life of pleasure, but that pleasure is achieved by living modestly and understanding the world.

I tend to think that epicureanism is something of an external philosophy, in that it’s about attaining external pleasures for maximizing freedom from fear and absence of pain through modest living and knowledge, while stoicism is something of an internal philosophy given that it is about separating one’s mind from emotions and trying to look at the world rationally. Some differences are obvious, like the relative disdain that stoicism shows for external pleasures (they view pleasure as an external emotion), but they do have some important overlaps, too.

I think a modern stoic and a modern epicurean could end up living very similar lives, but they would have big disagreements when they talked about the reasons behind it. I think, internally, stoicism makes more sense to me, but I understand and appreciate epicureanism.

Got any questions? The best way to ask is to follow me on Facebook and ask questions directly there. I’ll attempt to answer them in a future mailbag (which, by way of full disclosure, may also get re-posted on other websites that pick up my blog). However, I do receive many, many questions per week, so I may not necessarily be able to answer yours.

The post Questions About Travel Rewards, Water Bottles, Credit Card Balances, and More! appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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7 Ways to Teach Your Kids About Money — Even If You’re Bad With It

Talking to your kids about money can be overwhelming.

After all, when you aren’t even that “good with money” yourself, you shouldn’t be teaching your children about it, right?

Wrong.

The important thing isn’t to be perfect with your money; it’s to be open about it.

A recent T. Rowe Price study found that kids whose parents have frequent discussions with them about money are more than three times as likely to say they’re “knowledgeable about personal finances.”

And when parents use money experiences to let their kids make mistakes (just like everyone does!), kids are nearly twice as likely to say they’re “smart about money.”

So. It’s essential you start teaching kids about money — and soon.

Even if you’re not confident in your personal finance knowledge, look around and you’ll find tons of unexpected opportunities to teach your kids about money.

Just like…

1. At the Grocery Store

Image Source/Getty Images

The grocery store can be a nightmare for parents. But it can also be a great place to talk about trade-offs and moderation.

If you let your kids choose the menu for a special dinner, explain that the rest of the week’s meals will have to be more health- and budget-conscious to make up for it. Tell them eating an expensive and maybe not-so-healthy meal one night is okay — eating one every night is not.

You can also use coupons as a way to get kids excited about saving money.

Hand over the coupons so they can help find the items, scavenger-hunt style. At the end of your trip, show them the receipt so they can see how much money they helped you save.

2. At the Gas Station

Noel Hendrickson/Getty Images

Your weekly gas station fill-up is the perfect time to talk with your kids about regular expenses.

Discuss budgets, and why it’s important to account for recurring expenses like mortgage or rent payments, insurance, groceries and — of course — gas.

Let them know when making a budget, you need to have room for daily expenses and future goals like a bigger house or a college education.

Explain that’s the reason why you try to minimize everyday expenses — so you’ll have more money for those long-term goals.

3. When the Toilet Overflows

eldemir/Getty Images

Ugh. The worst.

The only upside? You can use these types of setbacks to teach your kids about the importance of emergency funds.

Explain that, even though your family has a budget, unexpected expenses are a part of life. So you need to prepare for them.

And if you don’t have an emergency fund, use it as an opportunity to start one — with the help of your child. Ask them to remind you to put $10 or $20 in a jar each week.

Together, you can watch the funds pile up!

4. On a Road Trip

Susan Chiang/Getty Images

When the license plate game inevitably gets boring, road trips are a good opportunity to talk about the costs associated with travel.

When you stop at the ATM on your way out of town, for example, explain to your little ones that you’re taking out the money you worked for all month. Make sure it’s clear the ATM isn’t a magical money machine that dispenses “free money.”

If your kids are older, ask for their help with budgeting.

What’s your family going to spend money on? How can you spend less? What are your trip priorities? Have them practice their research skills by looking up the prices of gas, hotels and restaurants along your route.

5. At a Baseball Game

Thomas Northcut/Getty Images

Hate baseball? Don’t worry about it: You can use any sporting event or outing as a teaching moment.

For example, you could give your child a set amount of spending money to help them learn to budget and prioritize.

“You want two hot dogs and a slushie?” you could ask, then tell them, “Go right ahead, but realize you might not have enough left over to buy that hat you were eyeing.”

Offer your advice, but if they want to buy something stupid, let them.

As painful as it might be to see them waste money, the sting of buyer’s remorse will teach them better than any parental lecture ever could.

6. When They Ask for a Cell Phone

Lorado/Getty Images

Oh, the cell phone conversation. It’s getting earlier and earlier, isn’t it? Pretty soon, kindergarteners are going to be begging for iPhones.

When your kid inevitably asks for one, give your due groan — then use it to teach them a few lessons.

First, that many purchases have two costs: the initial one, and the ongoing ones. So, if they want a cell phone, it means paying for both the device and the monthly service plan. Whether you’ll help them pay for it is up to you.

If you plan to have them contribute at least part of the cost, it’s also a good time to discuss delayed gratification and saving up for high-ticket items you really want.

7. When Making Weekend Plans

PJPhoto69/Getty Images

So your kids realllyyy want to go to the water park with their friends?

Instead of immediately saying it’s too expensive — or resisting for a while and then eventually giving in — spend a few minutes breaking down the costs.

Make a big list of activities they enjoy, then separate it into three sections: free, low-cost and expensive.

Explain they can do the free activities as often as your schedule allows, but the others must be reserved to once-a-month, or only on special occasions for the expensive ones. By doing this, they’ll learn to view the costlier activities as treats — and appreciate them even more.

You see? You don’t have to be a personal finance genius to talk to your kids about money.

As long as you use everyday opportunities to discuss concepts like spending, saving and budgeting, you’ll raise kids who are confident and money-smart — and who hopefully make fewer mistakes than their parents did!

Want more ideas? Head over to MoneyConfidentKids.com.

Your Turn: What’s your favorite way to teach your kids about money?

Sponsorship Disclosure: A huge thanks to T. Rowe Price for working with us to bring you this content. It’s rare that we have the opportunity to share something so awesome and get paid for it!

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This Study Shows Pursuing Money Won’t Make You Happy. But This Might…

If you had to choose, would you pick more time or more money?

(And no, as much as you might want to, you can’t pick both!)

My answer would vary depending on when you asked me. At the moment, I would pick more time — probably because I feel financially stable for the first time ever.

We’ve all seen the studies that say more time and more money lead to more happiness…

But new research in the journal of Social Psychological and Personality Science is different: Rather than looking at what people have, it looked at what they want.

Which people would choose more money over more time? And which group of people are happier?

Do You Want More Money or More Time?

The five studies, conducted by Hal E. Hershfield and Cassie Mogilner of UCLA and Uri Barnea of Wharton, asked people to “choose between more money versus more time” and “report their happiness and life satisfaction along with the amount of money and time they have.”

Sixty-four percent of people surveyed chose money.

BUT.

“Across thousands of adults representing a range of ages, income levels, and occupations… those who chose more time over money were happier,” the authors write.

And, more importantly:

“This relationship held controlling for both objective and subjective amounts of available time and money, indicating that what matters is the value people place on each resource and not necessarily the amount of time or money they have (or feel they have).”

That means — whether they had less money and more time, or vice versa — people who valued time over money were happier.

Unsurprisingly, time-choosers generally had higher household incomes and worked more hours than those who chose money. But even when controlling for those factors, they were still happier.

“Beyond the amount of these resources people have,” write the authors, “happiness is linked to the resource people want.”

Or, as the study boldly concludes:

“Although time and money are both valuable resources that give hope for greater happiness, choosing time over money promises a happier life.”

Your Turn: Would you rather have more time or more money? Do you agree with the study’s findings?

Susan Shain, senior writer for The Penny Hoarder, is always seeking adventure on a budget. Visit her blog at susanshain.com, or say hi on Twitter @susan_shain.

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Gas customers may be due refund after billing errors

Helen Knapman

gasimage.jpg

Energy regulator Ofgem has written to all energy companies asking them to check whether they have correctly billed gas customers, after an error at a big six company has come to light.

Energy regulator Ofgem has written to all energy companies asking them to check whether they have correctly billed gas customers, after an error at a big six company has come to light.

Providers have to report back to the regulator by the end of this week.

The move comes after E.on revealed it has wrongly billed some gas customers.

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Double blow to 123 account holders as Santander announces rate cut and overdraft fees hike

Tom Wilson

santender.jpg

Santander customers have been hit with a double blow as the bank has announced it will cut the interest rate on its flagship 123 account from 1 November, while it will also hike its overdraft fees in early 2017.

Santander customers have been hit with a double blow as the bank has announced it will cut the interest rate on its flagship 123 account from 1 November, while it will also hike its overdraft fees in early 2017.

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More families tackling the inheritance taboo

Moira O'Neill

family-discussion.jpg

More families are tackling the ‘taboo’ question of inheritance but far too many still admit to never discussing it, according to research by Investec Wealth & Investment.

More families are tackling the ‘taboo’ question of inheritance but far too many still admit to never discussing it, according to research by Investec Wealth & Investment.

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This Professional Photographer Started Her Own Business — and She’s Only 9

It’s the summer before Madison Harrison starts fourth grade.

Although she fills her days with summer camps and time at the pool, she isn’t your average 9-year-old. This girl also has a business to run.

I recently met Madison and her mom, Andrea, at a Tampa country club after an etiquette class where she learned how to set the table.

Madison greeted me, then eagerly grabbed her Nikon D5300 from her mom and slipped the strap around her neck. The camera looked enormous against her small frame.

We headed outside for an informal interview. As Madison skipped along, the hem of her bright sundress flowed behind her, as did her thick, dark curls.

She told me her favorite subject is science, and she enjoys playing tennis. She also likes making art and writing stories.

Before I could ask about her photography business, she started snapping pictures. She knelt down, leaned against trees and lay across the sidewalk — all to capture the perfect shot.

She walked over to show me a few of her photos. In one, the foreground — the bark of a tree — was out of focus. In focus were heavy layers of Spanish moss caught in the hot breeze.

Wow. It was really good.

How Madison Became a Photographer

Madison picked up her mom’s old Kodak on her third birthday — a princess tea party.

“I wanted to capture that memory,” she said. “I like capturing memories, and I also like capturing the beauty in everything.”

She paused to look at an iron staircase she’d rested on between photos. “Like this staircase!” she said, getting excited. “It’s old but beautiful, and I love it. Hey, that gives me an idea! I wish I’d brought my dolls.”

Those dolls — Addy, Isabelle, Rebecca and a stable of American Girl Dolls and Barbies — were her first subjects, and she still uses them to practice portraits before heading out to shoots.

Madison had a few lessons with local photographers but is mostly self-taught.

“I play with all the buttons and switches and things, and I experiment,” she said. “I try out each one and see what it does. I keep practicing and practicing and, you know, I just get it!”

She really does get it — so much so that she started her own photography business more than two years ago. Yes, that means she was 7 years old.

This 9-Year-Old Is a Photographer and an Entrepreneur

Photographs with Madison marks its three-year anniversary in September.

This isn’t Madison’s first business, though. When she was 6, she started Ornaments in Action, selling ornaments she made out of arts and crafts supplies. But soon she realized she wouldn’t make a steady income with such a seasonal gig.

Around that time, Andrea took Madison on a tour of a family friend’s photography studio while Madison’s grandma had her portrait done.

“I was inspired there because I was like, ‘Look how she’s taking the pictures of my grandma and capturing that memory!’” Madison said. “And it’s really nice because now I have a picture of her.”

However, Madison wasn’t sure people would pay a kid to take pictures. After talking with her mom and dad, she decided it was a viable venture and that people would actually pay for her work.

“I like making money,” she said with a grin.

So far, Madison has shot three weddings. She charges $50 an hour, but these, she said, are the hardest jobs because not many people realize she’s the photographer.

“Once I was at this wedding, and someone said, ‘Hey, you’re cute. Where’s the real photographer? I need a photo.’ I was like, ‘I’m the real photographer,’” she told me with a laugh. She uses a stool when necessary.

She also holds photo shoots, like the back-to-school one she hosted last year.

Madison’s mom estimates her daughter makes an average of $800 a year — closer to $1,000 if it’s a busy one. She would make more, but she has to go to school.

Unlike many 9-year-olds, Madison is smart with her money. She saves most of it — with encouragement from her family.

“I also have saved it for school and stuff,” she explained. “I want to go to Harvard and become a scientist and find a cure for cancer.”

She’ll still take pictures on the side of those activities, but photography won’t be her first priority.

Madison makes about $800 a year. She would make more, but she has to go to school.

Madison’s Most Famous Subject: President Obama

Image from Madison Harrison

Although Madison enjoys the income, she’s more than willing to photograph some events for free — like the United State of Women Summit in D.C.

“It was June 14, 2016,” Madison explained. She’ll always remember that date; it’s when she photographed President Barack Obama, a longtime dream of hers.

Earlier in the year, Andrea came across an opportunity to apply for press passes to the event. She tweeted:

@FLOTUS Can a #nineyearoldphotographer get a media pass to photograph this event? #StateOfWomen #photoswithmadison http://pic.twitter.com/QMPSSgnDf3

— Photos With Madison (@PhotosMadison) June 8, 2016

That one tweet and the ensuing hashtag campaign (#photoswithmadison) landed Madison a spot a few feet away from the event’s stage, along with 200 other photographers and journalists. She now has photos of President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey in her portfolio.

“It made me feel confident because I did something really huge that I thought I wouldn’t be able to do before, because I don’t know of any child that’s photographed the president,” she explained.

“I was very proud. My dream came true.”

A Young Photographer’s Advice to Entrepreneurs

Image from Madison Harrison

We went back inside to escape the heat, and sat down at a white-clothed table. Madison swung her legs back and forth as she spilled advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

“Don’t try to do it all in one day because I did that with Ornaments in Action, and it wasn’t really perfect,” she said.

She also encouraged people to stay focused. “Don’t switch it up,” she explained, rearranging the two spoons in her place setting to demonstrate.

“Also (…) if you’re going into an interview with someone to start your business, make sure you’re clear and smile and, like my mom says, you’re bubbly!”

Being bubbly isn’t hard for Madison. Armed with photography skills, ambition, dreams and a huge personality, this little girl’s going to do big things.

Your Turn: How did you make money when you were a kid?

Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. After recently completing grad school, she focuses her time and energy on saving money — and surviving the move back in with her parents.

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The Disney Hangover: Are Brand-Name Vacations Worth the Price?

If you ask nearly any American kid about their trip of a lifetime, almost all will mention Walt Disney World or Disney Land. Obviously, my kids are no different. They’re both girls and ages 5 and 7, after all, which means most of their waking hours are spent daydreaming about princesses and different ways to have fun.

Even though they’d never visited either park until earlier this summer, they were somehow already well aware of Disney and its magic. Starting at around three years old, my oldest daughter began asking about it, almost as if it were a rite of passage.

“When are you going to take us to Disssnnnneyyyyyy, Momma?” she would beg with a scandalous smile. My youngest child, who is seriously into Minnie Mouse anyway, got into the conversations shortly after.

She wanted to go to Disney World and eat in a castle with princesses, she once told me. And another priority – giving Minnie Mouse a hug – has also been mentioned ad nauseaum since she was around three.

I never planned to take my kids to Disney World, but I changed my tune when I ran into a work-related activity that would leave us with a few days in Orlando earlier this summer. Excited to surprise them, I dove right into planning.

But once I began digging into the details, yuck – I started questioning my thought process right away.

Disney World Costs How Much?

Scoring tickets into any of the Disney parks isn’t cheap, but the cost is exacerbated if you plan to visit only one day. A one-day ticket to the Magic Kingdom for anyone ages 10 and up costs $124 during peak season, for example, while someone under the age of 9 can enter the park for $118. Of course, add-ons like “park hopper” passes and water park tickets can boost the price tag of your visit even higher if you let them.

Multi-day one-park tickets ranged from around $96 per day down to $40 per day for a 10-day stay, but we didn’t plan to spend more than a day, nor did we see how spending more time at Disney World could possibly save us money.

And while it’s true there are any number of ways to save nominal amounts of money on Disney tickets – using the Disney credit card, for example or buying Disney gift cards at a discount – we were running out of time for this last-minute trip. As such, we bit the bullet, paying $515 for four peak-season tickets for one day at the Magic Kingdom. Ouch.

• Related: Is it Still Possible to Do Disney On a Budget?

Assessing the Value of Our Day at Disney World

Since I was already planning our flights and hotels as part of my work stay, I only took them into partial account. Still, the other costs of our Disney trip added up quickly once we got inside the gates – like a $32 double stroller rental to keep my kids out of the 100-degree heat, for example. A round of so-so pineapple whips for around $5 per pop. An air-conditioned, sit-down lunch that cost around $90 with tip, but was totally worth it to escape the scorching heat outside. Souvenirs were cheap, but also musts considering I gave each child a $20 budget to spend at the park.

We saved money by bringing a cooler of water and lugging it around with us all day long. If not for that, we would have easily spent another $30 to $40 on ice waters to keep us from melting right into the steaming hot pavement.

In total, we wound up spending around $200 at the park that day – and that was only possible because we got too hot and left before dinner. In my eyes, that’s a huge amount of money for frugal people to spend at a theme park for lunch, a few snacks, and a stroller rental. But it gets worse than that.

Remember how my daughter wanted to hug Minnie so bad? We didn’t see the character all day, and when we finally did, the line to get that hug was around an hour long. We did see other Disney characters elsewhere, but the lines were long and cumbersome all around. As a result, my daughter never got that character hug from, well, anyone.

Eating in a castle with princesses was also out of the question. Cinderella’s Royal Table, which is the premier character dining event at Disney World, was not only sold out for our dates, but exorbitantly expensive. According to the Disney Website, meals range from $35 for kids to $59.99 for adults, which left me with a big fat, “nope!”

At the end of the day – and after around 10 hours at the park — we had managed to go on about 10 rides, eat a few snacks, and avoid melting in the summer heat. And while we didn’t get much “magic” out of the experience, I will acknowledge that there was something special about letting my kids see that giant castle for the first time.

My kids loved more than just the sight of Cinderella’s castle; they loved the idea of what might be lurking inside, as well as the way it towered over the entire park. Plus, there was something especially fun about going on rides that were themed with Disney characters they already know and love. All things considered, nearly everything about our day at Disney was fun and entertaining as well. As for the lines for the rides, they weren’t all that long, either.

But, will we go back? Heavens no. 

In total, we spent more than $700 for a single day at a theme park, and that didn’t even include the costs of airfare to get there or a hotel stay nearby. It was fun, yes, but it was also a horrible value – especially when you consider what you can get closer to home.

Comparing Our Disney World Experience to Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari

A subsequent experience that drove home the poor value Disney offered was our trip to a local theme park a few weeks later. Set in Santa Claus, Ind., Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari is a small, local amusement and water park that is a fraction of the size of Disney World — but also a fraction of the cost.

Tickets start at around $40, and you can ride a combination of water rides and roller coasters throughout the day since the two parks share the same entrance. Plus, the park offers free soft drinks and sunscreen all day, making it an exceptional value.

During our two days there, we literally rode dozens of rides – mostly the same ones over and over. My kids hugged at least five or six different characters and spent a lunch break speaking with Santa Claus to boot. None of the creatures my kids stalked around the park were Disney characters, mind you — but what’s not to love about a giant stuffed cat and dog?

Lunch and dinner, while basic, was also a much better value at around $30 for a four-person meal. And without the need to haul around a cooler of prepaid drinks to save money, we were a lot more relaxed and a lot less tired as well.

With no magic castle and without a single Disney character in sight, Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari was an absolute blast. Better yet, we left feeling as if we could actually afford to come back one day – instead of feeling ripped off.

• Related: 10 Frugal Summer Vacation Ideas for People Who Don’t Fly

Final Thoughts

After visiting both a Disney park and a local theme park in the same month, I’ve reached a conclusion: In my eyes, Disney World is a fun “bucket list” place to take your kids at least once – but one where high expectations can easily leave you feeling underwhelmed.

For the price of one day at the Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom, I could take my kids to Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari for four days. That’s three extra days of laughter, a lot more rides, and a whole lot more memories to cherish forever.

And truth be told, it’s worth a lot more to us than the “oohs and ahhhs” of seeing one giant castle and a few Disney characters in passing. Plus, visiting a local park saves money on driving, hotels, and transportation costs to boot. When you add all of that up, what’s not to love?

If your family already loves Disney World or obsesses over Disney characters, then the price tag might be well worth it. But if your kids don’t care too much one way or the other, you might want to save yourself the trouble and hit up a cheap, local theme park instead. You’ll still have fun, but without the regret that comes with spending four times more than you really needed to.

Chances are, your kids won’t know the difference anyway.

Does your family love Disney World, or do they prefer local theme parks instead? What are some different ways you have saved money at Disney World in the past?

Related Articles:

• Disney on a Budget: Managing the Magic for Less
• The Elves in the Attic: Making Old Toys New Again
• How to Use Credit Card Rewards for a Disney Vacation
• Why I’ll Never Feel Bad About My Vacation Spending

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Best Work-at-Home Courses to Start Earning Money This Year

By Holly Reisem Hanna I’m going to let you in on a little secret. You don’t need a college degree to have a good paying home-based career. Even though I have two college degrees; a bachelor’s degree in culture anthropology and an associate’s degree in nursing — I’m not using the any of what I […]

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Summer downturn in house prices

Hannah Nemeth

Properties coming on to the market in England and Wales between 10 July and 6 August 2016 are 1.2% lower than the previous month, new research has revealed.

Properties coming on to the market in England and Wales between 10 July and 6 August 2016 are 1.2% lower than the previous month, new research has revealed.

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Wilkes-Barre native's story hits the big screen decades later

When Carolyn Toole heard of actress Meryl Streep’s new movie about a famously awful singer, she made plans to go see the true story when it hit theaters.After hearing that the movie was based on the life — and dreadful singing — of Wilkes-Barre native Florence Foster Jenkins, Toole made sure to attend on opening day.“I just found out. I said, ‘We have to see it,’” Toole said after she and a friend purchased tickets Friday [...]

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