Castle Inn in Delaware Water Gap undergoes epic renovations

Built in the era of the Titanic and Henry Ford’s Model T, the Castle Inn, tucked away just off Route 611 in the borough of the Delaware Water Gap, is more than just an early 20th century throwback. It’s a unique, spacious venue for wedding receptions and other larger scale functions, particularly for those seeking vintage flair. "The castle has a life of its own, a karma that draws people in," co-owner Theresa Veltri said, noting that everything seemed [...]

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Deeds Done

Chestnuthill TownshipWilliam M. and Pamela L. Keer to Monroe Retail LLC, Parcel Route 115, Lot 2, containing 4.3530 acres, $260,000Coolbaugh TownshipVernon Fisher (By Atty) Thelma Fisher, Bryan W. Byler (Atty) to Pavlo and Viktoriya Semenyuk, Land, Pocono Summit Lakes, $230,000Paradise TownshipCordial Cottages LLC (A/K/A) Cordial Cottages Inc. LLC, to Jies Cordial Cottages Inc., Property Tax Map No. [...]

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Castle Inn broadens its business plan: fashion shoot, hosting receptions

Built in the era of the Titanic and Henry Ford’s Model T, the Castle Inn, tucked away just off Route 611 in the borough of the Delaware Water Gap, is more than just an early 20th century throwback. It’s a unique, spacious venue for wedding receptions and other larger scale functions, particularly for those seeking vintage flair. "The castle has a life of its own, a karma that draws people in," co-owner Theresa Veltri said, noting that everything seemed [...]

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Tough odds, long hours spent in attracting businesses

Chuck Leonard, executive of the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, visited with the Mount Pocono Rotary Club recently to update the economic outlook.Some of the data was encouraging – spatterings of new jobs that lowered Monroe County unemployment to 5.6 percent from 6.4 percent a year ago, Monadnock Non-Wovens LLC finishing an expansion of its Mount Pocono facility, ongoing plans to revitalize the roadwork along Route 611 off the Interstate 80 exits at [...]

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Building a Good Personal Finance Mindset in Your Children

I currently have three children, all of whom are elementary school age.

My oldest is in fourth grade. He loves doing things outdoors and is probably the most athletic of our three children. He also loves to play games – both electronic games and board games – and enjoys reading fantasy novels. Of the three, he’s the most interested in giving to others, as he’s donated significant portions of his pocket money to charity.

Our middle child is now a third grader, and she’s passionate about art. She is constantly covering every table in our home with some kind of art project, whether it’s an elaborate drawing, an origami project, a bead bracelet, or something else. She’s probably the most natural “saver” out of the three children, as she’s quite willing to wait for months before buying anything with her pocket money.

Our youngest child is a kindergartener. He’s probably the most social of our three children and really enjoys just doing things with others. He often tries to draw our family into larger group activities and outings. He’s also the most headstrong of the three children and the one most likely to just pick himself up and try again if he fails at something the first time.

With children this different, what exactly can we do to teach them personal finance lessons that will really resonate with all of them? It’s not easy, to be honest.

Over the last few years, Sarah and I have come to the realization and agreement that, rather than bogging down our children in a bunch of specific personal finance details, we’re going to focus on just a few very key principles and hammer them home.

Here are the five key principles we’re teaching our kids, how we’re making it work, and some of the little tactics we’ve found useful with our various children.

Principle #1 – Spending Less Than You Earn Is Your Ticket to Personal Freedom

The idea here is simple: If you consistently spend less than you earn, you won’t have debt, you’ll have plenty of money to invest for the future, and before too long you’ll have an abundance of opportunities in your life, whether that means early retirement or switching careers or something else entirely.

For our children, the idea of “retiring early” seems pretty far out there. Even the idea of a career is something that’s really beyond their level of worry right now. Instead, Sarah and I try to look for ways in which our children can appreciate the value of having more options later on if they make a smart choice right now.

Here are some of the tactics we use to reinforce this principle.

We require that they save at least a portion of every dollar they get. This seems a little heavy-handed, but the purpose of this is to normalize the idea of savings. Saving a little bit for the future is just something you do whenever you get income, because the future is never clear. By doing this, you are naturally enforcing the “spend less” part of the equation.

We discuss the purpose of and goals for their saving. Naturally, children aren’t the most forward-thinking individuals out there, so we talk quite a bit about the reasons for not spending everything you have. For starters, you might be saving up for something specific, a big thing that you can’t afford with what you have on hand right now. Similarly, not spending money on meaningless things right now means you’ll have cash on hand later on if something truly special comes along – like, for instance, a 75%-off sale on art supplies for my art-loving daughter.

Whenever Sarah or I make an obviously frugal choice, we describe the reasons behind it to our children. How do these things translate into adult life, though? Since we encourage our children to spend less in their daily lives, we like to point out to them when we do the same thing. Whenever Sarah or I make an obvious frugal choice, we make sure to point it out to the children.

For example, I once took my two older children on a grocery trip where I basically pointed out every single decision I made that reduced the cost of our bill and kept track of each savings on a piece of paper. At the end of the trip, the total savings was nearly $60, something that my kids remember and that I bring up on occasion.

Principle #2 – Spending Your Money on Forgettable Things Is Something You’ll Regret

With the first principle, we covered why it makes sense to not spend all of the money you get, but what about simply making smart choices when you have a few dollars in your pocket? The reality is that some things that we spend money on have more meaning and value than other things and sometimes it makes sense to skip out on less meaningful purchases so that we have the resources for better things down the road.

Here are three strategies we use to help our children see this principle in their lives.

After they spend some money, we’ll ask them a few days later if they can even remember what they spent it on. Let’s say, for example, that my youngest son has $3 in his pocket and wants to buy some candy at the store. I encourage him to wait for something else, but he’s insistent that he really wants this candy, so I relent.

The truth is that a big lecture about being smart with your money right then isn’t going to really help at all, especially given my son’s stubborn streak. Instead, I use a different strategy.

A few days later, I remind him that he spent his extra money on something. Half of the time, he doesn’t remember what it is, and the other half of the time he usually regrets what he spent it on. He’d rather have the money and the opportunity now than the candy in the past. Repeating that little exercise when it happens reinforces in his mind that it’s a good idea sometimes to wait, even if you want something in the moment.

We then look at how that spending cut down on the money they have for other things. Let’s say my son spends $2 on candy, leaving with only a dollar to spend on other things. A few days later, we’re at the store and they’re selling a toy that he wants for $3. Rather than saying nothing, I take this as a learning opportunity. I point out that toy for $3 and tell him that if he had waited instead of spending that money a few days ago, he could have this toy now. I let him think on his own about the relative values of things and the value of waiting around for better opportunities instead of spending his money at the first window of opportunity.

We don’t “make up for it,” allowing them to learn from the regret. Sometimes, children get upset when they realize that they’ve made a spending mistake like this. It can be really tempting to give them a few dollars to “make up” for that mistake so that they can have the thing that they want, but I actually consider this kind of regret to be a valuable lesson. Instead, I encourage them to calm down and if they’re having a hard time getting their emotions under control, I’ll exit the store quickly with them. Regret can be an incredibly powerful tool for self-teaching.

Principle #3 – Most of the Best Things in Life Are Free (or Close To It)

One thing that Sarah and I often worry about is that our children will begin to equate money as being a necessity for having fun and enjoying good things in life. It’s not true at all – there are many, many wonderful things out there in life that don’t require money.

As always, a big part of making this type of thing clear to our children is by doing, not by telling. Here are three methods for making that happen.

We do lots of free things together as a family. It’s simple – we do lots of things that don’t require spending. We go to state parks and hike on the trails. We play games. We go to the library and check out books to read and movies to watch. We go to community festivals and free concerts. We go geocaching and hunt for mushrooms in the woods in the spring. Most of the things we do for fun cost virtually nothing.

When we do something that requires money, we reflect on that fact and whether the experience was “worth it” compared to the free things. We don’t usually do this in the aftermath, but instead we hold onto it until the next time we’re thinking about doing something together as a family. We’ll point out different options, but we’ll also mention that one option is free while another option will cost $80 for the family. Often, when our children hear that, the advantages of the free thing become really clear. The expensive thing might have been a lot of fun, but it usually wasn’t “worth it.”

We intentionally speak more positively of free and low-cost things. Often, our enthusiasm and outlook for various things and various activities does a lot to shape the enthusiasm of those around us. If you’re excited about something, that excitement rubs off. If you’re positive about something, that positivity rubs off. If you’re negative, that negativity rubs off, too. Keeping that in mind, we make a conscious effort to be very positive about activities that are free, not just as a money-saving tool in the moment, but also in terms of creating a positive perspective on those kinds of activities in the hearts and minds of our children.

Principle #4 – Focused Work Is the Most Effective Way to Earn the Most Money for Your Time

I’m a huge believer in the value of focused, deep work. When you shut down distractions and work very intensely on a task, whether it’s an ordinary household task or learning or challenging work tasks, focusing on that task gets it done faster and better than working in a distracted or unfocused way. The stronger your ability to focus on the task at hand, the greater your ability to earn a good income, period. You’ll also have more quality free time in your life as well.

Here are three strategies I use to imbue this concept into my children’s lives.

We set artificial time limits to encourage focused work for a non-monetary reward. For example, let’s say my oldest son’s room is messy. I’ll tell him that if he can have his room clean enough to present to guests in ten minutes, we’ll go over to the soccer field and kick the ball around until supper, but if he takes longer than that, we won’t have time to go. The goal of this is to encourage focus. He can easily get his room ship-shape in ten minutes if he focuses, but it’s often easy to get distracted and unfocused. Practicing focused work is invaluable, and that’s the purpose of these kinds of artificial timelines and non-monetary rewards.

In the absence of that reward, we point out the value of being focused on the task. What about times when there’s not a reward – in other words, most of the time? In those situations, I encourage focused work, but when the children fail to focus, I point out how their lack of focus is causing them to lose time where they could have both uninterrupted fun time and a parent that is proud of them. Dawdling just makes everything take longer, irritates others, and reduces the time you have for actual fun things. I use this as a key part of motivation when they need it for their chores. If they do it with focus, they’ll get it done quickly and they’ll get it done correctly, giving them plenty of time for the other things they might want to do.

We offer them opportunities to earn small amounts of money from extra tasks beyond their normal household responsibilities. This is essentially a tool to get them to practice focused work. We have a “job board” at our house where the children can earn extra cash for tasks that go above and beyond the norm. If they do it at a lazy and unfocused pace, they won’t make much – maybe $0.50 per hour of their time. If they focus, however, they can actually do pretty well at those tasks. I point this out to them whenever they decide to take on a task.

Principle #5 – Make Your Unspent Money Work for You

The natural end result of the above principles is that children will have at least some money that they put aside for the future, which is a good thing. The next step, then, is how to demonstrate the idea that money saved for the future actually works for you in a significant fashion. For example, if they put $25 in a typical savings account for a year, they’ll earn a quarter – that’s good, but it might not be that impressive to a child.

Here are three strategies we use to drive home the value of saving for the future and the power of compound interest.

While we don’t share specific balances, we often talk about our investments in front of our children. Our children are aware that Sarah and I have put away at least some of our income for retirement. We also make it clear to them that the money we put aside for the future actually grows while it sits there. The money we save earns more money, and that money earns money as well, and so on. We don’t talk about this phenomenon in terms of dollars and cents and account balances, but we do mention things about how our retirement has gone up by thousands of dollars on its own over the last year because of the money we chose to save when we were younger.

We relate the money we invest with to the things we choose not to buy. When we talk about investments, we make sure to strongly mention where that money came from. It came from not buying less important things. It came from not buying a soda at the gas station and not buying a cool new video game. It came from making supper at home instead of going to some restaurant. It came from spending a day wandering around at a state park on the trails instead of going to a movie in a theater. It came from choosing lower cost options that were still fun and realizing that those lower cost options have the big added benefit of making our lives better in the long run.

We encourage our own children to save their money, sometimes even with additional help. When our children have money that they’ve saved on their own, we have them put it into savings. Now, as I mentioned above, that doesn’t return very much money to them, so instead we offer them some “parent-sponsored interest.” Basically, we pay them an additional 1% in interest each month. If they leave $25 in their savings account for a month, we’ll put a quarter into their account for that month. This is based on the lowest balance for the month. That way, they can see interest working in their favor at a time scale that’s more applicable to children.

Final Thoughts

If there’s one overall point to take away from all of this, it’s that our personal finance lessons aren’t delivered as “lectures,” but are integrated into our everyday life. It takes the form of actively doing things with our kids, or in the form of dinner table conversations that they either overhear or participate in.

We try not to fall into the trap of simply telling them what to do, but making it a normal part of household conversation and making it a part of things they would do normally, like normal household chores and the like.

The more that sensible personal finance is seen as a normal part of adult life at home and the better it’s integrated into the way they live their lives as they progress from childhood through their teen years into adulthood, the more likely it is that it will be a normal part of their lives.

For us, that means children with a better shot at being successful in the world. That means children who are less likely to have to rely on their parents to get by financially. That’s our true goal in the end.

You’ll notice that none of these strategies really center around “lecturing” our kids about money. That’s because we’ve learned that they’re not really receptive to that at all. They’re much more likely to learn something by doing something themselves to see how it works, or learning through a conversation, than learning through being told a bunch of things.

Similarly, children are pretty effective detectors of hypocrisy. These tactics don’t work unless you’re actually living them in your own life and can show them to your children. Telling your kids to do one thing and then immediately doing something else is a sure way to not only sow mistrust, but also to tell your children that the things you’re saying aren’t actually things to put into practice.

In other words, if you want your children to act in a way that leads to financial success, you need to do it, too, and you need to do it in ways that are clear to them. You teach them how to be adults by example, in other words.

It’s a real challenge, but it’s also a rewarding challenge. Good luck.

The post Building a Good Personal Finance Mindset in Your Children appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Digitial Tithe: A New Way To Give A Tenth

The church collection plate could look a little different in the future.

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CashCrate Isn’t a Scam. You Won’t Believe How Much I Made in 1 Hour…

I’m always looking for new ways to make an extra buck.

So when we needed someone to try out CashCrate — we vet everything we write about around here — I volunteered as guinea pig.

The site promises you can earn money taking surveys, completing offers and shopping online.

But does it really work? Or is it a scam?

In diary form, here’s my completely candid CashCrate review…

A CashCrate Review: My Hour on the Site

4 p.m.: Register for the site and earn $1. Answer a bunch of questions about my age, income, marital status, etc.

4:10 p.m.: Earn another 50 cents for completing my profile! I’ve now earned $1.50 in 10 minutes. This is going well.

4:11 p.m.: Jump right into the surveys. Fill out my personal information on four different surveys, only to be told I’m not eligible for any of them.

4:23 p.m.: Start to get depressed from typing the age “29” and the marital status “single” over and over again. Head to our beer fridge for a pick-me-up.

4:30 p.m.: Get denied from three more surveys. Have I really spent half an hour of my life on this?

4:31 p.m.: Decide to watch the three-minute tutorial video. My mom always told me (to little avail) to read the instructions first. Maybe I’m doing something wrong.

4:34 p.m.: Learn the “offers” are where the money’s at. Pursue an offer worth $1, plus the chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card. See my progress bar going up and up. I’m almost there!

4:47 p.m.: I’ve been at “90% complete” for a while now, but to receive my $1 — or potential $100 gift card — I have to sign up for one of several dozen paid services. I should’ve known it was too good to be true.

4:48 p.m.: I’m drained. Time for a snack.

4:51 p.m.: Give it one last shot, and watch a three-minute video. Open a new tab so I can read celebrity gossip while it plays in the background.

4:54 p.m.: The video is over! And I’ve successfully earned… two cents. TWO CENTS.

4:55 p.m.: I’ve now earned a grand total of $1.52. It’s looking like a long road until I earn the $20 required to be paid out.

5 p.m.: Decide to call it a day. I’ve said goodbye to one hour — and perhaps my identity, since I handed over my personal information to about a dozen shady-looking websites.

Is CashCrate a Scam?

Though my experience was less than enthralling, there are a few important things to note:

• Young women are some of the biggest participants in survey sites, so the allotment for people like me gets filled up pretty quickly. You might have better luck if you’re from a different demographic.

• This is the first time I’ve ever used a survey site. If you’re more familiar with the process (and which offers pay well), you’ll probably do much better than I did.

• The offers tab is the place to go if you want to earn money quickly. Some require you to give your credit card number and sign up for free trial subscriptions; just remember to cancel before the due date.

So, is CashCrate a scam?

No. It’s been around since 2006 and has two million users. It’s free to use and — with diligence, or by referring your friends — you can actually earn money with it.

For proof, check out its Payment Wall, where users share their actual checks!

That being said, is CashCrate worth your time?

I, for one, won’t be using it again.

But if you’re bored watching TV, and want to click around something, feel free to give it a shot.

Or better yet, try one of these 32 awesome ways to make money at home.

Your Turn: Have you used CashCrate before? What did you think?

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.

The post CashCrate Isn’t a Scam. You Won’t Believe How Much I Made in 1 Hour… appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Business Briefcase: Seven Re/Max Realtors receive award

All earned more than $100K in commissions in past year Several Realtors, with RE/MAX Crossroads under Broker/Owner Yarrow Wilkins, have earned the RE/MAX 100% Club Award, which honors successful agents who have earned more than $100,000 in commissions in the past year In 2015, 22 percent of active RE/MAX agents earned this prestigious award. "It's [...]

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College is Getting More Expensive for Those Who Can Least Afford It

The numbers surrounding college keep growing — and not always in a good way.

More employers expect you to have more degrees.

More students are taking on more debt.

And, perhaps most unfairly, more colleges are failing to meet the needs of the lowest-income students they enroll — while still giving money to more affluent students.

How is that possible?

It’s all revealed in Undermining Pell, a paper by Stephen Burd on behalf of the New America Foundation, a nonpartisan think tank helmed by Anne-Marie Slaughter.  

The study analyzed the net cost of college in the 2013-14 school year for 824 private nonprofit, four-year colleges and 591 public four-year colleges. It focused on incoming freshmen from families with incomes of $30,000 or less.

And the results are pretty shocking…

The Growing Cost of College — for Some

First off, let’s talk public school.

Though it’s often touted as a financially viable option for lower-income students, this report shows that could soon change.

“Nearly half of public four-year colleges examined now leave the most financially needy students on the hook for more than $10,000 per year,” Burd writes.

“Back in 2010-11, only about a third of these public institutions charged the lowest-income students that much.”

If those numbers continue to increase, lower-income students may soon be priced out of public colleges, which is worrisome enough.

But the decreasing aid and rising tuition at public colleges are dwarfed by the numbers at private colleges.

In 2013-14, a whopping 94% of private colleges charged their lower-income students over $10,000, and 72% charged over $15,000 — an amount equivalent to at least 50% of their family’s yearly income.

“It is often the poorest schools that enroll the largest proportion of federal Pell Grant recipients and charge these students high net prices because of their own limited resources,” Burd explains.

Those limited resources have certainly led to some desperate measures…

Because while these schools are decreasing aid for lower-income students, they’re offering it to affluent students!

Why?

“School officials believe it is necessary for the institutions’ survival,” Burd writes.

“It’s more profitable for schools to provide five ‘merit’ scholarships of $5,000 each to entice affluent students who will be able to pay the balance — even if they have less than stellar grades — than it is to provide a single $25,000 grant to a high-achieving low-income student,” he explains.

Wow.

I mean, from a business standpoint, it makes sense. But these are nonprofit educational institutions — not corporations.

Doesn’t it make your blood boil to think an affluent student with an average GPA could receive aid over a low-income student at the top of their class?

“These actions fly in the face of national goals to increase access to higher education and help more students earn high-quality degrees,” writes Burd, and I bet most of you would agree.

What Can You Do to Lower the Cost of College?

Thankfully, the study doesn’t just bear bad news; it also lists the private and public colleges with the lowest net price for lower-income students.

If you’re wondering where to go to college, these schools might be a good place to start.

Private colleges with a high percentage of Pell students and low net price

Private colleges with a low percentage of Pell students and low net price

Public colleges with a low net price

We’ve talked before about how some of the most elite schools offer the best financial aid, and these lists underscore that fact. (In other words, keep studying, and don’t be afraid to put a dream school on your list!)

Other ways to fund college?

Look into free colleges and college scholarships, or start a side hustle like this student.

Or, don’t go to college in the first place. Get an apprenticeship or pursue a high-paying job that doesn’t require a degree.

Your Turn: How do you plan to get around the rising cost of college?

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.

The post College is Getting More Expensive for Those Who Can Least Afford It appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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What’s the Best Way to Invest $1?

“I need a dollar, dollar; a dollar is what I need,” sings Aloe Blacc in one of those tunes I can never get out of my head.

But really, what can a dollar get you these days?

A bag of chips? A half-hour of parking? Not a whole lot.

Or, at least that’s what most of us think.

That’s why I loved a recent piece in The Morning News that asked two dozen people about the best way to invest a dollar.

What’s the Best Way to Invest a Single Dollar?

The article polled people in a variety of professions for their thoughts on investing a dollar — from a banker to a pastor — and the answers turned out as unique as the people themselves.

I’ve included my favorites below, as well as responses from co-workers and friends.

Here are some inventive ways to invest one dollar:

1. Cup of Coffee

“I’d buy a (cheap!) cup of coffee for someone I admire and pick his or her brain for a half hour. Right now I’m focused on hiring and managing smart people, so I’d ask for advice, which I think would be worth far more than one dollar and the lessons of which I could pass on to many more people.”

Serena Keith, Director of Product at Lovely
San Francisco, California

2. Packet of Seeds

“I’d invest in a packet of perennial vegetable, fruit, or herb seeds: asparagus, sorrel, rhubarb, Jerusalem artichokes, horseradish, lavender, and thyme. These are hardy, ancient, unfussy, and unapologetically feisty edibles… [You’re] planting once and getting delicious returns on that investment for years.”

Daisy Freund, Senior Manager of the Farm Animal Welfare Dept., ASPCA
Brooklyn, New York

3. Newspaper

“Not the tabloids, but a credible source of news. It’s cheap, it’s informative, and staying current will help you strike up a conversation with people who could help you advance your career.”

Rob Friedman, Risk Associate
New York, New York

4. Clean Water

“In my travels, I’d say what people need most besides security and education is access to clean drinking water. So, if I had a dollar to invest, it would be in a nonprofit or tech company that provides water sources to communities in need.”

Ben Harrison, US Marine
San Diego, California

And now for responses from my friends and co-workers.

5. Lottery Ticket

“To me, a scratch-off is the best way to invest a dollar. How else can you spend one dollar and potentially instantly turn it into several? It’s just a dollar.”

Matt Wiley, Assistant Editor at The Penny Hoarder
Saint Petersburg, Florida

6. Savings

“No one ever got rich by spending their money. You create wealth by saving and investing. Live below your means early in life, and you’ll be able to do more than you could imagine later.”

Jake Wallace, Regional Vice President at Steadfast Capital Markets Group
Jersey City, New Jersey

7. Two Stamps

“Just this week I invested a dollar into two stamps. I sent cards to both my brother in the Army and my pop-pop to check in, tell them what I was up to and let them know I was thinking about them.”

Kathleen Garvin, Editor at The Penny Hoarder
Saint Petersburg, Florida

8. Candy

“At a penny candy store, you can walk away with 100 pieces of candy in one shot… You can spread a lot of joy with it. You can put it out at your cube and people will stop by and take a piece, but also generate small conversations that might not be had in the office without the candy.

“I love my candy dish and the people that eat the candy in it. It just makes work a tiny bit better, and if one other person has a slightly better day because of a Tootsie Roll or whatever, then that is pretty awesome.”

Sam Hubbard, Coordinator of High Performance at USA Volleyball
Colorado Springs, Colorado

9. Ones Jar

“Start a ones collection. Spend a year putting any one dollar bill you have on you at the end of a day in a container. You’ll be amazed how much you have after a year.”

Matt Deitel, Financial Advisor at Wells Fargo
Jonesborough, Tennessee

10. Penny Slots

“Try your luck at the penny slots. If you come out on top, invest the money for a future trip!”

E’vone Starks, Administrative Wine Buyer at The Patio Group
San Diego, California

11. Kids

“I would invest a single dollar between the two tiny humans we’re raising to be money-smart. It invests in their (piggy bank) savings, and invests in my happiness to see their joy over two quarters apiece.”

Erin O’Neill, Numbers and People Juggler Supreme at The Penny Hoarder
Saint Petersburg, Florida

12. Caffeine

“Buy a cup of (cheap) coffee and use the caffeine jolt to accomplish a task you’ve been putting off.”

Mary Donofrio, Director of News and Media at Utica College
Syracuse, New York

13. Into a Cup

“Give it to a homeless person. It will mean more to him/her and will give you the most satisfaction!”

Luke Merriman, Black Cab Driver
London, United Kingdom

14. Bingo Card

“I’d buy a card at bingo next week. If I win, awesome. If I don’t, at least I had fun playing and hanging out with friends!”

Heather van der Hoop, Senior Editor at The Penny Hoarder
Saint Petersburg, Florida

15. Packet of Yeast

“I love baking bread, so I’d buy some yeast and make two delicious loaves. I’d give the finished product to a neighbor, friend or co-worker. Relationships are the most important thing you could ever invest in.”

Me!

Here at The Penny Hoarder, we firmly believe every dollar — and every penny — counts. And these answers prove you can invest in your future no matter how much money you have.

Your Turn: How would you invest a single dollar?

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.

The post What’s the Best Way to Invest $1? appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Should You Switch Your Site to HTTPS? Here’s Why You Should or Shouldn’t

There are two types of SEOs:

Those who love the technical stuff…

…and those who hate it.

If you fall into the first category, you’re probably already experienced with HTTPS.

If you’re in the second category of SEOs, you might be a little intimidated by it.

If you are intimidated, it’s for a good reason, and I completely understand it.

There are some parts of HTTPS that are complex, but most of it is simple.

Furthermore, you don’t need to understand the exact behind-the-scenes work going on in order to implement HTTPS on a website. 

What’s the deal? Is HTTPS important or not?

The idea of HTTPS has always been a good one, and most leading businesses implemented it a long time ago.

However, somewhat recently, Google announced that HTTPS is a ranking factor.

Obviously, that got SEOs talking about and debating the subject.

At the time, it was a very small ranking factor, affecting less than 1% of global searches. Even now, it’s not a big factor.

However, security is something that Google takes very seriously, and it’s likely to become more important in the future.

Some SEOs jumped right on it and made the switch.

Most saw little to no improvement, but there was certainly anecdotal evidence of ranking improvements:

There is a potential benefit of making the switch.

On top of search rankings, you also get a pretty lock symbol in Chrome and Firefox.

If your site isn’t HTTPS, you don’t get this symbol, and sometimes visitors may get warnings about the security of your site on certain types of pages.

HTTPS: Explain it to me as if I’m five

I’m not going to pretend to know all the technical details behind HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure), but I can certainly tell you the basics.

The main benefit of HTTPS is that it makes your site more secure for your users. More specifically, it’s more secure when a user is giving you any sort of information.

It’s essential on pages where users are required to give their credit card information and/or other personal details. However, it’s a good thing to have on all pages.

The real change happens when a user submits their data. HTTPS is able to provide multiple layers of protection to that data:

• encryption – the data is worthless to anyone who somehow manages to intercept it because they don’t have the key to decrypt it (you do).
• data integrity - data can’t be corrupted, which is a good thing.
• authentication - it prevents “man in the middle” attacks, which means that it’s not possible for anyone to trick your customers into thinking they’re providing you data when they’re really giving it to a scammer. This is what your SSL certificate (more on that soon) is for.

Do you need HTTPS?

As an SEO or business owner, you understand that using HTTPS is a good thing.

But is it really necessary?

Well, there are two benefits to having it:

• a small boost in rankings (possibly larger in the future)
• a more secure site for your users

If you run a big site such as Quick Sprout, even a small boost in SEO results in tens of thousands of visitors per month. That’s one reason why HTTPS definitely made sense for Quick Sprout.

However, if you’re starting out, you’re not going to see a real difference in your search traffic.

In the future, it could make a bigger impact, but for now it won’t.

All in all, if you’re expecting to get a significant amount of search traffic in the next few years, you should plan on switching to HTTPS.

What about security?

If you just have a blog and all you require from your users is to enter their email addresses to opt in to your email lists, you probably don’t need HTTPS for security reasons.

However, if you accept payments or important personal information for any reason, you need HTTPS on those pages at a minimum.

Between those two factors, you should know whether you need to implement HTTPS on your site at all. A large portion of sites should have it, but not all do.

If you do need to implement HTTPS, I’m going to show you the steps you need to follow. I’ll provide as many specifics as I can, but there are many parts that will vary based on your site choices (I’ll lay it out for you).

Step 1: Pick a type of SSL certificate

SSL? What’s that?

SSL is the protocol that HTTPS uses. Basically, you need to install an SSL certificate on your site in order for it to use HTTPS.

There are three different types of certificates you can get:

• Domain validation – the cheapest and most basic; it only really covers encryption (from the three things we went over earlier).
• Organization validation – the middle choice in terms of price, which also includes authentication. If you’re collecting personal information, you probably want at least this option.
• Extended validation – the top of the line option, which provides the best security you can get with HTTPS. This is mainly for big e-commerce sites and sites that collect really important private information.

Here’s a nice little summary:

Google recommends that you use 2048-bit encryption certificates, so keep that in mind if you go with an organization validation certificate (which offers different levels of encryption).

Where to buy an SSL certificate: You can buy a certificate from a ton of different websites. They will offer different types at different prices, so you can shop around if you’d like.

However, I recommend buying one from your hosting company.

Why?

Because most hosting companies offer them in the first place, and many of them will also help you install them. So for convenience sake, start by looking at them.

For example, Hostgator sells a few different types of certificates:

You can see that the prices aren’t too steep.

Once you’ve bought one, you can then get them to install it for you on your hosting server (provided you have a dedicated IP):

If that’s not possible…Not all hosting providers will install the certificate for you.

At this point, see if they have an installation guide by Googling:

(hosting company) + SSL certificate installation

If that doesn’t bring up anything useful, contact their support.

The process of installing a certificate differs from host to host, which is why I can’t give you specific steps here.

Step 2: Create a URL map of your site and redirect

Take an example URL of:

http://www.example.com

Then compare it to:

https://www.example.com

The only difference is one “s” in the URL, and it’s before the actual domain name.

But it makes a difference. These are two entirely separate URLs.

What that means is that you need to create copies of all your site’s pages and then redirect all of your old “http” pages to your new “https” pages.

Although a pain, it’s pretty simple.

A URL map can just be a simple spreadsheet, containing a list of old URLs with a list of the corresponding new URLs beside it.

If you wanted to make changes to your site structure or URL format, now would be a good time to do it.

If you’re using WordPress, you can add all the 301 (permanent) redirects to your .htaccess file.

Each line should look something like this:

Redirect 301 /oldpage.html http://ift.tt/1VNr3Mv

You just need to fix the bolded parts.

If you’re planning to move to a brand new domain while you’re doing this, refer to my guide to moving a WordPress site for step-by-step instructions.

3. Update your internal links

You’re not quite done with linking yet.

You likely have many internal links throughout your site. These may point to your old “http” pages.

Ideally, you want these to point directly to your HTTPS pages.

Introducing relative URLs: If you’re lucky, you’ve been using relative URLs all along.

These don’t specify an absolute (entire) URL; instead, they tell your browser to add something to the end of the domain.

For example, if this link:

<a href=“/page2”>Link</a>

was placed somewhere on our domain example.com, clicking it would take you to:

http://ift.tt/TfmP3j

When you switch to “HTTPS,” the same link would take you to:

https://www.example.com/page2

which is perfect.

If your site wasn’t built like that and instead uses absolute links:

<a href=“http://ift.tt/1XSAqZR;

then you’ll need to find each link and add the correct new URL to it.

4. Update image and other links

It’s not just links to pages on your site that you need to worry about.

It’s also any other link to resources such as images, stylesheets, and scripts.

If you right-click any of your site’s pages and click “view source,” you’ll see all kinds of tags like this:

<script src=”http://ift.tt/1B6842P” />

The problem is that you need to ensure that all files used and served on your site also use HTTPS.

If those sources and image locations exist on your domain, you need to point them to the correct HTTPS locations.

If you have both HTTP and HTTPS URLs, you can use protocol relative URLs, which look like this:

<script src=”//www.domain.com/js/file.js” />

The double slash in front tells your browser to use HTTPS in front of that URL when the file is being requested from an HTTPS page.

Don’t forget about your CDN: If you use a CDN, you need to make sure that your CDN supports HTTPS.

Most CDNs do support HTTPS by now, but not all of them.

For example, Cloudflare does.

If they don’t have detailed instructions on how to implement HTTPS, so you’ll again have to contact their support.

Then, you’ll have to go back to your new HTTPS site and make sure that the source for all images is pointing to the HTTPS image location on your CDN.

To ensure that you don’t miss any links or images, I recommend using a site crawling tool like Screaming Frog SEO.

You put your domain in the spider text box at the top, and it will extract a ton of information from your site.

Then, click the “internal”, “external”, and “images” filters along the top to see what’s on your site.

If they’re all HTTPS, you’re good to go.

5. Add your site again in WMT

Now that your site is basically whole again, you want to get Google crawling it as soon as possible to limit the chances of your traffic being negatively affected.

You need to re-add your site to Google webmaster tools (Search Console) because the HTTPS site is considered a completely different site.

Then, you should submit your new sitemap in your new listing.

On top of that, re-submit your old sitemap (in your old WMT property) because then Google will see the 301 redirects and update its listings.

6. Do some quick testing to make sure everything went well

If all goes smoothly, you should see no change or a small positive bump in search rankings.

If traffic drops off significantly for more than a day or two, you likely have a problem and should go through this guide again (and ask your host or an SEO consultant for help).

First you should make sure that your SSL certificate is installed correctly.

To do that, use this free SSL server test:

Just put in your new homepage URL, and it’ll do a thorough test:

Other than this, you want to watch your rankings to make sure you spot issues.

Finally, you should click around various pages on your site and make sure that the HTTPS lock shows up correctly (green) in Chrome.

Conclusion

I know that you might not love technical SEO, but it’s important.

By now you should know whether or not HTTPS is needed for your site and how to implement it.

Although questions about the actual migration can be difficult to answer, if you leave me questions with as much detail as possible in a comment below, I’ll try to answer them.

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The ‘Guilt’ of Buying Something Fun

A friend of mine recently told me that my “guilt” from spending money was completely backwards.

Let’s say I’m going to a coffee shop, for example. My tendency would be to not go there at all and just drink something at home, but if I were to go, I’d pick out a cup of something tasty and probably enjoy it as I was drinking it, but afterwards, I’d usually feel like that was a complete waste of my money. The only thing that might change that is if it were part of hanging out with a friend I hadn’t seen in ages, or some other extenuating special circumstance.

On a typical day, something like buying an expensive latte from a coffee shop would leave me feeling guilty about how I was spending my money.

On the other hand, let’s say there’s something expensive I’ve been thinking about buying for a while, something that I’ve thought about a lot and researched, something that I know is going to bring me lasting enjoyment. Maybe it’s a $1,000 piece of homebrewing equipment, or maybe it’s an amazing vacation with my wife that we’ve talked about for years.

Whatever it is, I really don’t feel guilty at all about that purchase, even though it’s incredibly expensive. If it’s something that I’ve thought about a lot, made sure I could afford, researched appropriately, and realized that I would get lasting joy and pleasure from it, I don’t feel guilty at all about that purchase.

It turns out that at least one of my friends feels the exact opposite of this. Buying something like a latte at the coffee shop each day or a meal out for lunch doesn’t even hit her radar screen at all. She doesn’t feel guilty at all for those things. On the other hand, she frets and worries extensively about any big purchases, both before and after.

While I can’t exactly explain what motivates my friend’s relative sense of guilt, I have a pretty good idea of why I feel the way I do.

First of all, spending money on something that’s fleeting usually feels like an enormous waste of money to me. If I’m alone, I’m usually happiest when I’m minimizing my spending on anything consumable because, honestly, it really doesn’t matter that much. Buying something that’s fleeting and forgettable when I’m alone just feels like I might as well have thrown the money out of the car window. Whenever I do it, I feel as though it was a mistake because it directly costs me in terms of other aspects of my life. The fact that it may have been a small amount is pretty inconsequential to me.

This is why I’m so focused on trying and buying store brands – I want to spend less on those forgettable everyday essentials because they’re so fleeting and so unimportant to my day-to-day happiness. Buying a jug of Tide doesn’t make my life better.

This extends to my immediate family as well, though not as intensely. I’d far rather, for example, pack a convenient meal for our family’s road trip before we leave – because it’s quite a bit cheaper – than stop somewhere along the way, and I feel like such a stop is really a waste of money. I’d far rather eat a meal at home with them than eat out, so that on the rare occasions that we do eat out, it becomes something more special.

So, when do I consider those little forgettable expenses worthwhile? They matter when they’re a key part of building or maintaining a relationship I care about, like going out to eat with a friend who’s only in town for a very short while or going out to lunch with a potential business partner.

I also don’t “cheap out” when I have guests in my home. Why? In those situations, the expense isn’t about the item at hand, it’s about the relationship. Relationships have real lasting value for me and I don’t mind spending money in situations and on little things that might help maintain and improve those relationships.

Now, what about the big things? How can I justify spending $1,000 on a piece of homebrewing equipment (note that this is a hypothetical example) when I won’t spend $5 on a cup of coffee?

First of all, those big things are the things I really do care about. They’re tied deeply to something that really matters to me – a deep personal interest, a close relationship, or something like that. Most of those little fleeting purchases simply do not matter to me in any lasting way.

Second, I don’t make a big purchase without being completely sure that it fits into our current family budget. I’ll usually save for this big purchase for months, usually by taking money out of my monthly line in the budget for spending on whatever I so choose. That way, the $1,000 or whatever I’ve saved up isn’t actually impacting our budget in any way.

Third, I’ve thought about the purchase a lot and feel quite confident about it. During the period when I’m saving up for that big purchase, I’ll research what I want to spend that money on and think a lot about whether I want to actually spend that money. If I actually finish this period and still have a strong desire for that item, I’m pretty sure that it’s going to be a good choice.

None of those things are true for little incidental purchases. They’re usually things that I don’t care about, I’m often not sure if they fit well into the budget, and I haven’t given it much consideration at all. Just because the expense happens to be relatively small doesn’t mean that I should ignore these factors.

To put it another way, my guilt about a purchase has little do to with the size or expense of the purchase. It has to do with whether the purchase is actually meaningful for me in a lasting way, whether we’ve accounted for it in our budget, and whether I’ve given it at least a little consideration as to whether I really want it or not. If those things aren’t true and I’m still spending money, I’m going to feel guilty about that expense.

On the other hand, my friend’s guilt about a purchase is heavily tied to the size of the purchase. She rarely feels guilty about small purchases, but often feels guilty about larger ones.

Photo: Rob Sinclair

Which one is right? Obviously, I prefer my own outlook or else I wouldn’t live my life in that fashion, but that doesn’t mean that it’s the right choice for everyone.

I tend to think the philosophy of worrying more about larger purchases works just fine under the right circumstances. For example, if that person is automating most of their finances and already has their bills and their retirement savings covered, not worrying as much about little pieces and worrying about big ones can actually make a lot of sense. If you have, say, $1,000 in flexible spending over the course of a month or two, a $500 purchase is going to make a much bigger impact in that pool of money than a $5 purchase.

Similarly, I think the philosophy of worrying about less meaningful purchases makes sense in many circumstances, too. If a person is highly organized when it comes to their finances and knows where every dollar goes, being more worried about the actual purpose and long-term benefit of each dollar actually makes a ton of sense. In other words, worrying less about purchases that are more meaningful actually lines up well with how I handle my money.

More important than either of these things, however, is that you do have some sense of “guilt” or some sort of negative reaction to spending mistakes.

Spending without any limits at all is going to put you in financial trouble. You need to have some sort of internal guide that tells you that spending too much money is a bad thing and that feeling should grow stronger the more you spend and the tighter you make your finances because of that spending.

Perhaps you’re like me and that internal guide or sense of guilt comes from purchases with little lasting meaning. Maybe you’re like my friend and that sense of guilt comes from expensive purchases. In either case, our mind is alerting us to the fact that we might be making a mistake here and that we should rethink what we’re doing.

Trust that sense of guilt. Listen to it. Figure out what it’s trying to tell you. Usually, it’s trying to tell you something useful, something that indicates that maybe you should be making some different choices because the value you’re getting from your current choices isn’t adding up to enough.

There’s nothing wrong with spending money to have fun, but when you’re spending money in a way that’s leaving you feeling guilty, then it’s not adding up to nearly as much fun. Pay attention to that and make some changes. If you do, your life will be far better off for it.

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What Can You Buy for Less Than $50 That Will Actually Improve Your Life?

We came across this money question on Reddit this week — and we’re intrigued.

User servitefriars asked, “What can you buy for less than $50 to instantly improve the quality of life?”

Some of the responses are surprisingly simple.

You might not immediately think of $50 as a game-changer. And you may have considered purchasing some of these items, but think they’re too expensive.

The conversation puts it all into perspective.

We’ve pulled together the top 10 responses, as upvoted by the Reddit community, excluding anything that’s always free.

Here are some of the items users mentioned that significantly improved their quality of life — and cost less than $50.

1. Buy “Your Mum Some Flowers”

We’re not kidding.

This is the top response and definitely the sweetest.

Without leaving your couch, you can have flowers delivered to any loved one — but, c’mon, send them to your mom. Prices vary quite a bit, but you can certainly find options under $50.

2. An Attachable Bidet. Seriously.

Tired of your friends returning from European vacations and gushing about how bidets are everywhere there, and it’s changed their lives?

Thankfully, they’re finally starting to catch on in the U.S.

Because totally restructuring your bathroom isn’t in the cards for most of us, we have bidet attachments for between $20-$100 to give our toilets a dual purpose.

3. Slow Cooker

Parents in particular tout the life-changing benefits of owning a slow cooker.

You can make just about anything in it — meats, soups, stews, casseroles, dips, oatmeal, even some breads.

This Crock-Pot 6-quart slow cooker is just $49 on Amazon. Cooking for just one or two? Try this 3-quart slow cooker for only $20.

4. Seed Packets (for Gardening)

“Gardening is very therapeutic,” said commenter lemonriot, “so right away you have that benefit. Later you have food, cut flowers, whatever. Collect those seeds for next season. And so the wheel turns.”

Start a vegetable garden in your backyard, and enjoy the psychological and physical health benefits. Plus, you’ll save money on groceries!

This collection of 12 heirloom varieties of non-GMO vegetable seeds is less than $20 on Amazon. You can get this full starter kit for $35.

If you prefer planting flowers, get free wildflower seeds from FindABee. Be sure to share a bouquet with your mom.

5. Handheld Showerhead With Adjustable Spray Settings

We were surprised to see this on the list — at first.

But think about it.

You take a shower most days. For many of us, it’s how we start each day. For $20, you can significantly improve the experience.

6. Fire Extinguisher and a First Aid Kit

As user dryfire explained, “These are things you buy while hoping they don’t improve your quality of life.”

Pick up a home fire extinguisher for $20-$30. First aid kit prices vary quite a bit, depending on their contents, but you can easily find one for around $20.

7. Electric Kettle

Comments suggest more Brits than Americans prefer an electric kettle, but we can attest to their life-changing powers!

We have an electric kettle in The Penny Hoarder office — and it only cost $25.

They’re perfect for break rooms, dorm rooms and small apartments with no stovetops. Boil water quickly for coffee, tea, oatmeal and other creative recipes.

Or, pick up the stove-top version for about half the price.

8. A Good Pillow

What makes a “good pillow” is totally subjective.

It’s definitely worth investmenting in a comfortable pillow that doesn’t flatten into oblivion in a few months.

I got this contour memory foam pillow from Target for $24.99, and my neck is quite grateful.

9. Electric Toothbrush

We’re not surprised someone listed this, but a little surprised to see it so commonly upvoted.

Several people confirmed the life-changing effect of the seemingly boring tool. Improve your oral hygiene, decrease dental expenses and boost your confidence.

Get this Oral-B electric toothbrush for $49.95. Replacement heads are less than $20 for three.

10. Wine and Dine Your Friends

“Wine and dine your friends,” suggested user her_nibs.

“Not extravagantly at restaurants, just — hey, good to see you, want some beer? Hey, I made bread yesterday, have a loaf!” the user wrote.

They said it pays off in bartering.

“I can get big favours done for the price of a few loaves of homemade bread.”

Here are 10 good wines under $15 and some thoughtful DIY gift ideas. And if you’re ready to get into it, here’s how to get started baking bread at home.

Your Turn: What have you bought for less than $50 that’s changed your life?

Disclosure: What would Abe do? Probably pat us on the back for placing affiliate links in this post. Thanks for helping us fill The Penny Hoarder’s beer fridge!

Dana Sitar (@danasitar) is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s written for Huffington Post, Entrepreneur.com, Writer’s Digest and more, attempting humor wherever it’s allowed (and sometimes where it’s not).

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The Strategic Splurge: Saving for the Stuff You Really Want

While some people are frugal by necessity, others are frugal by choice. Instead of making careful financial decisions and living within a tight budget just to get by, they’re frugal because, in their minds, it just makes the most sense.

That’s why I always say that frugality, when chosen and not forced, is a lifestyle decision. When you have plenty of money to spend but you choose not to, your decision is about more than dollars and cents; it’s about value and the lifestyle you hope to achieve.

No matter how much you earn, there is value to be had in spending your money – and saving it – in a way that aligns with your long-term goals. Plus, there is an inherent value in the energy we expend to earn each dollar. I mean, we all work pretty hard at our jobs, right? When you stop and think about it, wasting your paycheck is a lot like wasting the hours you spent slaving away to earn it.

Of course, living a frugal lifestyle isn’t just about being less wasteful. In my opinion, the best thing about living a frugal lifestyle is the freedom it buys. When you spend less than you earn, you can save a much larger chunk of your monthly income — and that can translate into greater career flexibility and freedom from financial anxiety. It also means you can probably afford some tactical splurges here and there.

Even though I’m pretty darn cheap, I love a good splurge. But first, I save for them.

Five Steps to Save Up for a Strategic Splurge

Of course, it isn’t always easy. Even when you’ve got wiggle room in your budget, a big “splurge” can take months or even years to save for. That’s perfectly okay of course, and it can even increase the excitement once you reach your goal. But it helps to have a strategy to prepare.

Whether your splurge is a family trip to Disney World, a newer car, or a serious upgrade to your home, the way you go about it can drastically improve your results – and shorten your savings timeline.

Once you’ve got some extra money in your monthly budget to save for what you really want, here are some of the top strategies to consider:

Create a savings plan… and follow through.

When you initially decide on a big splurge, it helps to get some research out of the way. Start by figuring out roughly how much your desired splurge should cost – both now, and by the time you’ve got the money saved up.

If it’s a vacation or a new car, a bit of online research should give you a general idea. The same goes for a home upgrade: A quick online search can help, although you may need to call in an expert or contractor for a more accurate estimate. Remember that prices change by season and over time — so don’t count on an off-season travel deal being available at the same price during peak travel times. Likewise, if your time horizon is more than a year, expect the price to nudge upward along with inflation.

Once you know how much you need to save, it’s time to create a plan to make it happen. What dollar figure do you need to stash away? And, by when?

Once you have answers to these questions, create a savings timeline that makes sense on paper and in the real world. If you want to save $5,000 for a trip to Hawaii, for example, and plan to go in fall of 2017, you’ll have 18 months to save up: $5,000 divided by 18 months = $278 per month.

• Related: Why I’ll Never Feel Bad About My Vacation Spending

Make your bank transfers automatic.

Once you know your monthly or weekly savings goal, you’ll need to make sure you get that money into your savings account. One way to go about it is to make your savings automatic. Contact your bank and ask for an automatic transfer on a specified day of the month — like payday — then let your bank do the heavy lifting.

Once you make the transfer automatic, you’ll have to build a budget without those extra funds. However, the fact that the money is transferred without any effort on your part means you’re a lot less likely to spend it. By making transfers automatic, they’ll be “out of sight and out of mind.”

• Related: 10 Ways to Trick Yourself Into Saving Money

Open a targeted savings account… and don’t touch it!

Speaking of bank transfers, it helps to have a special account set up to receive them. By opening a targeted savings account just for your “splurge,” the money you save is less likely to fade into your regular savings and get consumed by something else.

Many online bank accounts are easy to open, charge few or no transaction fees, and offer better-than-brick-and-mortar interest rates. Some, like Capital One 360, even allow you to set up separate savings goals within one account.

By opening a targeted account, you can easily watch your money grow to its full potential, month by month. But once it starts growing, you have to keep your hands out of it!

• Related: Best Savings Accounts for 2016

Make strategic cuts – and bank the savings.

Want to save faster to afford your splurge sooner? If the amount of money you can feasibly stash away for your splurge isn’t as much as you’d like it to be, consider taking a scalpel — or even an ax — to your monthly budget and making some serious cuts.

Not only should you avoid paying for some things altogether, you may be able to whittle down your budget further with a couple of strategic sacrifices. Consider cutting the cord to cable, for example. Or, start hacking away at your grocery budget. Whatever you end up cutting, just make sure that extra money goes into your targeted savings account.

• Related: How to Save Money: 100 Great Tips to Get You Started

Stash bonus money before you spend it.

Most Americans have a tax refund coming their way in the next month, and others have already received one. Meanwhile, some of us get annual bonuses at work, commissions, or financial incentives for reaching company goals. Plus, there are always those months where income is higher than normal, either due to overtime, an extra payday during a five-week month, or even a raise.

Whatever your “extra funds” may be, make sure not to waste them! When you’re trying to reach a savings goal, the best thing you can do is hide that money from yourself as quickly as you can. Stash it away in your targeted savings account, then keep your hands out of the cookie jar. The sooner you have the money set aside for your splurge, the sooner you’ll get to enjoy it.

The Bottom Line

When at its most powerful, frugality can serve multiple purposes in your life. Not only can a frugal lifestyle help you sleep better at night by providing you with more financial security — it can also help you afford the things you really want in life.

Still, it pays to be intentional with your savings. By creating a plan, opening a targeted savings account, and having the discipline to follow through with it, you’ll get to enjoy your splurge without going into debt or worrying about whether you can afford it. You can, because you chose to save for it.

How do you save for the “splurges” in your life? Do you have a targeted savings account for a special goal?

Related Articles

• Five Things You Could Afford If You Didn’t Buy a New Car
• 40 Ways to Save Money on Monthly Expenses
• Five Things I Was Willing to Give Up to Save Money

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