The 7 Personal Finance Articles We Love This Week

I read A LOT of personal finance articles for the Sunday roundup and weekend newsletter I send out. You would think that would mean I had all my (financial) shit together, but that is certainly NOT the case. However, I have made some improvement. For example, I used to exclusively seek out financial horror stories about love and money, because they were the closest thing to entertainment with a financial undertone I could find.

Nowadays, my favorite type of PF articles (believe it or not) are the ones that take a super complicated topic, and break it down into layman’s terms that even I can understand. Some people think the endless charts, percentages, definitions, and vague financial concepts are one giant #snoozefest, but I’m always floored that people take the time to explain difficult concepts in such detail. For me, when one PF concept is unlocked, it’s like I have access to a whole other world of information that I can use to my advantage. I’ve come to learn how much of “success” in the PF world simply means having a distinct strategy under your belt. For a long time, I thought that as long as I saved money I was doing everything I needed. I set laughably simple goals for myself and stuck to them, but I never branched out to learn more. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned the value in having a more nuanced and thoughtful relationship with my money. My desire to read about topics I once wrote off as “too difficult to understand” has grown — I want to learn, now more than ever, how to make my money work harder for me.

That all to say, there was no shortage of awesome PF content from around the web this week. We have seven great pieces for you to check out below, which were rounded up thanks to our friends at Rockstar Finance. Enjoy, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts!

1. The Longest Two Weeks in the World — The Yachtless
“I’m working hard on finding more ways to detach, to be less focused on these paychecks, to stop wishing my life forward into the future… once those two weeks are gone, I won’t be able to get them back again.”

2. How to Find Two Million Dollars in the Morning — James Altucher
“Every day we make the choice of who we are. And the choices today turn into your biography tomorrow.”

3. 101+ Restaurants with Free Food on Your Birthday — Wallet Hacks
“We all know that restaurants will give us free stuff on our birthday – but who gives the BEST free stuff? We list 101+ places that will give you something good to eat on your birthday.”

4. King for Just One Day — Mr. Money Mustache
“Luxury experiences are luxurious precisely because they are novel…  most of the fun happens right at the beginning.”

5. The “30 Days, 3 Seconds” Experiment — Purple Sweatpants
“I’ve decided to try a 30-day experiment where I simply take 3 seconds following every purchase to notice… I’ve set up text reminders with my credit union so that every time I swipe my debit card I’ll get a text for the amount I just spent, and I’ll read that text.”

6. Try Alternatives for a Month & Bank the Savings! — A Life of Productivity
“By realizing that alternatives existed and acting on them, I had $504 of extra cash at the end of the month. According to my calculations, saving this much will let me buy me back 23 days of freedom later on in my life.”

7. What Do You Really Own? — Mixed Up Money
“Remember that ownership costs more than what you pay in this moment. Ownership costs your future self in money and time. Next time you make a large purchase, remember that what you can afford in that moment, is what you own (and that might only be your front door).“

 

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