Publishers send me books all the time. When I decide to read a book, I earn my Lazy Man moniker by choosing the thinnest book in my pile. Today that book is Matt Furey’s 101 Ways To Magnetize Money a book that you may be able to through in about 60-90 minutes.
The first few tips are about putting your mind in the right frame of mind - the power of positive thinking. I think you take it a little too far by leaving reminders like index cards around the house as suggested, but who am I to say. I once dated a girl who would write a letter to herself with a crayon… and repeatedly write it over and over again on the same piece of paper with more crayon. She said it worked it for her. I’m sure it did, but at the time all I could think of was, “Better to have a psycho girlfriend or a psycho ex-girlfriend… there’s a sitcom idea in this somewhere.” Anyway, back to the original topic, there’s something to be said for being in the right frame of mind. It’s good advice, but not revolutionary.
There are a variety of tips that I agree with:
- Prosper From What You Love to Do - I’ve been in jobs that I’ve hated. It was very hard to be successful when you are just thinking, “When can I get out of here?”
- Be Grateful for What You Have - I tend to think it’s human nature to look at what we don’t have as it helps us focus on getting them. However, we shouldn’t forget to stop and reflect on what you do have.
- Start a Making Money Ideas Journal - I did this… you are reading it right now.
- Daily Productivity Goal - I have a list of things that I want to accomplish each day. Sometimes they are short-term (go to post office, buy groceries), but I always like to have one or two longer term items on there (outline that new blog idea, get 5-10 pages of that eBook written).
And then there are some that don’t agree with:
- Expect unexpected income - The rest of the context sounds like he means “look for alternative income sources.” I could see people getting in a lot of trouble with the way it’s worded. “I bought the new Ferrari, because I was expecting an unexpected $100,000.” Let’s not even go into the conundrum of whether expected unexpected income really is unexpected anymore since you expect it.
- Always have Cash on You - I fundamentally agree with this, but he says that he often recommends that people carry $1,000 in cash to have a prosperous mindset. I think it’s going to suck that much more when you lose your wallet. Plus, to carry $1000 in cash you are going to have to have a pile of $20s (good luck on the back surgery from your bulging wallet) or you are going to have a pile of $100 bills that few places will accept if you need to actually buy something.
- Religious Overtones - There’s a lot of mention of religiousness in the book. Some people are not very religious or don’t believe in one particular religious book vs. another. I’ve still found these to people to be good people and often quite successful.
There are just a sample from the first 30 tips. I could go on, but it would be unfair to Matt Furey if I outlined all of them. I think these give you a good idea of the flavor of the book. From this rough analysis, I found that around 15% (4 of 30) are really good ideas and 10% (3 of 30) are things that I’d do differently. The other 75% is the type of mental affirmation stuff that I outlined in the 2nd paragraph (minus the weird ex-girlfriend rant). Perhaps it’s the way it’s organized into easily digestable tips, but I can almost imagine the information broken down into one really big blog post or a week of smaller ones.
In the end, there’s no way a book about magnetizing money is going to give you the actional advice on making money - nor do I believe it should. Mr. Furey’s book is $19.95 ($12.95 plus $7 in shipping and handling).
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Posted by Lazy Man on November 18, 2008 in
Book Review
A few years back, I had a gym membership. I always wanted a place where I can go and lift some weights do a little treadmiling… you know the stuff that I don’t nearly write often enough over at Lazy Man and Health. When my wife and I moved into my current apartment complex I noticed that they had a free gym. It’s not great, but it has 3 cardio machines and a couple of weight stations.
I always considered that gym I currently have a great value until this past weekend when my wife coerced me to go to her gym. She wanted me to try her Body Pump class (read my Body Pump review). It was probably the best workout I’ve had in months. (My body isn’t shy about reminding me of that with every move I make).
The experience got me thinking, “What are the advantages and disadvantages of paying for a gym over the free one I have?” I made up these two lists. Maybe you can tell me if I missed something.
Pros of a Gym Membership
- Forced Workouts - If I’m paying for a gym, I’m going to want to get my money’s worth
- Superior Equipment - I like elliptical trainers (low impact), but that’s not an option at my free gym. Everything is upgraded.
- Free of Distractions - When go to my close gym, I sometimes have a idea that I get too excited about. Sure I can bring a pen and paper and write it down, but the excitement of the idea is often greater than the excitement of the workout. If I’m at the paid membership, I’m far enough away to not to be tempted to come back.
- Classes - I really think the Body Pump class could put me in good shape. As my wife says, it’s a lot like a personal trainer. Once you are there, you are going to do the workout.
- Motivation - There are always a few people in tremendous shape at the gym. That reminder to see what I’m working towards is a bonus.
Cons of a Gym Membership
- Cost - I don’t need to explain this one…
- Potential Commitment - I don’t know if the gym is going to work out for me, but memberships often make you commit for a long term before you’ve had a month or two see if you are going to stick to it.
- Inconvenience - This is the tang to the “free of distractions” above… I can get to my gym in about 3 minutes. I could do so circuit training and get a decent exercise in around 20 minutes. I would mention that going to the gym in the winter would be a hassle, but with mild winters in Northern California, it really isn’t that bad. It’s not like it was in Boston where there are days you just don’t leave the house if you don’t have to.
In the end, I think this is going to be a tough personal choice to make. It’s hard to say what the right move is - it depends on pricing. If the gym is $100/mo., I don’t think it’s going to be worth it to me. If it’s $10/mo., it’s a no-brainer. My wife pays $29/mo., but I’m not sure they’d extend the same rate to me as she’s been there for two years. On the other hand, perhaps I benefit from a family plan and get a good deal. I’ll have to look in to details and see if the devil is in there.
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Posted by Lazy Man on November 17, 2008 in
Health
My wife persuaded me to go her gym’s Body Pump class yesterday. Not only was my ego hurt by the women doing heavier weights more times than me, but even my finger muscles hurt. That being the case, I’m going to cut right to the chase and get you the links.
From The Money Writers:
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Posted by Lazy Man on November 16, 2008 in
Uncategorized
I got the latest edition of Money Magazine yesterday, and Pat Regnier in his The Bottom Line column used the letter to his children as a literary device. It’s not unique (I’ve even written a letter to my high school self in the past), but nonetheless, I thought the idea was worth stealing flattering Mr. Regnier with my own letter to my own children. [Note: I probably wouldn't use bullets and bolding in a real letter to my children, but I think you'll find it easier to read.]
Dear Xetra and Dax,
- Your Names - Sorry about the names. They seemed cool at the time. I didn’t think your mom would take my bet. Even so, Matt Cassel himself didn’t expect to win the Super Bowl.
- Your Education - I’ve seen a lot of specialists make a lot of money. I was a specialist myself - one of a dozen or so people in the United States who could program a computer in a very propietary computer language. However, like me, a lot of specialists lose their jobs when that specialty goes away and have nothing to fall back on. There’s something to said about doing one thing and doing it well, but there’s also a lot to be said for networking well, writing well, speaking well, and knowing technology well. There are a lot of other valuable skills as well, but that’s a fine start.
- Your Time - It’s the most valuable commodity you have. Right now, you probably view it as an infinite resource. It gets more finite with each passing minute. Look for ways to do something well once instead of having to do repetitive work. Many mistake your Dad as Lazy, but it’s more about being efficient with your time.
- Your Money - If you haven’t learned it by reading Dad’s website by now, money is important. It buys you freedom from doing things that you don’t want to do. It buys you freedom to do the things that you do want to do. It also buys you the ability to help friends and family in time of trouble.
- Your Happiness - I don’t have it quite perfected yet, but I’ve been working on a recipe for this. Beyond that, I’ve found four factors of focus: family, friends, freedoms, and fitness.
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Posted by Lazy Man on November 13, 2008 in
Deep Thoughts
Regular readers know that I have an affinity for professional football. Sometimes I take it much too seriously. I’m not proud of it, but that’s why they call us fanatics, right? Every Monday, one of my favorite writers, Peter King, comes out with an article about all the happenings around the NFL. On a day, known for being the bane of many people’s existence, Monday morning is a surprising bright spot in my week. What makes Peter King a great writer, in my opinion, is that he draws you into his life. He’s not afraid to talk about his daughters, his experience at the latest Starbucks, or a particularly annoying plane ride. I love that even though I don’t have kids, drink coffee, or fly often, I still feel like I can identify with him - and that’s why my writing tends to have some of the same influence (so some people tell me, though I think they are being much too kind.)
It’s pretty rare that I can share any of his writing with my readers, because football and personal finance - not exactly something that fits together. Last week, was one of those rare occassions. This year he’s added a new wrinkle to his column, each week he picks out a NFL player or personal who gives back unselfishly. One week he pointed out that Jason McKie contributions to the military (giving tickets and even meeting the family before the game). Another time, he wrote about how the Kurt Warner family - at a restaurant - will pick out an family and picks up the tab for them anonymously. He does this to show his children the joy of giving - knowing that he is blessed.
This is a long-winded way of saying that I think I’ve found my second favorite Kelly in Peter King’s column last week (you’ll need to scroll to the Good Guy of the Week section). Jim Kelly, the guy who may be best known for losing 4 Super Bowls, may just be one of the people who saves your child’s life someday.
He lost his son, Hunter, from a rare brain disease called Krabbe Leukodystrophy in 2005. It turns out that this can be diagnosed at birth. According to the article there are 53 other fatal diseases that can be diagnosed today - and Minnesota is the only state that tests for them all. Kelly lobby’s the states to try to get them to test for all of them. While we can buy a kit that will do it for $100 (some of the best money I think I could ever spend), he wants everyone to get them for free. He makes a good business case as well since treatment of many of these diseases, though rare, is can be hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars… per year. He’s already saved the life of one child and correctly points out that it’s worth more than Super Bowls.
The only problem I had with the article is that the editors didn’t link to Jim Kelly’s organization, Hunter’s Hope. (I’m giving King a free pass on this one.) When you have a popular website, you should understand the tremendous value a link has vs. just stating the website’s URL in the text. Readers don’t want to read a URL and have to cut and paste it into the URL bar - so are doing them a disservice. It’s why linking was invented in the first place - and one of the reasons why the web is such a powerful medium. I can see if you might not want to link to a competitor, but a charity that helps children? Poorly done, CNN. I hope you see this and go back and edit your story to give them the link that they deserve.
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Posted by Lazy Man on November 12, 2008 in
Parenting
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