No Limits Ladies.com

This week, I’ve been crazy busy, going through another round of edits for my first “good enough to try selling” novel (the reason I haven’t any photos attached to posts – finding a photo takes time). This novel was written two years ago and has been constantly edited ever since.

However, re-reading it this week, I was disgusted with the “obvious” mistakes. Who would want to read this? Why would a publisher buy this level of writing?

It was far from perfect…

But it was acceptable.

You see, one of the highly sought after agents I sent this manuscript to (I figured send it to the dream agents first) liked it so much, she asked for revisions. Sure, it’ll be a better novel next week and it could be an even better novel after another year of revisions but someday (next Friday), I have to let the novel go, imperfections and all.

Because if I wait for perfection, the novel won’t ever be published (impossible to write 80,000 perfect words). If you wait for a program to be perfectly debugged (Microsoft), it won’t ever launch. If you wait for that perfect rental house, it won’t ever be purchased.

As E wrote this week, success can be owed to impatience.

I attended a women's event yesterday morning, to hear Kim Kiyosaki speak to the ladies. Knowing it was a nicer event, I brushed my hair and teeth (a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do). When I arrived, I was astounded by the amount of make up I saw (I was hard pressed to find the women under it).

Now, before you lable me granola and click away, I promise I have a point in here somewhere, and it has less to do with make up and more to do with mindsets. (But I do think if you have to draw on your face there may be issues there.)

Some women need to be perfect. They need to look perfect, act perfectly in their roles, and never make a mistake or show a weakness. To impress men? Hell no. It's often times a competition amongst other women or trying to proove something themselves.

I thought what Kim Kiyosaki had to say about mindsets (and money) was an amazingly appropriate message for any woman who feels she has to be perfect- and I'm not talking talking make up and hair now.

Kim Kiyosaki used examples from the book Mindset by Carol Dweck (a book I'm reading also that I'll most likely blog about when I'm done). There are really two mindsets we can have:

Fixed Mindset or Growth Mindset

A fixed mindset feels nothing will ever change, and is constantly working to be perfect and not mess up.

A growth mindset feels with effort and education anything can be changed, and welcomes new challenges, and godforbid, mistakes...as learning tools of course.

Which one do you think will help us as women become more financially successful? Here is a great quote that I believe summarizes what I'm trying to communicate:

"Aim for success not perfection... Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person."

Some were born with a perfectionst gene, some were not. It is a battle between nature vs. nature. However, mindsets can be changed. Embrace growth and find the success you want to achieve, financially and in life

My hubby and I are both currently working in office environments (not for long, two more weeks and I’ll have the summer off to write the next novel, yippee!). Most companies have reduced staff so much that the lunch hour is the time for meetings, not personal time. There is one upside to this…

The Business Paid For Lunch

Yep, lunch provided by the company to take the edge off of working around the clock (I’d prefer some noon time sun but have no choice). Not only does that save lunch money but food is normally over ordered. Anything left at the end of the day gets tossed in the garbage (cleaners can get fired for even eating the food out of the garbage – yeah, not really fair). So what I do is take extras home.

Now you’re thinking “yuck, the same thing for lunch and dinner, how boring.” It would be…if I didn’t have a spouse. The odds of both companies ordering the same thing for lunch are low (companies like to mix things up a bit). So we exchange lunches for dinner.

Today is Friday and we haven’t cooked all week. We’ve had Chinese, Italian, subs, pizza, every sort of salad and unfortunately for my waist line, every sort of baked goods. Saves money and, my favorite, saves time.

This can also be done for lunches paid for out of your pocket. Most restaurant meals are way too big for one person. Take home half and have it for dinner (or lunch the next day).

Last Saturday, my insurance agent and I went out for lunch so we could talk more about getting life insurance set up for my kids. As sole provider for two little frick fracks, I knew it was the responsible thing to do, but I was also hoping to find out more about how to borrow against my policy to make more money on that money.

I was shocked at how poor of returns life insurance actually offers...and the policies I was looking at were not guaranteed. I'm sorry but if I have to wait until I'm 70 to cash out a policy to, as my agent said, "Take a vacation to Bermuda", I'll kill myself now. (Of course, I'm being facetious.)

My point is, as an investment, for me personally, life insurance is terrible as far as ROI. However, it is worth the price of one meal out a month to make sure my kids will have another plan in place (you know I have a few others as well) to take care of them if something should happen to me.

Here is a great article by Nina, a fellow woman investor- she breaks it down and shows a great plan for setting up insurance to borrow against it, as well as other great information!

"The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now."

- Chinese Proverb

Last installment of my coverage of the Men’s Health article.

7. Make Every Third Date Cheap, Free, Or Dutch

77% of the magazine’s male readers always pay, with 50% typically dropping $150 or more. 7% say that it’s not unusual to drop $500 on a single date.

$500? On a date? If my hubby had dropped $500 on a date, I would have dropped him for being an out of control spendthrift.

And honestly, if we needed a $500 evening to keep ourselves entertained that early on in the relationship, I doubt it would have lasted anyway. We were lucky to make it through entrees without causing a scene.

8. Splurge On Shoes, Not Shirts

The thinking behind this one is to spend more money on the more durable purchases. Good quality shoes last (as long as they’re not too trendy). Shirts might not last past the next spaghetti dinner.

9. Keep The Big Prize In Sight

In other words, remember what you’re saving for. When I think of retirement, I don’t think merely of not working (or of being really, really old), I think of sipping hot chocolat in a cute little café in Paris (with my darling hubby miraculously speaking French and cooing sweet nothings in my ear). Making it as real as possible in our minds will help make it as real as possible in reality.

Earlier this week, I posted about 10 Reasons You Are Not Rich. One of the reasons has been bothering me: #2. You aren't patient.

I get the idea, since it sort of goes hand in hand with delayed gratification and avoiding the "get rich quick" mentality.

However, one of my most successful friends has often told me her success (especially in real estate) is due largely in part to her lack of patience.

And I'm sure you've heard the saying, " Good things come to those who wait, but only what is left behind by those who hustle."

I think overall, people are far too patient. Maxing out 401k's waiting for years and years to pull any money out of stocks or retirement accounts. Patiently giving money to other people to manage it and hoping for a small return. Yes, I think by an large, we are far too patient. And too many of us, especially us ladies who are far less likely to get out there an be impatient or aggressive, will end up with what was left behind buy those who got out there an impatiently hustled harder than us.

"It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else."

- Erma Bombeck

Ramit at IWillTeachYouToBeRich tells us about a sexy new contest for budding female entrepreneurs. The best business idea whipped up on a paper napkin (or equivalent space) wins $1,000. There is an age requirement (at least 50% of the team has to be younger than 35...oh, dear does that mean 35 is old?) and you have to get your entries in by Friday.

What do you have to lose?

Women entrepreneurs: Submit an idea, win $1,000 by this Friday

Oh, and don't be concerned about ideas being stolen. Ideas are not often stolen until the product is proved successful (so if you're already making millions off your product, please don't try to win the $1,000).

Continuing on yesterday’s post (covering the Men’s Health Article)…

4. Postpone Gadget Purchased For 3 Months

Now I’m not a gadget girl (completely tech inept) but I do make big splurge purchases from time to time (sometimes I buy drilling stocks with my mad money right before a sector rotation OUT of drilling stocks). This tip is to give ourselves a cooling off time frame before committing to the purchase. Not only does this get rid of impulse purchases but it gives us time to bargain hunt. In the case of the drilling stock, it would have saved me 50% off the purchase price (ouch).

5. Send An Extra $10 To Your Friends At Mastercard

One in five Men’s Health readers owe more than a month’s salary and make the minimum payments (still think you should leave all the finance thinking to your hubby or boyfriend??). With the high interest charge for credit cards, even $10 more can result in significant savings.

6. Buy Only One Round A Night, Preferably The Last One

Guys like to pick up the tab, even for other guys. But girls, we’re just as guilty of this. For me, its picking up gifts for loved ones. A family member will hint about wanting something, then talk about being sad or depressed (or in my Mom’s case, not living forever), and the next thing I know I’m plunking down my allowance money to buy the item. The thing is that treats are only appreciated when they’re treats. If they’re a constant thing, loved ones take them (and us) for granted.

I always have several books that I'm reading on any given day. What can I say, I'm a little ADD (ok, a lot). I'm finishing up The 48 Laws of Power, which I might take some time and blog about.

This last week, I also picked up Blink by Malcom Gladwell and Mindset by Carol Dweck. (I actually discovered Mindset on Guy Kawasaki's blog)These last two tie together amazingly well. It's no coincidence I'm reading them at the same time...someone somewhere is trying to tell me something..wait- maybe it's me...

Also, I am currently re-reading Rich Woman by Kim Kiyosaki as part of the Rich Woman Book Study through Rich Woman.com- which we welcome any of you ladies to take part in!

"A constant struggle, a ceaseless battle to bring success from inhospitable surroundings, is the price of all great achievements."

- Orison Swett Marden

I've been questioned before why I blog semi-anonymously. I don't use my real name. I don't use the names of loved ones. I don't talk about where I live or where I work. I only give out enough information to effectively communicate my message.

Hugh at gapingvoid has unfortunately answered that question today. I suggest that any female blogger or future female blogger read his post and follow the links. Think about what happened and then take the precautions that you need to take to feel safe.

My obsessive-compulsive hubby is on a health kick so he’s been borrowing fitness books and mags from the library (we’ll also eat brown everything, brown rice, brown bread, even brown crackers but that’s a whole other rant).

Browsing through last April’s copy of Men’s Health (99.9% of the articles are on making money, uncovering ripped abs and of course how to land hot girls), there’s an article Money To Burn – 9 Simple Ways To Build 7 Figures. I thought it would be fun to cover it this week (besides I received a request from a publisher for a full manuscript and am rushing to give it one more edit ...my creative ideas are tapped).

1. Create a personal expense account.

“Seventy percent of you have a savings account, but less than half of you use it. This wouldn’t be a criminal offense, except that almost 30 percent of you regularly pay overdraft or late fees, because you don’t have enough money in your account to pay your bills on time, every time.”

The solution?

The author, Anya Kamenetz, suggests putting enough money in the checking account to waive the service fees and to pay the months bills. The rest goes into a savings account.

Basically this is pay yourself first which we know works (I use this myself). Takes the budgeting out of managing money.

2. Go to the ATM once a week, no more

Experts say going to the ATM more than once a week is a red flag that our finances are in trouble.

I get paid once every two weeks so it really doesn’t make sense to go to the bank more than once a week. And the more I take out, the more I spend. The hubby and I give ourselves allowances and when the cash is gone, I quit spending.

3. Take a salary cut.

Again, not exactly earth shattering advice. If your 401k plan offers up a match, that is like free money. And contributing 10% to the 401k with the tax savings is only a drop of about 7% in take home.

I ran across this Freakonomics blog post "This isn't cheating is it?" which I found very interesting. It's not really about women or finance, but it is about how the world of business (one of the subjects we cover) is changing, and that means there are new rules for the same old games. If you don't know the new rules, that doesn't mean the people who do and are fullly utilizing these rules are cheating- it means you got left behind.

I saw an example of what the post was referring to, unknown authors becoming best selling authors in one day using online marketing methods, earlier this year.

I met Frank Rumbauskas, author of Never Cold Call Again through an Arizona Republic online forum. He said he was a best selling author. So I Googled him. He had over 30 pages of links, articles, etc. to promote Never Cold Call Again before it came out. I was stunned. He had carefully implemented an extensive online marketing plan that allowed him to become the number one best selling author on Amazon the day Ann Coulter's book Godless came out...even with all the media frenzy she stirred up.

There was no cheating- Frank simply understood how to utilize a new marketing tool. How can we learn more about the new rules and make them work for us?

"The wise man bridges the gap by laying out the path by means of which he can get from where he is to where he wants to go."

- John Morgan and Ewing Webb

Rich Woman.com is hosting a Book Study through Rich Woman, a book on investing for women, by Kim Kiyosaki. Click here for the overview and full book study schedule. Each Monday evening, a new thread is started on the Rich Woman forums for the currnet chapter being discussed. Grab yourself a copy of Rich Woman, follow along and join the discussion with other like-minded women!

Stephanie over at Back in Skinny Jeans posted some thoughts about The Street's article 10 Reasons You Aren't Rich. I feel like she makes a very good point- see what other ones may be good for you to hear:

The article says:

The reason why you aren't a millionaire (or on your way to becoming one) is really quite simple. You probably assume it's because you aren't earning enough money, but the truth is that for most people, whether or not you become a millionaire has very little to do with the amount of money you make. It's the way that you treat money in your daily life.

Here are 10 possible reasons you aren't a millionaire:
1. You Care What Your Neighbors Think

2. You Aren't Patient

3. You Have Bad Habits

4. You Have No Goals

5. You Haven't Prepared

6. You Try to Make a Quick Buck

7. You Rely on Others to Take Care of Your Money

8. You Invest in Things You Don't Understand

9. You're Financially Afraid

10. You Ignore Your Finances

Skinny Jeans Stephanie made this observation:

Number 7 on the list, "You rely on others to take care of your money," is a common thing that we women do. Ladies, take ownership of your money, and increase your financial literacy. You worked hard for that money, so make it work for you so you get to the point where your money makes you money, and you get to enjoy life.

While I agree with the list, I give a wholehearted "Amen" to what Stephanie has to say. In her book Rich Woman, Kim Kiyosaki also warns about the dangers of "Mr. Helpers" and encourages women to increase our financial education:

It's a process. It won't happen overnight. But please do not make the biggest mistake of all, which is thinking that men know more than you. Just because someone calls himself a 'financial expert', don't assume he knows anything about what is best for you and your money. If you think, 'They all know more than me', then you will fall prey to the 'Mr. Helpers' of the world, and never be in control of your money.

The key to being rich or financially free, especially as a woman, lies in the amount of control we have over our money. How much in control are you?

One of my sisters is a teacher. Now teachers don’t make a whole lot of money (especially compared to other professions like doctors, lawyers, garbage men) but they do have some opportunities to earn a little extra cash on the side…by tutoring.

By a little, I mean a little. Tutors are often paid close to minimum wage, even when tutoring groups. A college math tutor can make about $9.00/hr. A primary or secondary school tutor can make even less.

And teachers aren’t the only ones eligible for the tutoring gig. A buddy volunteered tutoring students in grade school math and English. Out of that gig came offers from wealthier parents (not qualifying for the program) to tutor their kids for cash.

‘Course it goes without saying that you will have to offer up proof that you’re safe to be around children. Don’t be surprised if parents check you out with the local law enforcement agencies and if they ask for references. It’s only fair. I know if I had kids, I’d do the same.

Tutors are usually expected to go to the children’s houses or to a neutral location like the library (sometimes parents expect tutors to be the equivalent of a baby sitter). They need to, of course, remain current with the school curriculum. Great tutors ask for a copy of the school textbooks so they can plan lessons ahead of schedule. They also have to show results (usually better grades). But it can be a rewarding way of earning some extra cash.

"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

I read today that according to Human Nature, 66% of women say they’d prefer a long-term partner who’s a creative but poor businessman to a rich but uncreative businessman.

Excuse me?

Okay, lets handle the obvious flaw in this question first. Rich but uncreative businessmen do NOT exist (so yes, I would prefer a real man to an imaginary one). There’s a reason that I take 4 months off a year to write my books and that’s because when I get home from solving problems all day, my creative juices are zapped (look at some of my posts for proof). I have nothing left, nothing.

That’s why I plan meals on the weekend. That’s why I usually do the bulk of my blogging on the weekend (only tweaking during the week). Heck, that’s why I lay out my clothes for the week on the weekend (‘cause I’d stand in front of my closet and not have a clue what goes with what).

If you’re a successful businessperson, you’re likely creative. You can answer audit questions on the fly (lately I’m blaming everything on the U.S. dollar), you can whip up a last minute sound bite for the media, you know the difference between sky blue and cobalt blue when settling packaging disputes (I was once in a four hour discussion over which would sell more juice).

The other issue with the question is who in the world would pick creativity over fiscal responsibility?? Not many women over the age of 25. The starving artist type can be sexy, sure, when someone else is doing the starving. I don’t know about you but I like my electricity turned on and my pantry full.

But maybe I’m the minority. So if you’d prefer creative but poor over rich but uncreative, drop me a comment. I’d love to hear from you.

Writers call it writer’s block. However, most creative fields have the equivalent and believe me, being an entrepreneur or an investor is a creative field. Use that big brain long and hard enough and you’re going to hit a wall, drained of all possible ideas and solutions.

When my brain gets zapped, I pull something out of my bag of tricks. My fave has to be breaking into a brand new book, especially one designed for exactly that purpose.

Like It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be by Paul Arden.

This book is small, short, has pictures, white space out the kazoo, not a lot of words and some of those words are upside down or in red or in monster large font.

Which is exactly why it works.

Sure, there are some valuable insights like “Do Not Covet Your Ideas.”
“If you give away everything you have, you are left with nothing. This forces you to look, to be aware, to replenish.”

But the real value is the mental stimulation of merely reading the book. I was thrown out of my comfort zone. My brain had to use muscles it hadn’t exercised in a while. Those muscles, once warmed up, started pumping out fresh, new solutions. Solutions that could make me money.

And I was back.

"The future is not in the hands of fate, but in ours."

- Jules Jusseran

A while back, I suggested free seminars as an inexpensive way to expand your knowledge base but what about paid seminars?

They could be worth it. One solid money making idea could more than pay for the seminar fee.

…Or they could not.

The first thing that I would do is run a Google search on the seminar speaker and organizers. Read, read, read the reviews. The good, the bad, and the outright scammy. If there are red flags, heed them.

The second thing that I would do is email the organizers (the contact page of the website) at least one question about the seminar. If they don’t return the email, odds are they don’t want anything in writing. Usually a very bad sign.

Of course, the best seminars are the ones family, friends, coworkers, bosses have attended in the past and now recommend. I always think long and hard before recommending that people I know plunk down their hard earned cash. I know that if there are problems, I will hear about it.

Don’t think that a big name means everything is above board and legit. Recently a seminar has been advertised in my area. Guests include Donald Trump, Richard Branson, George Foreman, David Bach. They’re advertised as being “Live.”

In this age of telecasting, live does NOT mean in person.

I emailed the company asking if Trump was there in person. No response. Then I Googled it. And found comments like this “There was no opportunity to ask questions whatsoever.” “The hustle and pressure tactics were unbearable.” “The seminars were little more than a series of infomercials for the speakers personal books and “business systems.”

So I’m figuring that in this case I was likely right. Live does not mean in person. And if you can’t even ask questions then I might as well read their books or watch their interviews on YouTube.

"When you get right down to the root of the meaning of the word 'succeed,' you find that it simply means to follow through."

- F. W. Nichol

Y’all know that I love my romance novels. So much so that someday I will get my very own ideas published (I don’t know why editors aren’t chomping on the bit for my romance set around business succession planning). But until then, I’m happy to be one of its biggest fans.

That’s why when THE romance blog RomancingTheBlog asked for posts by readers, my little hand flew into the air so fast, I almost gave myself whiplash. “Pick me, pick me” (like Donkey from the Shrek Idol game).

And for some wacky reason, they did pick me. My first post is up there today, Formatting Fetishes I Have Known (yep, tackling those serious issues). I'm a little nervous about writing for writers so please drop by and say hi.

The hour Q&A session spent with Chris Gardner was jammed full of learning. If I wanted to feature all the points in separate posts, it would be Chris Gardner month here on No Limits Ladies.

So instead I’m going to try something different and make this into a snippet post. Random thoughts. Pieces of Chris Gardner (and yes, ladies, he is WAY better looking in person).

On bringing his daughter to the Oscars
She was wearing a designer gown and $200,000 of diamonds. He spent the night telling her “you better not drop nothing.”

On the best selling book The Secret
“If it was a secret, I won’t tell nobody.”
After having the concept explained to him (he hadn’t read the book), he commented that it sounded like karma except “we don’t get no $29.95 for karma.”

On immediately entering the brokerage firm
“I knew this was where I was supposed to be.”

On changing relationships
A small business woman from the audience was having trouble with her new found success. She asked what to do with the people that no longer support her.
Gardner advised telling herself “this is where I’m going and you can’t take everyone with you.” He pointed out that it is very difficult to go anywhere while carrying people.

On business success
“Everyone is good, building a relationship is how business gets done.”

On the difference between sons and daughters.
His son is in his mid 20’s and still hasn’t figured out what he wants to do with his life.
His daughter had a plan at birth.
When telling a friend that, he was told “if you had had your daughter first, you would have thought your son was retarded.”

On not helping his son with his career plans
Gardner had to step back. He told his son that he was “hurting you by trying to help you.”

I wish that I could say I covered the entire hour in these last 3 posts. Unfortunately the wit and words were flying so quickly that my pen couldn’t keep up. So if you get the chance to hear the man in person, I would highly recommend taking the time.

"When you believe you can-you can!"

- Maxwell Maltz

Ask any successful person about their war stories and they’ll come up with at least one impressive example of putting in more work than any sane person ever would.

For me, it was sending out over 1,000 resumes by mail and paid for fax (back before emails were commonplace) to land that first full time job after graduation (and that, despite my accounting degree and over two years of student experience, was a receptionist/network administrator/accountant/salesgal job at less than minimum wage). Whenever karma is kicking my butt, I remember back to that difficult time. Funding my job search with borrowed money (from friends).

For Chris Gardner, it was his first year in the financial services business. He was homeless (he tossed out the fact that 12% of all homeless in America have jobs and go to work everyday) and sleeping under his desk but not hopeless.

Was he given leads?

Sure, he was. It was called the phone book, the white pages.

Where did he start? With the letter “A”. Gardner played the numbers game, cold calling 200 numbers a day. He held up his rotary dialing finger with a permanent bend (even more serious than headphone head).

I’ve done cold calling (how I expanded my repertoire of profanities). It will make the most optimistic person cry. But here was Gardner, day after day, calling complete strangers, trying to sell them stock, as he said “lighting it up everyday”.

So if you’re struggling right now to fund that first start up or to buy that first rental property or to scrape up enough cash for a single lot of stock, remember all successful people have war stories. It’s one of the first stripes they earn. Oh, and they get to tell that story for decades after wards so savor the moment.

"Do a little more each day than you think you can."

- Lowell Thomas

I hear so many excuses for why people can’t build wealth or make their dreams come true or even balance their checkbooks. Well, I had the pleasure of attending a Q&A session with Chris Gardner of The Pursuit Of Happyness fame last night and one by one, he demolished the excuses coming from the audience.

The word for the night had to be “choice.” He stressed time and time again that he made “a conscious choice to go the other way, the good way.” Gardner could have easily become his stepfather, an “alcoholic, wife abuser, illiterate loser” who got his thrills by telling a young boy (Gardner) “I ain’t your daddy. You don’t got no daddy.”

But he didn’t.

For that, Gardner gives full credit to his mom and seeing ghosts. She would get up every day, after being beaten down, and continue to go forward. She was the one who told Gardner that he was going to be a millionaire. When he found it difficult to believe, she said “no one has to see it but you.” (the seeing ghosts)

Isn’t that the truth? Why do we go around looking for approval for our dreams? Those dreams are ours and ours alone. Only we have to believe in them.

If Gardner could say anything to abused children today, he would tell them “you’re not alone.” There are so many young people and people his age that survived (I’m holding up my hand here). You “don’t have to pass on what you got from your folk.” (Again holding up my hand.) “Find the light in your world and embrace it.”

"You become what you think about."

- Earl Nightingale

Rich Woman.com is hosting a Book Study through Rich Woman, a book on investing for women, by Kim Kiyosaki. Click here for the overview and full book study schedule. Each Monday evening, a new thread is started on the Rich Woman forums for the currnet chapter being discussed. Grab yourself a copy of Rich Woman, follow along and join the discussion with other like-minded women!

I love spring flowers like daffodils, tulips, crocus. The first to peak their heads out in the spring, they supply a much needed dash of color to otherwise dead, brown lawns (my lawn year round).

The problem is…they only last for the spring. After that, usually gardeners (less lazy than I) dig those bulbs up and store them until either the fall or the spring. The bulbs take up precious growing space otherwise plus they reproduce like mad (I’d say like rabbits but I think bulbs reproduce faster than that). In our area, we have daffodils now growing wild all over roadsides (beautiful in the spring).

One of my buds has solved that problem. He runs a landscape company that plants and stores the bulbs for gardeners (the company also offers other services). The company mostly deals with companies including shopping centers and government agencies (because that’s where the big money is) but they will offer the service to well heeled homeowners (the service isn’t inexpensive).

Or another enterprising entrepreneur could.

The biggest issue my buddy runs up against in this business is inexpensive storage space. At first he kept all the bulbs in his large, empty basement (where I store all my junk). That helped him save money while his hungry little start up got off the ground. Now that he has expanded, he rents storage (and he has greenhouses, and, and…).

Another difficulty is ensuring that bulbs are labeled correctly. He can charge more because he can supply specific colors so it costs him if the red tulips get mixed up with the yellow tulips (you can’t tell by the bulb).

Now I may not be the sharpest pencil in the box but I’m lucky enough to surround myself with some brilliant people. A friend of mine has to be one of the smartest people around. The man’s solutions could revolutionize the world.

If he could communicate them.

Which he can’t. Which means that either other people scoop up his ideas (which I’ve done with his blessing) or they go undiscovered.

Communication, either verbal or written, is critical for success in life. Recently I read 10 Simple Secrets Of The World’s Greatest Business Communicators by Carmine Gallo. If you can get past the incredibly long title (which ironically flies in the face of Simple Secret #6 Brevity or “Keep It Short. Period.”), the antidotes and examples from communicators like the Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger or Starbucks’ Howard Shultz or Apple’s Steve Jobs are well worth the price of admission (a valid library card).

The 10 Secrets (Passion, Inspiration, Preparation, Start Strong, Clarity, Brevity, Say It With Style, Command Presence, Wear It Well, and Reinvent Yourself) may seem simple but if that was true then why are there so few great communicators? However, Gallo gives colorful examples to punctuate each point.

Examples like…

“Barbara Corcoran turned a $1,000 loan into a New York City real estate empire. Her book, Use What You’ve Got, became a New York Times business best seller. During my interview with Corcoran, I asked her what she considers the one communications technique which sets her apart in her industry. She answered, “I always use stories. That’s what people remember. They remember stories. Also, put yourself in the shoes of your audience. They’re asking themselves, “So what?” The only information they find of value is information they can personally use. Ask yourself what is the practical information of your point. How can they use this information? Help the audience answer the questions “So what?””

Growing up in the sticks, we were surrounded with hills full of wild blueberries. For about a month in the fall, the ground was covered in blue, and we kids knew that anything we picked could be sold to elderly pie baking neighbors quite easily.

Now for those readers that have picked cultivated “tame” blueberries, the wild experience and taste is quite different. Cultivated blueberries are massive in size and can be found on convenient waist high bushes. Wild blueberries are tiny pellets full of taste and can be found on the back breaking ground.

Picking…I mean eating…was a treat on the first day. By the end of the month with us being out in the bush day in, day out, picking, we would chat about our blueberry nightmares (I used to, for some reason, dream about Smokey the Bear…Remember only you can prevent forest fires). Our finger tips were blue for months after.

Learning

Insist on quality the first time. The only thing worse than picking the berries was cleaning them of sticks, bugs, and leaves. My not-so-sweet Grandma (also known as the best chocolate chip cookie baker in the world) told us to pick clean and pick fast or we’d get the bucket (a berry bucket thrown at our heads…told you she wasn’t so sweet). If we picked clean, it saved a lot of work.

There’s always someone bigger and hairier who wants the product more. Often we’d be picking right next to the bears. There were plenty of berries, it didn’t make sense to fight the bears for them. Made more sense to go where they weren’t.

Back in the day, canned food tasted like…well…the can. It had a tinny, metallic taste that made me wrinkle up my nose and say “no thanks.”

Today, canned food tastes pretty darn good, especially fruits and veggies. Sure, its still not as good as fresh but then again it doesn’t rot in my crisper like fresh veggies do.

That’s the number one benefit of canned goods, they last. As an example, the Tin Fish Gourmet gives the legend of canned salmon that was shipped off to allied troops in WWI being eaten by a new generation of troops in WWII. I don’t recommend saving canned goods that long but having canned tomatoes and mushrooms and peas and corn in the pantry does mean no excuses not to eat my veggies.

Frozen food lasts also (not as long but it does last) but requires precious freezer real estate. I’d rather use that limited space to freeze meats (which doesn’t can as well).

Not only are canned goods convenient but when in off season (like those long, cold northern winters), they can be significantly less expensive, especially when they go on sale and because cans last forever, we can stockpile canned tomatoes and beans (yuck) and tuna when it goes on sale.

I use canned goods for my emergency rations (war talk again). Having grown up dirt poor, I’m paranoid about running out of food. To let me sleep at night, I have about a month’s worth of spaghetti sauce and dried pasta on hand. I rotate them regularly but keep that pantry shelf filled (I never said that I was a rational person).

I’ve been fielding a lot of questions from panicked investors about the meltdown in subprime lenders and how most of all the financial stock prices are in the toilet.

Now, I don’t tell anyone what to do or how to invest. Personal finance is just that personal. No one should tell you what to do (except for your clone and why, instead of sitting on her butt, giving you advice, isn’t she cleaning the house? Put that clone to work).

But here’s how I’m approaching it. This meltdown was expected. It’s a natural outcome of giving credit to everyone and their dog (I kid you not, I know pets with credit cards) in a low interest rate environment.

However, people (and horses) spook easily. And when they spook, they’re a tad bit irrational (like me after too much chocolate). They sell every company in the lending business.

Included are some good, solid, dividend paying financial institutions that wouldn’t stoop so low as to associate themselves with subprime lending. Their earnings won’t drop by even a penny with this meltdown. Actually they might benefit when the havey cavey lenders go out of business. Yet, these stocks too have taken a beaten.

Its like all of the winter clothes are on sale, even in Antarctica. If I were living in Antarctica and needed clothes, I’d be shopping.

And if I had my eye on one of these solid financial companies and they hit my target price, I’d be buying. But that’s just me.

Since financial guru Suze Orman’s infamous out of the closet interview, many media types have been beating her up not only about her relationship preferences (please, did no one notice after thousands of tv appearances that she painstakingly erases all mention of the sex of her nearest and dearest? Not even one use of “he” or “him”. I noticed that the third Suze Orman show I watched, it was so obvious) but they also have qualms about her investment advice.

Why?

Because it turns out that the bulk of her investments are in municipal bonds. How can she possibly live off that risk free, yet low return? Easy, she has $24 million in liquid net worth. She is loaded, big time. She can forgo the higher returns because she has so much money.

And folks like Chuck Jaffe from MarketWatch find the disconnect between how she can invest and thrive vs how the average viewer can invest and thrive unacceptable.

What do I think?

First off, to expect a successful financial gal to invest like her average audience member is unrealistic. If Donald Trump decides to coach me on real estate, I don’t expect him to teach me how to build luxe, gold glittering condos and run mega casinos. Maybe how to buy a condo unit but not the entire building.

Second, lets evaluate Suze Orman’s ideas in the context of her audience. Is she advising the rich? No. Her target audience is the struggling middle class and down. I think that Suze Orman’s words of advice are solid first steps for the get out of that personal debt, balance the checkbook crowd.

Is it going to make a person filthy, rolling around naked in thousand dollar bills, wealthy? Nope. Once the person gets herself out of debt and builds a little bit of a nest egg, she should probably go looking for a new financial hero.

Just as I had to do with my financial advisor. The goal is to outgrow their advice.

I was reading Harvey Mackay’s business classic Beware The Naked Man Who Offers You His Shirt and was pleasantly surprised to read, as Mackay talked about how knowledge of self is essential to success, a bit on investing.

“Successful traders and successful investors both will tell you that their single most important asset is self-knowledge, not stock knowledge. They know themselves well enough to understand the level of risk they can live with.

Traders let the market tell them whether they’re right or wrong. They have the self-discipline to turn on a dime with the market goes against them.

Investors have a different test of character: to stay with a commitment regardless of what the market does on a short-term basis. They have the self-discipline not to turn on a dime when the market surprises them.

The surest way to lose money is not to know which breed you belong to: holding on to a loser when you’re really a short-term trader looking for a quick turn or selling too soon, whether it’s up or down, when temperamentally you’re really a long-term investor. Before you make any major commitment, of time, of money, of yourself, you have to be honest enough with yourself to understand how you will react if things happen that you don’t expect.”

The timing couldn’t have been better as I’ve been re-evaluating my position in a company. Right now, the stock price is tanking big time but my thinking still is that a year from now, after the company has absorbed the smaller company it just devoured, the stock price not only will pop up nicely but offer a healthier dividend as it does.

I’m an investor, not a trader and so I’m holding onto it.

Rich Woman.com is hosting a Book Study through Rich Woman, a book on investing for women, by Kim Kiyosaki. Click here for the overview and full book study schedule. Each Monday evening, a new thread is started on the Rich Woman forums for the currnet chapter being discussed. Grab yourself a copy of Rich Woman, follow along and join the discussion with other like-minded women!

I see the signs are up again on every telephone pole in the city. “Stuff Envelopes For Money. Send $10 to Box 123.” Etc etc. Happens every year around this time as sure as there being frisky squirrels in the back yard.

Years ago when I was a trusting naïve Kimber (yes, when dinosaurs ruled the earth) and looking for money making opportunities, I sent my $5 (inflation has ballooned the cost to $10) to that mysterious box number.

What did I get in return?

Instructions to put up similar signs all over the city, asking people to send in their $5 to my own post office box.

Yeah, basically scamage.

Now, at first I was angry and felt like a fool. Then I asked myself an important question “how come I let this happen to me?” No, I didn’t place the blame on fate or on the scammers or anywhere else. I got scammed because I made mistakes, opening myself up to fraud.

You see in order for this scheme to work, there has to be at least two parties participating. The scammer and the “victim”. Without me, there would have been no scam.

In hindsight, what I should have done was ask around, done some research, instead of jumping in cold. One question to family, friends, heck even a stranger on the street would have revealed the scam. Today, the process is even easier. All I have to do is type in “envelope stuffing scam” in google and this is what I get
http://phoenix.about.com/cs/scam1/a/envstuffscam01.htm
http://www.homebiztools.com/questions/stuffing-envelopes.htm
http://www.homebiztools.com/stuffenv.htm
and 190,000 other warnings.

I don’t regret the $10 because that $10 lesson has saved me thousands over the years. Just a month ago, I was approached about a pre-IPO investment. Much more sophisticated than the envelope scam and much more expensive but after asking my advisors, I found out it was just as much of a scam.

Was reading the hot new novel Visions Of Heat by Nalini Singh when I came across this passage.

“Every prediction Faith ever made, if not purposefully circumvented, came true. That was why she was worth untold millions. Possibly even billions. NightStar considered her its most prized asset. Like any asset, she was kept in the best condition for optimum functionality. And like any asset, should she prove defective, she’d be overhauled and used for parts.”

Now I can’t predict the future (just look at some of my stock picks if you need proof) and I’m not worth untold billions or even millions, but am I considered an asset?

Wikipedia’s definition of an asset is “any economic resource controlled by an entity as a result of past transactions or events and from which future economic benefits may be obtained.”

I don’t know about being controlled by an entity (although I guess we all are in some way controlled by someone or something else) but I do know that I plan to provide benefits and add value to the world. I try to give more than I get.

Isn’t that the goal in life? To become more than what we started out as? To make the world a better place by having lived? To leave the world in not only the financial black but in the cosmic black also?

I think so.

Though asset or not, I doubt I’ll ever be overhauled and used for parts. After 35 years of solid living, many of my parts are already proving defective.

Not all of my odd jobs turned out well. Some turned out disastrously. One of the most infamous ones was when our family tried our luck at painting cottages.

By then we had built ourselves reps as kids that would work at anything. When a neighbor approached us about painting his cherished lakeside cottage, we figured…how hard can it be? The money was good. Why not?

We looked at the job and the six of us. The bulk of the building would be bright yellow, the trim dark green (we didn’t choose the colors). So we figured the painting would go quicker if we split the job with the older kids painting the big sections yellow and the younger kids painting the trim green.

Mistake.

My younger siblings did not have the hand-eye coordination or patience to keep the paint on the trim. When we finally noticed things going horribly wrong (well into the job), we tried to paint over the dark green with the yellow. It took us about fifteen coats to cover the darker color and frankly it never did look nice.

Our paint budget ran over. Our time to finish the painting ran over. Our client dropped by to see how it was going and had a not so minor, yet well deserved freak out.

It was our first and last gig as cottage painters.

Learning

Simple projects are not simple when you don’t know what you’re doing. We should have asked for advice or investigated more before taking on the job.

Testing is important. If we had first tested our technique on a small part of the building, instead of rolling our method out on the complete job, we would have saved a lot of time and hassle. Who knows. Our client might still even have his hair.

Critical jobs go to the higher skilled. First we should have realized that the trim was the most critical task of all those needing to be done. And second, that critical task should have been assigned to the most experienced and careful painter.

My baby sister’s birthday is coming up (yeah, the one getting married) and she’s still living happily in Australia, hanging out with the koalas. I looked into working a second job to pay for her present’s postage and then realized that I was doing dumbness.

Why pay for postage when I can ship from Australia directly?

Ahhh, you’re thinking. Amazon, right? Send her a book. But what if she doesn’t like books (yes, there are people out there like that)? What if I want to send her chocolates?

Then I can send her chocolates. Almost every business on-line has a shipping option and almost every industry has at least one country local company on-line. I could even find an Australian company that specialized in American products (like ketchup, none of that nasty tomato sauce for my beloved baby sister).

The truly frugal will do the cost comparison. For across the State mailing, it may make more sense to buy the object on sale and then mail it yourself. The UK can be a toss up. Things can be very, very expensive over there (everytime I hear pound, I think pound of flesh, not sterling) and mailing is not as purse damaging. Australia? Difficult to justify shipping from half way across the world. The postage is a killer.

One drawback is that often the present will arrive with no clue on it as to who sent it. That happened to us recently. The hubby got a dvd for his birthday. We assumed that it was from my sister up north (she’s addicted to the home shopping network) and I sent out a thank you email. Not one of my brighter moments. Turned out that it was from my sister in Australia. They are still laughing at me.

If many of your family members have the same idea, you may wish to pay the extra money for a card. Either that or spoil the surprise by telling them its being sent.

Wowsers, an exciting day here on No Limits Ladies.
Must be a sign of spring.

The top 32 personal finance bloggers are engaged in a "to the death" (well, no, not really but doesn't that sound more interesting?) tournament at Money Blog Site.
No Limits Ladies is up against Finandom
(who is SO confident, no specific post was entered).
Bring it on!

You can vote here
http://moneyblogsite.com/index.php/round-1-2nd-region/
By leaving a comment with your choice.

I'm guest blogging over at Jon's Art Of Money blog today. My post is How To Write Selling Emails, apt coming from both a writer and a salesgal.

Jon fairly recently left his safe, secure government gig to concentrate on his growing internet businesses. His blog does an excellent job chronicling this transition complete with all the frustrations and joys of start up life. As an entrepreneurial gal myself, I find his posts ring true (too true sometimes).

If business is your thing, swing over and have a read.

One of the guidelines Carmen Wong Ulrich, author of Generation Debt, insisted on the Rachel Ray show was that housing costs be less than 30% of take home pay (that’s pay after taxes). By housing costs, she meant rent, mortgage, utilities, maintenance, property taxes, insurance.

Once upon a time, long, long ago (i.e. a decade back when the hubby and I purchased our home), 30% was flaunted as the rule to follow. We dutifully did the calculation, even asking the current owners what their monthly utility costs were.

Even today, the National Association of Realtors considers a house affordable if the mortgage principal and interest payments are less than 25% of the family’s monthly income. This is an organization that makes money if homes are sold (and the higher priced the better) yet even they are insisting that your home mortgage P&I remain less than 25%.

So are we following these guidelines? A quick look at the NAR affordability index would say that the average person was. The median single family home price in 2006 was $221,900 with monthly P&I of $1,131. Compare that to the median monthly family income of $4,801 ($57,612 annually) and everything looks groovy at 23.6%.

Or is that quick look deceiving?

You see the affordability index assumes that there’s a 20% down payment. How many people do you know with a 20% payment? Not many. The estimates are that approximately 33% of all mortgages are non-traditional. So lets say the family only had the 10% down payment that so many first time buyers have. P&I would creep up to 26.5%, an unaffordable level (according to NAR).

Should you stick to the 30% or even the 25% guideline? Well, if the National Association of Realtors says that you should and they would benefit most financially if you didn’t, then I think you should seriously consider it.

Ladies,

Tomorrow, March 8, is International Women’s Day (IWD) As stated on the IWD website, “International Women’s Day is the global day connecting all women around the world and inspiring them to achieve their full potential”. Rich Woman wants to join in this celebration since we are wholeheartedly committed to women achieving their full financial potential…which, of course, spills over to so many of our other “potentials”.

I, Kim, will be hosting a discussion forum at Richwoman.com on Thursday, March 8 at 4:30-5:30PM, Phoenix, Arizona time for all women who want to participate. The purpose is to bring together women from all over the world to candidly discuss women, money and investing. We invite women to ask questions, offer comments and share their personal experiences around this subject.

The specific topic for discussion on March 8 will be How To Find Those Great Investments.

Women, please join us for an hour of lively and revealing conversation. Invite your girlfriends, daughters, sisters and moms to join in. Men, please encourage the women in your life to take part in this forum as well. The details for this special Rich Woman/International Women’s Day forum are below. If you, or women you know, can be on-line with us March 8, that would be fantastic, because I truly believe that today, more than ever, women have got to take charge of their financial lives.

With great thanks, Kim

Details:

For the chat with Kim Kiyosaki, we will be using Yahoo Instant Messanger to set up a "live chat" from 4:30-5:30 PM PST

To join in, simply sign on to Yahoo Instant Messanger and add RichWomanModerator as a friend, and you will recieve an invitation to join the chat at that time.

If you do not currently have Yahoo Instant Messanger set up, it is free and easy to set up. Simply follw these steps:

1) Click the following link to begin setting up Yahoo Instant Messanger

2) Click the yellow Getting Started Button

3) Download the files, read, and in a few minutes you will select a user name and be ready to go!

4) Add RichWomanModerator as a friend, or send an IM to be invited to the Chat with Kim.

5) Stay as long or as briefly as you wish, bring questions, tell stories, connect with other women!

Was watching one of my favorite tv personalities Rachel Ray (I love how excited she gets about food, that girl loves to eat) on Friday. One of her guests was Carmen Wong Ulrich, author of Generation Debt and former special projects editor at Money magazine. They were talking about marriage and finances.

The low key by comparison Ulrich (who can be more chipper than Rachel Ray? She’s like a pintsized pocket of sunshine) piped up that marriage was a money partnership and like business partnerships, there should be regular meetings held. Lack of communication is a killer for finances, and marriages (and definitely for businesses).

The hubby and I have regular informal meetings about money (i.e. not suit or tie required). When we first got married and moved in together, the meetings were weekly, sometimes daily. But now, every two weeks, before we get our “allowances” (the cash that we spend as we wish), we talk about what we need financially for those two weeks. We also remind each other of any large upcoming purchases.

As we have a bit of a float, I only monitor our bank accounts weekly. Earlier on in our marriage when money was extremely tight, I would look at our bank accounts daily.

Every month, I send an email to the hubby with our updated investment portfolio and our return for the month. I let him know if we’re on track or if we’re under performing.

Quarterly, I prepare a complete statement of net worth (some of our retirement savings only report quarterly). Again, are we doing well? Could we be doing better?

After he receives these reports and has a chance to look them over, we discuss them. I find sending it to him in writing easier than trying to talk numbers. Plus he can use the emails for reference.

There is another benefit to treating our finances in this businesslike way. It helps take the emotions out of the equation, turning potential arguments into discussions.

I’ve been laid off. Most of my friends have been laid off, at the very least, once (one friend got laid off twice in the same year). It’s a kick in the pants but part of the new work reality. Just ask Allen Giertz, author of Unemployed? No Problem! He’s been laid off a mind numbing six times.

Being laid off is a double whammy financially. You lose income and you incur more costs. Finding a new job can be expensive.

Some of the common costs, Giertz explains, are resume services, printing costs, making copies, seminars/workshops and of course your ongoing bills (the electricity bill still needs to be paid). However, there are support groups and job clubs that can cut these costs (his book goes into way more detail). Newspapers, the internet, job clubs, support groups, networking groups, family and friends are sources of information.

The biggest mistake job hunters make?

“Not letting people know that they are unemployed and looking for new work. Start networking because you never know when somebody is going to know somebody who knows someone,” says Giertz.

When I knew I was about to get laid off (the company was cutting staffing to core and I was a project person), I swallowed my already beaten up pride and put the word out immediately. Email lists are great for this. I spammed the world about my situation. Within 24 hours, I had at least a dozen job postings. Before the ink on my severance agreement was dry, I had a job offer.

Of course that email list wasn’t built that day. It consisted of years worth of contacts, contacts that were made while happily working. What does Allen Giertz feel an employee do now to prepare? “Always have an open mind as to what other opportunities are out there, in other words, look even thought you are working now, plus keep an updated resumer/cover letter just in case.”

Rich Woman.com is hosting a Book Study through Rich Woman, a book on investing for women, by Kim Kiyosaki. Click here for the overview and full book study schedule. Each Monday evening, a new thread is started on the Rich Woman forums for the currnet chapter being discussed. Grab yourself a copy of Rich Woman, follow along and join the discussion with other like-minded women!

I might have grown up a rough and tumble tomboy but I’m all girl now. One of the things I love about Easter is the chance to buying girly-girl accessories like bonnets and gloves for my one and only (and quite spoiled) niece. And since I’m buying this mainly for myself (under the guise of treating my niece), I spend time looking for just the perfect set.

Meaning not off the shelves at Target. Meaning hand made. Meaning expensive. Meaning small business cash.

If you’re handy, transforming a plain straw hat or an inexpensive mesh glove into a one of a kind, heirloom piece can be a good source of spring moolah. There are usually plenty of Easter yard sales and craft shows to sell them at (not to mention ebay). Once you create a repeating customer base, you can even take advanced custom orders (and price the bonnets or gloves even higher).

Last year I bought a pricey pair of cross stitched gloves that I still have in my closet. Merely waiting for a pair of little hands to fit them (yes, my hubby looked at me like I was insane but they were too adorable to leave back).

When I read Talk Your Way To The Top by Tina Santi Flaherty, I got so ticked off at what the first female vice-president at Colgate-Palmolive was saying that I threw the book more than once across the room (never say that I’m all sunshine and roses). However, each time I picked the book up and continued reading. And when I was done, I gave the book to one of my best friends to read.

The message of how to get ahead as a woman in corporate America wasn’t pleasant, it certainly wasn’t “fair”, but unfortunately it was right.

Her ideas on reading body language was alone worth the cost of the book but my favorite part is her discussion on meetings. She says “It always amazes me that people don’t realize all meetings have a hidden agenda – and that’s really to decide who’s got “it” and who doesn’t.”

Her 10 tips to being a good meeting participant are;

1) Look good (a no-brainer, this is “show time”)
2) Be on time or early (getting there early is a good networking opp)
3) Review the material and notes from the previous meeting (so you can look like a superstar)
4) Pick a seat near the action (again, it’s show time so you want to be on stage).
5) Take the meeting as seriously as you would your paycheck (no goofing around).
6) Speak at the beginning of the meeting so you get noticed (I always do this)
7) Having done #3, bring a prop or visual (like a graph, etc) that makes your point.
8) Take notes (shows interest and that you are a take action type of gal).
9) Make a comment on an area other than your own. Leaders need to straddle multiple departments.
10) When the meeting ends, don’t just leave, make a comment or two to the chairperson.

Her best hint on hosting a meeting is to always, always, always send out notes afterwards. A meeting without notes (showing decisions made, actions to be taken) is a waste of time. I often volunteer to take and distribute the notes (since I’m doing #8 anyway). That puts my name in front of a number of people.

My first venture into on-line business was with ebay (true of most people).

I collect little ceramic figurines called Wades. They are found in Red Rose Tea boxes in both the U.S. and Canada. But the thing is, that the figurines are different for each country. Being a crazy collector, I want to have all of them. So I’d got to yard sales on both sides of the border (being a border hugger), buying boxes and boxes of figurines.

As I put together my own master set of figurines, I also collected extras. I’d hide them (from the hubby) in the basement until he started complaining. I had to get rid of them but couldn’t really have a yard sale with just tiny figurines.

So I looked to ebay. I had already some experience buying off of ebay (because, of course, I wanted to collect the U.K. Wades also). I knew which ads caught my eye. I knew what fellow collectors found important.

What I’d do is sell the U.S. Wades to Canadians and sell the Canadian Wades to Americans. I started earning enough money to pay for my nasty collecting habit (and the hubby got his basement back).

Learning

Buying in one market and selling in another can be lucrative. Selling to the Canadians, I got higher prices than I would have if I had sold U.S. Wades to Americans.

Being known for quality meant increased prices. I would only sell perfect pieces. No chips, no paint smudges. And I’d guarantee that. Customers would pay more for my figurines once they knew that.

Giving away a bonus builds repeat customers. As I’d only sell perfect pieces, I’d have chipped or imperfect pieces left over. What I’d do is include a piece as a bonus. I’d only let the buyer know this after they won the bid and then give them a choice of figurines (many gave them to their kids).

What? Eating out is frugal? My definition of frugal is saving money where it isn’t important so I can spend it on places (including investing) I find important. Going out with the girls for a nice dinner (and a good gossip) or maybe a romantic dinner for two with the hubby is important.

Restaurant portions are HUGE and if I ate restaurant portions all the time, that’s what I would be too…huge. What I do is immediately ask the server to pack up half the entrée (before it even gets to the table so I’m not tempted). If it’s a girl’s night, I bring it home for the hubby (he gets meal envy…I could say that I had gruel and he’d ask if I brought him home any).

And since the portions are huge, do I really need an appetizer? Or dessert…no wait, erase that, dessert goes in a separate stomach compartment. I always have room for chocolate. Can I share the appetizer or dessert (no to the dessert) or can I forgo it all together?

I’m not a wine buff so I drink tap water when I go out. Usually this water is filtered (the restaurant has a reputation to maintain) and sometimes even comes with a slice of lemon. Its zero calories, zero cost, and having done taste tests before, there’s a reason that we use water (and crackers), it resets the taste buds. So if the food is good (and it has to be better than what I make at home), it tastes really good.

Parking makes a difference. There are some restaurants where parking is free and some that I have to pay. All things being equal, I’d rather eat at a restaurant with free parking.

‘Course using a coupon if you have it is great (remember to tip based on the cost before coupon though). The best place to find these are on the restaurant’s website. Being a fan of smaller restaurants (gotta support the little guy), I don’t get lucky with coupons very often.

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in making new landscapes but in having new eyes."

- Marcel Proust

Please bare... I mean bear with us!

Thanks!
The No Limits Ladies

According to Kurt Rosentreter, there are common investing mistakes that occur at each wealth stage.

Phase One: Emerging Wealth

Rushing to buy products without a plan.
Financing lifestyle with more and more debt.
Simply not getting started on accumulating wealth.
Having no plan.

Phase Two: Creating Wealth

Costs, including commission fees, are often ignored.
With more discretionary cash, investors become high risk takers.
Maximizing return at all costs, with little worry of failure.
Holding a hodge podge of yesterday’s hot products with no reasoning of why.
Liquidating stock plans and pension funds to pay for debt and lifestyle.

Phase Three: Wealth Management

Holding investment products that were suitable for them ten years ago.
Paying costs often double what they should be for their wealth level.
Lacking any integrated financial planning so no strategies for taxes, estate, retirement, debt and investing.
Their advisors (accountant, broker, insurance agent) never speak to each other.
Too much wealth held in the company stock or stock options (remember Enron, folks).

Phase Four: Wealth Transfer

Still buying retail versions of investment products when they have the clout to access institutional style professional money management.
Paying too much in fees.
Lack of tax-smart investing.
Failure to use specialized wealth advisors.
Excessive conservatism based on fear and paranoia of loss.
Hand written wills, do it yourself tax returns, no plan in place.

"You, too, can determine what you want. You can decide on your major objectives, targets, aims, and destination."

- W. Clement Stone