There have been a lot of positive events in my life that I can attribute to my dad, but certainly one of the most memorable was the day he brought home our first computer.  It was one of the first IBM PCs and included a monochrome monitor.  There wasn’t even a mouse.  I was probably five years old and remember clearly the sound of it booting up (which took five minutes or so) and the smell of hot circuitry that blew from its vent ports.  I explored on it constantly.  Eventually at the ripe old age of nine, I saved up enough birthday and Christmas money to buy a used IBM PS-2 of my own which I proudly kept on a desk in my room.  This was, of course, perfectly safe for a young man in the early 90's since it was still years before folks in Appalachia knew about the internet.  So, what on earth does a nine-year-old boy do with a computer without internet?   Well, I had a few games, MS Paint, and an encyclopedia, but I was still curious. ...

Today we are going to mix it up a bit and focus on a fellow blogger that is  lighting up  the financial independence world (how could I resist such a terrible pun?).  I hope to do more of these spotlights as I continue to stumble on inspirations out in the blog space.   I check in on a few blogs now and again and have really started digging on  AccidentalFire.com .  Accidental Fire (Financially Independent Retired Early) chronicals the daily passions of a super energetic dude who focuses his life on working hard and enjoying intense outdoor actives instead of adorning himself in the luxuries that his skills and career could easily afford.  The author of Accidental Fire decided to part ways with his peers early in life moving from the financial sink hole of Baltimore’s party district into the modest home of his late grandmother “Nonnie”.  At a starting salary of $20,000, he began setting a simplistic standard of living which did...

Today we'll continue our Creator's Path to Financial Independence  series by taking a look at transportation expenses.  One of the best places a creator can really separate themselves from a consumer is with their vehicle purchases.   The average new car / lease payment in America just broke $502 a month with an average payment term of 69 months (1) .   Knowing that many families carry two car payments continuously, we’re talking about over $1,000 dollars a month.   Gracious America, you’re doing it wrong ! In this article we’ll talk about how a lean , responsible , and disciplined creator can get reliable transportation without sinking in debt.   We’ll also see that your choices in this area can single-handedly be your ticket to financial independence .   So, let’s dive in: As usual, we’ll start with an example of the consumer family and the creator family.   Both families need two reliable cars.   Let’s take a look at the con...

Today, we are going to go back to studying the traits of the creators and the consumer in our search to rid ourselves of the consumer culture that we’ve been immersed in.  Going back to the Creator’s Wheel we’ll focus on the responsible trait which is part the proactive hallmark of a creator.  We’ll start by talking about the equivalent consumer trait of victimized : One of the phrases I hear all the time is “It is what it is”.   For example, Ma: “We had to put an extra $700 on the credit card this month.” Pa: “Well, it is what it is.   Everything is just so expensive these days.” Ma: “The house is a mess.” Pa: “Well, it is what it is.   The kids just don’t put anything away.” Ma: “We don’t have anything for dinner.” Pa: “Well, it is what it is.   Let’s just go get takeout.” Ma: "Suzy is failing geometry.” Pa: “Well, it is what it is.   Math was never her strong suit.”    I have no idea where this ...

Welcome to the second edition of "The Creator's Path to Financial Independence."  If you are new to C&C check out the Start Here section to learn about the hallmarks and traits of consumers and creators.  In this edition, we talk about what spending does to our happiness and how creators approach this problem.  So, let's start with an age old question... Does money make us happy?    People who have a lot of money will often say ‘No’ and people who don’t have a lot of money will say often say ‘Yes’.   So who’s right? Turns out, both are right, at least according to a study performed at Princeton University a few years ago (1) .   The study shows that things like “feeling stress free” and “emotional wellbeing” rise steadily as household income increase.   Yet, something interesting happens to the data around the $57,000 household income level (2) .   After about $57,000, more money did not make people significantly hap...

Ever feel anxious?  I’m talking about sick to your stomach, unrelenting fear about something inconsequential.  I’m talking about staying up at night running over and over and over again through all the scenarios that may play out the next day?  You’re not alone.  Anxiety disorders affect about 18 percent of Americans over the age of 18*.   A few years ago, I started having feelings of anxiety.  I googled “how to manage stress” and found online recommendations like: “Close your eyes and imagine a stop sign” or “Lay on your back and start relaxing every muscle in your body starting at your toes and working your way up the body.”  No, I’m not making this up, and Yes I tried these exercises to no avail.  The corporate marketing machine also thought it could help me out by generously bombarding me for weeks with massage therapy, calming supplements, and relaxing vacation ads after ...

Welcome to the first financial post of the C&C blog.   If you remember back in the ‘What is a creator?’ post I left a teaser about the incredible financial benefits of adopting the creator’s approach to life.   Now that I’ve finally had time to get around to our first post in this area, the best way to start is with an example. Two people graduate from college at the age of 22.   Let’s call them “Creator” and “Consumer”.   Both have the exact same degrees and live in areas with similar costs of living.   Both get jobs and have a household starting income at $51,000 dollars a year ( Just below the nation’s average household income ).   Both work at companies with 401k plans that will match contributions up to 3% of their monthly wages.   In fact, there are only two differences between Creator and Consumer.   1) Creator’s creative, proactive, passionate, and grateful approach to life makes him a more valuable employee and he is rewar...