Skip to content

Category: General

How To Be Lucky

I believe I owe much of my success in life to luck.

I might have characteristics that improved my chances of success but I still think luck had a lot to do with it. And I’m OK with that, better to be lucky than good, as they say.

But what if I told you there were ways you could improve your luck? I believe there are and this first post identifies a few ways.

How To Be Lucky [Sapient Capital] – “There are two contrasting ways of pursuing wealth, power and success. The approach that works the best is also the one most people seem to ignore.”

This pairs nicely with this idea – the Surface Area of Luck.

If Your Employer Refuses To Negotiate Salary, Try These 11 Creative Counteroffers [Bitches Get Riches] – “Have you ever gotten yourself all hyped-up and battle-ready to ask for more money—only to learn your employer REFUSES to negotiate salary? This happened to me when I was a young professional. I went for a role at a company that tied its job offers to intelligence test scores. (This is not a normal or cool thing to ask, by the way. It’s elitist, ableist, racist, irrelevant, and indicative of really bad leadership. Alas that I was young, dumb, and living on breadcrumb…s.) The recruiter warned me in advance that this employer refused to negotiate salary beyond their initial offer.” I’ve never negotiated salary (I only had two full-time jobs where I was there a total of five years), but this post was fascinating!

The Real Estate Hustle-Culture Con That’s Exploiting Investors and Wrecking the Housing Market [The New Republic] – “A lawsuit filed against “influencer” Grant Cardone offers an inside look at a get-rich-quick scheme that could help enable the next housing market crash.”

You Probably Need Less Money Than You Think For Retirement

You Probably Need Less Money Than You Think For Retirement [A Wealth of Common Sense] – “This is the perfect encapsulation of lifestyle creep and why some mythical number in the future probably won’t solve all of your problems. Younger you would probably be blown away by how much you make but older you is a completely different person with different preferences and responsibilities.”

Burger King gave candy to a worker who never called in sick. The internet gave $400K [NPR] – “Burger King cook and cashier Kevin Ford was happy to receive a small goody bag from management as a reward for never calling in sick. But people on the internet were less thrilled. They believed Ford deserved more — over $400,000 more.” For every GoFundMe scam story, I hope there are a hundred of these types of stories.

If you have kids, supervise them. Not only is it a good idea but it helps their earning power!

Parental supervision positively impacts children’s economic prospects two decades later: A prospective longitudinal study [PLOS One] – “Parental educational attainment, income, and family structure were strongly associated with their children’s household income at age 35 (e.g., r = .392, p < .05). Parental supervision of the child was associated with increased household income for the child at age 35, adjusting for SES of the family of origin. Children of parents who did not engage in adequate supervision earned approximately $14,000 less/year (i.e., ~13% of the sample’s median household income) than those who did. The association of parental supervision and child income at 35 was mediated by the child’s educational attainment."

No one knows when they are going to go

When you’re young, dwelling on your mortality seems grim. Weird. Sad, even.

When you’re old, dwelling on your mortality seems enlightened. Aware. Freeing, even.

As I get older, the realization that my life will end doesn’t make me sad. It makes me value it more because it’s no longer infinite.

Running Out of Life [Lazy Man and Money] – “No one knows when they are going to go. Last month, I talked with a 42-year-old personal trainer about setting up an appointment to get on his program. Less than a week later, I was at his funeral.” Hat tip to J. Money for pointing out this gem.

The Secret Weapon Hackers Can Use to Dox Nearly Anyone in America for $15 [404 Media] – “Most Americans have very little choice but to provide their personal information to credit bureaus. Hackers have found a way into that data supply chain, and are advertising access in group chats used by violent criminals who rob, assault, and shoot targets.” This isn’t good.

Unlocking Agency: Journey From Paycheck to Purpose [Chris Wong] – “Paycheck People are risk-averse people who take no agency in their lives. They have “failures of nerve” – an obsession with rationalization to justify events rather than taking action. Courageous Thinkers not only have agency, but adapt to uncertainty to push through on their objectives. They know their interests and shape their identities and narratives to find meaning.”

Help us! Which money blogs do you love?

It’s Friday, folks! But before you head into the weekend, I’ve gathered some interesting money stories for you.

First, though, I have a favor to ask. Jim and I do our best to scour the web for interesting stories about money. In my dream world (and Jim’s dream world, I think), we’d feature more personal blogs and fewer big media sources. But there’s a problem: The traditional personal money blog seems to be fading away. (I mean, look: I retired from Get Rich Slowly earlier this year, so I’m part of the problem, right?) And those blogs that do remain are more SEO-driven than helpful.

So, I guess what I’m asking is this: If you have a favorite blog (or YouTube channel) that you think we ought to feature more often at Apex Money, let us know. If you’re reading this by email, just hit reply and let us know your favorite sources. If you’re reading on the website, leave a comment. (Comments are usually closed. They’re open for this post.)

Help us broaden our horizons!

Okay, with that out of the way, here are the links we’ve gathered for you today:

The stuff you buy is getting worse. [Vox] — “I hate to say that the onus is on us, but in many ways it is. Corporations aren’t going to do this work for us, or without us. Consumers need to be able to identify quality, learn to take care of what they own, and advocate for regulations and legislation wherever right-to-repair doesn’t yet exist. Buy less or secondhand, and when you do buy something new — it happens! — make sure to do your research.” [I may have linked to this before. That’s okay. It’s worth reading again. It reinforces my recent drive to buy ONLY quality.]

Unlock your home’s potential with the magic of margin. [Becoming Minimalist] — “No matter what space you’re working on, the key is to declutter first and organize second. It’s the margin in these spaces that has the most impact, especially when it comes to staying organized. Because when you reduce the volume, spaces have a way of organizing themselves.”

How to stick to long-term changes. [Zen Habits] — “It’s hard to stick to long-term changes when you don’t get very immediate results. Seeing progress quickly can be very encouraging — so how do we find encouragement when we don’t see that quick progress?…Let’s look at some of the things I’ve found helpful in sticking to long-term changes when we aren’t getting immediate results.”

That, my friends, is all we have for you this week. Jim will be back on Monday. I’ll see you in ten days. Have fun!

The benefits of taxable accounts.

Hey hey, it’s a Thursday! Welcome back to Apex Money, your source for premium personal-finance posts delivered fresh daily. Have a bite!

What happens when people start reading privacy policies? [The Markup] — “Earlier this week, Zoom, the popular web-conferencing service that became ubiquitous when pandemic lockdowns shifted many in-person meetings to in-little-boxes-on-laptop-screen meetings, was the subject of sharp criticism from users and privacy advocates recently, when an article from the technology news site Stack Diary highlighted a section of the company’s terms of service that said it could use data collected from its users to train artificial intelligence.”

You probably need less money than you think for retirement. [A Wealth of Common Sense] — “Look, I’m not saying everyone has to die with zero. Having a low burn rate is certainly the best hedge against longevity risk in retirement. But what’s the point of saving in the first place if you’re not going to spend some of it?”

The benefits and drawbacks of taxable accounts. [Can I Retire Yet?] — “Taxable accounts, despite their name, can actually be pretty tax friendly. They are particularly valuable to early retirees because they allow access to money without the restrictions of retirement accounts. So it is important to understand the role taxable accounts can play in retirement and the rules that govern them.”

That’s all we have for you today. Come back tomorrow for more great stuff as we head into the weekend…

Your memory is lying to you.

Welcome to Wednesday, money nerds. It’s me, J.D., instead of the folks from Plutus. They’ve lost their curator, so Jim and I are responsible for every weekday once more! Just as well too. I’ve collected a bunch of good stuff this week. Like these:

Create a “brag sheet” to get your work recognized. [Julia Evans] — “There’s this idea that, if you do great work at your job, people will (or should!) automatically recognize that work and reward you for it with promotions / increased pay. In practice, it’s often more complicated than that – some kinds of important work are more visible/memorable than others. It’s frustrating to have done something really important and later realize that you didn’t get rewarded for it just because the people making the decision didn’t understand or remember what you did. So I want to talk about a tactic that I and lots of people I work with have used!”

Your memory is lying to you. [Infinite Loops] — “Our brains have some funny kinks that exist to give us a ‘kinder and gentler’ view of reality and ourselves than is warranted. One such kink is the foundation of hindsight bias, where our brain rewires our ‘memories’ to make them consistent with current conditions…One way to see just how true this is is to keep a handwritten journal of decisions and beliefs throughout time. If you can consistently record thoughts, decisions and beliefs over time, you’ll quickly see that we are all ‘unreliable narrators’.”

How to write an online listing so your stuff actually sells. [Lifehacker] — “Whether you’re moving soon, doing an end-of-season closet clean-out, or simply offloading items that are taking up space and not getting any use, selling online is an easy way to make some cash on your no-longer-needed goods. But to get buyers’ eyes on your stuff and convince them to purchase what you’re selling — quickly — you need a compelling online listing. Here’s how to create a listing to sell your stuff faster online.”

I don’t have any videos to share with you. The truth is that I haven’t seen any fun things to share lately. But rest assured. When I do find something good on YouTube, I’ll post it here.

See you tomorrow!

Home is where the revolution is.

Hello, my friends, and welcome to another day of Apex Money. Here are the stories I’ve gathered to share with you today.

Home is where the revolution is. [The Free Press] — “These are not the isolated, paranoid prepper types that mainstream media mocks. Nearly 60 percent of homesteaders in the U.S. have a bachelor’s degree or higher compared to just under 40 percent of the general public. The average homesteader, according to a survey of almost 4,000, is married, under 50, and religious. And the full political spectrum is represented, with over a fourth identifying as liberal, and nearly 44 percent calling themselves conservative—and 90 percent are active voters.”

If it’s important, learn it repeatedly. [Raptitude] — “If you’ve ever read a book a second time, you may have noticed that it’s an entirely different experience from the first time. It doesn’t feel redundant or repetitive. Instead, it feels like gaps are being filled in. Different details strike you as important. The points you do remember now have the benefit of context, and much of it seems entirely new.”

Five books that will prepare you for life in retirement. [Kiplinger] — “Most people view retirement as a whole new chapter in life, one with its own unique adventures but also unique challenges. That’s why retirees in a 2023 Edward Jones study overwhelmingly agree (93%) that ‘preparation, flexibility, and willingness to adapt are keys to success in retirement’. With that goal in mind, these five must-read books about retirement will help you prepare for that next chapter.”

To wrap things up today, here’s a 17-minute video from Rob Berger about how to overcome the fear of retiring.

Berger is one of my favorite personal-finance folks. Smart. Genuine. Nerdy. He’s a good guy and this is a good video.

Lazy-girl jobs.

Hello, Apexians, and welcome to another week of money and more. Can you believe we’re nearing the end of summer? Where I live — in Oregon’s Willamette Valley — it’s been relatively hot recently, but at the same time we can all sense that autumn is around the corner. This is such a great place to live in September and, especially, October.

And you know what? Apex Money is a great place to be every weekday! Let’s see what Jim and I have gathered for you today.

Lazy-girl jobs are Gen Z’s alternative to FIRE. [Millennial Revolution] — “Now that I’m an elderly Millennial, I’m no longer cool enough to start trends or incite revolutions. All my pop culture references are ‘cheugy’, my beloved Harry Potter books are ‘for old people’, and my Instagram account is so 2019. So now I have no choice but to look to Gen Z for inspiration when it comes to trends. And the newest one trending on TikTok, with 17 million uses, is the #lazygirljob.” [I love everything Kristy writes. This is not exception.]

Why I returned to renting after a few years of homeownership. [Dwell] — “As year two of homeownership came to a close, the shiny lure of owning property slowly faded into what felt more like an obligation loaded with unfinished tasks (those bookshelves still weren’t assembled, nor were the impenetrable clay garden beds any less barren), more space than we needed, and a lingering question of whether we’d made the right choice.”

What if you already have enough money? [The Cut] — “Giving yourself permission to achieve less questions society’s reverence of always being busy and the subliminal message that the answer to anything that ails us is to do more, earn more, be more. Instead, you want to take into consideration the kind of life you want to live.”

Let’s wrap things up with a longer video. It’s a fascinating look at a man with no legal identity who lives off the grid in Appalachia.

When I try to explain my background to people, I like to point them to things like this. It’s not exactly how I grew up…but it’s not that far off. And it’s absolutely how some of my cousins live to this very day. This is my family background, folks. And it’s this sort of thing that informs all of my decisions even today.

Keep it simple

Happy Friday!

I want to start today’s post with a thread by Tim Ferriss, of Four Hour Workweek fame:

“(2) For the rest—which could be everything—follow Buffett’s advice. Keep it simple.”

KEEP IT SIMPLE PEOPLE! 😁

9 Biggest Mistakes High Income/High Net Worth Millennials Make [The Long Game] – “We often associate wealth with financial expertise, but this could not be further from the truth. High net worth people are not immune to making mistakes. In fact, they make just as many mistakes, if not more than everyone else.”

100 Tips for a Better Life [Less Wrong] – “43. Deficiencies do not make you special. The older you get, the more your inability to cook will be a red flag for people.” So many good tips… plus links for more in the numbers themselves.

Enjoy this video on The Timeless Business of Steakhouses:

Have a great weekend!

Are you rich?

“Happiness is making $1 more than your brother in law.”

I don’t know when I heard it first but it’s something that has stuck with me. The point of the quote is to say that happiness is about relativity. For some, it means making more than their peers. For others, it’s being fitter or faster or stronger.

Money is an important part of our lives and, for some, an important part of their identity and happiness.

Wonder how you might compare with the rest of America? Bloomberg can help:

Are You Rich? [Bloomberg] – “Billionaires know they are. Low-wage workers are very well aware that they aren’t. But vast swaths of America’s “regular rich” don’t feel that way, and it’s keeping everybody down.” Comes with a tool that shows you how you stack up with the rest of America and various metro areas.

DraftKings and Other Sports Gambling Apps Are Hitting the Jackpot With ‘Parlay’ Bets. As They Win, You Lose. [Barrons] – “Americans have found a creative new way of losing money at sports betting. They’re losing with such regularity that they’re catapulting gambling apps to profitability well ahead of schedule. Parlay bets, which allow people to wager on several things happening together, have taken off in popularity this year. Instead of simply gambling on the winner of a game, bettors can wrap predictions for every game on the schedule into one bet, or create custom wagers that their favorite quarterback will throw three touchdowns and the defense will sack the other quarterback twice. Sports-betting websites and apps are now offering thousands of bets a day and combining the outcomes of several sporting events together into megabets that could cover four years of college tuition if they pay off. They hardly ever do.” They’re like lottery tickets but the anticipation lasts far longer because multiple events have to happen… sometimes a few of them do and the fun drags out, that’s why they’re popular!

Surprising stat from Redfin… Nearly 1 in 10 U.S. Homes Are Worth at Least $1 Million, Close to All-Time High. “This analysis estimated current home values using the Redfin Estimate, public records and MLS data, and past home values using public records and MLS data. The figures in this report represent June 2023, unless otherwise noted. See the end of this report for a detailed methodology.”

It’s not based on collected data, but estimates, but still surprising to see the percentage up at 8%.