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85% Of Gen Z And 83% Of Millennials Engage In Financial Deception.

Happy Wednesday Plutus Family! It’s not too late to join us for our final Content Creator Happy Hour tonight, December 7th in Washington D.C. at 6pm.

As always, tickets are free, but extremely limited. Register for Content Creator Happy Hour Washington D.C. here.

Here’s what we wanted to share with you this week.

85% Of Gen Z And 83% Of Millennials Engage in Financial Deception. [A Dime Saved] – “Millennials and Gen Z have experienced constant economic uncertainty: entering the job market during a massive economic downturn, Millennials have struggled to gain financial stability and have been hit with tidal wave after tidal wave of world-shaking events. Gen Z has had to cope with technology pushing perfection, head-spinning U.S. and global politics, and a looming recession,” said Michael Hershfield, founder, and CEO, of Accrue Savings.” (Submitted by Tarsha.)

It’s Not About Retirement Anymore. [Retire Before Dad] — “It’s about: being more available to my family, focusing on meaningful work that I enjoy, building on the nine years of effort I’ve put into my online writing business, and leveraging the saving and investing I’ve prioritized over the past two decades.” (Submitted by J. Money.)

Make a Stock Tracker with Google Sheets. [Freddy Smidlap] — “It’s about: being more available to my family, focusing on meaningful work that I enjoy, building on the nine years of effort I’ve put into my online writing business, and leveraging the saving and investing I’ve prioritized over the past two decades.” (Submitted by J. Money.)

Bring Economics into The Holidays. [Economics with Dr. A] — “Learn more about how we brought economics to the holiday season. This is an example of assignments that are designed to develop community.”

Money fights

Fights happen all the time, whether over money or just life, and so I’m always eager to read about how others work through their challenges.

This first post is really good in that it puts the money battles through the lens of a lot of “conventional” money advice:

Actual Money Fights We’ve Had (and How We Solved Them) [The White Coat Investor] – “My husband and I recently celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary (although, now that I think about it, we didn’t observe the occasion with anything more than a “nice job, babe.” We need to learn to live a little). Twenty years, two medical careers, three kids, six dogs, and many, many conversations about money later, we don’t just have shared financial goals: we have learned how to think about money in the same way.”

Savers Get Paid Again [The Belle Curve] – “ZIRP is not the normal state of the monetary system. Where we are today is normal. Savers should be paid to wait, and the risk-free interest rate should not be zero. That was insane. Everyone got so high on the supply of free money that we forgot the basics of how money works. Unwilling to park cash in zero-interest savings accounts, investors went on a mad dash of risk-taking.”

The Traditional Budgeting Rule That I Just Can’t Get Behind [Making of a Millionaire] – “Living in one of the fastest-growing real estate markets in the country, I’m confident that pulling the trigger on a 2nd house is a smart financial move.

And if I’d listened to the “25% housing rule” as Gospel, I’d probably never have the chance to do this.” General rules are good guidelines but never 100% accurate for everyone all the time.

Are You Moving Toward or Away from Financial Independence?

It’s Jim here with your day’s money (and money adjacent) gems.

Are You Moving Toward or Away from Financial Independence? [Passive Income MD] – “The usual direction of our financial lives is to move gradually toward financial independence. However, there are three situations where we may find ourselves moving away from financial independence.”

How to Make Money Online for Beginners: 25 Easy Ways [Millennial Money Man] – “So, you want to learn how to make money online? There are so many options for beginners, and that’s awesome news if you’re looking for a side hustle, a new career path, or you just want to make extra money to offset inflation.”

This is fascinating — China’s Van Goghs: The Village That Paints Thousands Of Fakes A Year – “Until 1989, the village of Dafen in the city of Shenzhen, China was little more than a hamlet. It now has a population of 10,000, including hundreds of peasants-turned oil painters. In the many studios, and even in the alleyways, Dafen’s painters turn out thousands of replicas of world-famous Western paintings. Nobody thinks anything of an order for 200 Van Goghs. To meet their deadlines, painters sleep on the floor between clotheslines strung with masterpieces. In 2015, the turnover in painting sales was over $65 million.

Local painter Zhao has a dream to travel to Amsterdam to see the works of his legendary associate. After struggling and saving, he fulfils dream. In Europe, his encounter with van Gogh’s paintings brings an epiphany. Although dejected at the revelation, Zhao is inspired by van Gogh’s paintings and the hardships he suffered, and resolves to dedicate himself to his own original art.”

I think “fakes” is a bit disingenuous for the title, I think replicas is a more apt term.

A few good stories.

Welcome to Friday, money nerds. My name is J.D., and I’m here to take you into the weekend with some quick thoughts about mastering your money — and your life. I really like today’s features. I hope you do too.

A few good stories. [Collaborative Fund] — Let’s lead today with an awesome bit of writing from Morgan Housel at Collaborative fund. Housel is famous for awesome bits of writing, but this one contains (as it says on the tin) a few good stories. They’re each short, and they’re each powerful — especially the last one.

To control your life, control what you pay attention to. [Harvard Business Review] — “Your attention determines the experiences you have, and the experiences you have determine the life you live. Or said another way: you must control your attention to control your life.”

Learning to live. [Of Dollars and Data] — “Many times in life you’ll have the opportunity to assume negative intent in others. Don’t do it. You’ll often be wrong and even when you are right, assuming negativity all the time is no way to go through life. Most people don’t want to wrong you. Keep this in mind before rushing to judgment.”

What are some of the best things to make at home? [Ask MetaFilter] — “So I made homemade bread. It was awesome. I’m making homemade Castile soap this weekend. Very excited. What other stuff should I be making at home?” A treasure trove of fun DIY projects.

Let’s close out the week with a non-financial video. It’s a video that I really, really like.

I’ve been a fan of Star Wars since I saw the first film in theaters in 1977. I was eight years old. But honestly, I’ve always had this sense that the franchise failed to live up to its potential. It focused on the dumbest parts of the universe instead of the most interesting.

Well, imagine my joy when Disney recently released the show Andor, a spy-thriller set in the Star Wars universe but possessing NONE of the problematic elements. No Jedi. No Force. No lightsabers. No bizarre “the entire galaxy revolves around a handful of people” plotlines.

Instead, Andor is a twelve-part series that can be enjoyed by anyone regardless how much they know about the established Star Wars mythos. It’s actual quality storytelling.

Anyhow, YouTuber Thomas Flight just published a video exploring why Andor feels so real. It’s an insightful look at one of the elements that helps set this show apart from its peers. And I think it’s something that other CGI-heavy media franchises could learn from.

That’s all I have for you this week! Jim will be back on Monday with more of the same. I’ll see you in ten days. Until then, have fun!

The most important financial decisions you’ll ever make.

Hey hey, Apexians. Can you believe it’s December?!? Well, it is. Ho ho ho and all that. As the holiday season ramps up, we continue business as usual around here, sharing some of our favorite personal-finance stories from around the web. Stories like these…

The six most important financial decisions you’ll ever make. [ESI Money] — “Decisions, decisions. There are loads of financial decisions we make throughout our lifetimes. Some are big (as we’ll discuss here) and some (most probably) are small (like choosing between the high-priced or store brand peanut butter).” Nice discussion of the Big Things that affect your life (especially your financial life).

“How I’ve saved thousands of dollars on clothes for my kids.” [Frugalwoods] — “This system also enables me to hand-up clothes to friends whose kids need a specific item in a particular size. And yes, they do joke about going shopping in my basement and yes, I deserve it. BUT, I love being able to pull out a complete wardrobe for each kid for every season for an absolute fraction of the cost of buying new.”

Quantifying your dreams to make them happen. [Modest Millionaires] — “Once you have an idea of the potential range of costs for something you desire, spotting a good deal is so much easier. You have data to compare the value you’ll get for the price you pay. So decision making is facilitated thanks to the process of quantifying your goals.”

I’m a big fan of end-of-year “best” lists and similar rituals. The period between Thanksgiving and New Year is always fun because there are so many retrospectives on offer. And here’s one of my faves: Vanity Fair’s annual interview with Billie Eilish.

I don’t listen to much of Eilish’s music (although I like what I’ve heard), but I’ve enjoyed watching each of these interviews over the past six years. It’s neat to watch her growth from age 15 to 20.

Apparently, she’ll continue to do these interviews every year, but starting in 2023 they’ll only be released sporadically. That makes sense. Anyhow, you might enjoy this too.

That’s it for Thursday. Come back tomorrow and I’ll share more some more interesting links to take you into the weekend.

Five Big Reasons to Retire Often

Hey Plutus Family! We hope you enjoyed your holiday with your family. If you have room for one more event this year, please join us for our final Content Creator Happy Hour on Wednesday, December 7th in Washington D.C. at 6pm.

As always, tickets are free, but extremely limited. Register for Content Creator Happy Hour Washington D.C. here.

Here’s what we wanted to share with you this week.

Five Ways to Get “Free” Money from the Government. [Fionist Dream] – “While the Israeli government taxes us and takes our money left and right, it also has several programs you might not know about where you can get some of it back. Most people are not eligible for every single one of these, but as we say, knowledge is power. Even being eligible for one can save you thousands of shekels per year. Each program has its own eligibility criteria. You can apply and find all of the relevant information online. Application is free.” (Submitted by Tarsha.)

Five Big Reason to Retire Often. [Jillian Johnsrud] — “The biggest reason to retire often: it will make your life better. It gives you a fighting chance to improve every area of life that matters to you, spanning across every decade. Your whole life, in its width and its depth, can improve. Plus, it’s just more fun this way.”” (Submitted by J. Money.)

11 Must-Have Gifts for Travel Lovers. [Family Money Adventure] — “While the holidays aren’t all about gifts, it’s fun to get or give something special, especially something you will probably love. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to find great travel-related gifts. If your budget allows it, though, there are some higher-priced travel gadgets that will have your loved ones jumping for joy this Christmas. Whatever your holiday budgets, our list of the best gifts for travel lovers is sure to bring a smile this holiday season.” (Submitted by Tarsha.)

The investor’s manifesto.

Howdy, moneylings. It is I, your humble host, J.D. Roth. I’m here today to highlight some of the best personal-finance stories from around the web. Stories like these…

The Investor’s Manifesto [Safal Niveshak] — “This is for you. This is from someone like you. It is an Investor’s Manifesto. It is something you can reflect back on if you ever felt stuck in your investing life. If you believe in it, follow it, and stand for it, your investing life will be good.”

Why stories of fraud shouldn’t lead to excessive pessimism. [The Rational Walk] — “Just because the news cycle does not highlight exemplars does not mean they do not exist, and we should bear this in mind before getting too pessimistic about the state of the world when we read about morally bankrupt characters like Sam Bankman-Fried.”

Frontline work when everyone is angry. [Harvard Business Review] — “I’ve studied incivility — defined as rudeness, disrespect, or insensitive behavior — in workplaces for more than 20 years…My research has found that reports of incivility are indeed on the rise.”

Your budget, one envelope at a time. [MetaFilter] — “Need some new budgeting ideas? Enjoy something tactile? Try cash stuffing! Cash stuffing, based on the relatively older cash envelope system, has seen a recent resurgence on TikTok and YouTube especially amongst younger people documenting their progress online.”

Lastly, here’s my favorite video of the past week. It’s a 13-minute clip from 60 Minutes that highlights the smartest dog in the world. (It’s actually a fascinating look at dog intelligence generally, but it highlights one exceptionally smart pup.)

That’s all I have for you today. The Plutus folks will drop in tomorrow, then I’ll return on Thursday with more great stuff. See you then!

Give thanks like an emperor.

Howdy, money nerds. J.D. here and I’m back from central California, where I spent an extended Thanksgiving break with my girlfriend’s family. Fun times and good food, but now it’s time to get back to work.

To kick off this week’s Apex Money, here’s something non-financial.

I’m a big fan of artist and blogger Austin Kleon. I particularly like this installment from Thanksgiving 2021 in which he teaches readers how to create a ‘zine. I like Kleon’s free-flowing, spontaneous style. It’s dynamic. It’s energetic. It’s raw. It’s real.

Anyhow, I’ve been contemplating learning how to draw, and Kleon is a big inspiration as I consider that path.

Enough with the art, though. Let’s look at some stories about personal finance! Here are the articles I have for you today.

Cumulative vs. cyclical knowledge. [Collaborative Fund] — “I can imagine a world in 50 years where things like cancer and heart disease are either non-existent or effectively controlled. I cannot ever imagine a world where economic volatility is tamed and people stop making financial decisions they eventually regret – no matter how much history of past mistakes we have to study.”

The present defines the past. [Of Dollars and Data] — “Whatever you’re thinking right now, you have to realize that you’re being biased by current events. The present is redefining your past. Sometimes this is necessary so that you don’t make the same mistakes again in the future. However, sometimes, the present can teach you the wrong lessons.”

The money value of time. [Young Money] — “The Time Value of Money states that delaying your spending will increase the value of your portfolio over time. And if we had unlimited time on this earth, then the story would stop here. Defer all spending as long as possible to have as much money as possible at some indefinite time in the future. But we don’t have unlimited time. To get the full picture of the relationship between money and time, you need to flip the equation around.”

That’s it for this Monday. I’ll be back tomorrow with more. See you then!

This Is How To Have A Long Awesome Life

Happy Thanksgiving to all those who are celebrating today with family and friends!

If you’re in your email inbox today, I’ll keep it brief – today has one post and one post only:

This Is How To Have A Long Awesome Life [Barking Up The Wrong Tree] – “What happens when people eat right, maintain a healthy weight, exercise, and don’t smoke? They prevent 80% of heart attacks, 90% of type 2 diabetes, and significantly reduce the chance of cancer, dementia and pretty much every other bad thing you can think of.”

I know it may be a bit cruel to share a post about nutrition on a day where many will be celebrating gluttony… but your mind is already on it and so you might as well lean into it. 🙂

The article is good and you won’t leave feeling (that) bad about your food choices.

We’re taking Friday off because of the holiday and will be back on Monday with more goodies!

7 Ways You Can Make Money in the Metaverse.

Happy Pre-Thanksgiving Plutus family! This is the time to be thankful and we are thankful for your support. Please enjoy your holiday tomorrow and leave a slice of pie for us.

Here’s what we wanted to share with you this week.

A Lottery of Sorts. [Happily Disengaged] – “There are not many places in the world where a construction worker with no college education, whose skin color is different that those who run the country in business and government, can be as successful as I am. I don’t take anything I have for granted, though it’s quite easy to do. This walk keeps me humble.” (Submitted by J. Money.)

7 Ways You Can Make Money in the Metaverse. [Harris Cash Coach] — “The metaverse is shaping up to be the source for business owners to provide innovative products and service opportunities. To help you discover ways to make money in the metaverse and identify viable metaverse investments, I asked CEOs and business leaders for their best insights. From becoming a tour guide to selling virtual avatar assets, there are several ways that you can make money in the metaverse.” (Submitted by Tarsha.)

Why We’re Giving $100 Tips During the Holidays (And You Should Too). [Marriage Kids and Money] — “We love a money saving tip, but there are definitely things that are worth spending lots of money on. Things that make your life richer, better, and easier. Here are 5 things that may have a higher upfront cost but are always worth the price.” (Submitted by J. Money.)