Lazy Man and Money

Rewarding and Motivating Myself

by Leave a Comment

I have a problem. It’s a “first-world” problem, so I don’t expect any sympathy.

Father’s Day is just around the corner and my wife asked what I wanted. I honestly couldn’t think of much. I kind of want this Intel NUC to update our Windows Media Center that eliminates our cable box rental fees. The Dell Zino that I got 5 years ago is showing its age.

Unfortunately, Microsoft discontinued the software to make it go, so I’m reduced to experimenting putting Windows 7 on it (not easy) or putting an experimental build of WMC on Windows 10 (also not easy). I don’t want to take on the project. I just want something that works.

Other than this, the only other thing I can think of wanting is this extremely expensive television. Hey it only costs a fraction of the $25,000 that the technology cost a few years ago, so it’s a “bargain”, right?

I don’t see myself saying, “I think it’s a good idea to spend $3000 on a television.” I’m just not wired that way.

However, I realized that if I put aside a little money each month, it feels like an easier purchase. I saved specifically for it, so I can justify it.

I’ve decided I’d put aside 1% of my monthly revenue each month. So if I were to make $60,000 a year (I don’t, this is just an example), it would be around $5000 a month. When I put 1% aside, I transfer $50 to a specialized account. That would be around $600 a year saved. So it’s going to take me 5 years to save up for the television, right? Well fortunately technology becomes much cheaper over time. In a couple of years, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was $1500 and I would have saved $1200 (in this example).

I’d still be a little short, but here’s where the Father’s Day solution comes in. If my wife adds $50 here or there the gap is bridged pretty quick. It’s no big deal if it takes 30 months instead of 24.

This helps me in three ways:

  1. Budget for a big purchase – Some people just add it to their credit card and pay a ton of interest. Those people are not likely to be the ones retiring early.
  2. Motivate Me to Make More Money – Because I’m putting 1% away, the more money I make the faster I get to my goal. If I can grow from $5000 a month to $6000 a month, that means that I’m putting $60 aside each month. That would get me to $1440 after two years instead of $1200. I’ll reach my goal quicker and get the television quicker.
  3. Reward Me for Doing Good Work – This is kind of big thing for me psychologically. As I mentioned in the beginning, I don’t really want a lot of things. To expand on that, there aren’t a lot of experience things I want at this time either as it’s hard to do them with the 2 and 3 year old. All work and no play make Brian a dull boy, right?

What do you do to motivate and reward yourself? Let me know in the comments.

Create More Shots

by 2 Comments

My wife has fallen in love with all things related to Hamilton the Musical. While I admit to being skeptical about blending 18th century history with rap, I have to admit it seems to work.

However, one thing stuck me with many of the songs. The first time I heard them, I felt I’d heard them before. I don’t know enough rap to place it, but one obvious one stuck out to me.

This:

Reminds me of:

I should probably cut Hamilton some slack. We see the same common themes in stories and movies all the time. I would be a hypocritical Rocky fan if I didn’t acknowledge that the Italian Stallion got one shot. Thankfully he didn’t rap about it.

I started thinking about the concept of getting one shot. It disturbed me.

Why must we only get one shot? Who made up that rule?

When it comes to opportunities, why must life be like Oliver Twist:

As I’ve come to learn over the last 10 years, many of the answers to life’s problems can be solved by Buffy the Vampire Slayer. You just need to know how to read and interpret the verse.

Today’s inspirational quote comes to you from Chosen 7:22

“So here’s the part where you make a choice. What if you could have that power, now? In every generation, one Slayer is born, because a bunch of men who died thousands of years ago made up that rule. They were powerful men. This woman is more powerful than all of them combined. So I say we change the rule. I say my power should be our power. Tomorrow, Willow will use the essence of this scythe to change our destiny. From now on, every girl in the world who might be a Slayer will be a Slayer. Every girl who could have the power will have the power. Can stand up, will stand up. Slayers, every one of us. Make your choice. Are you ready to be strong?”

We might not be Slayers with a powerful Witch and a magical scythe, but the point is simple… Why believe that you’ve only got one shot?

Change the rules… create multiple shots. The better you get at something the harder it is for someone to NOT give you a shot.

When Steph Curry perfected his shooting technique he not only made himself indispensable for Golden State… he ensured that all the other NBA teams would give him an opportunity if something were to happen down the line.

I feel like this is getting over preachy and motivational, so I want to bring this back around to personal finance. If you have a sound personal finance foundation, you may find yourself with the flexibility to create more shots.

The biggest problem that I’m facing is that I’m still trying to figure out what I want my shot to be in the first place. I think I need to take some time to figure that out.

GradeFund: A Great Idea That I Hate

by 18 Comments

Last week, a local news station in Boston mentioned a website called GradeFund. It seems I get at least 10 public relations people e-mail me each day, but I haven’t been hit up for GradeFund yet.

What is GradeFund and How Does it Work?

Students ask their family and friends to sponsor them in their quest for great grades. Sponsors can choose to offer various amounts for each grade the student achieves. It’s not entirely clear from their about page, but it seems that the lowest you can go is $5 for every A grade. GradeFund collects the money, verifies transcripts (this sounds like a difficult task if grades are done like they were in my elementary school. I see no age or grade level minimum for using the service), and distributes the money. They keep a percentage of the money that is at least 5% ($5 for every $100. If you don’t get $100 and you want to clear out your account, you still have to pay a $5 processing fee.)

Why is GradeFund a Great Idea

I think it’s a great idea to motivate people towards good grades. Young people need motivation just like everyone else. I know when I was young, a few dollars would have gone a long way towards getting me studying when I may have felt like giving up. Money can serve as a powerful carrot.

Another reason why it might be a good idea… people could use the extra money when in school. Without a job, my wife didn’t have a way of supporting herself. Plenty of people get jobs and study at the same time, but it seems like it would be great if they could focus on their studies. This may be a way for that to happen (though, you’d need extremely generous sponsors).

Why do I Hate GradeFund

I guess I don’t hate GradeFund, it’s more of a dislike. However, a title of “GradeFund?: A Great Idea That I Dislike” seemed poor to me. Here are the three problems I have with GradeFund:

  • Good Grades Should Be Its Own Reward – I was very jealous when my friends got money for good grades. My mother always said “good grades were its own reward.” I think I knew at the time that she was right, but I understand it a lot better now.
  • Is GradeFund Panhandling Your Relatives? – I’m sure my mother would say the only thing worse than not believing that good grades were it’s own reward, would be me signing up and hitting up grandma for cash. She would consider that obnoxious and I agree. If grandmother wants to give money for good grades, why can’t she look at the report card on the refrigerator and give out some cash?
  • Airing Out Your Family’s Financial Information – My wife brought this up. She came from a poor, but proud family. In her culture it would be completely unacceptable to put yourself on this service. To her it’s tantamount to admitting that you need money. I’m not going to judge a culture for right or wrong, it’s not my place, just saying that it exists. This could be a big negative.

In my mind, the negatives outweigh the positives. What’s your take? Am I making too much of something that’s intended to be a helpful tool?