Think Twice, Say Nothing?

The more I learn, the less I know—because I continue to learn just how much is out there. You don’t know what you don’t know, but you have to listen to learn.

Choose Yourself

Live your best life.

Wizards and Broomsticks

Do I want to be a wizard? Heck yes, I want to be a wizard! And money (and poor choices?) allowed me the opportunity to throw spells at enemies, explore the wizarding world, and become the magical creature I was always meant to be. #winning

Jet-setting, Spas, and Luxury

Building a frugal box makes so many aspects of money management effortless.  This weekend, I jet-setted across the country for a spa day with my stepsister.  Sounds luxurious and quite expensive, doesn't it?

Caution: Will Brake for Breaks

In the office environment, I was forced to take regular breaks from staring at my screen.  Distractions came in the form of coworkers stopping to say hello, long walks down to the campus Starbucks and in-person meetings.  A commute signaled the start and the end of the day, making it easy to shut everything off.  Working from home took away all of those automatic triggers for a mental break.  It's now on you to own your time.

Traditional vs. Roth

Which one to choose?  An extremely personal decision that boils down to tax advantages you want to gain.  Always confer with your CPA before making your decisions, but go into the meeting with full knowledge of the differences, benefits, and potential scenarios in which one (or possibly neither!) may be more advantageous.  TLDR: it is a spectrum that will change throughout your life.

New Year, New Savings Rate

I'm quite fortunate in that my company is on an annual raise and bonus cycle, which kicks in on January 1st.  Every year before the winter holidays, I start preparing for next year's financial plans and goals.  That means evaluating my savings goals, one of which is maxing out my 401(k).

In searching for the new limits, the first thing that pulled up was "Should You Even Try to Max Out Your 401(k) in 2023?"  The bait worked.  I clicked.

Am I Still Relevant?

Frugality is always relevant, of course.

So much of my successful adventures boiled down to timing. What’s still relevant? Am I just an interesting story, a footnote, riding off into the ether?

Lay Off My Latte (and Other Millennial Musings)

To preface, millennials were born between approximately 1980 and 1999.  The oldest are mid 40s, and the youngest are in their 20s.  It's not just "anyone younger than me."

Today's Episode of Cognitive Dissonance

Sometimes life hands you a lot of great things, and you know you should be happy and grateful, but you can't help feeling something just isn't quite right.