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July 1, 2020 Lessons Learned

Five Popular Money Quotes

01It’s summer – which means it’s time to slow down and relax. Where I am, most things are open – so I’ve been able to go swimming and go to parks and splash pads.  And of course, buy ice cream treats – one of the most important parts of summer.

So, I’m going to do a little bit of a lazy post today to celebrate summer – I’m going to put up five popular money quotes that I like.

  1. Too many people spend money they earned..to buy things they don’t want..to impress people that they don’t like. –Will Rogers
  2. I will tell you the secret to getting rich on Wall Street. You try to be greedy when others are fearful. And you try to be fearful when others are greedy. –Warren Buffett
  3. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pound ought and six, result misery. –Charles Dickens
  4. If all the economists were laid end to end, they’d never reach a conclusion. –George Bernard Shaw
  5. Money is a terrible master but an excellent servant. –P.T. Barnum

These are all great quotes – a mixture of investment advice, humour, and day-to-day spending advice.

What’s your favourite quote or saying about money?

 

June 15, 2020 Good money habits

How To Get Your Consumer Disclosure for free

There are so many ways you can take keep an eye on your finances and protect yourself from fraud. You often hear that you should get your credit report once a year to make sure everything is fine. The problem is – to access your credit report online you have to pay for it. The good news is – you can get your consume disclosure (which is fairly similar) for free online easily.  I’ll talk about:

  1. What a consumer disclosure is.
  2. What a credit report is
  3. How you can get your consumer disclosure for free from Transunion

What is a consumer disclosure?

If you get a copy of your consumer disclosure, it’ll contain all the information on your credit report.  This includes important information like:

  • Your credit card repayment history
  • Any line of credit you have (or did have, and closed)
  • Any mortgage you have (or did have, and paid off)
  • Details about companies (such as credit card companies) that have asked for your credit file information. It also lists non-credit related inquiries (such as a background check).

What is a credit report?

A credit report is considered a “business version” of your consumer disclosure. It contains most of the same information that a consumer disclosure does, but also include your credit score. It does not contain any information about inquiries on your credit information.

How can I get my free consumer disclosure?

TransUnion will let you obtain a copy of your online consumer disclosure as frequently as once a month.  To access it, follow these steps:

  1. Get together information such as your SIN number and latest banking and credit card activities.
  2. Go to the TransUnion Consumer Disclosure page, then select the online access option.
  3. Read the information about what your consumer disclosure may contain and how it can help you.
  4. Select to access your consumer disclosure.
  5. Enter the information necessary to access your consumer disclosure.

Once you have a copy, download it and review it. If you see any issues with it, there is an Investigation Request Form at the end of your consumer disclosure you can fill in.

The Takeaway

Getting a copy of your consumer disclosure is free and easy. It’s a great way to get a picture of how you’re doing at a glance. It’s also an incredibly important tool in fighting against fraud – it enables you to see quickly and easily if there’s financial activity going on in your name that you don’t recognize.

Have you ever gotten a consumer disclosure or credit report before and had a nasty surprise?

 

 

 

June 1, 2020 Lessons Learned

4 lessons we’ve all learned during the pandemic

One thing I can say for sure is that we’ve all been spending a lot more time on our own or with just our family members for the past few months. I think it’s been a challenging adjustment for everyone, but we’ve definitely learned a few things. Here are four lessons I’ve learned during the pandemic:

  1. What I can do without
  2. How to share
  3. That it’s important to buy local
  4. What really matters

1. What I can do without

I’ve learned that I can do without a lot. Before, I took things for granted – that I could buy whatever I need whenever I needed it. That if I wanted a new book and didn’t want to buy it, I’d just go to the library to get it.  If I felt like picking up dinner or going to the movies, I could.  Now, I can do most of those things again – but it takes a little more planning.

2. How to share

I was lucky enough to pick up 1 container of Lysol wipes in mid-March. The limit was one per customer. Fortunately, it was a big container so I could share it with my parents. I’m so lucky I found it as they were sold out for months after that!

3. It’s important to buy local

I think I’ve always taken it for granted that someone would buy local – just not necessarily me! I’ve realized how critical it is to support local businesses as they don’t have the cash flow to sustain themselves over the long run if anything goes wrong – unlike big box stores. Plus they are part of the community and more likely to give back. So I’ve tried to focus on small businesses more over the past few months.

4. What really matters

I’ve come to appreciate how lucky I am to have a flexible job, and that I can be safe at home to work and take care of my son. I’ve also come to really appreciate my back yard! I didn’t use it much before COVID-19, but it’s been so nice to have somewhere to go that I could be outside and not worry about masks or physical distancing.

The Takeaway

I’ve learned a lot over the past few months – and how to focus on what is and isn’t important. It’s amazing how much we all take for granted until it’s suddenly taken away.

What’s something you’ve learned?

May 15, 2020 Saving money

5 ways we’ve learned to keep ourselves busy cheaply during lockdown

Another good thing that’s come out of the past few months is that we’ve all learned how to entertain ourselves fairly cheaply. Previously, we might have spent a lot of money on an evening out to keep ourselves busy – but that hasn’t been an option for the past few months.

So we’ve all learned how to keep ourselves entertained with what we can find at home! Here are some of the ways people have been keeping busy for free or cheap:

  1. Going for walks
  2. Baking
  3. Playing games online with friends
  4. Taking free online classes
  5. Downloading ebooks from the library

1. Going for walks

For a while, when only the bare essential stores were open and even playgrounds were closed, a lot of people were going for walks.  I’m lucky enough to live in an area with great nature paths and quiet streets, so our main entertainment for a few months was socially distanced walks once a week with family members.

2. Baking

Baking has definitely been very popular over the past few months. I’m not much of a baker – and even I baked my first loaf of bread.  Flour and yeast have been flying off the shelves! When I found some yeast, I picked up some extra to share.  I think baking has been popular because it’s very soothing and because you get to eat the end product.

3. Playing games online with friends

If I had managed to get a Nintendo Switch and a copy of Animal Crossing I’d definitely have spent time online playing games with friends.  This didn’t happen for me, so I played stuff I already had solo. I know that online gaming has been popular with a lot of older kids as a great way to have fun and keep in touch with their friends.

4. Taking free online classes

As soon as it looked like schools were going to shut down, lots of places stepped up to offer classes that anyone could take for free. Disney was offering animation lessons, Scholastic had stuff for younger kids – you could find a free class on just about anything you wanted! I started one that talked about the history of the pyramids.

5. Downloading ebooks from the library

My local library really ramped up their online offerings since the actual library branches were closed. You could even apply for a library card online if you didn’t have one.  We also got access to two other city library ebook offerings which was great – I found some books I wanted to read that I couldn’t find anywhere else.

The Takeaway

The great news is that all of these options will continue to be available even as things open up. We may not have as much selection in some things in the future, but stuff will still be out!

What’s one free or cheap way you entertained yourself over the past few months?

 

May 1, 2020 Good money habits

How you can carry over good habits you picked up during the pandemic.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

We’ve now been in the pandemic mode for two months.  Things are slowly starting to open back up depending on where you are. Regardless of whether you can go back into the office or are still at home, now’s a good time to start thinking about good habits you’ve started during the pandemic – and how you can carry them over in the future. Here are some ideas:

  1. Continue making good use of what you have.
  2. Learn to know the difference between what you need and what you want.
  3. Be flexible in how your approach things.

1. Make good use of what you have

We’ve all been staying home a lot more and only going out for what we need during the last few months. This has drastically cut down on impulse shopping. In an attempt to get in and out of the grocery store as quickly as possible, we’ve all been doing more planning to make sure we don’t forget anything we need.

We’ve also been better about making good use of what we have – whether it’s making meals stretch or getting stuff out of the freezer we’d forgotten about and using it up.

2. Learning how to know the difference between what you need and what you want

Another thing we’ve learned is how to figure out what we NEED vs what we WANT.  If you forgot to buy something at the grocery store, you have to think long and hard about whether it’s worth the risk of going back out again to get it.  This helps you get into the practice of learning what you really need vs whether it’s only something you want – but you don’t really need it.

3. Be flexible in how you approach things

Some of us are working from home for the first time.  We’re also learning how to teach our kids and keep in touch with loved ones via Facetime or video messaging. We’ve had to become flexible in how we approach things and learn to just roll with things.  That’s also a lesson you can apply to how you handle money. Sometimes things will go exactly how you planned with money – and sometimes you’ll have to roll with it.

The Takeaway

When the world shuts down overnight, you have to learn how to take things day by day. Now that we’re a few months into the pandemic, we’ve gotten the hang of things. We’re starting to get into routines and learning some new good habits – that we can continue to use in the future.

What’s a good habit – relating to money or something else – that you’ve developed in the past few months?

 

 

 

April 15, 2020 Making money

How to protect your income – during a pandemic or any other time!

 

While we’ve all felt the impact of the COVD-19 pandemic, no one has felt it worse than people who’ve been laid off or had to close their businesses.  The Canadian government has stepped up to provide a variety of resources such as the CERB – but thas not necessarily enough to replace the income you were making before.  A few businesses that have been able to remain open have seen an uptick in income – like places that make outdoor play toys like swingsets and pools!

Here are a few ideas on how you can protect your income no matter what the circumstances:

  1. Retool your business
  2. Change how your business works
  3. Have a side hustle

1. Retool your business

One of the biggest changes some companies have made during this pandemic is to retool their business. Automakers are now making ventilator parts.  Alcohol distillers are now making hand sanitizer.  While it’s certainly not easy to just change what you make or how you make it, it can pay off.  Think about how you operate your business now and if there are ways you could expand or change it in the future to give you more income streams.

2. Change how your business works

Places that provide take out or delivery have been doing very well. They’re considered an essential service and have been allowed to stay open.  A lot of restaurants that have never considered offering pick up or delivery are now doing so in an effort to stay afloat.  My husband and I ordered a nice steak dinner from a place up the road. Steak isn’t the best takeout dinner 🙂 but it was nice to have something a little more upscale than what we usually buy.

3. Have a side hustle

The days of having a job for life are now long gone. More and more people are turning to side hustles – everything from freelance writing to driving for SkipTheDishes.  Take a look at the skills you have an figure out if they could be used in a side hustle. Are you crafty? Then Etsy is your new best friend.  Like to drive? Plenty of options out there for delivering packages, people, or food!

The Takeaway

Flexibility is the name of the game. The more options you have for “income streams” the better off you’ll be. In my lifetime, I’ve been a technical writer, then a business analyst – and now I’m a freelance writer. All of these have something in common – the ability to analyze and then communicate information. So I’ve been able to carry over my skillset which is great.

What skills or experience do you have that you think you could turn into a side hustle? Or is there a way you could change your current business to be more flexible?

April 1, 2020 Spending money

Where people are spending more during the pandemic

In my last post, I talked about areas we’ve been saving money during this pandemic. And it’s been a silver lining to a stressful and uncertain time.

That being said, there are definitely areas where most of us are spending more money as well. Here are the main areas that I think people have been spending more money:

  1. Snacks
  2. Streaming services
  3. Video games
  4. Impulse comfort shopping

1. Snacks

I have definitely been spending more money on snacks in the past month than I did before! And asking around, I’m definitely not the only one.  Snacks are one of the few pleasures we can have safely and easily these days – and they’re something to look forward to after a long day.  So I’ve definitely been spending more on snacks – and also treating myself by buying better quality snacks as well!

2. Streaming services

We have two streaming services in our house – Netflix and Disney+.  That’s enough entertainment for the three of us, but I guarantee if we didn’t have any streaming services when the shut down started, we would have definitely ordered a few! On the day my son’s camp shut down with no notice, I was so happy that “Frozen 2” had just dropped on Disney+ so we’d have a nice treat to enjoy together. We’ve certainly gotten our money’s worth out of both our streaming services.

3. Video games

I held off buying a Nintendo Switch this year and I wish I hadn’t. Gaming systems were flying off the shelves as soon the shut down started – and I still can’t find a Nintendo Switch unless I’m willing to pay a ridiculous amount of money for it  I’ve treated myself instead to a few Xbox 360 games as well as one on Steam. It’s a nice escape into a fantasy world where you don’t have to worry about germs, masks, or hand sanitizer!

4. Impulse shopping

Amazon has been recording record profits. Now a lot of this is from people not wanting to leave their homes – and therefore buying more essentials via Amazon. But I’m sure a lot of people have been throwing things into their carts as well that they don’t really need.  I normally never buy books, but since the library has closed, I’ve bought a few online.

The Takeaway

Depending on where you are and what your needs are you may have found yourself saving more money or perhaps spending more. I think overall we’ve saved more than we spent – at least I hope so!  What have been your pandemic “treats” to yourself?

 

March 15, 2020 Saving money

Saving during a pandemic

I have to admit I never thought I’d be writing those words!

While being at home for days on end has definitely been rough on pretty much everyone, the pandemic has given at least some of us the opportunity to save some money.  Here are the main four areas people are saving money in during the pandemic:

  1. Commuting
  2. Eating out
  3. Drinking
  4. Travelling

1. Commuting

My husband takes the train to work every day. At two times a day, five times a week, that really adds up.  With him now working full time at home, we’ve saved a lot of money on commuting costs. As well, we’ve been able to decrease the insurance on one of our cars as we really aren’t using it these days. So we’ve definitely saved money on commuting!

2. Eating out

Normally we’d go get takeout once a week.  However, we decided to skip it for several weeks as we felt it just wasn’t worth the risk. As well, my husband would go buy a cup of coffee a few times a day while at work, so we’re also saving money on that (although we are spending more on coffee at home now!).  I think a lot of people we know are following the same pattern – they just don’t want to deal with the risk of picking up food, so they’re avoiding it completely.

3. Drinking

We’re past the stage in life where we’d go to clubs or go out for drinks with co-workers. But for people who do this on a regular basis, they are definitely saving a lot of money. In a big city like Toronto, drinks can often cost up to $10 apiece, so if you go out for drinks a few times a week and now you’re not – you could be saving a lot of money.

4.  Travelling

Again, we’re at a stage in life where we’re not doing much travelling. I did have one overnight trip booked – but I could cancel the hotel at no cost, so I saved some money by not going away. A lot of folks may have ended up putting down deposits they won’t get back, but if you were planning a trip in the near future, and didn’t have anything put down, you may have saved yourself some money due to this pandemic.

The Takeaway

I’m not going to try to put a rosy glow on this – we’re living in uncertain times and it’s a lot to process. It feels like life has gone from normal to scary almost overnight. No one knows what the future holds. But I’m trying to see the silver lining in all of this – and that lining is that we’ve saved ourselves some money at least!

In my next post, I’ll talk about areas where people are spending more money during this pandemic.

How has COVID-19 impacted your spending?

 

 

 

March 1, 2020 Making money

Make money without leaving the couch!

It’s winter, and it’s cold outside! Who wants to leave the couch? BUT – you’re committed to your goals of earning more money. So – how do you do this without leaving the comfort of your lovely warm home? There are lots of ways to do this, and I’ll cover two of them today.

  1. Swagbucks
  2. Prolific Surveys

These are both great sites in that the work/money comes to you – you don’t have to come up with a specific service to sell or try to convince someone to hire you.

1. Swagbucks

Swagbucks doesn’t give you cash – but it does offer gift cards to very popular places including Starbucks, Amazon, and Itunes. And you can get something pretty close to money – you can earn a Paypal gift card! The great thing about Swagbucks is that it offers you a variety of ways to make “Swagbucks” which you then redeem for a gift card.  Here are some of the most popular ways to earn Swagbucks:

  • Answering surveys. You may have to qualify for them, depending on the survey. The good thing is that Swagbucks will give you a few Swagbucks even if you don’t qualify. However, there’s a daily limit for how many Swagbucks they’ll give you for surveys you don’t qualify for.
  • Online shopping – if you shop at places via Swagbucks portal, you’ll earn Swagbucks on your order. You have plenty of options to choose from –  Expedia, Walmart, LEGO, and Amazon are just a few of your options.
  • Daily poll – it only earns one Swagbuck, but it’s super easy – you answer one question, usually on a fun topic!
  • Play games – yes. You’ll get paid to play games online.
  • Watch videos – you can select from a list of videos they provide. This one is relatively passive, but it can take about 20 minutes to earn 3 Swagbucks.
  • Search – you can make Swagbucks your search engine and earn Swagbucks when you search.

I’ve earned gift cards from Swagbucks, so I can confirm they are legit. They’re a great way to make a little extra on your own time on your own terms!  There are no real bad things about Swagbucks other than sometimes technical issues occur with games or videos, and they freeze.

2. Prolific Surveys

I would say half of this title is correct. They do offer surveys – but they are not prolific in providing them! I have gotten invitations to participate in surveys from them no more than once a month.  The good news is they pay in British Pounds so you can earn decent money for not a lot of work. And they email you an invitation when you qualify for a survey, so you don’t have to check the site regularly to see if you’re eligible for anything new. Here’s how the website works:

  1. You sign up and fill in your demographic information. The great thing is that the screening questions are all done here – so you won’t be sent surveys you don’t qualify for and then get screened out! The more details you provide, the more surveys you can qualify for.
  2. You get sent an email when you qualify for a survey. Since Proflic pays well (minimum of $7.50 an hour) and have a limited number of participants, I try to start a survey ASAP after I get an email notifying me I’ve qualified.
  3. Complete the survey.  I’ve taken surveys that take no more than five minutes and some that take up to twenty. They’re always interesting – universities use them, so they aren’t just the standard “Have you bought this product in the past month?” kind of surveys.
  4. Submit your answers and wait for them to be approved. I’ve never had an issue with my answers not being approved.
  5. Get money deposited into your Proflic account. Once you reach 5 Pounds, you can cash out! You will require a PayPal account to do this.

It costs nothing to sign up – so check out Proflic today!

Two great ways to earn money!

You’ve learned about two great ways to earn money today – Swagbucks and Prolific.  Swagbucks offers a lot more options than Proflic, but the pay is lower. As well, with Swagbucks, you have to remember to go to the site to earn money. It’s worth signing up for both – after all, the more options you have to earn money from your couch, the better.

Happy earning!

 

 

 

February 15, 2020 Making money

Get paid to lose weight!

 

I know, I know – get paid to lose weight. It sounds like a bad late-night infomercial that is designed to TAKE your money, not GIVE you money! But it’s true – there are two options you can consider if you want to lose weight and lose money at the same time. I’ll cover what they both offer, then provide some tips on deciding which option is best for you.

1. DietBet

DietBet has only two “games” or challenges to chose from. You can select from a kickstarter challenge where you aim to lose 4% of your body weight in four weeks or a transformer challenge where you intend to lose 10% of your body weight in six months.

Each of these games has a “buy-in” which DietBet uses to build “the pot.” If you’re wondering if this sounds a lot like poker – you’re right!

After you’ve selected the challenge you want to participate in, you then:

  1. Weigh-in and upload a photo of your weight.
  2. “Play.” In other words, diet and exercise! 🙂 Or healthy eating. Or whatever route you choose.
  3. Weigh out after the period of the “game” has ended.
  4. If you’ve reached your goal – you get paid! If you don’t – well, no money for you, but hopefully you lost at least some weight!

2. HealthyWage

HealthyWage offers several different kinds of challenges to select from.  They are:

  • Individual – you control all the variables such as desired weight loss and time frame
  • Personal Jackpot – you split the pot of winnings if you reach your goal weight (quite similar to DietBet)
  • Team – you are part of a group of people trying to lose weight. The team that loses the highest percentage weight wins cash prizes
  • Fitness  – try to achieve a certain amount of steps in a specified time frame.

You can participate in up to 10 challenges at one time!

The steps for HealthyWage are similar to DietBet:

  1. Sign up for any challenges you are interested in and place your bet!
  2. Verify your weight (if participating in a weight loss challenge)
  3. Participate!
  4. Verify your weight once the period has passed OR the number of steps you’ve taken.
  5. If you’ve reached your goal – you get paid! Congrats!

3. Which is best for you?

DietBet has much more limited offerings than HealthyWage.

If you’re looking for something where you can focus just on weight loss, but participate with a group of people, then DietBet may be for you.

If you prefer to compete “against yourself,” want to increase the amount of exercise you take or want to take on more than one challenge at once, then HealthyWage is likely a better bet for you.

Either way, you have to be willing to put some money on the line. However, if that’s the thing you need to kick start increasing the amount of exercise you take or losing weight, then either of these sites would be a great place to start!

Happy competing!