A MILLION BUCKS BY 30

Trim your bottom, add to your bottom line

2008-11-11T10:01:00.000-05:00

Check out an article I wrote for bankrate.com. I talk a lot about butts in it.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/Financial_Literacy/investing_money/make_money_a1.asp?caret=115c

Whatever You Like

2008-10-21T11:24:00.002-04:00

Keeping the bad-financial-moves-in-a-song theme going, Consumerist even introduces the Weird Al take on TI's "Whatever You Like":

http://consumerist.com/5060786/whatever-you-like-parody-coupon-clipping-is-the-new-largesse

Fun song; bad financial advice

2008-10-14T15:55:00.002-04:00

"Talk Shit" - Timbaland with Missy Elliot and T-Pain

Real Estate Trends

2008-09-29T10:41:00.002-04:00

Portfolio has some great articles on real estate recently.

About US markets:

Author Michael Lewis rents a New Orleans mansion
Real-estate developer Toll Brothers business model

About UK markets:
Squatters takeover mansions
One mansion can't sell

Secrets That Sell

2008-09-24T11:07:00.003-04:00

(It is available, just click on it.)

How Banks Work

2008-09-12T13:55:00.003-04:00

Came across this interesting 5 part series on YouTube.

Blunt Money book give away

2008-09-09T10:28:00.001-04:00

Just leave a comment on this book review by Blunt Money and you can enter to win a free copy of "A Million Bucks by 30" written by yours truly.

Guaranteed $20

2008-09-04T17:48:00.002-04:00

After reading this post on con men, I came up with my own way to earn $20 while in a bar.

First you search for the densest person in the room. Blondes, drunks, and blonde drunks are usually a good target for beginners. And then you approach your target, do some small talk, and let it slip somewhere in the conversation that you are a fortune teller. The natural reaction of most people is one of curosity and this leads to questions of you to prove your fortune telling abilities.

Then you, the swindler, backtrack a bit and say "well, I'm only right about 50% of the time. But I'm willing to bet $20 on it."

Then you take a twenty from him and then tell him "Go into the bathroom right now you'll see a fire-breathing unicorn."

The target goes to bathroom and you move around the corner and wait. When he comes back and finds you, you instantly say "I knew you'd come and ask for your money back!" And then you pocket his twenty dollar bill.

Coins

2008-09-02T15:39:00.003-04:00

My buddy Paddy sent me this, thought I'd share:

I thought you might like this. You can get up to $500 ($250 increments) of the $1 president coins from the US Mint shipped free. The shipping disappears when you go to the final checkout screen. This is cool for a couple of reasons.

1) coins are cool and dollar bills are such a pain in the balls. So, circulate these things.

2) If you want to be a true cheapskates, you can buy these with a credit card and get whatever rewards, x%, skymiles, etc. I suppose you'd have to carry 10lbs of coins to the bank if you just wanted to deposit them, but hey. You could look at this as an immediate 2% (or whatever cc rewards you have) on a $500 investment.

3) who doesn't like Andrew Jackson?

All solid points. I'd also like to add a part 4 to this if you still aren't sold on coins. This is from the old Comedy Central show Upright Citizens Brigade:

I.O.U.S.A

2008-08-19T13:02:00.002-04:00

Looks like a must-see.

Official Website: http://www.IOUSAtheMovie.com

Some new ideas to make money and save money

2008-08-15T14:44:00.003-04:00

You can read about what I've come up with on Main Street today. Let me know if any of the ideas work out for you.

And don't even try to sell me your art.

Book Giveaway

2008-08-13T11:18:00.004-04:00

The Bank Bonuses blog not only says "A Million Bucks by 30" is a must-read, but that he is also giving away my book for free. So far only 8 people have signed up to win. Those are some good chances! All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post and he will randomly select a winner. You have less than 40 hours to enter. Good luck!

Extreme Home Makeover goes bust

2008-08-04T18:20:00.003-04:00

I haven't been this angered by a news story in a long time. A family on Extreme Makeover got a free pimped-out mansion with no mortgage, plus a $100,000 stiped to cover carrying costs such as utilies, insurance, etc.

The couple is now in foreclosure. After the makeover, they took out a $450,000 home equity loan and invested it in a speculative construction company that apparently didn't do too well.

It's stories like this that make me believe that no matter what helping hand you give people, it's just easier for some people to be broke. (The $100,000 homeless man story comes to mind too. And this $54 million dollar lottery winner.)

And they all had access to financial advisors.

I'm speechless.

Explanation of the mortgage crisis

2008-07-28T15:33:00.002-04:00

To fully understand what caused the tremendous rise in the real estate market and then the subsequent fall, check out this thorough and interesting explanation about what caused it all. It's an hour long, but it's amazing. It's from NPR's This American Life, one of my favorite radio shows. Stream it for free.

Wordle

2008-07-22T17:45:00.005-04:00

Wordle is a cool program that creates "word clouds" from the text you enter. The size of the words is represented by the frequency of its use. Below is the entire text of my book in word cloud form (with common articles excluded). I'd say it looks like a fair representation of what the whole book is about: JUST MONEY.

Click on the photo for a closer look.

Another week, another chance for a free book

2008-07-15T12:09:00.002-04:00

This time on the heels of a great review from The Money Gardener is your chance to win another free book. That's basically saying you have about a 1 in 50 chance to have the knowledge of a millionaire in the palms of your hands (albeit with numerous dog-earned corners and ring marks from a few beers.) But nevertheless, you have a chance. All it takes is leaving a comment here.

iPhone or Millionaire?

2008-07-11T09:47:00.010-04:00

Photoshopped by my collegues Jack and Steve. They know me too well.

But it's true!

Another chance to get my book for free

2008-07-07T18:10:00.000-04:00

Over on finance blogger Clever Dude today through Thursday, you can enter to win a free copy of my book. Just leave a comment on his review of "A Million Bucks by 30", which thankfully, looks to be more than stellar!

Cheap beer blind taste test

2008-07-06T23:09:00.004-04:00

I took the opportunity at my friend's July 4th cookout this weekend to make my binge drinking more than about getting drunk. I made it a bit educational too by doing some self-motivated market research on what is the favorite cheap beer amongst the diverse group of Brits and Americans the would be gathering for the event. (I figured spending America's Independence day with a bunch of Red Coats required some sort of distraction from the reason we are having this patriotic celebration.)

I went to the local bodega and bought 12 tallboys of the cheapest beers I could find. Those watered-down beverages ended up being: Modelo, Keystone Ice, Coors, Coors Light, Budweiser, Bud Lite, Miller High Life, Presidente, Busch, Busch Lite, Colt 45, and Pabst Blue Ribbon. I want to know when I'm in a bar with just a dollar or two in my pocket, which discount cold one would taste the best to me. And if I was feeling especially generous, for my friends too.

I poured each beer into a plastic cup assigned a corresponding number matching the can it can from and instructed the party-goers to try each one and identify their favorite adult beverage as well as the worst tasting one. I prayed to the beer gods my palette was distinguished enough to not choose Colt 45, the only malt liquor on the judging table, as my favorite. I've drunk enough beer to know that malt liquor does not make for a great sipping drink. Nor chugging drink. Or really, any drink. I learned that lesson first week of college.

The results of my frugal drinking research were a a bit unexpected. The runaway best-taste winner of the group was surprisingly also the lowest price beer I brought to the party. A 99 cent 24-oz can Coors was the majority favorite. The least liked by the group, Miller High Life. The champagne of beers apparently tasted more like warm champagne than a cold beer. I should mention, by the time I completed the setup, all the beers were indeed extremely warm and also served in cheap plastic cups. A taste test of beers in frosty mugs would most likely result in different winners and losers here, but this was not the most detailed research project to begin with.

Regardless, I was pleased with my personal results. My winner was a tie between Pabst Blue Ribbon and Presidente, both solid go-to orders for me in a crowded bar and a pocket full of change. And thankfully for me, Colt 45 was indeed rated as my worst. The best take-away being I am possibly indeed the connoisseur of beer I think I am. Not a bad way to spend the fourth of July: drunk on cheap booze.

What else to read?

2008-07-01T16:09:00.003-04:00

I probably get an email a week from readers asking what else I would recommend reading. I've mentioned it before in a previous post here, which I've updated twice recently, and will continue to update in the future. Have a look at it here and feel free to add your own recommendations in the comments.

A thing I found that worked for me is to try to pull 3 new things from each financial book I read and apply them to my life. Not every book will outline steps that fit in your life, circumstances, or agenda, but if I could pull and apply 3 things from a book that I read, then I found it was worthwhile. And then I just kept reading, reading, and reading. Those 3 things you are applying to your life will keep adding up, and after you put them all in action, you'll have a book to write for yourself. Good luck!

George Carlin

2008-06-24T16:09:00.002-04:00

George Carlin always had a way with words. He apparently had a hell of a time with finances. I came across this article on financial struggles (among others) that Carlin overcame, which gave life to his comedy by providing a great source of material for him, for which I can relate.

Maybe he should have read this article, which unfortunately came out today, on 15 ways stores try to take your money.

Get a copy of my book for free

2008-05-23T11:31:00.005-04:00

I've gotten two great book reviews recently. One from the laid-back financial blog BudgetsAreSexy and one from the freebie-friendly Saving For A Home Of My Own, who is of course, giving away a free copy of the book. Good luck to all of you who are library-adverse.

Also, great article here on 9 websites that will save you money, which I agree are some great sites worth checking out. As for my website, I don't recommend so much.

Real World Brooklyn

2008-05-13T18:06:00.007-04:00

"A Million Bucks by 30" is so hip with twenty-somethings*, it has influenced MTV to to have Real World XXI in Brooklyn.**

As readers of my book know, I made my money converting my home into a 7-bedroom house full of strangers which whom I charged a discounted rent. I dubbed my place "Real World Brooklyn" (while others called it "House of Clowns"). I know MTV will forgo the rental aspect of it's tenants and keep the Real World moniker, but I'm sure they'll have the same experience I had: plenty of drunk antics with a carnival of characters, occasional fights and disputes, and some minor property damage.

All in all, it will be highly entertaining, and yet profitable. Especially once my royalty checks start rolling in. We all win!

*If you poll only my friends on Facebook.
**No it didn't.

latest interviews

2008-05-02T08:37:00.003-04:00

Can you spot my "tv jacket"?

THE BIG IDEA:

CNN:

Recent press

2008-04-17T18:18:00.002-04:00

Exciting news today as I found out I will be in your doctor's office waiting room starting next week, and thus, for the forseeable future. As you are killing time to get that mole removed, look for the April 28, 2008 issue of US News & World Report. It will be there. Somewhere. Forever.

Specifically, I'll be somewhere in the back pages of the magazine based on looking at author interviews of past issues. Or if you want instant gratification, you can read the interview online right now. And please refrain from echoing the "pompous wierdo" comment. As far as I know, my mom's the only other person to have read the article so far. I'm guessing that's from her.