tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post114696697603008452..comments2023-11-18T01:21:55.631-05:00Comments on My Open Wallet: Spending Time on Spending MoneyMadame Xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11536189690094235926noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post-1147225129242358832006-05-09T21:38:00.000-04:002006-05-09T21:38:00.000-04:00I think the key to finances is not how much time y...I think the key to finances is not how much time you spend on it, but how you spend that time. I recall my mom always trying to balance the checkbook even if a dollar and fifty cents were missing. Cut out that stress and spend money on something productive or relaxing and in the long term you will save on your health bills. For example, reading a book on money is a better choice than pulling your hair out over even $100.<BR/><BR/>Once I started to get rolling in my own business I realised that I had to be responsible with my money, but at the same time I couldn't worry about it. One day you bring in $1,000, the next $100. No matter what you earned today or yesterday you don't have time to be focused on what could or couldn't have happened, but rather on how you are going to make more money tommorow.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post-1147208174878839082006-05-09T16:56:00.000-04:002006-05-09T16:56:00.000-04:00Thanks for the comments, all.Joe-- I haven't done ...Thanks for the comments, all.<BR/><BR/>Joe-- I haven't done any comparison of online brokerages. I signed up with E*Trade in around 1999 or 2000, because it got me some frequent flyer miles! I think MyMoneyBlog might have done a post comparing online brokerages. I know a lot of people don't like E*Trade but I am not a very active trader so I haven't bothered to look at other options.<BR/><BR/>Anon 1-- I have looked at my performance vs. the S&P500 and I've actually done really well! But again, I've only bought a few things and I tend to just hold them.<BR/><BR/>Anon2-- I know what you mean about the balance thing! If I felt like I was losing out on the rest of life because I was spending too much time counting my pennies, I'd really want to do soemthing about it! But I feel like I manage to fit a lot of other activities into my time, to try to balance my needs for saving money and having fun!Madame Xhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11536189690094235926noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post-1147192449563397822006-05-09T12:34:00.000-04:002006-05-09T12:34:00.000-04:00I like your blog because your life parallels mine....I like your blog because your life parallels mine. I'm a 30-something woman in NYC in a good, but not highly lucrative, job. I understand your dilemma about spending time on managing finances. On one hand, it's really important. On the other hand, it takes time away from other things we could be doing -- reading, hiking in the woods, spending time with family and friends, traveling, painting, whatever -- things that create not money, but health, happiness and great memories. I doubt that when we're on our deathbeds, we'll wish we'd spend more time counting our pennies! Still it must be done, and since you find it enjoyable, you can probably also count it as a hobby. I only spend a few hours once a week, or every two weeks, paying bills, balancing the checkbook (so to speak), thinking about my retirement accounts, and how to pay off that annoying student debt! For now, my thinking is, it's unlikely that I will ever be really rich in monetary terms, so I might as well have a rich life instead! There are tons of people who have amazing lives on very little cash, and others who have all the money in the world who are miserable. I'm trying to find a balance. It isn't easy!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post-1147152431000872422006-05-09T01:27:00.000-04:002006-05-09T01:27:00.000-04:00I spend 50+ hours per week dealing with other peop...I spend 50+ hours per week dealing with other people's finances which leaves little time for our own. It's funny since obsessing about my own money is how I got started in this business in the first place.thchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03670235311851735328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14245531.post-1147134486584620012006-05-08T20:28:00.000-04:002006-05-08T20:28:00.000-04:00Since you are doing all this analysis, you might w...Since you are doing all this analysis, you might want to check the performance of your investments against the blue-chip S&P 500 Index. If you are underperforming the index on a year-to-date or last quarter basis, perhaps you need to spend more time studying ways to improve yor performance.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com