Welcome to the 11th Link-O-Rama, my recurring series featuring my favorite articles from around the web.
Every week, I share my favorite articles on investing, saving money, and early retirement from around the web. Oh, and like always, I reserve the right to throw in a completely random but entertaining piece!
1. Putting the zero tax strategy into action
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how a smart saver could theoretically earn $101,200 per year and pay no taxes.
It turns out, I’m not full of it, because here’s another blogger explaining the same strategy. Mr. Go Green Dollar’s post dives into more detail behind the math of the strategy. He explains all the nitty gritty behind the tax laws, and ends with a realistic example showing exactly how a couple could earn $74,000 a year and pay no taxes.
2. Whatever you do, don’t invest like this baseball player!
The New York Mets are infamous for still paying Bobby Bonilla $1 million a year through 2035, despite the fact Bonilla retired in 2001!
In this quick read, Mustard Seed Money shares a fascinating breakdown of just how that happened, and why it’s not nearly as bad of a deal as it sounds. Loved this one.
3. 13 Frugal Habits that Will Save You Money
If there’s one thing that’s becoming painfully obvious the older I get, it’s the incredible power of habits. They’re a silent driving force behind our day to day actions, and crazier, we do most of them without even thinking. So, why not take advantage of this fact, and start implementing positive habits?
The Savvy Couple has your back, as they share a neat list of 13 frugal habits that will save you money.
4. It turns out, McDonald’s Monopoly was rigged all along
Remember that old McDonald’s Monopoly game that swept the nation and had us all searching high and low for Park Place and Boardwalk? Yeah, it turns out, the whole thing was rigged by an ex-cop on the inside. This is the crazy story revealing how the whole scam went down, and involves the FBI, the Italian Mob, and an unsuspecting fast food chain.
This is a long read but an amazing one. See how these guys heisted $24 million right underneath the fast food giant’s nose.
Next you’re going to tell me Ronald McDonald was actually an evil clown…
5. A comprehensive guide for getting out of debt
A lot of “get out of debt” posts are vague and hazy, and leaves the reader feeling overwhelmed with choices. This debt guide from DollarSprout.com is one of the best I’ve seen, because it breaks down the whole process into approachable steps. Definitely a must read if you’re struggling with debt.
6. Richard Branson and his frugal houseboat
I’ve written before about my dream of living in a houseboat. It turns out Richard Branson, the eccentric billionaire owner of Virgin Group, did just that when he was young and frugal.
I find it amazing how many billionaires are rooted in frugality. Which makes sense after all, since a foundation of saving is the building blocks for investing, taking risks, and pursuing dreams. Does this mean I’m gonna become a billionaire too?
7. What if everybody invested in index funds?
Here’s a great technical read. Retire In Progress takes a deep dive into the repercussions of everybody investing in index funds. You’ll still have to pry my index funds from my cold dead hands, but these thought experiments are interesting to contemplate nonetheless.
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Happy Reading!
Well, I didn’t make the link-o-rama this month, but there’s some neat stuff here to read MoneyWiz! Thanks for sharing!
Haha, you’d been on a roll! Thought I’d spread the love.
Oh wow. McDonald’s (my very first job) has fooled us all!
Hello, Mr. Wizard. I just finished reading all the way through your blog from the beginning. Sorry to be commenting on a random post. This is just where I caught up.
THANK YOU for all the useful info. Your posts were truly helpful and inspiring. Thank you.
I’m in kind of a weird (mostly very good) position. I’m a novelist who moonlights as a nurse anesthetist (CRNA). I write 2-4 books per year and it’s been my passion ever since I was a teenager. However, I have no wish to depend on the small, volition income of a novelist. The books are up to about 20K per year, but it’s really uneven, and putting too much pressure on my books’ sales takes all the fun out of writing them. I did very well in school, and I chose a day job that would maximum my hourly rate so that I could work fewer hours – anesthesia.
I could never stand to work for others. I did exactly one year of W-2 as a CRNA and promptly quit to do 1099 locums, traveling all of the country to provide coverage for hospitals with staffing shortages. There was so much abuse as a W-2, but as a 1099, I have a great deal of freedom. I only work for employers who understand that they need me more than I need them. I feel this is the secret to happiness in the workplace.
I’ve now been self-employed in two fields for almost 8 years, working as little as I want, traveling back and forth across the US (paid for entirely by hospital clients), and creating my own schedule. I only do anesthesia about 1/3 of the year and it’s been great, but I’m not financially independent. I’m also tired of renting and living out of a suitcase. I want to buy a house. I hate working fulltime as a CRNA, but I think I need to buckle down and work full time in anesthesia for about 5 years in order to have true FU Money. It’s easy to make money in anesthesia, but the stress is tremendous. Working fulltime will make me miserable, but I do want complete freedom.
Most of my friends don’t understand the way I live or why I’m dreading a fulltime schedule for a mere 5 years.
I discovered the FIRE community while seeking inspiration and encouragement. Some aspects seem a little strange to me. It seems like the acronym should be FISE – Financially Independent, Self-Employed. Because that’s what most of you folks describe as your true goal. But I’m new around here, who whatever. It’s cool to find other people who have similar (if not identical) goals to mine.
One question: the biggest threat to my early retirement is my parents. Like so many Boomers, they did not save much at all. My mom was a stay at home housewife. They’re religious and give 10-20% of their income to a church, which makes me bite my tongue in frustration (there go their retirement savings!). Then they topped it off by getting divorced right at 65 after 40 years of marriage. Fortunately, they are healthy. My dad plans to keep working until he can’t, and he makes a great 6 figure income. I recon he’s got at least 10 good working years left, but I also recon that they will live a long time after my dad can no longer work.
They have never understood why I live the way I do – why I don’t spend more, why I don’t choose to MAKE more (work more), why I plan to exit my respectable day job in my mid forties and just write disreputable novels for the rest of my life. They were both heavily involved in the maintenance of their elderly parents and will expect the same from me. Their standard of living is higher than mine. I did not have kids, which means people in the family assume I have a place in my life for dependents in the form of mom and dad. I am terrified they will try to live with me, as this will likely make me miserable, but beyond that, I’m terrified of having dependents I can’t afford and being forced back into employment to pay for my parent’s financial choices.
It’s easy to say, “Just tell your parents to F off,” but I love my parents and watching them struggle would be difficult. I am describing their worst traits here. They also have many lovable traits and my relationship with them is good. However, I believe that relationship will deteriorate if they force me back into a full time day job. I believe I will become bitter and resentful if they crush my dream. The act of rescuing them will also destroy my relationship with them.
I stumbled upon your blog partially because I was trying to find advice for Boomers who need to save for retirement in a hurry. Is there really any difference between a 22 year old who wants to retire in 5 years and a 65 year old who needs to do the same? On the one hand, the 22 year old has compound interest on her side. On the other hand, the 65 year old has a much higher salary, more marketable skills, and more paid-for resources in place. In addition, the 65 year old doesn’t need her saving to last as long, because she doesn’t have as much life left ahead of her. I feel like poorly planning Boomers could learn a lot from the FIRE community.
Obviously, I can’t MAKE my parents do anything, but they are not completely deaf to advice. My dad works in finance and gives great advice…he just doesn’t follow it. He does not share all the details of his finances with me, so it could be that he’s got some hidden assets, but I don’t think so. The idea of my mom living with me has been floated many times, and I am quite certain it would make me want to flee the country. She is set to inherit some money when her 90-something father passes. No one knows how much, but it will not be a golden ticket. It will need to be carefully managed if it is to pay her expenses. Any wrong choices in her financial management will land squarely on me and my brother.
I was hoping that somewhere in your blog you would address this problem. After all, everyone knows the Boomers didn’t save. For most of us, those Boomers are our parents. I can’t be the only person in the FIRE community with this looming problem. Have you seen many good articles on this subject? Any thoughts? A 10 year horizon doesn’t seem hopeless to me. If my dad works for 10 years, there’s still time to correct this. But it’s a tricky thing.
I haven’t written specifically about it. But your dad should be covered by social security at the worst. He may have to live more frugally, but that’s the unfortunate repercussion of not saving enough. You certainly can’t bankrupt yourself to fund his luxurious lifestyle. Your mom may be in a tougher spot, although she likely got something out of the divorce, plus her eventual inheritance. I also wonder whether the church offers any relief here? Churches were the original charities after all, and it sounds like they’ve donated heavily.
Thanks for the compliments about the site, and good luck. Financial problems are a terrible burden to place on your children.
It sounds like they may be okay though. And like you mentioned, 10 years certainly isn’t hopeless. It’s plenty of time to build up some meaningful savings. Consider that I saved a quarter of a million in roughly 10 years, and for over five of those years I was a teenager earning minimum wage.
Thanks for your response. It is encouraging. I tend to not think about social security, since our generation tends to assume it won’t be around, but when I checked, it sounds like his might be around $24K per year, which is not extravagant, but is enough to live on carefully. He’ll also hopefully have money from the sale of his business and some savings, so it might work out.
> You certainly can’t bankrupt yourself to fund his luxurious lifestyle.
This is certainly true, but understand: no one is asking me to bankrupt myself. Just keep working until 65! If I did that, I would have more than enough money to care for my parents, live more extravagantly myself, contribute to charities, etc. But I don’t want to…
For the average American, “just work until 65” doesn’t seem like much to ask. If my parents were, indeed, hoping that I would bankrupt myself, my response would be easy and everyone would be on my side. But it’s not that simple when you want to FIRE.
As for churches – I can’t speak for the majority, but I can tell you that in my parents’ church, donations are absolutely not intended for the support of the members. Donations are for “spreading the gospel.” Members who have been financially negligent (or just donated too much) are on their own.
Again, thank you for your blog. It is more helpful than I think you even realize. Over the course of the project, you roll out a lot of basic financial ideas in a fairly leisurely fashion that’s easy to digest and not overwhelming.
Thanks for sharing these links. I think I had only seen 1 of these articles already, so I’ve got some new reading material now!
Hey thank you so much for including our Debt Guide in here! So much care went into making that post — really appreciate the shout out 🙂
I just found your blog! Kinda bummed that the monthly Link-O-Ramas are taking a hiatus. I would love to help get them back up and running if you have any interest in that.