Personal Finance

Best of Automatic Finances: March 2010

We tend not to focus on ongoing themes or topics here at Automatic Finances, but if there’s one idea that tied together the month of March, it was fundamental personal finance advice. You may be used to hearing all of the basics: spend less than you make, prepare for emergencies, and save for the future. […]

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Please Don’t Listen to Celebrities for Financial Advice

While superstar athletes may be the worst possible role models when it comes to financial advice, celebrities are not that far behind. For every Jay Leno, who actually does know how to manage his money, there’s a Nicolas Cage (multiple homes in foreclosure, and had to sell his castle) or a Wesley Snipes (tax evasion) […]

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Can Any Personal Finance Pundit Be Trusted?

The recent look inside Robert Kiyosaki’s wealth seminars generated an interesting discussion in the comments about personal finance pundits and whether they ever have your best interests at heart. It’s a great question, since most pundits made their money telling people how to get rich — reason enough to raise an eyebrow and wonder if […]

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Inside Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Seminars

I’m starting to feel like there’s something fishy going on with Robert Kiyosaki. After his “new rule” of money said that savers are losers, I wanted to find out a bit more about the rest of the personal finance advice he shells out. And I stumbled on the motherload. Turns out, Kiyosaki runs (or lends […]

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Lessons Learned from a 21-Year-Old Lottery Winner

What would you do if, at the age of 19, you won $1 million on a scratch off lottery ticket? Probably a lot. A vacation here, a donation there, maybe a gift to your closest relatives, and save the rest for the future, right? That’s the situation Louis Jay found himself in two years ago […]

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Ask the Readers: What’s Your Favorite Personal Finance Book?

As part of our never-ending journey to learn as much as we can about money management, investing and personal finance, you’ve likely read a few books that really taught you something or made you see the topic in a whole new manner. The beautiful thing is that there are so many books to read. The […]

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When Will You Have Enough?

The other day, I saw a short description of the latest book by John Bogle, founder of Vanguard and inventor of the first index fund, that struck me. The book’s title, Enough, comes from a conversation had by two of America’s most famous authors, Joseph Heller (of Catch-22 fame) and Kurt Vonnegut (who wrote Slaughterhouse-Five). […]

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How to Save Money Like Jay Leno

You never know where the best tips to save money will come from. (Well, we do know one thing: don’t listen to most athletes.) But there are some celebrities who actually do know how to manage their money and save for the future. Case in point: Jay Leno.

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How to Follow the Entire Personal Finance Blogosphere

Long time readers will no doubt remember 10 Personal Finance Blogs You’re Missing Out On, the post where I named some of my favorite lesser-known bloggers (no Get Rich Slowly‘s or The Simple Dollar‘s there). But the great thing about the personal finance blogosphere is that there are a ton of voices — not just […]

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Best of Automatic Finances: December 2009

Now that 2010 is here, the partying is over. There’s no more putting off that diet until after New Year’s, or making excuses for why your money isn’t working for you. It’s time to get started.

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Why 2010 Doesn’t Matter to Your Finances

It’s December, so it’s time for all of those lists of what you should do with your money in 2010. Do me a favor: ignore all of that advice. It doesn’t apply to you. The writers “advising” you in these lists don’t know your financial situation. They don’t know how badly you’re in debt. They […]

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Best of Automatic Finances: October/November 2009

Let me start this post off with an apology. If you’ve been regularly visiting Automatic Finances, or subscribe via our RSS feed or Twitter, you’ve certainly noticed that the number of posts has slowed down. Significantly. Quite frankly, it’s my fault. I’ve been lax about updating the site throughout the past month, as a number […]

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Ask the Readers: How Often Do You Calculate Your Net Worth?

As we’ve talked about in the past, the best indicator to determine your current financial status is your net worth. If you want to manage your money like the rich, worry more about your net worth than your salary. As professional athletes have taught us, just because you make a lot of money doesn’t mean […]

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