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Money 911
Establishing and maintaining an emergency fund is one of the most important things you can do for yourself—both financially and emotionally.
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Transaction vs. Interaction
Nathan did a brief interview with the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham when he was in town speaking at two events sponsored by the foundation.
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Guess who’s cashing student loan checks?
Last month Walmart announced that it is extending its reach into the alternative check-cashing industry. The retail giant’s expansion of services means that you can now cash checks for rebates, pensions, retirement accounts, and student loans at any one of its stores.
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Healthy Money Habits for the Next Generation
In my experience of working with high-net-worth families, there is a significant imbalance in the amount of time and energy they devote to the transaction of wealth versus the interaction of wealth.
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Help Kids Gain Valuable Money Lessons with Back-To-School Shopping Plan
Creating a back-to-school shopping plan can help kids develop healthy money habits while minimizing, what can be, a very stressful experience for families.
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Lessons to be Learned from the Debt Ceiling Crisis
With American households spending about 106% of what they are earning we need to be honest about our financial situation and plan ahead for the unexpected.
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Learn To Earn: 5 Reasons Your Teen Should Have a Summer Job
As parents, we want to give our children every possible advantage to help them grow up to be mature, responsible, contributing members of their communities.
Teens and college students who work part-time in high school or college earn 16 percent more after college than those who do not. And colleges are factoring in work
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Getting the Most Out of Money Sanity Solutions: Tips for Financial Advisors
Let’s face it, every family knows they should have conversations about money. The problem is that most people don’t know how. Where do they start? What do they want to accomplish? How do they broach difficult subjects? That’s where Financial Advisors have a unique opportunity to step in and help families proactively address
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Money Sanity Solutions Contest Winners!
We have a winner! No, actually we have three winners. We had a terrific response to our Money Sanity Solutions: Linking Money + Meaning giveaway contest and had a very difficult time selecting a winner. So we chose three!
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Free Resources for Money Sanity Solutions
Two, free resources for Money Sanity Solutions: Linking Money + Meaning are available for download
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Money Sanity Solutions Giveaway
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Why Can't Americans Save?
Why Can’t Americans Save? This week the New York Times "Room for Debate" section took on that very topic. The article featured several different perspectives on a recent Harris poll that examined American’s savings habits.
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Episcopal Church USA: A Collaborative Success Story
I recently wrote an article for The Episcopal Church USA’s first edition of their new e-newsletter, The Steward’s Well, a quarterly resource created especially for those leading stewardship in their congregations.
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New Book & Minneapolis Family Featured on NBC Affiliate
Last week I had the opportunity to sit down with a local family and talk about money.
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Deal or No Deal?
Are you a fan of coupons? And would you use them, without hesitation, even if you were on a first date? I ask the question because it’s no secret that there has been a bit of a social stigma associated with coupon clipping – especially with the 30 & under crowd.
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Facebook Founder Launches Social Network to Inspire Philanthropy
I just read an interesting article in The New York Times, A Facebook Founder Begins a Social Network Focused on Charities, about a new social networking site that aims to “connect individuals and organizations (nonprofits) working to change the world.”
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A Preview of Coming Attractions
Imagine this scenario: your daughter or son is heading home from school and they receive the following text from their favorite retailer.
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Giving Through Lending
The other day I received a reminder email from Kiva to relend the money in my Kiva account. The goal: lend money to eager entrepreneurs from around the world who are going to great lengths to overcome the grip of poverty.
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ERD: Making a Meaningful Difference
As we approach the holiday season and are overwhelmed with messages telling us about the hottest gifts and “must have” gadgets, I’d like to recognize the work of a remarkable organization that works with the world’s most vulnerable people.
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Talking to Your Kids About Money
After a recent speaking engagement in San Rafael, California, a group of parents approached me with the following dilemma. In near unison they shared, “We want to talk with our kids about money, but we don’t know where to start or what to say.”
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Addressing Workplace Productivity & Money Stress
Back in August I was contacted by a senior HR manager at Best Buy corporate headquarters with a very specific request. He was planning a weeklong focus on the topic of financial well-being and wanted me to kick-off this first-ever event.
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Money as Interaction
At a recent workshop for prominent financial advisors in the Bay Area, we had a terrific discussion about the need/opportunity to rethink their current service models for multigenerational families – especially in light of the current economic environment.
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The Impact of Credit Scores
Every semester for the past several years, I have had the privilege of being a guest presenter at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management. It’s a great opportunity to interact with some wonderful students who are always eager to learn more about personal finance.
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Team Decisions
All major money decisions, be it debt, retirement, college savings, managing an emergency fund, credit card management and expense management to name a few, should be a team decision. It’s a great way to maintain household accountability and ensure that you stay on track with all of your money goals.
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Needs vs. Wants
Wherever I travel for work people these days, I’m hearing two common themes from people. One, they want guidance on how to shift their money behavior to match the current reality. Two, they are sharing that it’s much more difficult to change their money habits than they thought.
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Battling Birthday Extravagance
If you’ve attended a child’s birthday party recently, my hunch is you’ve already figured out that birthday celebrations ‘ain’t what they used to be
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The Power of Money Mentoring
Let it be known, I am a huge fan of money mentors. That is people who are willing to share with a young person their highs and lows around all things money. It’s a wonderful way to cut the learning curve in a complex money world.
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My Forthcoming Book
As I point out in my forthcoming book, Money Sanity Solutions: Linking Money and Meaning, there is a major technological shift underway that will change how we pay for goods and services in the very near term.
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Boomerangers
Boomerangers (young adults) moving back home to save money is an interesting trend and one that is likely here to stay, at least until the recession eases.