How to make decisions

Life decisions can be really hard to make. We get so scared of making the “wrong” decision that we can end up treading water and wasting so much time. What is it you are scared of? What fear is holding you back from making a decision and moving forward in your life? You might not always make the best decision, but a decision and a plan of action is better than standing still. Generally no decision is perfect, but that’s part of life. It’s how we grow and gain life experience which will help us make a better decision next time.

Here’s some step I often use to make big decisions.

1.) Write out a pros and cons list. Be realistic though. Often with a pros and cons list we are “nicer” to the decision we want and “harder” on the decision we don’t want. Making this list with a friend can often be better, as they can have a more objective view.
2.) Work out the cost of things. For example, I want to switch from the 4WD to a Toyota, my husband did not. He loves the big 4WD. So I sat down and worked out exactly how much that car will cost us over the next 5yrs versus getting a *loan on the Toyota I want. Even after interest we would save a minimum of $25,000. *I know I am in debt already and really if we sold the 4WD and used our tax returns we would not need a loan, so it would be over $30,000 we saved, but it was just easier to work out this way.
3.) Set a time limit for when the decision needs to be made. For example we have been trying to decide if we should move back into our house or not. Ultimately we decided that if the house had not sold in the 3 months it was to be on the market, we would move back in. There’s 11 days left of that, we are pretty much preparing to move. It is good to finally have a definite plan of action, even if it’s not the one I initially wanted.
4.) Research, but within reason. Some people have a tendency to over research and end up going in circles. Find out what it is you need to know to make your decision and stop looking. On the other hand some people do not research enough (I have fallen into that category more than the too much research one! Lol) This can end up costing you dearly.
5.) Go with your initial gut feelings. They are usually right. The car we bought in May I did not want. I did not want to take it for a test drive and I was walking away from it to have nothing to do with it again. Someone else was adamant it would be great. Well, it has been a nightmare, but a good learning experience and thankfully not one where we lost money.
6.) Discuss it with someone you trust. This can be really helpful for many people. Be careful with it though, as you want someone you can trust who won’t judge, will listen and who gives good advice if it is needed, but not without being asked. Those people are usually hard to find.
7.) Of course you could always flip a coin or play the yes no game on your eraser (if you don’t know what I mean, in primary school, you’d write yes and no on the different sides of your eraser, toss it in the air and whichever way it landed that was your decision!) or get a magic 8 ball and ask it!

Ultimately the decision is yours. You need to trust yourself and realise that even if the decision you end up making is not perfect, you will still learn something from it. Plus you will never know if you don’t take the chance, make the decision and go for it.

Remember, once you make the decision, do it with your whole body/mind. Not just half heartedly. You made the decision and it will only work best if you put your whole self to it!

Good luck with any decisions you have to make.

Comprehensive list of online survey sites/ market research and mystery shopping

I have mentioned earning money online and survey sites, mystery shopping etc... a few times on here. Many of them are Aus, but lots also have global equivalents or links to other country options on their sites.
Recently I have discovered some new ones, so thought I would share an updated list. Also some of the sites have changed their rewards since last time I posted. I’ll start with the new ones and the ones that pay cash. Some open in new windows, some don’t.

Spidermetrix gives the options of donating to charity, evouchers or getting cash. It's easy to earn points and you don't need heaps to get paid.
Pure Profile has been pretty good. Every time you get $25 or more you can cash out straight to your bank account. You get paid to do surveys and click on sites. Pretty simple money really and for me it has been reasonably steady. I log in regularly to see, as the more I do, the more I seem to get. Plus there can be new things put up throughout the day.
Rewardscentral and Myopinons are linked and pay cash. You can transfer your My Opinions points to Rewards Central.

Basically RC (Rewards Central) will have web clicks every day worth 2 points, often they have between 2 – 3 bonus web clicks worth 2 points each as well. They have a survey of the day a few times a week, worth 3 points. Even if the survey is not up if you click on it you get entered in the $10,000 competition.

They also send emails worth 5 – 10 points and they have lots of shopping partners you can shop with and earn points, including eBay!

My Opinions is a survey site you get points for completing surveys as well as an instant win each week where you click on a square and can get between 0 and 500 points. You can transfer points to RC once you have 100 or more.

You need 3300 points for a $30 cheque or 10100 points for a $100 cheque.

WDYT pays in gift vouchers for Bunnings, Target, Kmart and Myer. You need 2000 points minimum to cash out. If you sign up as a premium member you will get up to 5 emails a day. Some you get points, others are offers to sign up to things for points (such as credit cards and dodo internet). If you log in regularly to the site they often have banners you can click on and earn 10 points, so you can get to that 2000 points much quicker than you’d think!

Yourvoice has been an easy one to get vouchers from for me. I get surveys from them a lot and have cashed out for movie tickets (though I don’t think they offer these any more) as well as shopping vouchers for places like Target.
Productreview is a site you write reviews and get a voucher for Coles/Myer. It doesn’t take long and you get between 5 and 10 points per review. You can cash out at 420 points and get a $20 voucher. They send them pretty quickly too.

I am now pretty sure paid survey bank, cash emails, grocery clicks etc... are all scams. I was told payment for them is delayed, but my money has just gone missing, so I will nto be using or recommending them anymore.

Market research
Incase you aren’t sure what market research companies do, I’ll explain it a bit. You sign up for free, answer some questions, then when they have clients (ie companies) who need your age group/genders opinion about their product they get in contact with you. Sometimes it is a 1 hour focus group, other times it is an all day thing. Some just send you stuff to try and fill out a survey for them on your opinion of the product. It’s pretty easy and can pay quite well.
Izatso is a great way to try free products as well as earn points for vouchers.
Red Galah is a market research company you put your details down with and they will contact you when something comes up.
Farron Research is the same.
Vibe village is a site you sign up to and then register to be a “party host” when things come up. I recently got accepted to host a Cadbury party and a Masterfoods party. I got sent a box of new Cadbury chocolates to try with my friends and review as well as a dvd of the new show Offspring, which is about to air. I’ll get sent some Masterfoods sauces to try in the same way soon.
Soup is another site you can review products and things. They will email when they have something that suits your profile then you fill in a survey and get sent whatever they want you to trial. It has been pretty good. I especially liked doing a nappy trial when my daughter was born! I got like 100 free nappies.
Neilson homescan is one I can’t do but other people do it and love it. Basically you have a scanner and scan everything you buy. You can get free products and things to try through them.


Bargain sites (for Aus)
Here are some sites for Aussies where you can get a bargain. Coupons are everywhere in the USA but here, we don’t get much. I’ve used these sites and scored some good freebies/discounts.
Buckscoop is good, but you need to keep on top of them. I did some cashback offers with them and had to email them a fair bit to get my payment. They take 3 months to pay you after completing the offer and they missed me, twice, so it took more like 4 adn 5 months both times. That aside, I have found some great bargains and sales through them.
Scoopon lets you know about great deals.
Spreets is the same, as well as Jumponit, Ouffer and Our Deal .
Free Samples is exactly what it says, a site where you can get free samples!
Oz Bargain is another bargain site.
My Savings is another site you can get freebies, coupons for discounts and freebies etc... I’ve gotten quite a few good ones from here. Things like perfume/after shave, baby lotions etc...
Comping Club is a great place to find out about competitions and enter. You never know what you might win!

Mystery Shopping
Is where you sign up with the companies and they will email you to let you know what shops need to be done. You can choose to do them or not. You usually have to go to the shop, assess certain things without being obvious, possibly purchase something and fill out a survey when you are done.

I’ve listed the companies I have personally used here, but there are plenty more.
Capeesh is great for things like pizza. You buy something and they reimburse the cost to you the following month.
Integrity Shoppers has been good for flowers for me! I haven’t used them a lot. There is more, but the floristry comes up a lot.
Gap Buster are worldwide and pretty good.
Hoed are an Aus and NZ mystery shopper site, with a fair amount of shops available.
Market Pulse is another one.
Shop Angels often have things different to your usual fast food and Coles.


Remember you don’t have to do every shop. Pick and choose the ones close to you or where you regularly go. It can be a great way to get paid to do your usual shopping or banking or even get free take-away.

There’s lots of companies out there. Usually you sign up, they email when jobs are available, you log in to apply for the jobs you want then do the shop. There’s questions you’ll have to answer and you’ll need to keep all receipts and things from your shop.

It gets easier as you do it. You can even get awesome things like flights, accommodation and attractions to mystery shop.

Generally you pay for things, then get reimbursed the following month. I have made a few hundred each month at various times. I’ve gotten slack lately though!

Not all shops require you to buy something, sometimes you are just making an enquiry. Make sure you keep records of everything though.

New challenges

Thanks to those who participated in my bucket list linky. I’ll be doing a new challenge next week. Next Monday’s Challenge will be a post about your favourite money book and why. What had the biggest impact on you? The book you think everyone who should read, the one you want your kids to read to learn about money.

So have a think and I’ll put the link up next week. (I plan on doing a different challenge every fortnight).

Also I have set a little (ok, BIG) personal challenge...
I really want to get to 1000 followers. My initial goal a few months ago was 200, but I really wanted 1000. I was just not confident enough in myself that I could do it. I can though and I will be rewarding my followers along the way.

I have decided that at 250, 500, 750 and 1000 I will have give-aways. You’ll have to hang around to see what I have planned, I have a HUGE give-away planned for 1000. So please help me get there! :)

My aim is to do this by 30th of Nov. That gives me 4 months to get it done. Do you have similar goals for your blog?

Debt Reduction Update

I thought it was about time I gave a debt reduction update. It is coming down, slowly! I only have a mortgage and a personal loan. (Ok, the loan is not in my name, but it was for the car I use). I can’t believe the personal loan has been there for nearly 3 months! Mind you, I/we now owe just over 1/3 of the original loan.

I also managed to crack a milestone (to me) on the mortgage. It gave me such a thrill to transfer $40 to crack it! How sad. Lol. It makes such a difference to see it at the number it is now rather than what it was. Even though it was only a $40 difference (actually $34, but I rounded up) it is a HUGE achievement to be in the next step of the mortgage.

Since it looks like the house is not going to sell, the personal loan won’t be wiped out by it, so I have had to create a new action plan. Whilst it may seem dumb to some, I do not want to use any of what I have saved to wipe the debt. Part of it the money I have is tied up in shares, some of it I have sat aside as an emergency fund I will not spend and some I have plans for very soon. I DO want to try and clear this debt within 2 months though.

There is $5,900 owing, which is almost only 1/3 of what we borrowed. Here’s what I plan on doing in the next 2 months to reach this goal

1.) Get rid of the car we got a few months ago. Things changed and it is no longer needed.
2.) List a few gift vouchers I have on eBay. They go for pretty much their value and are at shops I don’t really shop at. They were bonus offers with something I was paying for anyway, so a freebie to me.
3.) Get my tax return done. (And my husbands, as the debt is his also and his needs to be done for me to get my proper amount). I am hoping to do it next week, then it takes about 2 weeks to get it back. I don’t get any tax back as I didn’t pay any, but I get a child benefit, the family tax benefit, which is cool.
4.) Write in more tips/ideas for That’s Life and Take 5.
5.) We increased the rent on the house, which started this week (the letter was sent a while ago, so proper notice was given) and that extra will go straight on the debt.
6.) Cash in all the money from various survey sites and things. In the next month I should have a few I can cash out. (I cashed 3 this week)
7.) Sign up for samples and freebies on various sites (it’s a s good as cash when it is something I do not have to buy)
8.) The usual cut back on everything and throw everything at it.

It’s not a huge debt and we are doing supremely well on it, considering how much has been paid off in such a short time. I HATE having any sort of debt.

If I met my younger self...

If I met my younger self is part of another Blog This Challenge. Would I give myself advice? Part of me says yes, the other part says no, because I am who I am thanks to my life experiences.

My younger self as a teen was fairly wild by my conservative family standards, but pretty tame by most people’s standards. I did a lot of things I regret now, but I learnt from them, eventually. I was the sort of teen I hope my kids are not. Yet compared to many of the teens I see today, I’d rather deal with a mini me than them.

So what would I tell my younger self? There are a few things.

1.) Save harder and invest younger.
2.) When your dad says you should wait a few days so you can buy the Corolla instead of getting the Mazda that is almost the same colour as your hand bag so totally matches now, wait the few days! Get a good reliable car.
3.) Copy your mum’s recipes. This is if I met myself before I am 15. My mum died when I was 15 and many of her recipes died with her. I wish now I had listened to her more and learnt more from her. That goes for lots of things, not just cooking.
4.) Breathe. Yes, BREATHE. I am hot headed and need to learn to relax more and just breathe in and out. It is not normally as bad as I think.
5.) When Dad threatens to send you to a certain Catholic school to “straighten you out” instead of responding “Do that and I’ll get expelled in the first weeks o it’ll be a waste of your money” go to the school. You hated the one you were at, a new school, new friends etc... might mean you actually stay in school and do the degree you have always wanted to do (and now won’t be able to for some time!)
6.) Follow your dreams more. Life is for fun. Travel, find a job you love an enjoy your life. Don’t settle for second best.

Ultimately I cannot tell my younger self any of this, but I can teach others, such as my kids, so hopefully they will learn from my experience.

Did you like that little insight into the younger Kylie? It’s not huge, but you won’t hear me talk about being younger much at all!

Bucket list

I love the idea of a bucket list, a list of things I want to do before I “kick the bucket”. Now, whilst I hope I do all these things and I really aim to, if I was told I only had 2 months to live or something, I know I would not spend my last days rushing around trying to do these things. I would spend them with my family. (Ok, some of them I would try and do coz they are WITH my family, but you know what I mean. My family is the most important thing to me!)

Here is mine... (I’ve grouped them to make it easier)

Service/volunteering I want to do
1.) Build a house for humanity
2.) Turtle conservation (Costa Rica would be really sweet, but there is one in Nth QLD which is closer to home
3.) Foster a child
4.) Raise $10,000 for a charity (I haven’t decided which one yet though...)
5.) Volunteer in an op shop
6.) Work in a soup kitchen
7.) Take my whole family (parents, siblings, nieces, nephews, the lot) to Salt Lake City for a General Conference. (not technically a humanitarian service, but it’d be something really special for my family)
8.) Do something to help in Africa, I haven’t decided what, but probably help with orphans

In Australia

9.) See the Great Barrier Reef (I don’t have to snorkel it or anything. I want to see it, but in a way that is the least damaging, so have to research it a bit first)
10.) See Uluru. I used to want to climb it, but now that I know it is sacred to Aboriginals, I only want to see it. Yes it would be amazing to be on top, but I would not want someone defacing something sacred to me. (Just my opinion, I don’t hate or think any less of those who have, I am just not comfortable doing it)
11.) Visit each capital city, I actually only have Perth and Darwin to go.
12.) Caravan around Australia as a family
13.) Ride a camel in the outback
14.) See a wild frilled neck lizard
15.) Climb Mt Kosciusko
16.) See whales in the wild
17.) Climb the Harbour Bridge (Achieved October 2010)
18.) Own my dream house in Australia (completely owned, not mortgaged!)

In Asia and surrounds

19.) Climb the Great Wall of China
20.) Ride an elephant in Thailand
21.) Do a Thai cooking class in Chang Mai
22.) The Ho Chi Minh Trail
23.) See The Bridge on the River Kwai
24.) See the Taj Mahal

Europe

25.) Kiss the Blarney stone (although at the same time the thought of kissing something so many people have kissed repulses me! Lol)
26.) See the Eiffel Tower
27.) Gondola ride in Venice
28.) Leaning Tower of Pisa
29.) Greek Isles cruise
30.) See the following countries England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Greece, Netherlands, Romania, and Turkey.

USA

31.) Visit New York
32.) Road trip route 66
33.) Hike in the Grand Canyon
34.) Travel the pioneer trail
35.) Take my kids to Disney World

Be able to do/things to learn
36.) Learn to surf
37.) Learn a 2nd language fluently (Tongan or French)
38.) Learn 3 songs on the guitar
39.) Live overseas somewhere for a year (probably USA)
40.) Go on Safari in Africa
41.) Go to a Rugby World Cup
42.) Fly somewhere in first class
43.) Go on a cruise
44.) Live in Tonga for 3 months at least
45.) Learn to shoot a gun
46.) Become financially free
47.) Ride a horse
48.) Ride in a hot air balloon

49.) Get to a size 10 and stay that way for at least 6 months (preferably permanently!)
50.) Donate blood Done 2010 for the first time, but not the last.
51.) Host a MASSIVE Halloween party
52.) Host a how to host a murder dinner party
53.) Go on a road trip with no specific destination
54.) Have at least 10 lessons in a form of dance
55.) Learn 3 Polynesian dances
56.) See the pyramids of Egypt
57.) Go to Mexico

Those are my main things. I’m sure there’s more. Isn’t there always? lol

Bucket list linky on Monday!

On Monday I will be putting up a little blog hop, linky thing for bucket lists! So make sure if you have one on your blog already to link up or get cracking and write one.

I’ll be adding it as a tab on my menu bar so it will be easy to find forever! I’ve been sitting down and thinking about mine. I know I have lots of challenges and things for myself, many of which are on my bucket list, but there are a few things you might not know!

If you need some ideas, think about places you would like to travel and see such as the Eiffel Tower, Uluru, The Grand Canyon.
Or experiences you’d like to have such as climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge, go snorkelling, go up in a hot air balloon.
Or would you like to learn a second language fluently, learn a musical instrument like the guitar, harp or maybe drums, maybe there is a sport you have always wanted to try like surfing or golf.
Do you want to own a house?
Do you want to own a business?
Maybe you want to walk into a shop and just buy whatever you want with no guilt.

A bucket list is about what YOU want to do. If someone has climb Mount Everest on their list, but you’d prefer to read your way through the 100 best books of all time doesn’t mean you have to copy. Just put down what you want to do!

For some more inspiration click here or Google “bucket list”, “things to do before you die”, “what’s on your bucket list?” etc...

So check back on Monday, I will have the linky up all week for you to join in!

New name - my own dot com!!

I have had a crazy week. I have been a little MIA, but it’s all good. This week switched from 1milliondollarchallenge over to my own domain http://www.aspiringmillionaire.com/ which I am very excited about.

There’s still a lot to do on this site (Such as new header and button!) before it is where I want it to be and for the switch from blogger to dot com to be complete, but it is a big milestone for me! Make sure you update your feeds please!

Also this week I bought some shares! YAY! About time!! Yes, I have been wanting to do this for quite some time. It was quite thrilling to finally have some to my name. I plan on buying more soon!

I have also discovered some more little online money makers. They won’t make you lots of money, but every bit helps right? I added up all my survey stuff the other day, most of which I will be getting out in the next few weeks because I am that close! I could not believe how much I have sitting there. As I was checking I got sent a quick little survey, that only took 5 mins and meant I was able to cash in all the points from one of the sites I use. So I have 2 vouchers in the mail.

I have also found a few more things to list on eBay. I have sat them aside, as right now is not a good time for me to be listing anything. I’m going to Sydney twice in the next week, and just won’t have the time for it. I have checked how much what I want to sell goes for and I am pretty happy with the minimum it goes for, obviously I would like it to go for whatever it can, but the minimum is a good start.

I entered a few comps this week as well, so we’ll see what comes of that. I have also got almost everything I need now to do my tax, so hopefully I will be able to do that next week.

Spending on life experiences

Do you ever feel torn between spending money on life experiences and saving your money? I do, regularly. There are times I have no problem spending on things I enjoy and then other times I do not want to part with the cash.

A huge part of me says life is for living and you’ll regret it if you don’t do these things and the other part is going SAVE FOR THE FUTRUE!!! I don’t want to continue on living and find in another 10 years, these things are still on my “to do list” though.

As you know I have my 50 Challenges some of which cost money. I also have a list of 101 things in 1001 days I want to do. Some of the things overlap and will be done once, even though they are on 2 lists.

I was thinking the other night about how to go about it. How do I allow myself to spend the money? Here’s some of my ideas.

1.) Have a separate section in my budget to allow for the things I want to do, say $10 a week or something.
2.) Set a financial goal once I have reached that, plus the money for whichever thing it is I want to achieve I can do it. E.g. Have $3,000 in an emergency fund, plus save $400 for the bridge climb, so $3,400 total.
3.) Research, research, research. Look around for the best price on something. For example, the bridge climb is $200. On eBay this weekend I saw 2 gift certificates go for $309, they were worth $400 together. I could have saved a significant amount there and I found the listing totally by accident. I had not budgeted to buy it so didn’t get them, and I don’t know when I will be going, but it made me realise if I am patient and research I can get things much cheaper. (This is not the first time I’ve seen bridge climb vouchers on there, I just forgot until now).
4.) Find new ways to cut back to enable me to save more money. For example, the other day I was on eBay and saw some gift vouchers which got me thinking. If I bought the vouchers online for less than their worth (which is what they have been selling for) I would be saving money. It had never occurred to me to look before. Obviously I would only buy ones for store I already shop at e.g. Coles, Woolworths etc...
5.) List more things on eBay and use this money. Ok, I know I usually use this money as part of my challenge, so I am thinking a half and half deal, where half goes to the challenge and half goes to one of my things to do.
6.) Set dates/timeframes for when I want to do things. This gives me an idea of how soon I need $xx. It will get me in the frame of mind that I am saving for that and going to spend my money on that, so I won’t feel guilty and I will actually do it!

I have actually drawn up some little pictures on a piece of paper and divided them into $10 sections, so I can colour them in as I save towards each thing. I find this really motivating for me.
So now, I have a separate little “experiences” fund which I am quite excited about. I am also EXTREMELY excited that I found vouchers for some of the things I want to do for ½ price or even less!! So the amounts I thought I would need for them I won’t!

All up, the things I want to do go into the thousands, but I am starting small. The first ones are the ones that have been on my list the longest
1.) Dance lessons
2.) The Sydney bridge climb
3.) Hot air balloon ride
4.) Surfing lessons
Those 4 alone are over $1,200 for the ones I had planned. BUT with vouchers I have seen and some that I have, it will be WAY less.

Life is for living. I do not want to sit on the sidelines and go, I wish I had done that! So I am going to get out and do it.

Recognising achievements

I have been reading some peoples bucket lists lately and it got me thinking. I have one, which I’ll post later, but I also realised I had one before I got married and I have accomplished a lot on that one. I think too often we get caught up in the things we haven’t done/achieved that we forget all the we HAVE done.

So instead of giving you my bucket list today, I am going to give you part of my old one, the list of things I accomplished on it.

1.) Learn to ski and snow board (did it in 2000)
2.) Swim with dolphins (1999 I think it was, they were wild too!)
3.) Go to New Zealand did it 2005
4.) Get married – again done in 2005
5.) Own a business – started mine in 2006
6.) Buy a house – another for 2006
7.) Go to Hawaii - 2005
8.) Go to LA - 2005
9.) Universal Studio’s - 2005
10.) Disney Land (I got to do Disney’s California Adventure too!) – 2005 And it was FREE thanks to a friend of my husbands friend. That’s right, we did not know the guy who got us the free passes, he went to church with my husband’s.
11.) Go to Salt Lake City (yeah, I am a Latter Day Saint!) - 2005
12.) Go to Las Vegas (yup, a few days before I went to SLC!) - 2005
13.) See the Hollywood sign
14.) Manns Chinese Theatre and Walk of Fame
15.) Have kids – H was born 2007, M was born 2009
16.) Go to Cradle Mountain – 2007
17.) Drive along the Great Ocean Road – 2007
18.) See a live football game. Growing up that was going to be AFL, but then I got married and now follow union, and not my country, Go The ALL BLACKS!! (Husband is part Maori and I got a All Blacks top!) Yeah, the game I got see them play they beat Australia! WOOHOO. (Though if you look at the history of Aus vs NZ in Union, sorry Aus, but NZ have won like 75%, so statistically it was pretty likely NZ would win)
19.) Something I won’t say coz I just Googled it and it’s illegal, but it was scary and fun. Done in 2005
20.) Water ski 1998 I think it was. I liked it, but not as much as I thought.
21.) Learn karate. I did this in 1997 for about 6 months. It was fun and I should have kept it up, but like most things, let it slide.

There are lots of things still on my bucket list, but I am amazed at all the things I have done.

Do you have a bucket list? If not write one out and I will be doing a bucket list link up next week!

21 day makeover continued

Continuing on with the ERE 21 Day Makeover are days 15 – 21. As I mentioned in my other 21 Day posts which are all here I already do many of these things and have been implementing those that I don’t.

Day 15 is an overview of the first 14 days. The most important things for saving money are discussed in the first 14 days. Really the 3 major ones are housing, transport and food as these are the areas people spend the most on usually. I am still looking for a bike for free or super cheap.

Day 16 discusses buying quality and only having what you use. I am a big one for quality. I discussed it here. I am slowly switching lots of things over to better quality items as things break and die. I used to buy cheap because I thought I was getting a “great deal” but really cheap and crappy is bad. Buying quality at a good price is far better than an inferior product only to have to replace it over and over again instead of paying a bit more for quality in the first place. This is why I am slowly getting a classic wardrobe together and saving up for a few other good quality items like a Nikon camera.

Day 17 is about maintaining and repairing things. It’s really not as hard as people thing to take care of what you have and often to fix things. Some things require professional help, but on the most part you should be able to do lots of things yourself. One of the many great things about the net is you can find out how to fix or do pretty much anything just by Googling it.

Some of the more simple things you could learn and do are sewing so you can hem things, fix small holes, refashion things etc... If you can learn basic woodworking it will come in very hand for lots of repairs around the home. Basic car maintenance is another awesome one to learn. Changing oil and tyres, knowing when and how to check things etc... will ensure smoother and more efficient running of your car.

Maintaining and repairing will save you a fortune for a small amount of work or financial outlay for tools in the beginning.

Day 18 join a challenge is a good one. It gives you something to do, a purpose and a focus. You can make your own up or join one. There are lots around like no spending for a year, no new clothes for a year, groceries under $100 for a family of 4, a triathlon, marathon etc... you get the idea.

I set challenges for myself all the time. I mean, this whole blog is a personal challenge! I like them, as they are goals you set, work towards and achieve.

Day 19 is getting rid of your TV addiction. I wrote a post about reasons not to watch TV here.

Day 20 is buy classics. This is along the lines of buying quality as mentioned above. If something is a classic, it will stand the test of time and very likely when you go to sell it sell for similar to what you originally paid.

Day 21 investing early for retirement part 2. This is one of my big plans. I have set up an account to trade in shares, but I also plan on using property to invest. There are different ways of investing for both, so it’s really is up to you and what you feel comfortable with. He goes into more details with shares, and since I have not had any experience in actually trading, I don’t feel right saying too much about it.

Overall I think the 21 Day makeover is a good kick up the butt to get into savings gear. Remember it is for extreme early retirement, so if you don’t feel up to being as vigilant as he is, that’s cool. You can check it out here. Just scroll down and on the left hand side is all 21 days, just click on the link you want! Enjoy.

Changes

So, on my other blog I have been discussing a tough decision of mine. Do I move back to my rental or not? I moved from it 2 ½ years ago and promised myself I would NEVER move back. Mainly due to some things that happened when I was pregnant there involving people close to me.

Well, things have changed. I do prefer where I currently live, but I won’t be able to afford here so I will be moving back. I am happy and comfortable with this decision.

You see, today I saw an article in a magazine that made me think about changing some things on my property up there. They were things I had looked into a bit before but was not in a position to do anything about. Without going into specifics I have been playing with sums and checking things out and it looks like by moving back now and making these changes I would be hundreds of dollars a week better off and would put myself in a position to be able to buy where I would like.

It will be a bit of work, but I think it will be worth it. The area our house is in is a high rental area and always will be I think. Making these changes will maximise the rental potential whilst providing capital gains.

I know I am not giving real specifics here, but I need more info on it before I can say much.

On another investment note I have finally got myself organised to invest in shares. I am so excited about it. After a lots of research and learning about it all, I picked 2 to start with. I have set up everything to trade and am super keen.

I have been reading lots about property vs shares and there are pros and cons to both. I like them both, so am really happy to be starting my shares portfolio and hope as it grows I will be able to invest more into property.

There is lots to know and it’s not something I recommend jumping into without doing some reading and research first. There so many companies to choose from, shares prices go up and down, you can do it yourself or use a broker, who do you go with, who much do you invest etc... It’s a lot. I have a little plan in mind for shares and how I will invest, my strategy etc... which may change as things happen.

A lot of the investments I am looking at are more long term things. So something I will buy into and hold for some time. I am more comfortable with this way of investing, but I may go more into trading shares or flipping houses later.

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50 Questions to free your mind

As per my 50 challenges, number 20, I am going to answer the 50 Questions that free your mind. What are they? I hear you ask, well here you go... (The link I got the questions from, which I link to in my post is here)

1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?
2. Which is worse, failing or never trying?
3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?
4. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?
5. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?
6. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?
7. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?
8. If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?
9. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?
10. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?
11. You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?
12. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?
13. Would you break the law to save a loved one?
14. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?
15. What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
16. How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy?
17. What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? What’s holding you back?
18. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?
19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
20. Do you push the elevator button more than once? Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster?
21. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?
22. Why are you, you?
23. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?
24. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?
25. What are you most grateful for?
26. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?
27. Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first?
28. Has your greatest fear ever come true?
29. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset? Does it really matter now?
30. What is your happiest childhood memory? What makes it so special?
31. At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?
32. If not now, then when?
33. If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?
34. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?
35. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?
36. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?
37. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?
38. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing?
39. Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before?
40. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?
41. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?
42. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous?
43. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?
44. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?
45. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?
46. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?
47. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?
48. What do you love? Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?
49. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday? What about the day before that? Or the day before that?
50. Decisions are being made right now. The question is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?
I am going to be answering them privately though, not on here, sorry. I have already done a few but I have not had a decent amount of time to sit down and go through them all properly without getting interrupted.

Oh, and by the way, I have already done number 17, write a letter to myself to open in 5 years, I am doing number 19 tonight and number 27 starts tomorrow, do a proper 10 day detox. (Food, not anything bad like drugs! Lol) So I have started the challenges, now just to complete them all!