Stop Buying

• 1. Bottled Water: It’s bad for both your wallet and the environment. Buy a Brita filter instead and fill up on clean, crisp municipal tap water.
• 2. Extended Warranties: We’ve told you before how extended warranties are an utter waste of money. Skip past product protection plans and keep the extra cash in your savings account.
• 3. Gym Membership: Oh, you go, do you? Really? Next week, maybe? Sure. If you actually use your gym membership, see if your employer or health insurer offers a membership subsidy.
• 4. Overdraft Fees: Don’t pay $35 every time you zero-out your bank account. Take out a line of credit for overdraft protection and avoid the annoying bank fees.
• 5. Organic Produce: It may feel good, but the price usually isn’t right. Consider community supported agriculture if you want the real thing, but otherwise, remember that we’re in a recession and go for the cheap stuff.

Find A Better Deal
• 6. Auto Insurance: Ask if you’re eligible for discounts. If you’re driving less because of the recession, say, fewer than 7,500 per year, you might be able to knock 15% off your insurance bill.
• 7. Music Downloads: Ok, maybe not the biggest source of savings, but with most services dropping their DRM restrictions, you can now shop around and save a few cents on each download. Or drive to the local library and see if they have the CD you want.

After reading this poetry piece it instantly entered my mine that this definately needs to be a featured poet here on poeticmoney. The piece is called “Is it Love?” words can’t really express how good this piece is.  Visit brokenxbeauty.

If I hugged you,
would you never let go?

If I kissed you,
would you cherish that moment?

If I reached for your hand,
would you take mine gently?

If I needed a shoulder,
would you let me cry on yours?

If I needed to talk,
would you really listen?

If I needed to scream,
would you do it with me?

If I needed to go,
would you come with me?

If I fell for you,
would you catch me?
or just let me hit the pavement?

#1 –

We Only Have 2 Products: Time and Knowledge
No matter how you make a living or who you think you work for, you only work for one person, yourself. Likewise, you only have 2 products to sell, your time and your knowledge. Here are a few example scenarios:

Migrant Farmer – Sells hours of his/her life to pick fruit or vegetables for a farmer in exchange for money. A perfect example of trading hours for dollars.
Doctor – Sells hours of his/her life to perform medical treatments based on the knowledge stored in his/her brain. A perfect example of trading hours and knowledge for dollars.
Best-Selling Author – Spends time crafting a book based on his/her knowledge or intellectual capacity and then sells the book (knowledge) many times over. A perfect example of trading knowledge for dollars. The key benefit here is residual, passive income.
In almost all cases of the self-employed, the small business owner is taking information out of his or her brain and spending the necessary time to convert it into a product of value. This concept confuses some people, and to others it seems obvious. The bottom line is that customers pay you for your time and knowledge. Success is achieved by properly crafting the two into one convenient bundle that can be sold many times over (think of products vs. services).

What knowledge do you have in your brain that provides value to others? How can you extract this information and sell it?

#2 –

The Implementation of Knowledge is Power
Knowledge alone is not power! The implementation of knowledge is power. Knowledge is simply a commodity; it’s a product like any other that has the potential to be sold. How knowledge is organized, packaged, presented, shared, and received by others is what makes knowledge so powerful.

Knowledge is useless unless it’s effectively shared with others. Your ability to educate others in a way that allows them to effectively apply the instruction is what makes knowledge an asset… something worth buying.

#3 –

Time is More Valuable than Money
One of the most important points to understand is the fact that there are two basic forms of currency, money and time. Of the two, time is the most valuable, for it cannot be replenished. A surplus of time, and the unfettered liberty to do with it as you choose, is the true measure of success.

Your time must be extracted from the formula of making money. No matter how skilled you are at transferring your knowledge to others, if you are paid on an hours for dollars basis, your ability to expand your business will eventually plateau. You will run out of time.

The successfully self-employed have made this realization and concentrate the majority of their time and effort on the single greatest secret of self-employment: generating passive income. Passive income is achieved by applying what you know into a package that can be designed and built once, and then repeatedly sold over and over again. Finding a unique way to promote and sell this knowlege is the key.

Passive Income Examples: Useful books and guides, time saving computer applications, etc.

#4 –

Success is About Knowing What You Want
Self-employed success is not the byproduct of working your way up from the ground up. It’s based on knowing what you want, understanding your abilities and implementing them diligently to achieve your goals. There are plenty of people who get laid-off from their 9 to 5 day job and end up making millions in a few short years of self-employment.

Take a look at some of the success stories around you that emerged from nowhere. These success stories were not initiated by people paying their dues to someone else’s initiatives. These success stories revolve strictly around perception and choice. The people in these stories know their capabilities, what they’re doing, and what they want. Once people make this realization, and the conscious choice to act on it, the possibilities for success are limitless.

Did you know?
If a statue of a person on a horse depicts the horse with both front legs in the air, the person died in battle: if the horse has one leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in battle: if the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

Baking soda is a magical substance with all kinds of crazy uses. Here’s 10 things you can do it with it that you might not know about:

1. Remove tape residue
2. Douse flame
3. Zap roaches.( Make a dish of half sugar and half baking soda. They’ll love the sugar, and the baking soda will kill them.)
4. Spot-clean a rug
5. Absorb moisture
6. Keep drains clear
7. Clean a shower door
8. Uncrust your grill
9. Clean your hands
10. Banish book odors
11. Bonus usage: Making a baking soda and vinegar rocket!

Hit the link below to find out how to use baking soda in each of the instances.

Really? You can do that with baking soda [CNN]

Swiffers are awesome but it sucks to keep buying those pads for $1 a piece. Here are 13 ways to make your own Swiffer pads. Save money or save the planet. Your choice.

13. Microfiber cloth. Buy a microfiber cloth and cut it to size. Attach it to the Swiffer.

12. Paper Towels. Use high quality paper towels instead of Swiffer pads for pennies on the dollar.

11. Old Socks. Instead of throwing old socks away, pull them over the Swiffer. Toss them in the washing machine, or throw them away.

10. Bar Mop Towels. Use instead of the pads. Wash when dirty and reuse.

9. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Attach with rubber bands.

8. Rinse and Reuse Swiffer Cloths. Rumor has it you can just wash them and use them again.

7. Knit a Swiffer Cloth. If you can knit a dish scrubber, you can knit a Swiffer cloth. Here’s an awesome pattern.

6. Old Washcloths. Ugly old wash clothes can be used as Swiffer clothes. Discard when they’re gross.

5. Old Clothes. Got stuff that even charity wouldn’t want? Cut them up and use them on your Swiffer. Watch out. Don’t scratch your floors with your bedazzled jeans. Flannel is best.

4. Baby Clothes. Brat outgrew it? Wash the floor with it.

3. Disposable Diapers. Not used ones. Clean ones.

2. Buy a Reusable Cloth on Etsy! Support awesome crafty people, save money.

1. Sew your own Swiffer pad using this Instructable.

Van Gogh
During his entire life, Van Gogh sold only one painting.

Who knew that such a great artist only sold one painting?  Today his work is widely known by art enthusiats and the like. Going for thousands and perhaps even millions of dollars in auctions. What possibly could’ve been wrong about the time in which he was alive that he only sold one painting?

• 1. Go In Together: Remember how your mother always told you to share? She was right. From buying to bulk to carpooling, sharing makes things cheaper.
• 2. Do It Yourself: Yes you can! Before rushing out, see if you can’t solve the problem yourself, from a leaky faucet to cleaning supplies. Read through  D.I.Y. pages for ideas.
• 3. Barter! Despite what your ex-boss or ex-wife may say, you have valuable skills that can help other people. Don’t just give them away for free, trade them for other useful services you might need. Don’t try this at Best Buy.
• 4. Buy From The Source: Sorry middlemen, there’s no room for you in this economy. Track down the source of your goods and buy direct from them.
• 5. Repair, Reuse, Repurpose: And you thought the other two R’s involved reducing and recycling. Nope! Learn to stretch the things you have and reduce the amount you need to spend on shiny new things. “Clothing is a key example – it can often be repaired, handed down, altered, made into a quilt or even used as rags. There’s rarely clothing that really ought to be thrown away.”

Freshen up. Make your own air freshener using 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon vinegar (or lemon juice), and 2 cups hot water. Pour the mix into a spray bottle and spritz away to remove odors. Note that while white vinegar has a slight scent while wet, when dries, it leaves no odor.

Boost detergent. To reduce the amount of laundry detergent you need to use (especially if you have hard water) add baking soda or washing soda. These minerals soften the water, which increases the detergent’s power. For liquid detergent, add 1/2 cup of soda at the beginning of the wash. For powdered detergent, add 1/2 cup of soda during the rinse cycle.

Get squeaky-clean. Just add 3 tablespoons vinegar per 1 quart water in a spray bottle and you’ve got a safe, eco-friendly window cleaner. Some recommend using half vinegar and half water. For extra-dirty windows try this: 1/2 teaspoon liquid soap, 3 tablespoons vinegar, and 2 cups of water. Shake well. The best way to get streak-free windows? Use newspaper instead of paper towels to wipe them.

1.Everyone and everything seems normal from a distance.

2.When you die you can’t take anything or anyone with you. This includes your family, friends, money and belongings. Memories are all that remain. Make them count.

3.If you are breathing now, congratulations! You still have a chance to fulfill your bucket list. Don’t hesitate.

4.Don’t make public generalizations about sex, race or age.

5.Doing so will almost certainly bite you in the ass.

6.When something is troubling your worried mind, ask yourself this question: “Will this issue really make a difference in my life one year from now?” If the answer is no, move on.

7.The key to saving and maintaining a relationship starts with two simple words: “I’m sorry.”

8.Never underestimate the joy of life’s simple pleasures… like the pull-through parking spot.

9.Live in a few different cities, states, or even countries before your time is up. The life experiences gained in each location will open your eyes again and again for the first time.

10.Beginnings and endings… Both are powerful. Both are memorable. Both are necessary. Don’t be afraid to start. Don’t be afraid to bring something to an end.

11.Alcohol fogs your judgment… Sometimes for the best, and sometimes for the worst. Use accordingly.

12.Why wait to look back on it and laugh? You may as well laugh about it now.

13.You will appear far smarter in the eyes of others if you simply pay attention to the details they care about, rather than attempting to impress them with your wits. For example, if your boss always has Johnny Cash playing in the background when you walk past his office, mention it to him. Ask him what his favorite album is. Share your favorite song, etc.

14.Lessons cannot be taught, they can only be learned.

15.Compliments go a long way. When given the chance, always make people feel good about themselves.

16.True wisdom is achieved through life experience. No book or classroom can teach this.

17.Don’t give other people advice in the gym unless they ask for it.

18.Don’t argue or flirt with someone via email or text messaging. Most people are not poets. The message will get lost in translation, and may end up in the wrong hands altogether.

19.Appearance isn’t everything, but it’s something. Purposely neglecting your appearance for the sake of it is just as foolish as judging a book by its cover.

20.A little preparation will always save you a lot of grief.
The better mood your boss is in at work, the better mood you’re in at work. Help him or her help you.

21.You cannot do everything, but you can do something. Make it count.

22.A small gift from the heart is always better than a large gift from a shopping list.

23.Dreams will remain dreams forever if you don’t take action.

24.As long as you are alive, there is always more to learn.

25.Enjoy yourself. The situation is always lighter than you think.

26.What you learn in school does matter. While you may not use the specifics of every classroom lesson, every lesson does expand the core thought process of your mind. Over time you will develop problem solving skills that are universally applicable. No single classroom lesson can teach this, and no single classroom lesson is more important.

27.Own up to your mistakes the instant you realize you’ve made them. People will respect your honesty, and your conscience will thank you.

28.Concentrate on the things that you can change, forget about the rest.

29.Maintain your body, but never be ashamed of it. It’s the greatest tool you’ll ever own.

30.Don’t let mistakes from the past corrupt your future ambitions.

31.In life and in love, you get what you put in.

32.Don’t spend your whole life waiting for the ‘right time’.

33.In many cases you will learn more from failure than you will from success.

34.Become a critical thinker and always be skeptical of those who dish-out advice. As such, weigh each of these tips against your own experience and judgment.