Personal Finance and Investing

For those that are interested in building up alternative streams of income, blogging has become very popular. We’ve all heard about monetizing content, adding in advertising and finding sponsors, but there are some folks out there that have taken their efforts to the next level and seen they pay off substantially. The best example of this happened just recently, when a personal finance blogger sold his blog for a cool $12.4 million dollars.

John Wu, the founder of Bankaholic, is the lucky blogger that got the deal.

Read more…

European Tour Operators Association Report

The process of applying for a visa to visit Europe is so unpleasant that over 450,000 tourists are deterred from coming. This is a core finding of the latest European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) report on visa applications. Indian and Chinese tourists applying for visas are most likely to encounter bad communication and red tape.

Visa processing by the UK is identified as that most likely to cause potential visitors to give up on their travel plans, closely followed by France.

Read more…

Foreclosures are awful. So why not stop foreclosing? That’s the question being asked—and answered—as the government and lending banks consider a foreclosure moratorium. Such a move would halt the foreclosure proceedings that ripple across the country, but hardly anyone seems in favor of doing so.

Every year, thousands of people become millionaires, while hundreds of thousands struggle to make ends meet. What is the difference between the two groups? In many cases, it comes down to whether or not you have what it takes to be a millionaire. While this may seem like oversimplification, there is a lot to be said about the mindset that future millionaires have, versus the mindset of the average consumer. Let’s see if you have what it takes to be a millionaire.

1. Do you have a clear financial plan for now, five years from now and in the future?

Many times, people become millionaires because they set specific goals for themselves, and then work hard to achieve those goals. Even if you don’t quite make it to your goals, chances are if you are aware of your financial condition, want to make it better and work at ways to accomplish it, you will be better off money wise.

2. Do you understand the difference between good debt and bad debt?

While some consumers are putting down $5000 on a plasma tv, others are using that same amount of money to put down on a foreclosed property. The first group will end up paying interest on a television that will only depreciate, while the second group has the potential of making hundreds of thousands of dollars with a future sale, or a steady stream of rental income in the mean time.

3. Do you understand the importance of budgeting?

Overspending is an enormous problem and the bottom line is – if you spend more than you make, your chances of becoming a millionaire outside of winning the lottery are slim to none. There is no point in making money if you are spending faster then it comes in. Millionaires learn the importance of saving that money and controlling their expenses, otherwise, they wouldn’t have that million dollars.

You can look at this way. Let’s say that you spend $10k every year on non-essential items. In ten years, you would have spent $100k. Now, take that same $10k, but invest it in property or stocks – in ten years you would likely have much more than $100k at your disposal.

4. Do you understand that “overnight success” takes time?

While there are a few exceptions to the rule, most millionaires spent time getting to that point. Whether it is five years or fifty, becoming a millionaire requires effort, it requires focus and it requires dedication. If you are not willing to put in that kind of work, your chances of achieving that goal are very small.

Start developing the “millionaire mindset” and make those small steps towards achieving your goals. Whether or not you actually do end up making a million dollars, you’ll be working towards developing not only sound financial principles, but chances are you will have more than enough money to remain financially comfortable for the duration of your life.