How to Stay Organized After Retirement

In many cases, retirement means moving to a smaller living space. Even if you're not moving, it is still a good time to think about getting organized. Taking on a task this daunting does not have to be overwhelming. Here are five tips to make the process a little easier. 

Hobbies

Finally you have the time for the hobbies you always wanted to pursue. Whether it be sewing, woodworking, or some other craft, you will need an organized workspace. There are many creative ways to store your materials. Take advantage of inexpensive pegboard, or use a tension rod with shower curtain hooks for hanging supplies. Tackle or jewelry boxes are great for small items. An organized space will make you feel more inspired as you work on your new hobbies.

Grandkids

Your children will probably drop your grandkids off from time to time. Keep a couple of easy access bins with art materials, games, and books for them to enjoy while visiting you. Perhaps bring out a couple of toys from their parents' childhood. They'll love seeing what their moms and dads played with as children.

Memorabilia

No doubt you have kept toys, school papers, and artwork from when your children were growing up. Grown children are often reluctant to store their childhood memorabilia. Try inviting them over and going through the boxes together. You can sort out the things that really mean something to them, and perhaps create a couple of scrapbooks they will want to bring to their own homes.

Creative Storage

You will have to use the space in your home effectively as you get more time in it. Buy under the bed storage bins for seasonal clothes. Space bags are great for blankets and holiday linens. Take advantage of wicker shelf baskets and ottomans with storage inside. Try finding new ways to keep everything you need organized and at hand.

Storage Units

You may find that your new space is just not large enough to accommodate some of the things that you are not ready to let go of yet. Storage units are abundant, inexpensive and climate-controlled. San Diego self storage units are also a great option for recreational items like fishing or camping supplies, or any extra antique furniture that are taking up too much space.

Once you have your home organized and clear of clutter, you will be ready to fully enjoy your retirement. Having your life in order will give you the sense of calmness and freedom that you have waited for.

Family Secrets: Ways to Make Your Family History Research Possible

Looking into the past can bring your entire family closer together and give all of you a better understanding of where you come from. With websites like CensusRecords.com and other easily accessible genealogy resources, doing in-depth family research has never been easier or more rewarding. Just a few clicks of your mouse can lead you to a wealth of family secrets and stories that that can in turn, help you discover who you truly are.

Outline What You Want to Find Out

Focus on basic information first. Before you look into the background of individual family members, write down their full names and any other relevant details you can find. The more you know about your ancestors, the easier it will be to get accurate information about them online. In addition to recording names, come up with dates or approximate timelines for life events that are the most likely to have corresponding documents.

Find Documents You Have

Take a closer look at family records and pictures that are stored in your home. Family scrapbooks and photo albums can be full of valuable details you can use to find new information on the Internet. Don't overlook any documents you may have as well from marriage and birth certificates to newspaper clippings.

Do Some Digging

Use dates to find leads. Because you can search documents and photographs online with dates and keywords, looking up annual records can be an easy way to find leads when you are short on other information. For example, you can look at the US 1940 census if you have an idea of where one of your relatives was married in the early 1940s. Once you find that information, it can in turn lead you to private addresses, pictures of official documents, and other important details.

Get Organized

Remember to come up with a way to document and organize your findings as you make new discoveries about the past. Family stories can take many surprising turns, so you want to be ready to keep track of any interesting details you find as you continue to move back in time. Putting together a family tree on paper or online is a good place to start, but you might also want to get a separate album that you can use for collecting new stories, photographs and documents. If you run into a dead end, take some time off to look through your personal records and contact other family members. You never know when you might stumble on a hint that can send your search in a whole new direction.

When you are looking into your own past, it can be a great way to stay connected to family both those who are gone and some closer to home. Use the resources you have to make your own family tree.

How To Save Money On Technology For Your Home

Technology purchases can be expensive, but they don't have to break your budget. With some common-sense techniques, you can get the technology you want without overspending. Let's look at a few ways to save money on technology purchases for your home.

Do Your Research

The most effective way to save money on any technology purchase is to shop around before you buy. Prices can differ greatly among electronics stores, and brick-and-mortar stores don't always have the best deals. Be sure to check online retailers as well; they often have competitive prices and free shipping. When shopping for cell-phone plans and cable packages, it's equally important to check out multiple providers and compare prices.

Be Patient

If you can manage to postpone your purchase for a while, you can often save money by waiting for the item to go on sale. The best deals on electronics can be found on Black Friday for in-store purchases, and Cyber Monday for online shopping. While you'll get the biggest savings on big-ticket items like TVs and computers, even smaller purchases like cordless phones can be had at a discount during sale periods.

Only Buy the Features You Want

It's easy to get sucked into expensive cell phone and cable packages that have more features than you really need. For example, you might feel that getting all the sports channels from Bell is a must, but the premium movie channels are less important to you. If you don't text often, the unlimited texting plan isn't going to be worth the cost. Be sure to carefully review the features of any product or plan before making a commitment.

Buy Used Models

With more and more people upgrading their electronics items after only owning them a short time, it's become easier than ever to score a deal on a used item in excellent condition. Refurbished items are also a great way to save money and still get a high-quality item. Even though it can be hard to avoid the temptation of upgrading to the latest model, the cost savings of buying used or refurbished electronics makes the minor sacrifice worthwhile.

As you can see, it's unwise to rush into a technology purchase for your home; a little time, research, and flexibility go a long way. Armed with these tips and some self-discipline, it should be easy to get the most bang for your buck the next time you shop for electronics or technology!

Aussie Startups in Need of More Government Support for Success

The coming federal elections in Australia seems to have amplified just about every issue on the political agenda, while also making advocates of various causes all the more vocal and outspoken. Australia’s startups, for one thing, are expressing their intention of becoming a more central pawn, on the country’s economic chess board. This view is not without just reason, as Australia’s economy is a worthy topic for debate, especially in the face of an approaching election poll, set to happen in under three weeks, as of the date this article was written. Factor in all the recent talk about Australia becoming a major digital economy at a global level, by 2020, as well as the figures, which say some 60 per cent of the country’s workforce is employed by a company with 5 staff members or less. If there was ever a time for small, emerging companies to get their voice heard down under, then now seems to be it, by all accounts.

This view was also substantiated by a report published earlier in 2013, following research conducted by one of the world’s leading financial analysts. The report, paid for by the Australian branch of search engine giant Google, attested to the startup sector’s immense potential for growth. According to the research, in two decades, Aussie tech and IT startups might be able to rake in $109 billion for the country’s economy. That’s about 4 per cent of Australia’s gross domestic product, a sizeable ratio further improved by the 540,000 new jobs tech startups stand to create by 2033. Optimistic as these stats might look, they are still dreams scribbled onto a piece of paper, without some serious effort from the educational sector, major corporations, the federal government, as well as the entrepreneurs themselves – the same report concluded.

Australia is known worldwide as fertile grounds for startups. Its Internet access rate is good, as is the tech literacy standard of its population. What’s more, local small businesses also have access to facilities that stand to lower their overheads. Several companies, for instance, now choose to rent out serviced office space in Sydney, in order to avoid paying long-term rent for no good reason. They only employ a small number of workers, outsource most tasks and only need a business location for meetings and conferences. The digital communication sector has also been awarding facilities for companies just starting out. All is well, it seems; so, then, why aren’t Australia’s startups doing better?

For some, that reason is to be found in current government policies. The serving Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, also spoke recently on this topic. Rudd explained that Australia needs to be ‘smarter’ about the facilities it puts at the disposal of entrepreneurs. The model does seem to work, if one were to judge by the example of a digital publishing startup which made headlines in recent weeks. The company managed to raise a massive amount of money for initial capital purposes, and the bulk of that partially crowd-funded amount came through as a government grant. The business, which bases most of its activity in the cloud and aims to serve as a quick publishing service for desktop and mobile devices, raised no less than $785,000.

Of course, the company’s managers are wiser than to place all their eggs in a single basket. News of receiving the government grant came in right after they had return from a Berlin accelerator program for startups. The rest of the money came from investors, with over 50 per cent of the remainder donated by a syndicate of Brisbane-based angel investors. The entrepreneurs say most of the money will go into scalability improvements, as they aim to have the company go global as soon as possible.

How Are You Going to Pay for Your New Car?

When it comes to being over 50 and wanting to maintain the same lifestyle as you did in your 30s, budgeting and smart planning are your most important tools in this endeavor. Sure saving some weekly cash is a good alternative when you want to purchase something more substantial, but is that really going to get things done?

Are you interested in buying a car? If you have already chosen the desired model, all you have to think about is finding the most advantageous method of payment. Funding opportunities are own resources, bank loan or finance lease.

Since a car is a perishable good, irrespective of the acquisition, the cost should be minimal, while the ratio between quality and cost should be balanced. Thus, given the fact that “own resources” requires no further explanation, let’s go straight to the other two versions and ask the million dollar question: what is the difference between credit and leasing? Both options involve purchasing property in monthly installments. 

The difference between loan and lease

Unlike a financial lease, in the case of a bank loan, the owner of is the client (user) and the loan is paid in monthly installments (comprising a share of the purchase value of the property - including VAT, interest rate and borrowing fees).

In the case of lease, the owner is the leasing company that transfers the right to use to you, through a rental system, at the end of which, if you paid every installment on time, you will also become the owner of the car.

How’s the car loan market?

According to credit bureau Experian, nearly 85% of new-car buyers in the second quarter signed up for a loan or lease to fund their purchase. And car dealers had a lot to do with this impressive number (the highest since 2006) since they are offering incentives such as low-interest financing. But experts tell us to pay attention since on paper things might not be the same as verbally agreed to, especially with all the unscrupulous dealers out there who would say anything to make a sale.

Furthermore, the guys at Motive Auto Finance warn us about the “unholy” practices of certain auto dealers. They act like a middleman for car lenders. In order to make even more money, some dealers will offer you a higher interest rate than what they are actually paying to the lender. Known as the “dealer markup”, this “bonus” can add an additional 3% in interest, thus increasing the cost of your car. And it is perfectly legal to do so, with only a few states having specific regulations in order to limit how much a car dealer can markup rates.

Pushing for add-on services is no surprise. Dealers will try to sell extended warranties or supplemental insurance, causing your monthly payments to increase. Remember that these products are optional and if you don’t want them you shouldn’t be persuaded in purchasing them. A good idea is to contact your insurance company for further information.

Another thing you should consider is that certain banks are now offering loans at below the RBI-mandated base rate. They have taken advantage of a “grey area”, using special schemes to offer luxury car customers auto loans at 9-9.15%, which is below its base rate of 10%. How do they do it? It seems that banks get around the RBI's base rate stipulation by using two methods: booking the loan at the base rate on their books and booking dealer payouts separately as promotional or brokerage cost.

Five More Reasons Not to Look for a Job

Looking for a job has been unproductive for you and for good reason. I have written on this issue a number of times on my own blog and here are yet more reasons why looking for a job is an activity left over from the last century and won’t be productive this year, next year or in 10 years. 

1. You are one of 300 resumes for one open position. The odds are way against you so why waste your time. You are likely someone that also buys lottery tickets figuring that someone has got to win. Good luck to you. 
2. A robot will likely replace your job or has already done so. If you don’t watch Sixty Minutes, you should. A recent episode explains how so many jobs have already been replaced by robots and way more to come. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57601121/are-robotshurting-job-growth. People who are unskilled are now also unneeded. Sorry, but if you could not figure out why you had to learn geometry on ninth grade (it was to learn how to think) and now you have no skills and no ability to think and need a job where someone shows you what to do, you are out of luck. 
3. Looking for a job is backwards. You are trying to find someone who needs a worker and then you will fit yourself to the position. That is backwards. The way to make money is to figure out what people value, what they will happily pay for and then learn how to provide it. That is called making yourself of value. Note that learning something does not necessarily mean going to school. Some of the most successful people are self-taught. 
4. You place yourself in a continuous position of dependence. If the job disappears or the company goes out of business, you are back in the same place. Don’t look for a job—figure out how to earn income that is independent of some company or someone giving you anything. Make yourself valuable so that people want what you offer. I pay the woman who cleans my house $160 for 5 hours of work. She has worked for us for 30 years and I hate to think she might ever retire. She has no education, speaks only some English but is valuable. 
5. Looking for a job is just laziness. Up until the year 1900 or so, there were no jobs. People farmed their land, learned a trade or took up a profession. These people sold their talents and skills to other people in town. Looking for a job is finding someone who has already done the hard work or creating excess work so that you can simply show up and get paid. The good times are over. There is no excess work. 

A few months ago, I saw an interview on CNBC with Jack Welch, the ex-chairman of General Electric. He said that one of GEs business was hurt so badly in the recession, that its revenues would not recover until 2014. However, that division would achieve its pre-recession revenues with 14,000 people instead of the 23,000 employed pre-recession. The point—if you are just "labor," this economy has little need for that. What the economy needs is skills, talent, ability to innovate, motivate, create and move an idea from inception to fruition.

Fast food workers can strike all they want but the reality is, none of the above is required to work in fast food service. Reality is just that, like it or not, fair or not. You can piss and moan or use this post as a description of the new reality.

Larry Klein is publisher of the Wealthy Producer Blog, is among the 1% and has not has not had a job in 33 years.