The Simple Dollar
Tony Hawk attends the X Games Night of Film Benefit presented by Time Warner Cable in Los Angeles, in this June 2012 file photo. Tony Hawk has wisely leveraged his skateboarding success into long-term financial security, Hamm writes. (Casey Rodgers/Invision for TWC/AP/File)
Children need financial role models
Children look for role models (as do adults, to some extent). They look for people who embody the things they see as successful and important and emulate their behavior to some degree.
I recognize that, for my children, I’m going to be a role model, both consciously and unconsciously, but I also know that I’m not going to be their only role model. Far from it. They’re going to draw on a lot of people for ideas on how to live their life, and they’ll be exposed to them in a lot of different ways.
The challenge for parents is that positive uses for money are rarely lauded in popular culture. Instead, the media tends to shine their light on expensive items or people with exceptionally high incomes who can afford to spend in a way that’s inaccessible to most of us.
What can I do as a parent to ensure that my child has money heroes that behave in a sensible fashion? ( Continue… )
Park ranger Marge Farnett, center, conducts a tour at the Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site in Hyde Park N.Y., in this December 2012 file photo. The vast majority of National Parks are free and even the ones that have a cost are very inexpensive, Hamm writes. (Mike Groll/AP/File)
Low-cost attractions offer cheap getaways
It’s common sense. If you plan a vacation in which the primary activities are expensive things, then the vacation is going to be expensive. If you plan a vacation in which the primary activities are inexpensive, then the vacation is going to be inexpensive.
Thus, most of the time, it makes a lot more sense to choose vacations focused on inexpensive destinations.
How do you actually do that, though? Here are some options for planning a great vacation around inexpensive options.
Head to a national or a state park. This past summer, we vacationed in western South Dakota. Over the course of a few days, we visited the Black Hills National Forest, Mount Rushmore, Devil’s Tower, and Custer State Park. Our total cost for several days of natural beauty and impressive monuments was a pittance. ( Continue… )
A man walks by an ATM cash point machine at a branch of the Bankia bank in Madrid, in this December 2012 file photo. Using an out-of-network ATM overseas can result in some huge fees, some very bad exchange rates, or even a denial of usage, Hamm writes. (Daniel Ochoa de Olza/AP/File)
ATMs overseas: how to save money
As we discussed yesterday, practicing a little bit of care with your money when traveling abroad can save you a pretty penny. Currency exchange can really cost a person if they’re not prepared.
One of the tactics I suggested in that article is to use an ATM card if you need currency when you actually arrive overseas before turning to a currency exchange desk. Although an ATM will charge you some fees and you won’t get a great exchange rate, it’s often better than what you’ll get at your typical currency exchange while traveling abroad.
That means you should reasonably expect to use your ATM at some point when traveling overseas. What do you need to know before using it?
First, does your card work overseas? For the most part, any ATM card with a Visa or Mastercard logo on it should be fine for use in international ATMs, but the real barrier is the policies of the bank that issued your card. ( Continue… )
A man counts money near a currency exchange office in Kiev in this November 2012 file photo. Take some currency with you by exchanging some dollars for your foreign currency of choice at a large bank before you leave, Hamm advises. (Anatolii Stepanov/Reuters/File)
Travelling abroad? Exchange currency before you leave.
One of the most painful parts of my international travels has been the currency conversion process. Many banks, particularly those with international branches, will happily convert currency for you, but at a price.
It’s understandable why they charge a fee. They’re providing a service, and then they have to deal with converting the funds themselves.
Still, it’s an unnecessary expense, and it’s one that you can avoid with some clever preparation for your travel.
The first suggestion I have is that, if you’re traveling internationally, plan to put many of your expenses on plastic. Use a credit card for as many things as you can so that you don’t have to deal with the currency swaps. ( Continue… )
In this April 1, 2011 photo, Zen Hotel maid Ereyda Yanez makes a bed in a hotel room where she works in Palo Alto, Calif. Don’t just book hotel rooms online, Hamm advises, try negotiating over the phone. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma/AP/File)
Four tips for negotiating low hotel prices
Several years ago, Sarah and I visited the Amana Colonies in eastern Iowa with another couple. We decided to stay in a hotel there for two nights so we could stay up late with friends we hadn’t seen in a long while.
Our friends had chosen a hotel online and booked a room, so we decided to just stay at the same hotel for that weekend. However, when I went to book that room online, I was stunned at the price. I didn’t want to pay that much.
So, I placed a call to that hotel. I spoke to a receptionist, and then to a manager, about reserving a room for that weekend. I told him that our budget was limited and that we were considering staying at another hotel (presumably their main competition) as well as a bed and breakfast in the area.
The manager almost immediately offered me a rate that was about 40% of what I could find online. I agreed to the rate and placed the reservation, and I received a confirmation email shortly thereafter confirming the rate. ( Continue… )
In this September 2012 photo provided by the Iowa Farm Bureau, farmer Randy Dreher uses a combine to harvest one of his corn fields north of Audubon, Iowa. Hamm relates his experience of finding vacation destinations in Iowa, the state he calls home. (Gary Fandel/Iowa Farm Bureau/AP/File )
For great vacation deals, find local destinations
Several years ago, I picked up one of those tourism guides for Iowa, similar to the ones that many states put out to attract travelers to their state. I live in central Iowa, of course, so everything mentioned in that guide was within three hours of my house.
About four days and a lot of page-flipping later, I ended up marking about 200 things to see in Iowa with my family.
The items I marked were a mix of things, from obviously tourist-y places like the above depicted “Field of Dreams” to state parks and community festivals. I marked such things as the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend and Ledges State Park in Boone. I noted the Neil Smith Trail and the Lewis and Clark Trail.
The things I marked in the guide were mostly free things. We wouldn’t have to travel too far to see them, and we could pack a sack lunch and make a day out of the trip to the location. ( Continue… )
VP for Business Development at Chegg Elizabeth Harz speaks at the "Research Revealed" seminar during Advertising Week in New York in this October 2012 file photo. When you have an important investment or shopping decision, Hamm writes, make sure to research it with unbiased sources. (Charles Sykes/Invision for Advertising Week/AP/File)
The high price of confirmation-biased shopping
Let’s say you’re worried that your finances aren’t being organized effectively. You’re not really sure what’s wrong, but you have a gut feeling about it. You decide to go to a financial advisor, who tells you that, indeed, your finances are in a bad place. He points out several perceived flaws and pledges that he can fix them.
Let’s say you’re leaning toward putting some of your money into an annuity. You do a few Google searches and, based on the results you find, it sure seems like buying an annuity is a really good idea.
Let’s say you’ve seen repeated advertisements and product placements that convince you that a particular product is really cool. You go into a store, see it on a well-designed display, and find yourself really wanting this item you don’t need. You sigh, decide that you can probably afford it, and head to the checkout aisle.
In each of these situations, confirmation bias is working against you. It’s guiding you toward a conclusion that is quite possibly not in your economic best interest. ( Continue… )
A woman with a book sits on a bench at the departure area at the Fraport airport in Frankfurt in this November 2012 file photo. Snacks from home have the same advantages as a grocery store stop, but without wasting the travel time, Hamm writes. (Lisi Niesner/Reuters/File)
Travelling on a budget? Bring your own food and drinks.
Whenever I leave my house and expect that the travel to my destination is going to take more than an hour or so, I pack snacks and beverages. It’s just part of my routine.
Usually, I fill up a water bottle and add a bit of lemon juice to it, and I’ll look in the pantry to see what we have on hand for snacks. My snack of choice on the road is usually unsalted nuts or a low-sodium trail mix (I actuallydislike foods with much salt in them).
I’ll grab these items, toss them in a canvas bag, and head to the car.
Why is this a part of my routine? It saves me money – a surprising amount of money, actually.
When I’m on the road for a while, eventually I’ll get hungry or thirsty. The same is true if I sit in the airport for a long while. I’ll want something to eat or drink, and the longer I travel, the stronger that desire gets. ( Continue… )
A souvenir vendor sells Eiffel tower models for tourists in front the Eiffel tower at the Trocadero in Paris in this July 2011 file photo. A great travel moment lives on in your mind and your heart, not your stuff, Hamm writes. (Eric Gaillard/Reuters/File )
For cheap travel, avoid the tourist traps
In 2004, I had the professional opportunity to travel to Mexico multiple times in a short span. On those trips, I had a few chances to visit some of the sights of rural Mexico.
One of the stops that really sticks in my mind is the opportunity to climb up a small Aztec pyramid at Teotihuacan. With some of my travel companions, we climbed up to the top of the pyramid, enjoyed the wonderful view, and also enjoyed the amazing architecture and design of these small pyramids.
Unfortunately, the primary path to reach these pyramids forced one to walk through a quarter of a mile or so of souvenir stands, all of which were hawking some kind of good. Since we were there as a large group, some people naturally finished with the pyramid tour before others and found themselves stuck standing there by all of these souvenir stands.
A few people wound up buying things from these souvenir hawkers. Those that did not were either drawn in to look or spend significant time trying to ignore them. ( Continue… )
Fred Errington, left, and Deborah Gewertz of Amherst, Mass., wait for an Amtrak train to arrive at Union Station in Hartford, Conn., in this November 2012 file photo. There are many opportunities to shave some dollars from your travel if you think outside the box a bit, Hamm writes. (Dave Collins/AP/File)
No cheap flights? Look for train, bus tickets.
A few months ago, I took a trip to Indianapolis. The first leg of the trip – a flight from Des Moines to Chicago – was uneventful, but it was the second leg that got interesting.
I was scheduled to fly from Chicago to Indianapolis, but my flight was cancelled, as was the subsequent flight. After some discussion with the ticketing agent, they essentially agreed to refund my ticket, leaving me in Chicago.
I then went to the local Greyhound bus station, caught a bus to Indianapolis, read my book on the way, and arrived about five hours after I left the airport. Total cost of the trip? $25.
While this wasn’t exactly the most optimal of trips, it did leave me thinking about how I could have used alternative means to plan a trip that maximized my time and my money.
My initial trip planning simply involved booking a flight to Indianapolis. I shopped around a bit, but what I didn’t do was consider the possibility of using other means of travel for one of the legs of the trip – or perhaps for the whole trip. ( Continue… )
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