What an inspiring story that I just read about one guy making his dreams come true. I just read a story here in Canada about a guy named Kyle MacDonald who was a typical person that had a low income job and one day he decided that he really wanted a house of his own to live in. He then came up with this idea that he would start with this red paper click and find a way to acquire a house with it. He tried to find people who would be willing to trade his paper clip for another item of value and would continue to do so until he got a house.

The first trade actually happened here in Vancouver, BC where two ladies traded him a pen that looked like a fish for his paper clip. Afterwards, things kept going and he started to trade for things such as a snowmobile and even a role in a Hollywood movie. Eventually, he was offered a house in Saskatchewan. You can read more about it with pictures of everything he traded at his blog located at http://oneredpaperclip.blogspot.com.

This sure shows that you can really do almost anything if you put your mind to it and that there are so many different ways for people to make money. I think I also read somewhere that a film studio has bought exclusive rights to make a movie about Kyle MacDonald’s story about this paper clip for a house trade which should be interesting.

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When it comes to saving money, from my experience one of the key ways in building up a healthy savings account is to truly recognize where all of your money is going and by assessing the most effective ways to cut down your expenses. There are so many examples that I have seen where people go to extreme lengths to save maybe a few dollars when in reality all of that effort in doing so actually made you save less in the long run.

The most typical example would be someone seeing an item that is on sale at a store that would require a lengthy commute for an item that is say $3 off the original price compared to other stores. So, let’s say that the person is taking public transit and it will cost them about $2.25 to actually get there. When it is all said and done, you’ve technically saved 75 cents. Is that really worth the trip and time that it takes for one to get there and back?

A common complaint that many people use nowadays on why they can’t seem to be able to save any money is because of gas prices. The general conscience is that it costs people a fortune to fill up the tanks as they need a vehicle to get around. Now what I would often see is that if there is a place that is say 2 miles away and sells gas for about 10 cents a litre cheaper than a local gas station, many people would react as if they saved hundreds of dollars by making that single trip to fill up the car over there. Once again, most people wouldn’t factor in the amount of gas that it took to get there and back as a factor. With this example, let’s pretend we are filling up a 40 litre gas tank. With the 10 cents a saving per litre that means without factoring in the travel expense you saved about $4. Similar to the other example above, for all that effort is that really the best way to save money?

If I was to save money, not buying one cup of coffee for one day would have saved me more money than traveling to a farther store to save 75 cents. For the gas example, not going out to an expensive restaurant and eating at home would have saved me more than double the amount I saved from traveling to a far away location to save gas money. While it can definitely be a great habit to save money whenever you can, I just think it is more productive and beneficial if you look at the overall picture on just how much you are saving when you factor in your time and expenses that it takes to save a few dollars in these types scenarios. After all, time is money as well.

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It sure is hot over here right now. Feels like the temperatures are within the high 30’s and low 40’s. I know that a lot of people usually label Vancouver as a place that rains a lot, but I bet this week these same people are looking for the closest cooling centre to stay in. A heat wave usually also affects the air quality and I saw this picture taken over the Fraser Valley which shows just how hot it is getting and how it affects the quality of air.

I always find it easier during the cooler months as I think it is easier to stay warm in the cold weather than to stay cool in the scorching hot summer. It’s definitely hot, hot, hot out there and I’m not talking about a great sale to save money.

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With so many ways to earn an income out there, being able to quickly eat food or having the ability to eat extremely large portions in one sitting has got to be one of the most perplexing things that I have seen people do to earn fame and fortune.

The first time that I saw a competitive eating event where the results were simply mind boggling was on TV as a fast food chain in the US called “Nathan’s Famous” had an annual hot dog eating contest. There was this guy named Takeru Kobayashi who was from Japan and by no means was he a big person. In terms of eating a lot of hot dogs though, simply saying that he devoured the competition is an understatement. In 12 minutes, he ate 50 hot dogs and his closest competitor ate about 31. Because of this, he has earned a lot of income by winning contests and through endorsements.

Another one that caught my attention on the news was how a restaurant called “Denny’s Beer Barrel Pub” was serving a burger called the “Olde 96′er” which was this gigantic burger that had about 6 pounds of beef. With all the condiments on it, the weight of the burger was apparently about 11 pounds. Long story short, there was this 19 year old girl named Kate Stelnick who only weighed about 115 pounds and while many people have tried and failed in eating the entire burger, she was able to finish it in two hours and fifty-four minutes. Since she was able to eat it in under 3 hours, she got the meal for free, was placed on a wall of fame, a gift certificate which she donated and of course a lot of media exposure.

I guess since I can’t exactly eat as much as those people or in that speed that to me it seems kind of painful to eat all of that food. But hey, I guess this shows a viable way for those who have the metabolism to do so as a way to earn an income. For me though, I’ll just stick to watching it from the sideline.

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Who hasn’t encountered a situation where you are simply having a conversation of some sort and then all of a sudden someone asks you the question “What is your sign?”. While normally I would only hear this from someone trying to prospect candidates on who would be good to establish a relationship with, I’m surprised to see that some companies actually use astrology as a factor to determine who would be best for a certain role and when would be a good time to execute a certain plan.

So for fun, I decided to find a descriptive profile for myself in regards to how someone like myself would handle work and money to see how it stacks up to the real me. My astrological sign is a Pisces and I was able to find a write up by a famous astrologer named Susan Miller on how a Pisces would handle money and work issues. Here are some excerpts from the article:
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“You are highly spiritual, and not a wit materialistic. If you ever manage to win the lottery, you’ll probably give it all away to a charity. Bless your heart, Pisces. Money doesn’t motivate you, but helping others does. You also need plenty of space to express your rich imagination. Pisces in analytical or managerial jobs also need to express their powerful creativity, even if it has to wait until after work.

Your ruler Neptune, planet of altruism and compassion, makes you ultra-sensitive to the needs of other people. In fact, when you see someone suffering financially, you identify so closely with him or her, it feels like it is happening to you. However, some people wind up using you as an energy source, and you may find your own energy drained away. It is impossible for Pisces to say no to anyone, so you might as well not even try. Instead, before you volunteer, decide what you can and cannot do to help. Then, stick to your plan. This way everyone wins.

You swim away from rules and restrictions, and usually prefer to be self-employed in a creative field. Fortune magazine reported that more millionaires are Pisces than any other sign. Surprised? It’s true! Neptune gives you the uncanny ability to detect deficiency in anything, including the marketplace. Can this sense make you rich? Yes, absolutely! Once wealthy, Pisces is in an even greater position to help those less fortunate. Your generosity makes others erroneously think you don’t have a self-preserving bone in your body. Are they ever wrong! Pisces’ survival instincts are legendary. You are tenacious and very determined. Your powers of persuasion and empathy permit you to see the concerns of others and negotiate accordingly. You have quite the winning edge!

Hint: Two fish symbolize your sign, one swimming with the current, the other against it. While it is easier to “go with the flow,” and follow the course of least resistance, Pisces often chooses to swim upstream — the more strenuous route. It is here that you will find the richest rewards and greatest satisfaction. If ever there was a sign to dream the impossible dream, it’s you, Pisces! Show the other signs how it’s done!”

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So is the description accurate? The funny thing is that a lot of the philosophy of the above article is actually true in terms of how I would personally perceive and handle things. Maybe I should get friends and colleagues to read this blog post to see how many people think it is accurate or not. For using it as a business tool to evaluate certain options though, in my opinion that is a bit too over the top for me I think as the descriptions are so general. I would just keep imagining it to be like say relying on a magic 8 ball to guide me in making an important decision. In the end though, I guess if it works for some then more power to them.

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