Take a look at the list. These people are all pretty bright. Unfortunately they lacked financial literacy and paid a devastating price. The promise of 10% a year risk free returns is an illusion. They all fell for it. http://www.bankrate.com/finance/investing/celebrities-scammed-by-madoff-1.aspx

Cars are a depreciating asset. Making a large investment and borrowing money to purchase one is a guaranteed money loser. Safe and reliable will do. Everything else is wealth destroyer. http://www.bankrate.com/finance/auto/car-depreciation-models-lose-value-1.aspx

A ton!!  Take a look at this cool calculator to help you figure it out! http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-what-youll-save-by-ditching-cable-tv-2013-12-11

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/10-financial-resolutions-you-can-actually-keep/2013/12/27/8fb431d4-6c0f-11e3-a523-fe73f0ff6b8d_story.html It is essential you put many of your financial decisions on auto-pilot. The less complicated, the less that can go wrong. Stick to the plan through thick and thin and you will be amazed at the results. Simple systems are the key. Start today and you can begin to change your life.

“He who blames others has a long way to go on his journey. He who blames himself is halfway there. He who blames no one has arrived. Chinese proverb   Here is a great article on how this relates to investing by Barry Ritholz.. http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2014/01/take-responsibility-for-your-stock-losses/

Something to consider when deciding on your financial goals for the new year. Necessity or pleasure, you will be in a better place with more money. Whatever you are planning to save this year increase it by 1or 2%. You will not regret doing this.   More from Roger Nusbaum.. “There is no situation where…

Retirement wins hands down . For the simple reason there are multiple ways to fund college. There are no loans for retirement!! Read on from the WSJ….. Prioritize Retirement Here’s a piece of advice that’s tough for many parents to swallow: It is more important to save for retirement than for college. It may sound…

Who knows what will happen at the beginning of the year? This year if you put all of your money in Japan you would have made 50%. On the other hand if you bought the Gold Miners you would have lost 50%!! At the beginning of last year many “smart” people thought the opposite would…

At a diner it is difficult for people to choose from a thirty page menu. This creates stress and often leads to a bad decision (Sushi??). This is called the paradox of choice. It is often the reason people delay investing. It will interfere with your choice of advisor, type of account, and the investments…

There was a book written long ago by this same title. In one part the stockbroker is showing a friend a fancy yacht. The friend replies but where are the customer’s yacht’s? This reminds me of the new film The Wolf of Wall Street. Instead of the missing customers yachts, we are missing the victims…