Clark Howard is one of the master’s of financial good sense. I put him in the likability category with Melody Hobson, Dave Ramsey and Oprah’s pal, Suze Orman. He’s got good, common sense when it comes to financial matters. The problem is that most of us aren’t paying attention. We’re spending more than we make. We’re saddled with houses we can’t sell. We’re paying tons for gas while groceries keep getting more expensive. It’s a real problem. And, we need real solutions.
Howard is here to help. I received a copy of Howard’s new book, “Living Large in Lean Times,” and it’s got a ton of great information to help weary families. While I know financial books aren’t on the top of everyone’s list to snuggle up with and read at night, they are important in reminding us to be savvy spenders AND savers.
He talks about ways you can make money by selling your used stuff. One site, I hadn’t heard of before, Glyde, he calls the “Netflix meets eBay.” It’s under the title, “eBay for dummies.”
The great thing about this book is that it’s written in small chunks so you don’t have to sit and wade through a long book. Chapters are broken into categories like: cars, consumer issues, education, real estate and TV.
He’s even got tips on how to have a cheap cell phone. “13% of Americans say they have a land line they never use.” OK, time to get rid of that extra cost from your budget.
Other interesting tidbits I liked are:
- Get unlimited testing and email for $10/month
- Utilize hospital gyms
- Be a “freegan” — people who live off society’s cast-offs and get their possessions for free
- Remove jewelry from your home during an open house.
- Utilize free online budgeting tools like mint.com to tell you where your money goes.
- Send bill collectors a “drop dead letter.”
At the end of the book he’s got a laundry list of important websites. A great resource for people looking to save and get control of their money.
Photo credit: lsgc
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ABOUT ALICIA: Alicia is the founder of Balancing Motherhood.com. Last year, she managed to stay sane while completing an MBA, working full-time, blogging, and still baking amazing birthday cakes — all while raising a young family at home.
Jean Lewis says
September 17, 2011 at 4:52 pmThis book has shot to the best seller list this week. I took a good look at it and liked it right away. I think everyone can learn something from it. I especially like the links to money saving websites.
Alicia at BalancingMotherhood.com says
September 19, 2011 at 2:53 pmI hope that people do read it. It’s a quick read and has a lot of great advice in it. We all need to save some money these days.