• Home Equity Loan   • Home Refinance Loan   • Home Purchase Loan   • Second Mortgage Loan   • Debt Consolidation Loan
Home Equity Loan Store «A website where you can find the lowest interest rates on home loans with absolutely free quotes from multiple lenders»
::

Top 10 Ways Managing Your Money Is Just Like Riding a Bike


An avid cyclist and bike racing fan, I sit transfixed during the many hours of Tour de France coverage every July when the race rolls around. This year, during some of the less-than-scintillating early miles of the sprint stages, my mind wandered a bit, and it occurred to me that there are some interesting parallels between winning the Tour de France and winning at personal finance.

Having watched Lance Armstrong pull off the win for 7 years in a row, I've compiled this list of the Top 10 Ways Managing Your Money Is Just Like Riding a Bike:

1. If you take safety precautions (e.g. helmet/emergency fund), you'll feel a whole lot more relaxed and confident on the journey.

2. The better prepared you are, the greater your chances of succeeding. It's important to learn from the past, but you must also scout out the road ahead and evolve with the constantly changing environment.

3. Crashes happen. The actions of other participants, bystanders, and the media can sometimes distract you from your goal. If you expect the unexpected and are able to respond with a level head, you'll be better off.

4. If you take too many unnecessary risks, you might end up out of the race, and sometimes it can take quite a while to recover.

5. But you'll probably have to take at least some calculated risks to come out ahead. For example, you might improve your performance by using cutting edge products, e.g. ultra-light wheels for big uphill climbs or, in the financial world, Health Savings Accounts (HSAs.) But you also make some tradeoffs, e.g. less stability going downhill or, with HSAs, penalties if you withdraw the money for something besides health care.

6. There will be rainy days, and there most certainly will be ups and downs. The one who weathers the tough days the best usually comes out ahead in the end.

7. You don't have to come out on top ("beat the market," so to speak) every day - or any particular day, for that matter - to win the overall race, the race that really matters.

8. You can go a lot farther if the team you surround yourself with has skills, experience, a well-defined goal, and the right motivation.

9. Even if you start at a huge disadvantage, you can emerge victorious if you have the right attitude, understand the rules of the game, and persist despite setbacks.

10. A little bit of luck never hurts!

So the next time you're in doubt as to which road to take on your personal financial journey, consider looking to the peloton for guidance and inspiration. Whether your goal is a yellow jersey on the Champs-Elysées in July or a secure retirement, there's a surprising amount to learn from watching a bunch of bike racers circumnavigate France. Congratulations, Lance!

Sherrill St. Germain
New Means Financial Planning
Principal
P. O. Box 666
Hollis, NH 03049

(603) 465 3485
sstgermain@newmeans.com
http://www.newmeans.com

Member, Garrett Planning Network - http://www.garrettplanningnetwork.com

Offering financial planning on an hourly, as-needed basis...
No product sales! No commissions! So you're assured of unbiased advice.


MORE RESOURCES:

USA TODAY

PERSONAL FINANCE: Will that housing deal help you?
Reuters
By Linda Stern | WASHINGTON Feb 9 (Reuters) - The housing settlement announced Thursday should make it easier for troubled homeowners to modify their mortgages and escape foreclosure, but it won't make everyone whole, consumer advocates say.
Homeowners Receive $25 Billion Mortgage Settlement, But Is It Enough?U.S. News & World Report (blog)

all 3,639 news articles »


PERSONAL FINANCE: Should employees own more company stock or less?
Reuters
By Chris Taylor | NEW YORK Feb 10 (Reuters) - If you're a high-ranking executive like Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook, company stock is your best friend. He received a reported $375 million in restricted stock for 2011, one of the largest pay packages on record ...

and more »


PERSONAL FINANCE: Why pedigreed pooches cost more
Reuters
(The writer is a Reuters contributor. The opinions expressed are her own.) By Alina Dizik NEW YORK Feb 9 (Reuters) - Bruce, a Finnish Lapphund who's best described as a Pomeranian meets Alaskan Husky, will attend the canine equivalent of the Oscars for ...

and more »


Simple sketches break down personal finance
Park Record
Richards said Marrouche's take on personal finance is pretty common. "I don't know many people who aren't frustrated with their money," he said. "Smart, educated, successful people still get frustrated, and part of that is because it's gotten so ...

and more »


PERSONAL FINANCE: Pet insurance-a costly necessity
Reuters
By Heather Struck | NEW YORK Feb 9 (Reuters) - After Nicole Bodzon, 28, a consultant in Conifer, Colorado, paid $1600 for her pug, Pepe, to have a possibly cancerous tumor removed from his eye, she thought she might benefit from an insurance policy.

and more »


Mortgage Rates & Trends

Bankrate: Mortgage Rates Up Slightly
Sacramento Bee
About Bankrate, Inc. (NYSE: RATE) Bankrate is a leading publisher, aggregator and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet. Bankrate provides consumers with proprietary, fully researched, comprehensive, independent and objective personal ...
Thursday's Personal Finance StoriesMarketWatch

all 220 news articles »


PERSONAL FINANCE-Better than a mattress: money fund tips
Reuters
The top-yielding bank savings accounts and money market deposit accounts are paying 0.8 percent to 0.9 percent, said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst at personal finance website Bankrate.com. "That's 20 times the yield," McBride says.

and more »


Friday's Personal Finance Stories
MarketWatch
Also in today's Personal Finance news on MarketWatch, Jennifer Waters takes a look at how our car insurance rates are calculated and shares that while we might think we're saving money on an economy car, the higher insurance rates may wipe out those ...



6 personal finance tips for new Canadians
CBC.ca
Besides the challenge of settling into a new home and culture, immigrants to Canada face a host of issues when it comes to getting their financial lives in order and planning for their retirement. But there's one thing Canadians all have in common: the ...

and more »


Personal Finance: Favorable changes ahead for 401(k)s
Chattanooga Times Free Press
By Chris Hopkins Defined contribution plans like 401(k)s have long ago become the dominant vehicle for retirement saving and investment. Between 1990 and 2011, plan assets have expanded nearly fivefold to $4.3 billion. And yet, it has often been the ...

and more »

Google News

Home Equity Loan | Home Refinance Loan | Home Purchase Loan | Second Mortgage Loan | Home Improvement Loan | Debt Consolidation Loan | Loans | Leases & Leasing | Personal Finance | Mortgage Refinance | Debt Consolidation | Debt Relief | Finance Resources
© 2006 Home Equity Loan Store | Personal Finance Information | Personal Finance Articles