DavidGervino.com

Baby Steps

A friend of mine is thinking about delving into the financial services industry.  While he is someone of the utmost integrity and he will do a great job for his clients, there are many other people in this industry who are out to make as much as they can, in any way that they can.  And sadly, many of the people who get ripped off are people who really need every dime they have. 

It's kind of like the people who call themselves "insurance adjusters" and show up at house fires in low income neighborhoods.  They get the people who just lost their homes to sign a piece of paper, entitling them to a large percentage of whatever claims are paid out by the insurance company.  The guise they use is that they are going to fight for every dime owed to the victim.  But most legitimate insurance companies will pay out claims without these middlemen, so entering into agreements with these adjusters is unnecessary.  It's like trowing money away.

Anyone who knows me well knows that I'm a big fan of Dave Ramsey.  He's got a radio talk-show and he discusses things such as how cash-value life insurance policies are rip-offs, as well as other financial matters.  His advice is down-to-earth and easy to understand.  Here are his 7 "Baby Steps" to getting your finances on track:

1. $1,000 to start an Emergency Fund
2. Pay off all debt using the Debt Snowball
3. Three to six months of expenses in savings
4. Invest 15 percent of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
5. College funding for children
6. Pay off home early
7. Build wealth and give!
   Invest in mutual funds and real estate

W.A.N.D.

So you've heard of Seasonal Affective Disorder? It's the "winter blues" that some people go through.  I've come up with a closely-related affliction entitled "Working at Night Disorder (A.K.A. 'WAND').  You won't find it listed in the DSM-IV yet but I'm convinced it should be.

I spent the last several months working the 3 p.m. to midnight shift.  I had no idea how much I was missing out on until I switched back to day shift a few weeks ago.  It is so nice to actually be able to get together with friends for dinner, attend church functions, etc.  Even though my company pays a shift differential for working at night, it's not worth it.  It's kind of like when I was a manager in the sales industry --  What good is all the money you make, if you're working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and don't have time to enjoy it?

Dave's Tip#67 regarding Human Interaction

Have you ever been in a situation when you've just started to get to know someone and you're trying to figure out what kind of person they are? I have a theory that you can tell a lot about someone by the way they treat waiters and people in similar service industries.  Here's the checklist:

1.  Are they rude and demanding?
2.  Do they say "please" and "thank you?"
3.  Do they tip well?

Most people have enough sense to know to be nice at least until the food arrives, so don't be decieved by the first few moments.  But I really think that there is some truth to this theory.  Try it out and let me know what you think.