Comments on: Smart Couples Finish Rich – Ch. 2 Review

By: FourPillars

FourPillars — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 02:36:52 +0000

Jean, I will look into that program - sounds interesting.

Great point BB.

By: Brip Blap

Brip Blap — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 02:10:45 +0000

I think even more than the specific point about health, Bach’s point is that you have to have some REASON to live life other than just making money. The gym/health is a good example, but not the only one. If your pursuit of money interferes with your relationships or your interests or passions, what does that say about the relative value of those things? If you would rather work an extra 2 hours per day at your job for $50 per hour, does that mean you’d rather get $100 per day than work out and live longer? Than spending time with your family? Than biking, running, blogging, whatever?

If you ask me, any personal finance book that doesn’t highlight the fact that you need to have a reason for achieving your financial goals isn’t worth reading! Bach does a good job of emphasizing this fact with this chapter.

By: Jean Lesp�rance

Jean Lesp�rance — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 00:07:21 +0000

One doesn’t need a gym membership at all. I still do 5BX, the exercise program invented by the RCAF in the 1950s. It’s the cheapest possible fitness option you could find. I bought the book for about $1.50 back in the 1960s and still use it (so that’s about 3.5 cents per year), you can find the whole thing copied for free on the Internet. Just do a Google search. It requires no equipment and takes only 11 minutes per day and can be done anywhere there’s enough space to lie prone.

By: telly

telly — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 20:01:24 +0000

That’s exactly why it’s a good idea to revisit your values and goals! We revisit them occasionally to remind us that maybe there’s nothing wrong with living in a “starter” house right till the end. We’ll see how long the attitude lasts.

By: FourPillars

FourPillars — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 19:33:42 +0000

Kyle – I know what you mean.

Telly – You’re welcome. One problem with the values section though is that sometimes values change. Three years ago I was pretty gung ho to buy a big expensive house, we ended up getting a fixer which translated into a very nice expensive house. Now I realize that my values don’t include being house poor but there is not a lot I can do about it. We could downsize but with the hassle and fees involved I just can’t see it happening.

Mike

By: telly

telly — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:13:15 +0000

I think I commented back on the review of the 1st chapter how much I realy enjoyed the “values” chapter. Discussing our values really helped my husband and I tweak our budget to spend money on things that bring the most enjoyment to our lives and less on things that don’t.

We’ve since added more money to the “health & fitness” catagory (hockey league, a few sessions of personal training here and there, etc.) and travel catagories (both because we enjoy it and to get around to visiting out of town family & friends more). At the same time, we reminded ourselves that we don’t get a big reward out of mortgage payments (i.e. buying a bigger house) and car payments (i.e. keep driving the beaters). Some things just really don’t fit into your true ‘values’.

I really enjoyed this chapter and I think it’s a really great tool to use in budgeting. It’s probably a good idea to revisit your goals & values from time to time. I think I might just pull out this book again…

Thanks Mike!

By: Kyle

Kyle — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:34:30 +0000

Good stuff, I have found that if I don’t schedule healthy activites or hobbies they tend not to happen. If I write it down on the calendar it makes it easier to give myself permission to do it.

By: Four Pillars › Smart Couples Finish Rich - Ch. 1 Review

Four Pillars › Smart Couples Finish Rich - Ch. 1 Review — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 01:45:51 +0000

[...] Next Chapter. This was written by FourPillars. Posted on Monday, August 27, 2007, at 9:10 pm. Filed under Book Review. Bookmark the permalink. Follow comments here with the RSS feed. Post a comment or leave a trackback. [...]