It’s been another big week. The fulfillment problems at Amazon and BN.com seem to have been resolved, so I’ll start this round-up with a request: if you’re a regular blog reader, and you haven’t already purchased one (or both!) of my books, would you please do so? Books read differently than blogs — you’ll see me develop arguments a bit more, quote from longer interviews, and use more polished prose. Just click on the book icons on the right and you can choose your retailer. If you have purchased a book, and are enjoying it, please write a review for your blog or for an online retailer’s site (or Goodreads). Word-of-mouth and recommendations are really what sell books these days.
I had a few pieces run this week:
“When you can’t save more, try making more.” My guest post at Money Saving Mom gave some ideas for how people could try making some extra money. The first commandment of personal finance is to live within your means, but there are two ways to do that: cut your costs, or increase your means. In some cases, you really can’t cut more. So then it’s time to get to work.
“We’re not as sleep deprived as we think” — My CBS MoneyWatch post, teeing off the annual Sleep in America poll from the National Sleep Foundation. Headlines always focus on those who don’t sleep enough, but many of us do sleep. I have three kids under age 5 and I sleep! Why is it considered “cool” to claim you don’t? (Note: I’ll be doing a Fortune.com story on macho sleep talk. Would love stories).
“Don’t let email ruin your life.” — CBS MoneyWatch. When my iPhone shattered last year, I risked slicing my fingers every time I checked email. That’s what it took to realize how often I was checking it. It turns out that most email is not worth slicing your fingers over.
“4 ways to stop being so busy.” — CBS MoneyWatch. Your time may be filled, but with what? I’ll be revisiting this theme next week, I think, since Real Simple’s April cover deals with the time crunch. Over at the NY Times Motherlode blog, KJ Dell’Antonia argues that much of the time crunch is self-imposed (“Are women enemies of our own free time?“). I agree. See if you can guess which semi-anonymous commenter I am!
In other news:
800CEORead, the business book retailer, had a fabulous post on All the Money in the World. As Dylan writes, “it’s a rare mind that is both expansive and practical at the same time, and that is what makes Laura Vanderkam so special.” There are the workaday sorts, and the big idea people, but “practical visionaries, people who challenge the status quo by practically, calmly and coolly shattering the sense that it’s inevitable or even logical, people like Laura Vanderkam, really are rare. She explores big, important life questions and, lucky for us, puts those explorations down in writing.” 168 Hours, he writes, “was ostensibly about time management, and this new one is ostensibly about personal finance, but these are not just time management or personal finance books. These are philosophy books, and there is a consistent thread running through them—the power of choice.”
If you subscribe to Money magazine, there’s a little thumbnail caricature of me in the March issue with a quote about laughing at the Joneses, rather than trying to keep up with them. It’s not online, but Money tweeted it out yesterday.
Inc’s Jessica Stillman wrote about ATM in a piece called “Why entrepreneurs have a leg up in personal finance.” Business owners think about why people pay them money, and what it takes to make more money, and keep their eyes on growing revenue. Yes, you need to keep your cost base under control, but you do want to grow, too.
Susan Johnston of US News and World Report featured ATM in a piece called “Why Money Really Can Buy Happiness,” which also ran at Yahoo Finance.
Allentown PA’s Morning Call ran a short piece by Alisa Bowman called “How to be happy with the money that you have.“
A Spirited Mind reviews ATM. Catherine Gillespie notes that “A lot of personal finance books offer advice on how to set up a budget, cut your latte factor, or get out of debt, but I’d argue that reading All the Money in the World would be a better investment of your time because of how it will challenge you to really think through your assumptions and beliefs about how you get, spend, and give money.” Thanks Catherine!
Carrie’s Busy Nothings reports that ATM is on her nightstand. Carrie writes that “I’ve read several finance books in the last few years… but none of them have resonated with me like All the Money in the World. Vanderkam managed to put into words the very ideas and discussions that Peter and I have been having over the last few months, including making some financial choices that would probably cause some to raise an eyebrow. However, as she discusses in the book, it’s really not about a dollar figure, as much as it is about being content and being willing to do what it takes if you want to take action on your bigger dreams.” Exactly!
The Prudent Pantry reviewed 168 Hours this week (and is reading ATM this week, according to her goal list!). She writes that “I’m still doing my own laundry and cleaning my own house, but 168 Hours
AllState’s blog notes that “Sometimes, money can buy happiness.” I’ve been doing a lot of Q&As, but this is probably one of my favorite ones. One of my quotes: “Small indulgences have an outsized effect on happiness. Buying a house and buying a latte will both make you happy when they come into your possession, but you only buy a house once every few years (or decades). You can buy a latte three times a week, and you’ll enjoy it every time. When it comes to happiness, the general thrust of the research is that frequency trumps intensity.”
The Tampa Bay Times’ Whoa Momma blog discusses 168 Hours (and my WSJ piece) noting that “Maybe you aren’t as time-crunched as you think.”
I was on Zara Larsen’s Circles of Change radio show in Tucson.
And if you haven’t watched the Fox & Friends clip yet, here it is.
It was also Women’s Money Week! I participated in two blog carnivals, that one (you can see all participants here) and FeMOMhist’s carnival for writing about the logistics of our schedules.
I did a chat with @TwitterBooks on Tuesday, and a teleconference with The Clutter Diet on Wednesday. If you have a group reading All the Money in the World (or 168 Hours, for that matter) I’m happy to call in for a discussion. Just email me and we’ll set something up. Thanks for reading!
Wow! What a week…how did you fit it all in?? 🙂