Is there any list of finance tips that DOESN'T include "don't go to Starbucks for $3 latte and recoup whatever per year?

If you're debt free, are saving and investing and live thrifty financially I say enjoy your daily Mochachino. You deserve it.

Good point. Most of these lists are just common sense for those people who have common sense in the first place. It's the credit card maxed out folks who buy Starbucks and lunch everyday and then wonder where all their money went who need to read these!

(I still read a bunch of personal finance blogs b/c I do learn something now and then and it's more of a hobby)

@jamesdenver: agreed. I think the latte shows up in these lists because it is an easily identifiable daily "extravagance".

That being said, the NY Times had an article (and I can't find it at the moment) that basically said to enjoy the damned latte, $3 doesnt make that huge of a difference if you're spending $50k on a car.

The first post ("25 Ways...")has some GREAT tips, like "Work at a gas station," Work at a Supermarket," and my personal favorite, "Become a Mystery Shopper." He forgot #26, "Win the Lottery."

I can't imagine the '25 Ways' made the lifehacker list.

The first one 'Mystery Shopper' says 'jobs are hard to come by'. That is neither quick neither easy. Of course, not to mention there are scams out there.

And, how is 'Become a cleaner' become a way to make money "Quickly & Easily". Last time I checked, cleaners work in the worst of places, do the most difficult of tasks of scrubbing and don't make nearly as much money cleaning.

Maybe this is Get Rich Slowly's fault. For touting stuff that is slow and excruciatiating, and dubious at best.

Get Rich Slowly has developed a great list of the top personal finance posts from around the blogosphere. In celebration of the second anniversary of the Carnival of Personal Finance, he asked financial bloggers to submit the single best post they've written since they started blogging.

The first post has some good ideas, though I have found it not to be true that most transcription is outsourced. You might not be able to get a full-time job, but contract work is pretty easy to get, and it pays about twice what you'd make cashiering. Special skills, like medical or legal knowledge, are worth cash, too.

@ashwani: Exactly. The '25 Ways' post should be called 'Make Money Quickly and Easily . . . by Getting a Job."

@foghat81: I agree with your last sentence. Even though these lists tend to be common sense, sometimes you need a refresher. And it's a worthwile exercise if occasionally you learn something new.

Re: latte

It matters if you're doing it EVERY DAY. $3/day * 260 weekdays is almost $800 in a year. It's $65/month, which more than covers my DSL *and* cell phone.

It isn't the $3. It's the EVERY DAY. I quite enjoy my $4 mocha... once every week or two.

So why not give up DSL and or cell phone? Given a choice I'd take coffee over a cell phone anyday.

Which is the point: I don't think the "leaks" of small daily spending are as important as your large mental picture in life. Someone who values people, friends and experiences more than gadgets, cars, and toys will automatically save more money in the long run.

Someone who hangs out with big spenders and needs to buy the latest and have the greatest (and can't afford it without credit) will never save or be debt free. That type of change doesn't happen without a fundamental shift in mindset and life philosophy.

I shop used, share a car with my partner, bike to work, and I'm not consumed with aquiring the newest material toys. I put money into my house and selectively spend my disposable income on experiences like travel and education.

A modest life of selective spending and accessing your wants vs needs automatically earns you money.

oops i mean "assessing". Anyway you get the point. Ditch your shallow friends and join a book club or something.

The "Ex-Car Salesman Tells All" post ends by saying that multiple credit inquiries in the same month get lumped together as one inquiry.

What was he smoking and why hasn't anyone corrected him?

"I don't think the "leaks" of small daily spending are as important as your large mental picture in life."

The leaks of daily spending are less about lattes and more about discipline. If you're going to spend $400 per month on lattes (or whatever the going rate is these days), then be honest about it and plan for it in the budget. Otherwise, its just a hole in your pocket.

@ AtOurGates:

If by corrected, you mean that it's more than a month, you're right.
[www.washingtonpost.com]

Multiple inquiries in a 45 day period will not affect your credit score.

@jamesdenver: How the %$&#% do you decide that I have rich, shallow friends based on the fact that I have a cell phone!? And why would you assume that the only reason to have one is to compete with them?

I run my consulting business with my cell phone and my DSL, which makes them about ten thousand times more important to me than a daily latte. You can't compare what I choose and what you choose and say one is right and the other is wrong when you have no idea what criteria are involved.

My point was that small daily "leaks" in spending *are* important if you don't realize it's happening. You can't make a choice about something that you didn't even realize you were doing.

@anatak: Excellent point!