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Where Are You Going and Where Have You Been

May 13, 2012 By 4 Comments

Wow, I know it’s been awhile since I wrote a blog post but there is so much craziness going on in my life! Hmm…where to even begin?? Well first I guess I’ll start with the fact that I’ve been traveling every week now for the past 2 months to Austin, Texas for my day job. Kinda crazy huh? I leave Monday mornings and get back Thursday nights so that makes my weekends a hectic rush to try to get everything done as quick as I can, still go out with friends and have a life and also try to get some down time  in there.

I gotta tell ya, it’s been a hard adjustment for me!

But the thing is, I really like my job and the project I’m on. The travel is what makes it tough. Since there is no direct flight from STL to Austin, I’m traveling about 12-15 hours a week on top of working 40 hours!! Wow, huh?

The crazy thing I’m learning about living the “traveling consultant” life is that I care zero (that’s right) ZERO about my finances. I know you probably thought you’d never hear me utter those words but now my life is about saving TIME not money. Time is so precious to me that I can’t afford to waste it.

Which is also probably why it’s hard for me to write a blog post, because I’m doing the opposite of what I’ve always said to do!

It’s going to be interesting over the next few months and I”m going to try to blog more regularly about it. I guess I needed to warn you that if your coming here to find new ways to save money, I’m not going to have that for you! You can still look in the archives to find that kind of information. These days for me, it’s all about things that save me time.

It’s sometimes weird the path that life takes us on. I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason and that even things that you might try to fight in the beginning can open your world up to new possibilities if you are open to it and will let it happen :)

Have you had something unexpected happen in life that has completely changed your direction? Feel free to leave a comment below and share your thoughts!

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Main, Misc

How Will My Health Affect Life Insurance Quotes?

May 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When looking for online life insurance quotes, many people wonder how their health will affect the price of their premium. The simple answer, as you might expect, is that the healthier you are, the lower the quote is likely to be. However, insurance companies consider a number of factors which together combine to give you a final figure.

Overall, what an insurance company calculates is the level of risk that your health will critically fail to the point of causing premature death. For this reason there are a number of familiar factors which are likely to increase your premiums, due to their widely known hazardous effects on health. Some of these can loosely be termed lifestyle habits, such as smoking cigarettes, high alcohol intake and obesity. All of these carry both short and long term health risks and have been proven to adversely affect life span. As a result, such issues will be likely to increase your quote.

Insurers do recognize that the effects of these can be significantly reduced with appropriate changes in behavior. Stopping smoking, reducing alcohol intake or starting a balanced diet and exercise program can all have healthful effects. A re-assessment of your general health following changes in lifestyle may help you to reduce your premiums if there have been significant health improvements. This means that your own actions can positively influence your life insurance quote.

In all cases be honest about your current state of health, even if a medical examination or report is not requested. Misleading or false information can lead to the policy becoming void and non-payable. It is also worth remembering that a good level of general health will benefit both you and your family and is therefore always worth the effort. Life insurance provides security for the worst, but good health ensures your quality of life.

Filed Under: Blog

It’s Financial Literacy Month! Check out these Personal Finance Video Blogs

April 12, 2012 By 2 Comments

Steve at Money Plan SOS has been doing an awesome series of videos for Financial Literacy Month. Here is Steve telling a little more about it:

April is National Financial Literacy Month, that time of year we set aside a few minutes to learn how money really works and apply new-found lessons to our financial lives.

This year I have gathered together with over a dozen Personal Finance Bloggers to promote financial literacy with 2-minute videos about a variety of topics such as Kids & Money, Roth IRA, or what do you do with a room that has no room?

I was featured on the April 12th video, and my topic was the time value of clipping coupons. Take a look here and leave a comment and let me know what you think!!

Filed Under: Blog, Budgeting, Coupons, Featured Main, Personal Finance

Giveaway! Let’s Get our Green Back Together – Today Only!

April 5, 2012 By 1 Comment

A few months ago, I did a give away for 2  invites to ImpulseSave. I know at the time when I was writing about the giveaway, I had a hard time actually explaining what ImpulseSave really is. Unless you actually DO it – it’s sort of hard to understand!!!!

Well today I’m back with another giveaway!! And this one is even better for you! Today, and today only, invites to ImpulseSave are open all day especially for The Jenny Pincher readers!!! Yep – you read that right, invites all around! Let’s get our green back together!!!

So you may be excited but then wondering, wait…what exactly is ImpulseSave?!? How do I do it?!  Ok well I’m glad you asked, because I’m gonna tell you about it! Check out this awesome video that the gang at ImpulseSave put together that will explain it better that I can:

 

Don’t like videos?! Ok – here’s an infographic that illustrates how ImpulseSave works!

 Excited yet?! ImpulseSave is a fun and cool way to start saving money. Just like I always preach to you that the little expenses add up over time and have a huge impact on your spending, it works in the opposite way when you start saving money. I’ve painlessly been able to save nearly $300 over the past 3 months by just saving money here and there instead of spending it.

I promise you, you will really enjoy ImpulseSaving!!!

The Impulse Save Mission

Our goal is to make saving as easy, fun and rewarding as spending; and to transform saving from a mundane “if-I-get-to-it” into a creative, collaborative and impulsive part of your daily life!

Stats and Facts:

So what does this mean for you? Think about it this way – say you have a goal to go on vacation this summer, but the thought of spending a large chunk of money seems impossible. Not with ImpulseSave! You can start saving a little bit here and there and before you know it, your going to have that money built up in your ImpulseSave account and you can finally go on vacation! It becomes addictive after awhile!

Is ImpulseSave Safe?

ImpulseSave employs the same high-grade encryption used by financial institutions and government agencies. All your financial information is encrypted in transit, and in storage. We meet or exceed all industry standards to safeguard your data. Your money is held in your new FDIC insured savings account.

The short answer: Yes. The long answer: We are built like Fort Knox. Your financial information is so secure that even our own servers can’t read it.

ImpulseSave Features:

Specific Goals: instead of a nebulous “emergency fund” now you can save towards your vacation, a wedding or whatever you want separately in one savings account!
ImpulseSave: You can impulseSave via SMS text, via Instagram, on the ImpulseSave site and soon via iPhone App. (Sidenote: Saving via Instagram is so freaking awesome!!! To do it follow these instructions: Once you are a member of ImpulseSave, go to Go to Me, Account, click on link instagram account to link your account. Then make sure you add a caption (not comment) under your picture with the dollar amount (as $5) and the tag #instagram. So it would look like  ”Save $10 #impulsesave – didn’t buy that latte!”. If you are on instagram follow me at “thejennypincher” and I’ll follow you back!!!
Autosave: Weekly autosaves ensure that you’re ALWAYS making progress towards your goals, even if it’s only $5 a week (less than $1 a day)
Success Driven: We send you weekly updates on your goal progress and encourage you every time you make a save! (These are a huge help!!)
Socialize: Comment on a funny save, encourage those who are making good decisions - be inspired to save yourself! (I love reading other people’s ImpulseSaves!!)

What can you do with ImpulseSave?

Go On Vacation!
Jessica works hard and knows she deserves a vacation. But this year, instead of putting it on the credit card, she’s going to Paris with the cold hard cash she saved in her ImpulseSave account!

Kill Credit Card Debt!
Brad LOVES the autosave feature because it ensures that no matter what this month brings, he’ll pay off his balance.

Plan a Wedding!
Christine and Torey ImpulseSave for their wedding. No matter what they’re doing – whether they’re grocery shopping, or cake testing, they can make sure they’re prepared for the Big Day!

What Do ImpulseSavers Say About ImpulseSave?

Below are real quotes from real users taken from Facebook Twitter and the ImpulseSave site.

  • “I cannot stop saving! ImpulseSave has turned me into a save-aholic! :) ”
  •  “I have saved more with@impulsesave than any other avenue I’ve used. I love it!
  • I’ve saved $92 in 27 days with ImpulseSave! Patting myself on the back!”
  • “Saving with ImpusleSave is so easy! It’s amazing how easily I forget the $ in a separate account.”
  • Thanks to @impulsesave I’ve officially become a saveaholic. Definitely better than being a shopaholic!
  • “If you’ve always had trouble getting motivated to save money – you NEED to try @impulsesave – it’s AWESOME. #save-a-holic

Behind The Curtain: Straight talk – no angels here

What’s the deal with the ImpulseSave mobile app?
We started development on a mobile app April 2nd – so when we say it’s coming soon, it’s coming soon.

Why do users have to autosave?
We allow you to autosave a minimum of $5 a week (that’s less than $1 a day). Why? Because if you can’t do $5 a week – it’s never going to happen. It also makes the experience more encouraging because no matter what you’re always trending upward and that makes a huge difference.

Why are you guys a private site?
ImpulseSave is an exclusive site and there is a good reason behind it: We want everyone to have the experience – they deserve. We want you to know us, trust us and understand that your security is our number one priority.

My Final Thoughts and How to Sign Up

ImpulseSave is one of those things you have to DO to actually understand how fun and addictive it becomes! It’s amazing when we start thinking about those impulse purchases we make and start saving that money and having it to use later for something we want, instead of something we won’t have to show for later!! It’s fun, it’s addictive and it’s really changing the way people save money!

I am addicted to Instagram (for iPhone) and I LOVE that I can ImpulseSave via Instagram. Adding a photo makes it all real and reminds me of the stupid purchases I’m glad I didn’t buy!! I’m currently saving towards building a deck onto my house and I can’t wait to reach my goal!!

Excited?! Wanna try it! Ok but you gotta act fast! Today only from 9 am – 9 pm EST the invites are open to all readers of my blog. Usually this is invite only so GET IN NOW while you can!!

Click here for The Jenny Pincher ImpulseSave invites

Good luck, when you sign up come back and leave me a comment and let me know what you are saving towards!

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Main, Personal Finance, Saving
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