My Dilemma

We just recently purchased a little larger home with a lot more land than we had before.  The house listed for $325,000 and we ended up buying for $280,000.  It appraised prior to closing for $300,000.  So we closed on a home that already had $20,000 in equity.  The house was a previous rental, but it is located in a neighborhood where rentals are very few.  The majority of the home owners in this particular neighborhood have lived there since the beginning of the development back in 1987.

You do not have a will! – Again,

The post Rent or Sell? A Real Estate Investor’s Tough Choice appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

Are you doing money wrong?

You do not have life insurance! – Unless you are a single person with no family and no real personal assets, you need life insurance!  Even if it is just enough to cover your burial expenses.  My mother passed this June and she did not have life insurance.  Not that I am complaining about spending $5000 to take care of her final arrangements, but if she had life insurance, I would not have had to burden that expense.  Think I am wrong about insurance?  Take a look at gofundme.com and see how many people are asking for money to bury their kin.  It is sad.  Do it right!  Get life insurance and lessen the burden on your family and loved ones.

You do not have a will! – Again, unless you are single and without family or assets, everyone needs a will.  People who are married especially need a will.  Tell your heirs how you want your assets distributed.  Do not let the local or federal government dictate where your assets are going or who will have custody of your children.  Do not place any further burden on your family as they grieve your passing.  Again, my mother did not have a will and it is a big headache to settle her estate.  Enough said.  Do it right and get a will!  You are going to pass one day, either with a will or without.

You have do not know what you are invested in! – I am honestly shocked at how many people do not have a retirement account, or they have a 401K, but have absolutely no idea what it is invested in.  They have no idea when they can retire.  Don’t get me wrong.  If you are not a plumber, then don’t fix your plumbing.  Call a plumber!  So if you are clueless about retirement, talk to people who know finance!  Do not talk to just one, talk to several.  Find someone that seems to care about your best financial interest and has a heart of a teacher.  Do not wait, do it right now and get your retirement on track!  Don’t be the guy or girl that looks at the calendar and realizes they are 70 years old and still has to work to make ends meet.

You choose lifestyle over retirement!  “I don’t have the money for retirement.  I can barely pay my bills as it is….”  Says the person that pays a $300 cell phone bill, $200 cable bill, a new air conditioner and $1000 in automobile payments…and you wonder why…  Don’t be this person!  You have to find balance in your financials!  I hear some of the dumbest excuses in the world why people continue to over pay for products and services.  I personally cut the cable and save over $60.00 a month!  Over 20 years, I could have over $35,500 additional in my retirement account!  Make little sacrifices now and enjoy your life later.  It is called balance, just do it!  Thank me later.

You are the grasshopper when you should be the ant! – Remember the fable?  You chose now, instead of later.  You live in the now with no regard for the future.  The best plan you can make is what you are having for breakfast that day.  You are not investing in your children’s college education, because you are counting on a scholarship.  You are making big purchases because you should get a bonus or promotion soon.  If the bank will loan you a certain amount, it surely means you can afford it, right?  Does any of this sound familiar?  If it does, you are doing it wrong!  Prepare for the future while enjoying your life.  Have balance, have purpose.

If you are making any of these mistakes, don’t fret.  You can make changes and be more financially responsible.  Don’t be that person, working until they are dead and don’t be that person who’s family posts a link to a gofundme account because they do not have the money for your financial arrangements.  Also, don’t be that person who let’s their children take on massive amounts of student loan debt for a college degree.  Be smart, make good financial decisions, plan ahead and most of all have balance in your life!  Leave me a comment and tell me about your experiences, good and bad.  Ask a question, I have an answer!  I would love to hear from you.

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post Money Mistakes You Might Be Making appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

Since I have no need for a home phone, (who really does?) I really didn’t need my cable company’s “TV/Internet/Phone Bundle plan.”  So I opted for high speed Internet and their mid-level high-definition (HD) cable package at $89.00 a month.  I figured that the monthly price wasn’t all that bad, so I signed up for 24 months to get their best “deal,” and the services were turned on.  A month later, a $123.00 bill.  What?  $123?  I thought it was only $79.00 a month!!!  What they don’t tell you is how incredibly expensive taxes are and, in my case, I was being forced to rent an HD decoder that converts their cable channels to 1080p resolution for my TV.  I called and asked if I could save some money and purchase the HD decoder.  “Sorry, but we only rent the decoders” is what I was told.  Of course you only rent the decoders, it is a money maker!  So I did what most people do…They complain to their friends!

After catching my a local friend of mine, I whined and cried to him about my atrocious cable bill and wanted some emotional comforting.  $123?  “That is cheap,” he stated.  What?  Cheap?  My friend goes on to tell me that his cable bill is almost $200 a month.  $200???!  What exactly was he watching!?  Come to find out, my friend has the top level cable, Internet and phone package.  I asked him if he really uses all of those things.  He said, “Not really, but it is nice to have.”  Nice to have?  Well bless his heart!  I am sorry, but I do not pay for things that are just “nice to have.”  “Nice to have” does not pay the bills nor funds the retirement accounts.  I knew there had to be a better way.  After looking online, I discovered that the normal over-the-air broadcast stations I watched as a child are now broadcasting in HD.  Really?  HD?  How do they do that?  The best thing is… it is free!  I like free.  My bank account likes free.  My retirement accounts, especially like free.

The fix

After spending more research on over-the-air HD broadcast television, I found a site called Antennapoint.com.  It allowed me to search my area for local area HD broadcast transmitters.  It turns out that the Dallas, TX area has 18 HD broadcast transmitters.  18?  I had to see exactly what 18 transmitters could do for me.  My research also discovered that I was going to need an HD antenna to bring in those free over-the-air HD broadcast channels.  I did some searching and found the 1byone Amplified HD antenna at Amazon.com for only $29.99.  I purchased this antenna and patiently waited.

Once my 1byone Amplified HD antenna arrived, I eagerly hooked it up.  I was amazed!  Even though there are only 18 broadcast transmitters in my area, I was receiving over 25 channels, all in HD!  Some of the channels, however, were not coming in as clear as I would have liked.  This was because my bedroom is located on the northwest side of my house and the transmitter antennas are located on the southeast side.  My solution?  I “needed” an outdoor HD antenna!  Now being a former electrician in the Navy and an Extra Class licensed Ham Radio Operator, I knew the tools and equipment I would need for such an installation.  The first thing I would need would be a good outdoor HD antenna!  I searched my favorite Amazon.com website and found the Winegard HD7694P High Definition VHF/UHF Antenna.  It received some really good reviews compared to the others.

According to Amazon, the Winegard HD7694P has a reception capacity of 45 miles.  Since the HDTV transmitters in Dallas are approximately 25 miles away, I felt this antenna was a good choice.  Once the antenna came in, there was almost no assembly required.  Just simply move the antenna elements into their proper position.  Now, of course, I was going to need additional parts and tools.  Below is a list of the things I used:

8-Port Bi-Directional HDTV Amplifier/splitter – This will amplify the antenna reception and allow you to split the channel into 8 separate lines (1 for each of your rooms)
Ideal 33-793 Compression Hip Kit – This tool kit allows you to cut the coax cable and make the connections
Ideal Compression RG6 F Connectors – 50pk or reg/tri/quad coax cable – Self explanatory.  I like Ideal products.  They are of high quality and have never failed me.
50 ft RG6 coax w/ ground wire – Since I already had pre-existing coax that was ran from the out side of my house to the attic, I simply needed a piece to run from the antenna to side of my house.
Channel Master CM-1805 5ft Steel Antenna Mast – I used 3 sections, totaling 15 feet of mast.  Each end is tapered to all easy connection and expansion.
F Type 75 Ohm Terminator – 10 Pack – I used these to plug any unused jack on my amplifier/splitter

Optional tools:

Multimeter/Ohmmeter – I own a Fluke 115, and this allowed me to verify all of my connections, as well as I used it for all of my other electrical projects.

Without going into extreme detail, I mounted the antenna and ran the cable to a pre-existing coax cable that was on the side of my house and made the connection.  Using my multimeter, I located the same cable in the attic and connected it to the amplifier/splitter.  I found and connected all of the coax cable runs that connect the jacks in each room of the house and connected them to the splitter.  I powered the splitter from an outlet in my attic and then connected my TVs.  I adjusted the antenna to point southeast and set my TVs to “air” and selected auto channel scan.  If you have any questions about my setup, experiences, or need some technical assistance about installing an outdoor HD antenna, leave your questions in the comments below.

The results?

Shockingly, my TVs found over 50 channels, with most of them being in HD.  The main local channels are so clear in HD, you really cannot tell the difference between cable and broadcast.  Will watching only broadcast TV satisfy your entertainment needs?  Not really.  However, if you subscribe to or already have Internet streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime, broadcast TV will most certainly fill in the emptiness quite well.  Especially if you need some local new and weather information.  Will I ever go back to cable?  Unlikely.  The combination of the broadcast antenna with Internet streaming services fill all of my entertainment needs.  Besides, I spend more time in front of a computer, reading books or listening to podcasts/audio books than I do watching TV.  Also, keep in mind, just as with cable, not all 50+ channels I found were of my liking or language ability.  However, I was mainly concerned with the main stations and public broadcast channels.  Sesame Street anyone?

Can cutting cable really impact my retirement?

You bet it can!  Now if you are fortunate enough to have the ability to maximize all of your retirement accounts and still enjoy cable television, then good on you.  However, if you are choosing to pay for cable over funding a ROTH IRA or other retirement investment vehicle, then you are really losing out.  Look it up for yourself and do the math.  I was paying $123 a month on cable and Internet.  Now, I am paying $63.00 a month just for internet.  I am saving almost 49% or $60.00 a month.  $60 a month invested into a retirement account, such as a Roth IRA for the next 20 years at an 8% return will yield you around $35,000+ (your day of retirement may be sooner or later than mine)  My figures are hypothetical of course, however, that does not make the principle invalid.  I would rather have an additional $35K in retirement than pay for cable.  Wouldn’t you?

So what are your thoughts on cutting cable?  Have you ever thought about it?  Have you done it?  Do you miss cable?  Did you go back?  Leave me a comment and tell me about your experiences.  I would love to hear from you.

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post Cut the Cable and Save Your Retirement appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

History

Western Governors University (WGU) is a private, nonprofit, online American university based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The university was founded by 19 U.S. governors in 1997 after the idea was formulated at a 1995 meeting of the Western Governors Association. The university uses a competency-based learning model, with students working online. Robert Mendenhall is the current university president. Its accreditation is through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. (Wikipedia)

WGU Texas

In addition to being founded by governors, several states have created state-established and affiliated schools.  Governor Rick Perry of Texas founded WGU Texas in August 2011 with Executive Order RP 75.  Perry’s predecessor, George W. Bush, was one of the founding governors of the university.  Since I live in Texas, I was assigned to WGU Texas.  As far as I can tell, the only difference you will notice between a state-established WGU, like WGU Texas, and the non-state specific of WGU will be the wording on your diploma.

Academics

WGU comprises four colleges, each offering bachelor’s and master’s degree programs: the College of Business, the College of Information Technology, the Teachers College, and the College of Health Professions, which includes degrees in nursing.  I am currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Management program.

Mad benefits

There are quite a few awesome benefits that WGU offers to their students.  These advantages are critical benefits to a working adult and exactly what I needed.

• 100% online – No time wasted traveling or sitting in class.  Log on to your courses, any time, from the convenience of your own pajamas.
• Regionally accredited – WGU is accredited by Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.  Being regionally accredited should show that WGU is NOT a degree mill.  After spending many months researching higher learning institutions, I found many colleges that were “nationally accredited.”  I found that degrees and credits from nationally accredited schools did not transfer to most regionally accredited schools.  I did not want to waste my time pursuing a degree that I would have problems transferring to a master’s program.
• Competency based – This is probably one of the best advantages to WGU.  Instead of completing classes based upon seat-time in the classroom, you earn your degree by demonstrating your skills and knowledge (competence) in specific subject areas through either performance or objective based exams.  Once you pass your exam, your class is complete!  It is possible to complete a class in a few days or a few weeks.  Your degree progress is entirely up to you.  After my first month at WGU, I had already finished 12 credit units. (3 classes)  Instead of wasting 5 months of semester time, I have been adding additional classes and completing them one by one.  So far, I have completed 5 classes in less than 2 months.
• Less time, less money – Since WGU’s classes are competency based, you pay by semester (6 months) and not per class.  Each 6 month semester, or term, will cost between $3035-$4395 depending on major and you will be required to complete at least 12 credit units per semester.  Once 12 credit units are complete, you have to option to either wait until your next semester starts or you can “fast track” and add new classes to your existing semester.  Remember, you pay by the semester and not by class.  The faster you complete your classes, the faster you will complete your degree.
• No deadlines – Since your classes are competency based, you work on them at your own pace.  You are not required to have a certain assignment turned in on a day you working or unavailable or be required to be online on a specific date and time for a class group activity.  The only deadline you are bound by is having all of your registered classes completed by the end of your semester.
• Rolling semesters – At an online school, your classes are online, so why should you have to wait for a certain “session” to start?  At WGU, you don’t have to wait.  WGU has rolling semesters, so you can start your semester at the beginning of any month.  If you miss an enrollment deadline, you will not have to miss a whole term like you would at most other schools.  You simply have to wait until the next month to begin your semester.
• Student and Course Mentors – When you enroll at WGU, you will be assigned a Student Mentor.  Their job is to keep in touch with you weekly to biweekly to keep you motivated an on track with your degree progress.  Also, each class you take, you will have a Course Mentor assigned to you.  Their job is to assist you with any academic issues you may have with your course.

The bad

With everything in life, there are always the negatives with the positives.  The following is a list of the possible down sides of WGU.  You will have to decide if these negatives will have any kind of impact on your education goals.

• You are your own keeper – Since WGU is super flexible with time and deadlines of their competency based classes, you have to hold yourself accountable for your own deadlines.  Some people have issues with priorities and have a lack of time management skills.  They let social media and “fun time” take priority over their education.  People, who have these issues do better in a structured, brick and mortal school with set class dates and times.
• No GPA – When you pass your classes at WGU, you are essentially completing your work at the “B” level.  There isn’t a grading scale at WGU.  It is either pass or fail.  So, if you are an over achiever that is set on finishing your degree with a 4.0 GPA, then WGU probably isn’t for you.  Also, If you are applying for a job that requires a certain GPA, then WGU is probably not for you.  However, I would never work for a company that has a GPA requirement.  A high GPA does not guarantee good job performance or the required social skills needed in business world.
• 100% online – I know this was one of my “mad benefits”, however, some companies still frown upon online school.  Perhaps this goes to show the “old school” mentalities of it’s leadership.  Online schools have come a long way and honestly, I feel that the classes I am taking now are actually much better structured that that of classroom courses of the past.
• No peer interaction – In previous online studies before WGU, I actually had quite a bit of interaction with my fellow college students.  Whether it was working in “virtual groups” or collaborating together on a message board about a project, I was interacting with my fellow college peers.  With WGU, all of your coursework is your own.  The only interaction you may have will come from either “Course Chatter” (course message board) or from interacting on WGU’s Facebook community app.  All of your course work is independent of other student’s work.  I actually like it this way.  This means my course completion is strictly my own responsibility.
• Credit transfer – In my opinion, WGU has much stricter credit transfer policy due to degree requirement specifics.  There are not a lot of “empty electives” in their degree programs like some colleges and universities have.  Unless your previous course work aligns almost perfectly with the courses at WGU, then chances are, your classes won’t transfer in.  The only exception to this would be if you already hold an associates degree.  An AA/AS/AAS degree will allow certain competencies to be fulfilled even though you might not have taken a specific class.  My AAS degree allowed me to fulfill a geography requirement and I never even took a Geography class.  No complaints here!  The other downside to WGU credits is that if you decide to leave WGU and transfer elsewhere, some schools will not take WGU credit since WGU grades on a pass/fail system.

My current progress

When I enrolled with WGU, I transferred in 46 credits of the required 120.  Not all of the classes at WGU are 3 or 4 credit unit classes.  Some are 6, 7 and even 8 credit units.  It would be misleading to say only 38% of my previous college credits transferred to WGU.  So instead, when I started WGU, I was left with 17 classes to complete to finish my BS in Business Management degree.  My 1st semester at WGU officially started on February 1, 2016.  Within less than 2 months, I have completed 5 classes and I am left with 12 classes to complete.  I use a pretty cool app called PocketWGU that allows me to post progress badges to Facebook.  This helps me stay motivated and on track.

The letter/number combinations you see above are the WGU class codes.  I am currently in the process of enrolling in my next class, thus no “Enrolled” colored class is shown.

So far, I have been really happy with WGU.  I love the flexibility it has to offer.  I also love the competency based model.  There are actually 2 types of competency exams in their model.  The first one is called an Objective Assessment or (OA).  The OA is a multiple choice based online exam.  You have 2 options in taking this type of exam.  You can take the exam at a WGU approved facility where a real life proctor can administer your exam to you.  The other option is the one most people use.  It is a webcam proctored exam.  This exam allows you to test from home with your computer connected to a WGU provided webcam.  You will first connect to an online proctor using GoToMeeting.  Once you have made contact with your proctor, he/she will have access to see your screen as well as your surroundings through the webcam.  Once everything is in order, you will begin your exam and your proctor will monitor your test taking.  Once your test is completed, you will end the proctored session and go to WGU’s website to see your score.  If you pass, then your course is complete and you can enroll in your next class if you wish. If you fail, you will have to speak with a Course Mentor to see what needs to be done before you retake your exam.  Usually, you can take your exam up to 2-3 times before it might cost you an additional fee to retake it.

The second type of competency exam is called a Performance Assessment or (PA).  The PA requires you to submit some type of paper or presentation for grading.  You will be given a grading rubric to compare your work with the grading criteria.  Once you are finished with your paper or presentation, you will upload it to Taskstream.  Taskstream is a cloud based assessment solution provider that a lot of colleges and universities are using nowadays.  Taskstream will place your uploaded document in a queue and will show you what number you sit in the queue.  When I submitted my paper for my last PA I was #71 in line.  It took about 30+ hours until my paper was graded.  It is common for people to keep watching their “place in line” in Taskstream.  We call this Taskstream stalking.    Once your paper is graded, you will be given a copy of the grading rubric and if you passed all of the requirements, your class if completed.  If you did not pass every requirement in the rubric, you will be given an explanation of what part of the rubric your paper did not meet.  You will be allowed to correct your paper and resubmit it back to Taskstream.  It really is an easy process.

My educational future

Right now, I am pretty set on pursuing a masters degree at WGU once I am finished with my bachelors.  I am leading towards their M.S. in Management and Leadership degree.  I am planning on working my way into a management position with my current company.  I feel this should give me a really good chance in meeting any education requirement of the position.

The bottom line

If you cannot tell already, I have a high opinion of Western Governor’s University.  It is truly a great learning institution for the working adult.  I might not recommend WGU to a freshly graduated high school student, and it may not be for everyone, however, it is the best choice for me.  In my opinion, the benefits greatly outweigh the disadvantages.

A deal for you

If you find WGU to be as much as an awesome university as I do and you want to enroll, click the link below to save yourself from the $65.00 application fee.  The link will waive your application fee and it will give me a voucher to buy something from the WGU store.  I am seriously eyeballing the coffee cup!

What are your experiences with WGU or other online schools?  Have you ever taken an online course?  Do you have any questions about WGU?  I would love to answer them!

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post Western Governors University – A New Kind of U appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

How many times have you been in the checkout line of a store and the dreaded extended warranty question arises?  “Do you want to purchase an extended warranty on your…?”  I hear it all of the time, especially, when purchasing electronics.  So are extended warranties worth it?  The simple answer?…it depends… Now I know that wasn’t the answer you were looking for, but let’s look at what extended warranties are in real life. They are small insurance policies.  You are spending extra money on the protection of what may or may not happen.  Here are some personal things to think about when it comes to extended warranties:

• How many times have you purchased an extended warranty and actually used it?  If you did use it, did the warranty pay for itself?  If not, how much money could you have saved by not purchasing it?
• Does the warranty have a deductible?  Some extended warranties have a deductible that has to be met before the warranty company will pay for the remainder.  (Automobile and cell phone extended warranties)
• Is the item you are purchasing actually worth replacing?  If the item in question is something that you only may use once, twice, or infrequently, chances are that the extended warranty will expire before you will actually need it.  Also, is the item so inexpensive that a warranty is not even cost effective?
• Would you ever sell the item?  Many times extended warranties will not transfer to a new owner.  Besides, do you want to be bothered by the new owner a couple years down the road when they need your help getting the warranty processed?  I am going to assume not.
• Does the warranty cover accidental damages?  Most extended warranties will not cover anything beyond normal “wear and tear.”
• Do you have the financial ability to buy the same item again if it was damaged or destroyed?  If so, an extended warranty may not even be worth the time or hassle.

Let’s face it.  Extended warranty companies offer these “insurance” warranties to make money.  Statistically speaking, they have more of a chance to keep your money than paying out for a repair.  If not, extended warranty companies would be out of business.  So what are some of the ways you could be losing out on buying an extended warranty?

1. Not registering your product.  Some companies will require you to register the product to actually “activate” your warranty.  This goes for standard warranties as well.  Have you ever forgotten to fill out that registration card on a piece of electronics you purchased?  Guilty here!
2. Do you remember where you kept the warranty information on a product from 2 years ago?  How about that thermal paper receipt that has faded over time and you can no longer read?  Do you even remember where you purchased the item?  Is that company even still in business anymore?  Circuit City?  Montgomery Wards anyone?
3. Will you even remember that you purchased an extended warranty?  Many times I have forgotten that I even bought an extended warranty.
4. Finding out that they no longer make the product thereby wanting to refund the item minus any computer calculated depreciation.
5. If you purchase an extended warranty on a vehicle and you sell or trade in said vehicle, you might get little if anything of your premium refunded to you.  (Personal experience here)

Who would benefit from an extended warranty?  Anyone who is prone to damaging their belongings and cannot afford to replace them.  This type of person would benefit from an accidental damage extended warranty.  The most common item that comes to my mind that would benefit from this type of warranty would be a cell phone.  I think almost everyone has damaged their phone at some point or knows someone who has.  Unfortunately, most phone protection plans have a deductible.  These deductibles can range anywhere from $0 to $250.00, or more, per incident.

If you enjoy having the peace of mind that may come from purchasing an extended warranty, here are some tips to better your chances when it comes to filing a claim:

• Once you purchase a product with an extended warranty, ensure you fill out any and all applicable paperwork or on-line form to “activate” the warranty.
• Take pictures or scan the warranty card, store receipt, and any other paperwork that you might need to file a claim.  Ensure the warranty company’s telephone number and/or website address is listed.  Ensure this information is kept in the cloud or somewhere safe in the event that an emergency occurs.  Data loss really sucks.
• Keep all warranty and extended warranty paperwork in one place.  A filing cabinet would be a good place for the hard copies.  You might even want to file the product’s owner’s manual with all the rest of your warranty paperwork.
• Before purchasing an extended warranty, make sure the company is a reputable one.  Search on-line for the warranty company’s good and bad reviews.  If a company has more bad reviews than good, you might want to steer clear.
• Before spending the extra money on an extended warranty, check with your credit card company.  Many credit card companies offer extended warranties automatically on products purchased with their card.  You will have to contact your credit card company to see if they offer any type of extended warranty coverage.

In my opinion, extended warranties are a risky gamble.  Personally, my luck with gambling isn’t very good, so I usually pass on extended warranties and use my money for the other things I enjoy.  What are your experiences with extended warranties?  I would love to hear your good, bad, and ugly extended warranty experiences!

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post Are Extended Warranties Worth It? appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

Mike Smith, over at madebyguerrilla.com, had been “bugging me” for years (literally) to allow him to redesign The Angry Millionaire.  Finally, I was at the point in my life that I needed to either put up or shut up.  I also felt that if I had a really nicely designed blog, I would be more motivated to write.  Since Mike proudly claims that he “builds kick ass websites for amazing clients,” I had to put Mike to the test.  After trading a few emails with Mike about the design, he started work.  After couple days had passed by and an assumed dozen or so Monster Energy drinks were consumed, Mike was presented me with a draft of the redesign.  I was impressed.  After another day of back and forth email conversations and tweaking, the site was completed and commissioned.

So, What is new about the design?

First thing you will notice about the new design is that it is clean, organized, fun and professional looking.  You will also notice the new and awesome looking category logos.  I have decided to create a set number of categories to label each one of my blog posts.  Currently, the categories I am going to blog about are:

Money     Life     Travel     Projects     Reviews     Uber/Lyft

Money – In this category, of course, is where I will be talking about anything that revolves around the subject of money.  Whether it is saving for retirement, investing in rental properties, or how to properly pick and manage credit card, all things money-related will be discussed here.

Life – Here I will be talking about everything that is going on in my life that doesn’t fit into any of the other categories.  I could be writing about my college experiences to helping my daughter become a better soccer goalie.

Travel – This is probably one of my favorite categories to talk about, other than money of course!  In the Travel category, I will talk about the places I have traveled, the food I have eaten and the culture I have experienced.  The best part will be the pictures I intend on sharing.  I will also share the travel tips I have learned the hard way!

Projects – This is another favorite of mine.  In this category, I will share all of my current and past projects.  I could post a video about how to easily manage 3 different email addresses or post pictures about my current ATV restoration.  Soon, I will be installing an over-the-air HDTV antenna installation.  Stay tuned for that project!  This will be the prime categories for any and all project hacks.

Reviews – Here I will be talking about product and service reviews.  Since I am a self-proclaimed Amazon.com shopping addict, I will share with you the products I purchase as well as what I think about them.  Keep an eye out for the Basis Peak watch I recently purchased as well as the Anker portable USB battery charger I use when I travel.  Don’t be surprised if you see a review on a local Dallas, TX restaurant!

What’s Next?

You will probably come to notice that the colors may or may not change on the blog.  I originally had it green, however, I thought it was too much green.   Please don’t misunderstand. I love the color green when it comes to money, but it might be too much for this blog.  However, I am really taking a liking to this orange.  I feel the orange, red, and the green really contrast well with each other.  Another thing I am going to look into is drop down boxes for the categories.  For example, under projects, I may have other categories such as Life Hacks and/or Computer Hacks.  I am not sure that I want to lump everything into just one category.  Perhaps under reviews, I can sub-categorize the reviews under Food, Products, and Services.  I am fairly certain that I don’t want to mix my food reviews with the Amazon.com purchased products reviews.

I am very fortunate that the internet is so forgiving when it comes to archiving.  A friend of mine told me that I could find all of my old blog posts on web.archive.org.  So, I will be adding my old blog posts back, one at a time.  My apologies if you see something you have already seen before.  I will not be adding everything, however, I will add what I feel is still relevant and interesting.  I may even add an update to the post.  I will label every old post with the original date it was posted and the same with any added updates.

Can you help?

It would be a true pleasure if you would leave a comment below and let me know what you think of the new site design.  Also, please make sure you never miss a blog post.  You can have every new Angry Millionaire blog post delivered right to your inbox by subscribing.  You can subscribe by entering your email address in the “Subscribe and Stay Updated!” box up at the top.  I promise that you will not be spammed and your email address will be kept confidential.  Remember, you can always follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post A New Day…A New Design appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.

As Zig Zigar once said, “Yesterday ended last night. Today is a brand new day and it’s yours.”  In life, sometimes you have to hit “Alt-Ctrl-Del” and start over.  There is nothing wrong with a clean slate as long as you are working on betterment.  Sometimes we all need a good reboot.  2016 looks like a good year for a reboot.  What positive changes are you planning in the upcoming year?

Until next time…KCMO…Keep Calm and Money On!

Johnathon Brady
The Angry Millionaire

The post Time For A Reboot? appeared first on The Angry Millionaire.