I try not to do it too often, but I’m asking for your help!

I’m wrapping-up the creation of my second guide, Sell Your Crap. In order to decide which final pieces will be included (and which tips I’ll break down even further!), I’ve put together a quick, 5-min survey using Google Forms.

Click Here to Take the Quick 5-Min Survey!

Your answers really do help a lot.  The first survey I ran (several months ago) was a huge help.  In order to show my thanks, I’ll be drawing one survey for every 100 submitted to give a FREE, advanced copy of Sell Your Crap to.  So not only do you help me and the project, but you can win a free copy before anyone else has a chance to see it!

*Alternatively, you can also take the survey anonymously.  Totally up to you!

Here’s the link one more time if you are interested in winning a free copy:

Click Here to Take the Quick 5-Min Survey!

Just a couple questions about the content covered in the upcoming guide!

Have Clutter?  I want to see it!

I’m calling on any/all Man Vs. Debt readers who have any shred of clutter (a whole garage, part of a room, or even a junk drawer) that they are wanting to destroy (or just organize/purge/etc…)

I want your pictures!

If you’d like to be a part of Sell Your Crap, I’m collecting genuine, reader pictures of their own trouble spots!  Simply snap a quick photo of any clutter around your house, car, or work and send it to:  Baker @ ManVsDebt . com

I have several ideas for the photos, including putting them together in a huge collage or slideshow.  :-)  If you decide to send a picture, I’ll assume you don’t mind me using it on the site or in the guide, etc…  I could surf the internet for anonymous pictures, however I’d love to have real examples from the community!

But I never intend just to take without offering something in return!  For every 20 people that submit a photo (whether I use it or not), I’ll raffle off another FREE, advanced copy of Sell Your Crap.

So that’s officially two ways you can help me and two ways to win free premium content!  :-)  Simply click the links above to take a short survey or get out your camera, take some pictures, and send them to:  Baker @ ManVsDebt . Com !

It’ll be a couple weeks, at least, until launch, so in the meantime be prepared for some anti-consumerism, clutter-killing, and selling online material the next few weeks (hey, it’s on my mind)!

As you know, the interaction and feedback from the community is my favorite part of blogging.  I appreciate your help!

Xoxoxo,

-Baker

Today, I’m sharing a video post about an important topic that applies to finances, lifestyle, and business.  Actually, I believe it to be the most important element of making any change.

This may just be a personality thing, but I’m starting to hear from others that it’s universal (not just me).  :-)

• [2:08] – How “changing your environment” can be applied in your finances.
• [3:25] – Why the same principle helped us sell 95% of our clutter (and why it’s fighting against us now).  :-)
• [4:38] – My fitness advice…  ironic, yes I know.  (Actually it’s environment-based fitness advice I recently read!)
• [6:37] – Conclusion and questions for you guys!
• [7:00] – I show off my cool new office swag (pictures of media mentions that Courtney framed).

I’m really interested to hear your thoughts on this issue.  Specifically, whether you feel the benefit in the same way I do and how you take steps to accomplish “environment change”.  It’s been a very interesting concept for me lately.

It’s alive…  it’s a-liiiiiive!

I warned you yesterday it was coming and as it turns out I wasn’t bluffing!  Unautomate Your Finances is 100% live and downloadable…  right now!

And you know what?  I’m proud.  I’m really proud of it. I’m glad I took the time and the space to do it right.  I’m glad I didn’t half-ass it when I had the chance.  I’m glad I didn’t rush to launch it last week.

It’s here… and I’m pumped.

To be honest, focusing all my energy and passion into compiling this guide has been emotionally draining.  It was a big, big project I bit off (25,000 words is at least half of a substantial print book).  But it was a important process for me to go through.

In the end, looking back through our experience over the last 2 years and my experience sharing it will you over the past year was… enlightening.  And the end result… the product that sits ready for you today… well, I’m just excited now.

Seeing the end result has re-energized my passion for personal finance.  It’s reinvigorated my commitment to not only create an empowering financial life for Courtney and me, but to share this journey with as many people as will listen.

Some of you that have been around a while on this site have wondered when I was going to be back to “full steam”.  Well, I can assure you…  this guide is me kicking back down the door and announcing I’m here to stay!

And one last thing.  I can’t promise you that every premium product I release is going to impress you.  I can’t sit here and predict that I’ll hit a home run every time.  That would just be silly.  But I can tell you this…

Unautomate Your Finances will impress you. I’m positive of that.  I poured everything I could into it.  I packed it with every ounce of inspiration, psychology, and tangible tip I had.  And, most importantly, I kept it all very affordable (priced way less than almost everyone I respect in the online world suggested…).

Look, I’m not great at the “selling” part of this equation.  But I am good at one thing:  being transparent and being passionate.  So how’s this:

If you are on the fence… give me a shot.  Give the guide a test run. I set out to really blow some minds with this first one.  I’m trying to convert raving fans.

If for any reason you aren’t impressed, send me a one sentence e-mail asking for a refund.  I’ll grant it instantly, in full.  You don’t have just 30, 60, or even 365 days… this is available as long as I’m alive. I call it the “As long as I have a pulse” guarantee. 

Head on over and get a copy of the guide!

Some site changes:

Fans of the site will notice some changes to support the new guide.  I’ve added a small badge over into the sidebar and a banner on single post pages.

I’ve also added the MvD Store to the Navigation Bar.  Right now, it just directs to Unautomate Your Finances, but as I expand my products I’ll start to fill out a more diverse store front for you. 

Ways you can help the guide:

I’m insanely fortunate to have such a passionate following.  Many of you really, really believe in what our community has become here and I appreciate all your support.  If you’d like to help get the guide out in the hands of more people, here are a couple shortcuts to help:

• Give it a thumbs up on StumbleUpon!

• Share the guide on Facebook!

• Retweet the guide out to Twitter!

• Bookmark it on Delicious!

Note:  These links all help the actual landing page, not this particular post!    Thanks so much!

******

If you are a blogger, community organizer, or business owner and have an audience or customer base that could benefit from this content, there’s a 100% free affiliate program for genuine people who want to share!  E-mail me for details:  Baker @ ManVsDebt.com

I’m excited today to announce a new series I will be putting together.  Most of you have known this was in the works in varying forms, but I’ve finally put together a rough guideline.

It’s going to be a ongoing series of unscripted, live, part-interview, part-conversations between myself and people I meet on the road or at special events.

The interviews will focus on different parts of ‘doing what you love’ and the intricacies of balancing work, life, and passion.  Obviously, this is a big part of my own life and thus a major part of this site, as well.

I’ve decided to call the video series… The “Do Shit You Love” Show.

My plan is to have 2-3 interviews a month, the far majority of which will be live and range from 10-20 minutes.

As with all projects on the site, you’ll see the evolution as I learn and grow (with video and interviewing skills in this example).

Ep. 1 with Karol Gadja from RidiculouslyExtraordinary.com:

[If you can't see the video click here to visit the page directly]

Episode 1 was filmed at a park in downtown Auckland.  Unfortunately, we waited a tad too late to start filming and it got pretty dark.  I had to add just a touch of brightness effect, but once again am impressed with the Flip’s ability to take decent video even with limited light. 

Episode 1 Content Guide:

• Karol Gadja from RidiculouslyExtraordinary.com
• [01:10] – Intro to Karol and the goals of Ridiculously Extraordinary.
• [02:30] – Why Karol ditched most of his hugely-profitable internet marketing business.
• [04:50] – How we are both exploring balance through travel.
• [05:20] – Karol’s lightweight traveling set-up and gear (Vibrams, quick-dry, etc…)
• [06:45] – Why selling his dream car (BMW) was one of the best feelings of Karol’s life.
• [07:40] – Blenders.  Everything you wanted to know about them.
• [10:15] – I ask Karol if traveling has lived up to his expectations.  [Good discussion]
• [13:30] – Karol asks *me* about traveling/pursuing passion with children.
• [16:40] – Karol actually pronounces his name (the real Polish version).
• [17:50] – Karol’s question for you! 

If you didn’t have debt in your life, what would you do differently?

Go back to school?  Travel?  A specific hobby? Invest it all? 

For those of you that are already debt-free, is there anything that you do know that wouldn’t have been possible with a bunch of debt?

This is the 4th or 5th major time we’ve had “Baker Family Packing Night” since we’ve been traveling overseas.  It consists of pulling out everything we own into one spot, creating a travel list, and selectively choosing what to pack where.

This ended up being more than just a small update to our ongoing stuff page.  We realized there were a lot of changes and additions this time around!

Our goal this time, is to only have the two backpacks and the car seat.  In the past, we’ve had to also carry around a pack-n-play (which we’ve ditched now) and another couple reusable tote bags with miscellaneous items.  In other words our hands were full in addition to our packs.

Not this time. We’ve cut back even further and want to ensure that our hands are free (except for the pesky car seat…  no way around that one).

Here’s a video (featuring Courtney) showing what everything we own looks like when spread out:

As you can see.  We aren’t elite travel packers.  We have a lot of normal and bulky stuff, especially this time around.

Since we’ve been stationary the past 4-5 months, we slipped back into buying a couple less travel-friendly items.  We obviously don’t want to waste them now, so we are going to deal with a little extra clutter and cut back down as we use them up.

There are also several items that we are waiting to buy more of until we get to Thailand.  Milligan has outgrown just about everything she has and both Courtney and I could use more basic clothing like undershirts, sock, and so on.

I’m actually leaning towards investing in some quick dry fabrics, especially for underwear, undershirts, and towels, etc…  This kind of blurs the line of needs vs. wants, so we’ll see which side of me wins that battle. 

Finally, although we track this in a widget on our Stuff page, here’s a full out list of what we are taking this time:

The Important Stuff (11)

• Wedding Ring
• Wedding Ring
• Wallet
• Wallet (Courtney)
• Passport Holder
• Essential Documents Folder
• Travel Information Folder
• Car Seat
• Car Seat Cover
• Kelty KID 2.5 Child Carrier Backpack
• High Sierra 29″ Compass Backpack

Household Stuff (18)

• 2 x Pillow Cases
• Towel
• Black Reusable Bag
• Pink Reusable Bag
• Strawberry Tote Bag
• New Zealand Lonely Planet
• Lonely Planet: Queensland & Great Barrier Reef
• Thailand Lonely Planet
• Change of Heart
• New Zealand artwork
• Phase 10 Card Game
• 2 x Pens
• Pocketbook
• Journal
• Scrapbook
• Scrapbooking pen

Baker’s Stuff (25)

• 9 x Underwear
• 4 x Undershirt
• 2 x Pairs of socks
• Red T-shirt
• White T-shirt
• Black collared shirt
• Blue Dress Shirt
• Khaki Shorts
• Reversible Belt
• Swim Trunks
• Athletic Pants
• Running Shoes
• Keen Newport H2 Sandals

Courtney’s Stuff (24)

• 5 x Underwear
• 3 x Pairs of socks
• Bra
• Sports Bra
• 5 x Tanktops
• Swim Suit
• Jean Shorts
• Jean Pants
• Dress
• Workout Pants
• Northface Jacket
• Pink Jandals
• Running Shoes
• Keen Venice H2 Sandals

Milligan’s Stuff (25)

• 2 x Shirts
• 2 x Skirts
• Jeans
• Black tights
• Purple onesie
• Pink Jacket
• Swimsuit
• Panties
• Pretty Pink Hat
• Sandals
• Monkey Backpack
• Pooh Bear
• Blue Puppy
• Sippie Cup
• Bottle
• Blankie
• Blanket
• Beach Ball
• Small Orange Ball
• Wooly Lamb Book
• Cathy the Calf Book
• Changing Pad
• Diapers (lots of disposable ones)

Bathroom Supplies (22)

• Toothpaste
• 2 x Toothbrush
• Nail Clippers
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• 2 x Deodorant
• Hair Clippers
• Q-tips
• Floss
• Aloe
• Sunblock
• Off
• Mousse
• Facewash
• Shaving Cream
• Hair bands
• 2 x Razors
• Medicine Container
• Small baggie

Technology/Electronic Stuff (23)

• Toshiba Satellite Laptop
• Laptop charger
• Mouse
• Plantronics 750 DSP Headset
• Flip Ultra HD
• Flexible Tripod
• 2 x Power Converters
• 2 x Jump Drives
• External Webcam
• Sony DCR-SR40 30GB Handycam
• Charger/USB
• Canon Digital Rebel XTi SLR Camera
• Charger
• Samsung SL202 Digital Camera
• Charger
• SanDisk 12 in 1 Reader
• Cheap MP3 Player
• Headphones
• Watch (Courtney)
• Cell Phone
• Cell Phone

Down to ~148 items!

Obviously, this list is for our own goals.  We aren’t competing with anyone.  We can debate minutia about the way we count ‘items’, but at the end of the day we are pleased with what we’ve cut down on.  We’ve got a decent grip on those areas we can cut even more and those which we need to beef back up.

We’ll continue to make minor updates to the stuff page as we go along, which should now reflect this new list!

Balance.

Excess stuff.  Excess debt.  Excess hate.  Excess food.  Excess stress.

It’s easy to feel the weight of these liabilities.

But too much of a good thing exists, as well.

Excess money.  Excess energy.  Excess friendships.  Excess love.  Excess opportunity.

Excess in any form adds burden.  And burdens are burdens are burdens.

Blurred are the modern lines of excess and abundance.  Easy to cop out.

All things in moderation.  Excess simplicity is no different.

Debt -> Stuff -> Business -> Life

My realization of this fact progresses:

Excess is a liability.

Today’s post is simple…

I’m giving away a free copy of Erin Doland’s new book, Unclutter Your Life in One Week!

For those of you that don’t know, Erin runs the insanely popular Unclutterer.com, one of the premier blogs on the internet for organization and productivity.  I’m a huge fan of the site and it is one of only a dozen blogs in my “must read” RSS folder.

Erin’s packed her years of experience into her new book, Unclutter Your Life in One Week.  Since we’ve been traveling, I’ve been unable to find the book (and have hesitated having it shipped internationally), but if you are looking for more information, I recommend Trent Hamm’s recent review on The Simple Dollar.

Uncluttering our life played a major role in our journey to initiate traveling this past year.  We continue to actively track our limited possessions and can’t stop reading stories about people paying down debt by selling their excess clutter.

Erin’s graciously offered to ship a copy of her book to the winner herself, enabling me to run this giveaway even while being overseas!

I’ve moved most of my book giveaways over to The Man Vs. Debt Militia e-mail list (we’ve given away 4 different books so far this month…  you should enlist!)… However, this is a special book that I wanted to make available for everyone!

How to enter to win a FREE copy of the book!

I’m going all out today.  I’m going to offer 4 different ways for you to earn an entry.  You can do each only once, however you can do all 4 if you’d like to increase your chances!

1.)  Leave a comment on this post!

This is the easiest way to enter, which only takes a couple seconds by scrolling below.

Please don’t enter more than one comment or reply to anyone else.  Only 1 comment per person!

2.)  Add a comment to the Man Vs. Debt Facebook Fan

Visit the Man Vs. Debt Facebook Page and leave a comment on the main thread I started specifically for the giveaway.  It’s the one that starts with “I’m giving away a FREE copy of…”  .

3.)  Tweet out the giveaway on Twitter!

Simply tweet out (copy and paste into Twitter) the following message:

Baker is giving away FREE copy of “Unclutter Your Life in One Week” over on @ManVsDebt – http://bit.ly/4Ef8pR – #MvDFreeBook

Just make sure that you use the #MvDFreeBook and the link to this page somewhere in your tweet, so I can track the entries!

4.)  Enlist in the Militia before this Sunday!

Last, but certainly not least, I’ll be sending a special link out to the Militia e-mail list on Sunday.  Be sure to join before then if you want this last opportunity

Chances to enter end Nov. 30th at Midnight EST!

At the first sign of December, I’ll tally up the total entries and use Random.org to select a winner.  I’ll send an e-mail or DM to the winner, who will have a week to get back to me!

If we have a mad rush of entries, I’ll even purchase and extra copy or two to give out as bonuses!

Whether or not you win, take a few minutes to check out Unclutter Your Life in One Week,  the blog Unclutterer.com, and follow Erin on Twitter (@erdoland).  Highly recommended!

Don’t forget to leave you comment below…

This article is a guest contribution by Jenny Newcomer. Jenny is a woman who wears many hats!  She runs a business which designs and sells eco-friendly organziational products (how else could someone juggle 3 businesses and 2 kids?).  In addition, she finds time blog over at LobotoME and even get in the occasional tweet!

When I say I sold my stuff, what I really mean is I sold my crap. Crap that I shouldn’t have bought in the first place.

Earlier this year, I knew it was time to get rid of my remaining school loans once and for all.  I’ve added two kids to the mix recently and judging by the estimates in cost of college, I’ll be shelling out $100,000 per kid in 18 years even for state college tuition.

To add insult to injury, I’m not even using either of my two degrees in my daily life right now.  Like I said, it’s time to put these loans behind me!

The problem was how?

Our spending plan was already tight.  I didn’t want to tap into any of our savings.  It certainty wasn’t the type of emergency that dictated tapping the emergency fund.  And the fees made withdrawing from our IRA and expensive option.  On the income side, we already own 3 business and are raising 2 young kids, so getting another “j.o.b.” or starting another side project seemed down right insane.

I had a burning desire to get these loans out of my life, but didn’t now how it was going to happen.

But right after the holidays a bell went off in my head. As I began to look around our house and clean up after the post holiday madness, I realized how much stuff we owned.  Bags, shoes, dvd’s, books, ipods, old laptops, old kayaks, skis that didn’t fit, bikes that we no longer used, the list went on for miles…

This was stuff we didn’t love and certainly didn’t need.  So I started listing about 10 items a week on Ebay (and a few larger items on Craigslist).  Some weeks when I had a few extra hours I’d list more and other weeks I didn’t have time to list anything.

I kept at it, though, and slowly but surely things started to sell.  Every time my Paypal account reached $500 or $1000 I transferred it over to put an additional payment towards my student loan balance.  Little by little the amount owed kept going down. When I got it under $10,000, I was stoked and motivated.  Over the next few months, I saw it decrease to only $5,000, then $1,000, and then before I knew it… $0.

Since I’ve paid off the loan, though, I haven’t stopped!  I’m selling more stuff as we speak to pay for plane tickets to Mexico this winter.

Here come the excuses…

I hear them all the time…

• “I don’t have anything to sell.”
  
• “No one wants my stuff.”
  
• “I don’t have time to learn how to sell stuff online.”

The truth is nearly everyone has stuff they can sell.  It’s much easier than you think and you’d be absolutely shocked at the prices people will pay for your neglected possessions!

Baker’s Note: I will chime in here to second this section.  Courtney and I made a lot of excuses early on and assumed we had nothing of value.  What we thought would only be a couple hundred bucks turned into well over a thousand once we started listing things!  It’s not hard.  Other people will buy your crap. 

Basic tips to get the ball rolling…

1. Take stock of your inventory! Go through your house, basement, and garage and make a list of items you could sell.  Gather smaller items into a pile in part of your house or garage.  Think beyond just clothes – look at tools, small appliances, sporting equipment, books, craft supplies, kids toys, etc.  At the same time you are doing a selling inventory, collect items that don’t have much re-sell value but that you could donate to a local shelter or thrift store.  You can de-clutter, help a good cause, and get a tax write-off for these.  If I think an item will sell for under $20, I usually just donate it to the local women’s shelter.
2. Set-up your Ebay and PayPal accounts. Many of you might already have these.  They are very easy to set-up by visiting Ebay.com and PayPal.com.  You may also want to create a basic Craiglist account for bigger items that may be hard to ship.
3. Take great pictures! The better the picture (and the description for that matter), the better the selling price.  It’s as simple as that.  If you don’t have a digital camera borrow one from a friend.
4. Estimate shipping costs. At this point get an accurate estimate on shipping costs.  You can check shipping prices online at www.usps.com or www.ups.com.  This step is often overlooked, but is important to know so you don’t lose money on shipping the item.
5. Check ‘Completed Listings’. Next check to see what comparable items sell for (you can search for an item and then click on “completed listings” on the left hand side for items that have ended).  This will help you to determine a starting price and/or expected market value for your item.
6. Create your listing! There are many ‘advanced’ techniques, but I like to keep it simple.  I list all of my items on Sunday’s for 7 days (so they end on Sunday and not mid-day on a workday).  I skip the extra ‘upsells’ like bold or premium listing to minimize my cost associated with listing the item.
7. Check your messages at least once a day. Sometimes you’ll get messages from potential buyers.  They might want to clarify something or have a question about shipping and bidding procedures.  More bidders means higher end prices for you.
8. After the sale, ship the items promptly and leave feedback for the buyer. Be sure to help avoid negative feedback (and honor the buyer’s purchase) by shipping the items quickly after the buyer has paid in full.  Normally the quicker you can ship, the more likely they will leave you a raving review!

Here is the most important part of all, though:  Resist the temptation to use the money that you just earned to buy MORE stuff!  Ebay can be a blessing and a curse.  Use it to your advantage!

Baker’s Note: Before we left for the trip, Courtney went insane on Ebay, Craiglist, and at local garage sales.  There are plenty of ‘advanced’ tips for maximizing these sites, but Jenny’s personal experience provides a create basic guide for those looking to get started.  For those wanting to jump in even deeper, check out this recent killer guest post featured by Ramit Sethi.

What are your own tips for selling on sites like Ebay and Craiglist? Have you had success purging your unused clutter like Jenny and me?  Are any excuses keeping you from cashing in?  Help everyone out by sharing your experience below!

Could you?

When we were getting ready to move overseas, Courtney and I made an item-by-item list of everything we were going to be taking.  I shared it here with everyone and it is still one of the most viewed posts on the site.

Over the last four months of traveling around, though, we’ve gotten kind of lazy.  As the months went by, we continued to accumulate more and more stuff.  It wasn’t until we almost killed ourselves trying to carry everything in one trip to our new apartment that we realized how badly we needed another face-to-face confrontation with our possessions.

Recently, I’ve pushed people in several posts to make a list of everything they own and then to sell half immediately.  While I know firsthand how well this works, I haven’t been walking-the-walk.

So, as part of ‘Transparency Week’, Courtney and I decided to step up and take our own advice.  While we won’t possibly be selling half of it, we once again have chronicled every single item that we own.  We call it our ‘Stuff’.

This time, though, it’s ongoing. We are going to be constantly updating the list (on it’s own dedicated page) as things come and go.  It’s our hope that this little project will continue to keep us on the offensive in our battle against owning a bunch of crap.

As with any project of this nature, the semantics of how to count each item or group of items can be debated.  We’ve tried to find a system that keeps us honest while still being reasonable.  I’d love to hear your thoughts over on the new page.

Most importantly, I hope that this list challenges you to create your own. If that’s an official list, fantastic, let me know and I’ll add a link to mine.  Even if you can’t handle the full challenge, I hope you’ll take some time to evaluate the items that surround your life.

How many of them do you need?  Heck, how many of them do you even want?

In order to share you perspective by commenting, please hop on over to the page I’ve set up for the list.  This way everyone will be able to see your thoughts on future updates.  Thanks so much!

photo by Diego Cupolo

I am Baker’s raging excitement…

I think I’m going to enjoy writing this much more than you enjoy reading it.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Tyler Durden, he is an essential character in Fight Club, which is both a novel and movie.  While the novel came a few years before, the movie escalated into a cult classic in the years following its DVD release.  If you aren’t familiar with the character, well…  we should probably part ways here. 

For those that are still with me, let’s get some things out of the way.  We aren’t going to be talking about masculinity, violence, mental disorders, religion, or even politics.  These themes run rampant through the movie and have been discussed in great length and detail by individuals much smarter and more witty than me.

Instead, we are going to have fun. We are going to dive into some of the most famous of Tyler’s quotes (movie) and attempt to pull any applicable personal finance wisdom from them.  The movie’s strong anti-consumerism message will make some of these very easy, while others may seem like more of a stretch.  I’ll let you decide!

Here are Tyler’s thought on a wide variety of personal finance themes:

On the pursuits of material possessions…

“The things you own end up owning you.”

Let’s start the party off right.  This is not only my favorite, but certainly one of the most popular quotes in the entire movie.  The lead-up, timing, and delivery make it’s impact undeniable.  As I mentioned in my last post, my suggestion for this is to create a list of everything you own… and sell half within the next two weeks.  Or rig your condo and blow them all up.  Whatever floats your boat.

On avoiding lifestyle inflation…

“Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken”

Leveraging debt and living outside of your means has its benefits.  For example, on a short time, frame you can get very good at looking wealthy, happy, or successful.  Heck, you can even feel these emotions for a while.  But in the long run it’s all imitation.  You can pretend all you want, but eventually it’s going to crumble.

On rejecting consumerism…

“We’re consumers. We are bi-products of a lifestyle obsession. Murder, crime, poverty, these things don’t concern me. What concerns me are celebrity magazines, television with 500 channels, some guy’s name on my underwear.”

Obviously this is one of the central themes of Tyler’s philosophy.  While his approach is rather extreme, it’s hard to argue against the fact that our obsession with consuming is at very core of the majority of our financial woes.  While capitalism has many great benefits, we’ve got to be able to set limits, especially in our personal lives.

On separating your identity from your financial picture…

“You’re not your job. You’re not how much money you have in the bank. You’re not the car you drive. You’re not the contents of your wallet. You’re not your fucking khakis.”

Far too many people draw a major part of identity from the state of their financial life, their career, or their possessions.  We can all agree that establishing control over your financial life is important in maintaining a balanced life.  Buts it’s only one part of many that goes into this.  My motto…  make your finances a priority, but not the priority.

On recovering from financial mistakes…

“Only after disaster can we be resurrected.”

There is no financial situation that is so grim that you cannot bounce back.  There are endless success stories of people who’ve overcome extremely desperate financial conditions and came out on top.  In fact, many of us need to hit our own ‘rock bottom’ before any lasting change can be made.  Stop making excuses and start creating your own personal recovery story.

On sowing first… so you can reap down the road…

“You wanna make an omelet, you gotta break some eggs.”

Success in personal finance rarely comes quickly.  Of the times that it does, it’s usually gone within a couple years.  Just ask the average lottery winner.  To create lasting change you’ve got to sacrifice up front.  You’ve got to take care of the daily basics.  The ones that aren’t as sexy or appealing as many alternatives.  In the end, though, you’ll be the one enjoying the omelet.

On the ability to learn, grow, and evolve…

“I say never be complete, I say stop being perfect, I say let… lets evolve, let the chips fall where they may.”

Another one of my personal favorites.  It’s reminds us all that personal finance, like the other areas of our lives, is about the journey rather than the destination.  There’s nothing wrong with saving for retirement, but your life shouldn’t be one big climb up to the edge of a cliff.  Make it a journey.  It’ll be mostly uphill, but take the scenic, winding route and allow yourself to enjoy the view.

On the courage to take control of your finances…

“People do it everyday, they talk to themselves… they see themselves as they’d like to be, they don’t have the courage you have, to just run with it.”

Everyone wishes they could pay off debt.  They wish they had the savings to start their business or follow their passions.  They dream of nailing the perfect job at a great company.  But the people who accomplish these things actually do something about it.  Tyler points out that it all comes down to courage.  The courage to run with it.

On overcoming emotions to make wise financial decisions…

“Listen, you can run water over your hand and make it worse or…  LOOK AT ME… or you can use vinegar and neutralize the burn.”

Emotions play a huge part in our finances.  They are an integral part of how we spend our money, what decisions we make regarding major life events, and even how we react to the stock market and our investing.  There are many times in the heat of the moment that we end up making our worst financial mistakes.  Instead of taking the quickest, easiest, or most convenient option, we need to slow down and think about what will be the most effective choice.

On the value of trusting your financial advisors…

“You don’t know where I’ve been, Lou…  you don’t know where I’ve been.”

A little bit of a stretch?  Maybe.  In all honesty, though, if we’ve learned anything from our current recessions its that we need to be careful who we trust with our hard earned investing dollars.  There are seasoned and qualified professional in every community, we’ve just got to take extra steps to ensure we ‘know where they’ve been.’

On keeping your financial life in perspective…

“First you have to give up, first you have to know… not fear… know… that someday you’re gonna die.”

Why this may appear to be a negative quote, Tyler actually uses it to empower.  And it’s 100% true.  We can’t take any of it with us.  This isn’t about living a fast life or squandering just to squander.  A wretched financial existence has the potential to bleed into and poison every other aspect of your life.  By taking control of our finances, we can leverage them to support the pursuits in life that are the most fulfilling.

On not settling in your career…

“I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars.”

At some point, for a wide variety of reasons, many of us settle.  We settle for average and for comfort.  Rather than pursue our passions and fail, we lower our expectations and conform.  More often than not, this ends up limiting both our happiness and our finances.  We’ve got to find ways to recreate that spark.  We need to realize that it’s better to try and fail, than to settle and regret.

On conscious spending…

“Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don’t need.”

As many of you know, this is a big one for me.  Courtney and I are constantly looking for ways to ensure that we are open-eyed and aware when we spend our money.  It’s not that we never choose to ‘blow’ money.  But rather that we are the ones making the choice to buy and not the advertisers or the neighbors down the street.  Whether you use credit, debit, or cash, it’s important to take steps to ensure you’re spending consciously.

On adjusting to the ‘real’ world out of school…

“We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.”

Everyone goes through this phase.  It happens right out of high school, during our college years, or at some point soon after graduation.  It’s adjusting from more sheltered life to the harsh reality of the ‘real’ world.  Some of us panic and revolt.  Others get scared and settle.  Neither of these extremes holds all the answers.  Balancing the drive to pursue your passions with the immediate need to ‘make’ a living is a continual struggle for all but a lucky few.

On striving for a work/life balance…

“I am free in all the ways that you are not.”

This quote has many meanings.  While it’s true, it’s also ironic.  The whole truth is Tyler isn’t really free, either.  His radical and obsessive nature is a restriction in itself.  Ultimately, true freedom would exist somewhere in between the two polarizing characters, which is one aspect that makes the story so compelling.  It’s the quest for this balance that removes our limitations and let’s us truly shine.

On not being afraid to take risks…

“I don’t wanna die without any scars.”

There is such a thing as being too conservative, especially in our approach to finances.  There’s nothing admirable about being cheap.  Nothing cool about being a tightwad.  There’s a fine line between these traits and earnest frugality, but the line is there.  You’ve got to be willing to take some risks, even in your finances.  Giving yourself room to live a little will help you avoid burnout, breakdown, or self-destruction.  Don’t be afraid to take some chances and make some mistakes.

On ‘doing what works for you’…

“How’s that working out for you? -  [What?] - Being clever. – [Great.] – Keep it up then…  right up.”

Tyler’s message here is clear.  Once you find something that works, don’t mess it up.  If you find a way to budget that works for your family, use it.  If you’ve found that slicing your credit cards into tiny pieces enables you to clearly focus on your financial goals, go get a sharp knife.  Explore until you find something that fits you and then keep plugging away at it.  It’s really that simple.

On mastering the basics of personal finance…

“To make soap, first we render fat.”

Personal finance principles build upon themselves.  Everyone learns in different ways, however there are certain fundamental aspects that with make everything else more smooth.  For example, all the fancy investing techniques and career advances won’t get you anywhere if you’re spending more than you make and constantly plagued by lifestyle inflation.  Even at high levels of income, the basics like creating a liquid emergency fund, sticking to a budget, and avoiding impulse purchases are essential.  Fundamentals first, just like in little league.

On the quarter-life crisis dilemma…

“My dad never went to college, so it was real important that I go. - [Sounds familiar.] - So I graduate, I call him up long distance, I say ‘Dad, now what?’ He says, ‘Get a job.’”

What am I going to be when I grow up?  I still don’t know the answer to this question.  Unfortunately, the standard life path of elementary-middle-high-college-job-marriage-job-kid-kid-job-job-retire-die doesn’t really encourage us to explore much.  At least not until we retire. I know firsthand what it’s like to be responsible for more than just yourself. Ultimately, though, we still have the choice to design our financial lives so that they are more in line with our passions and purpose.

As you can see, Tyler Durden seems to know more about personal finance than you’d first expect.  Which lines are your favorite?  What other personal finance lessons can we take from these?  Remember, this is your life and it’s ending one minute at a time.  What are you going to do today to take control of the time you have left?