Posts by Early to Rise
How I Accidentally Discovered the Secret of Simplicity
“Simplicity is making the journey of this life with just baggage enough.” – Charles Dudley Warner Four years ago, my family and I rented an apartment in Testevere for six weeks — a five-story walk-up in a 19th-century building. The climb upstairs was a killer, but the apartment had two terraces, one overlooking the Tiber…
Read MoreEmbrace Your So-Called “Incompetence”
“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent.” – Calvin Coolidge So why am I worried? Because…
Read MoreStress Reduction for Overachievers
“The better work men do is always done under stress and at great personal cost.” – William Carlos Williams The easiest way to reduce stress is to reduce your ambitions, expectations, and standards. But that’s an option you don’t have. As an ETR reader, you are determined to excel in life. Excellence requires challenging yourself,…
Read MoreDoes the Entrepreneurial Spirit Run in Your Family?
In 1910, Arthur Lacerte began his successful business career by opening a general store in central Canada. He enjoyed his experience so much that he never stopped talking about it — especially to his children and grandchildren, many of whom became entrepreneurs too. In fact, for four generations, almost all of the Lacertes have been…
Read More6 Ways to Get Rich
“A penny saved is a penny earned.” – Benjamin Franklin In his book The Automatic Millionaire, David Bach says there are six ways to get enough money to be rich: 1. Win it. Although playing the lottery is the “No. 1 way working people try to get rich,” it’s the least likely to pay off.…
Read MoreWrite an Ad in the Personal Section
“Become addicted to constant and never-ending self-improvement.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo “Recognizing yourself is the beginning of success,” says Burton Kaplan in his book “Winning People Over: 14 Days to Power and Confidence”. “Before you can attract power, you’ve got to understand what you are doing and how to either correct it or work around…
Read MoreTake Charge of Your Financial Future
“What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.” – Henry David Thoreau I said it before more than once — and you may be tired of hearing it. Nonetheless, I need to say it again: You can’t rely on your employer to take care of your financial needs. If the business you work for fails, you…
Read MoreHow to Enjoy a Great Retirement
“It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do.” – Jerome K. Jerome To understand what I’m about to say, you have to understand this: Happiness in life comes not from idleness but from working. Not working at a job you hate, but working at a task you…
Read MoreHow Brian Avoided Becoming an Accounting Nerd
“When we treat man as he is, we make him worse than he is; when we treat him as if he already were what he potentially could be, we make him what he should be.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe When I met Brian — about eight years ago — he was a practicing CPA…
Read MoreA Christmas Message
As I did last year, I’m going to be spending the day with my loved ones — my wife and children, my sister, my mother-in-law, and some of our very best friends. We’re going to get up when Michael, our youngest, wakes us. He’s 15 now — maybe too old to be waking up at…
Read MoreA Final Countdown to Christmas
“A good conscience is a continual Christmas.” – Benjamin Franklin You have only a half-day at the office today. The goal is to get as much done as possible in four hours of fast-paced work — and leave early, without feeling guilty. Here’s what I recommend: First, tell your people that you intend to leave…
Read MoreBaby Boomers About to Face a Rude Awakening
“I believe that all of us ought to retire relatively young.” – Fidel Castro (in a 1967 Playboy interview) America is getting older fast, as the 79 million members of the 1945-1965 baby-boom generation start closing in on their 60th birthdays. And, as Kiplinger’s Personal Finance recently pointed out, they will begin to retire just…
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