Written By Paula Pant
I used to be obsessed with optimizing.
I opened new checking accounts if a bank offered a $50 sign-up bonus. I monitored gas stations near me to know where fuel was 5 cents cheaper. I once wasted an hour to save $3.60.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
I started making real progress once I figured out two truths:
#1: I […]
Written By Paula Pant
I’ve heard a lot of ridiculous statements:
“I’m sure we’ll find parking.” “I’ll just check Facebook for five minutes.” “I’ll skip dessert.”
But perhaps the most absurd is the adage: “If you’re a renter, you’re throwing money away.”
Bulls**t.
[…]
Written By Paula Pant
I’d like to explain … well … why this website exists.
Afford Anything promotes a handful of radical ideas:
#1: You can create financial independence — the ability to quit trading-time-for-money, because your investments cover your bills.
#2: Financial independence comes from passive income.
#3: To build passive income, you’ll first need to create a […]
Written By Paula Pant
There are countless lazy articles on the Internet about how to save more money, 99.9% of which are detached from reality.
This is not one of those.
Everyday I get emails from readers that say things like:
“I want to travel / quit my job/ retire in 10 years. But I don’t have the […]
Written By Paula Pant
Would you rather:
Save $12 per year? Save $1,045 per year?
Go ahead, think it over. Consult with your family. I’ll wait.
[…]
Written By Paula Pant
Several weeks ago, I invited new email subscribers to share their answers to two deeply personal questions:
What’s your wildest dream, and what’s preventing you from getting there?
The answers poured in to a degree I couldn’t believe. My Inbox flooded with hopes and sorrows. Some people shared brief-but-honest answers; others wrote memoirs. People from all walks […]
Written By Paula Pant
There are Conformists, and there are Rebels.
The Conformist Majority says: “I have a 30-year mortgage, a 20-year second mortgage, a 10-year student loan and a 5-year car loan.”
“I’ll pay the minimum, and hold those debts for 30, 20, 10, and 5 years. After all, why deprive myself while I’m young?”
Worse, they’ll ask:
[…]
Written By Paula Pant
“I’m scrounging dollars to fill my gas tank. I don’t make enough money to save. At the end of the month, there’s nothing left.”
If this feels like you, gear up for a radical shift that will change your life.
Last month I announced the One Percent Challenge, a quest for Afford Anything Rebels that can […]
Written By Paula Pant
Pop quiz: You’re buying airline tickets to visit grandma for the holidays. She lives on the other side of the nation, too far away to drive.
You’ve budgeted $400 for holiday travel, but you can’t find airfare for less than $575.
What do you do?
a) Tell grandma she’ll have to spend Christmas alone.
b) […]
Written By Paula Pant
Bob Lotich was stranded.
He was 20 years old, living alone in a strange city. He didn’t know anyone. He was broke.
His checking account was empty. His savings account was nonexistent. His credit card was only $264 shy of hitting its limit.
He had a glimmer of hope, a faint light on […]
