If there’s one thing I’m consistent at, it’s making some stupid error at least once a year. One of the classic errors happened my first year out of college. One of the IT guys and I were good friends, always winding each other up and cutting each other down. He sent out a department-wide e-mail saying the systems would be off for the weekend, therefore nobody should bother coming into work.

Instead of clicking “Reply”, I mistakenly clicked “Reply All” and wrote, “Isn’t this why you have a job? So you can fix my computer and we can work all weekend? Who hired you anyway?!” As soon as I sent the e-mail, paralysis took hold.  I was mortified!

With my head tucked low, I immediately walked into my supervisors office and apologized profusely. “I am a complete bumbling idiot! I can’t believe I was so careless and stupid. I’m such a fool. Please forgive me!” I think I may have shed a tear, but I don’t recall exactly.

To my surprise, my manager laughed, and told me not to worry about it, and to go back to my desk. “No big deal Sam, don’t be too hard on yourself!  Didn’t realize how much you enjoyed busting people’s chops!”

Phew, bullet dodged.

DARN, ANOTHER ERROR

A year passed, and I felt like I was gaining traction at work.  In fact, I was trusted to host a meeting all the way in Anchorage, Alaska! Clearly, I had a graduated from peon status. All was good until I landed. I forgot to bring the presentations for the CEO of a large company who needed them for the next morning’s meetings.  Once again, I was screwed both ways.  My only job was to fly down to Anchorage, introduce management, give them their hard copy presentations and keep quiet.  I blew it!

Feeling the sense of dread all over again, I mentioned to the CEO during dinner the night before that I completely forgot his presentations. “I am a total moron! I don’t know how I could have been so stupid as to forget your presentations. I am so sorry!” I blurted out while hitting the back of my head with the palm of my hand. I could see the CEO’s face wince every time I slapped my head.

“In my rush to the airport, not only did I forget to bring your presentations, I also forgot my dental floss!” I explained.

The CEO then started to laugh and said “Sam, don’t worry son. Everything will be alright. We’ll just pull up the presentation on our laptops, and show the clients this way. Have a scotch on me!”

During the meetings the next day, the CEO did as promised and whipped out the presentation using his Thinkpad and everything was fine. It was then, that I realized how to truly apologize.

ONLY TWO THINGS ARE NEEDED TO MAKE UP FOR A GOOF

1) Never make any excuses, unless it’s funny. Excuses are for losers. Address the mistake and accept the blame.

2) Scold and punish yourself louder and harder than your superiors ever would. The more you beat yourself up, the less your superior will feel the desire to beat you up! In fact, often times your superior will take the other side and have sympathy for you during your self admonition.

If you can take control of the situation, admit your fault, and then whip yourself like Sylas does in The Da Vinci Code, everything will be ok!  The Martyr Method is highly scalable in practically any type of scenario you can imagine.  Let me demonstrate.

MARTYRING YOURSELF FOR LOVE

Let’s say your girlfriend sees you ogling another girl while you’re walking down the street. As soon as you realize you are caught, you can say to her, “Oh my gosh, I am such a dirty pig. What I did was so disrespectful. You’re the only one for me!”

Ok, you’ve got to say this with a straight face, and not bust out laughing. If you can say the above line sincerely, I promise you, your sins will instantly be forgiven. You’ve taken the words right out of her mouth, and told her exactly what she wants to hear! One needs to preempt the scolding that’s coming with your own scolding.  If for some odd reason your original line doesn’t work, you can also add, “How about we go on a shopping spree at Tiffany’s? My treat!”

CONCLUSION

Conflicts and mistakes are never fun. When it is clear you’ve made an error, just apologize, recognize your errors, and promise improvement. Nothing drives a manager more nuts than when a subordinate doesn’t realize what he or she has done. Your manager just wants to make sure you get it right the next time.  It’s how you treat the error and how you move forward that really counts.

Readers, any dumb mistakes you’ve made during work or elsewhere?  What solutions did you come up with to make things right again?

Regards,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

“If there’s a mile long track, and the first lap you travel 30 mph, how fast do you have to travel on the second lap to average 60 mph for both laps?” asks the stuffy man in the corner office.

I bumbled and stumbled around until I responded, “Hmmmm, obviously it’s not 90mph, but…… let’s walk…. it through!” My instincts told me it wasn’t a straightforward answer, but I really had no idea how to solve the problem. Instead, I got the first part right by addressing the trick question, and proceeded to stall long enough so that he couldn’t help but tell me.

FIGURE IT OUT YET?  NO CHEATING!

After about 20 seconds of thinking out loud, he blurted out, “Infinity Speed!  Imposible!” “You see Sam, since it takes 2 minutes to average 60mph for both laps, you just can’t do it because at 30mph on the first lap, that already took you 2 minutes!”

I quickly chimed in, “Ahh, of course! You beat me to it!” Whew. Of course he beat me to it because if we continued talking for eight hours I still wouldn’t know the answer!

The interview process is absolutely the most vital portion of your job application process. I don’t care whether you went to Harvard, have a 4.0, and dance like MJ. If you come across as a pompous fool, or you don’t show that you really care about the position, you will never get the job.

Putting it another way, think about all the people you aren’t particularly impressed with at work. How did they get through security? They simply interviewed well. Once you’re in, it takes a long time to get you out!

Below are some helpful tips I’ve compiled after interviewing over 250 candidates in my career so far.

FINANCIAL SAMURAI’S TOP 10 INTERVIEW TIPS

1) Don’t be late or too early! Nothing drives an interviewer crazier than a late candidate, or a super early candidate. Half the time, the interviewer is there because it’s part of his job requirement, or it’s a favor to one of his colleagues.  You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard an interviewer write-off a candidate just because he’s even 1 minute late. On the flip side, a super early candidate is annoying, because it puts pressure on the interviewer to alter his or her schedule.  Arrive 10 minutes early and ask your greeter to announce your arrival 3 minutes before the scheduled interview.

2) No limp handshakes or sweaty palms. Studies show that a first impression is impossible to shake. If you come out with a limp and sweaty palm, your interviewer is going to remember this because this will be your only physical contact.  Keep a small hand towel, perhaps with some talcum powder to keep your hands dry.  Shake firmly!

3) Dress appropriately. I’ve had many guys and girls come in dressed like they were about to go clubbing with their mini-skirts, and corduroy jackets. This isn’t Tryst in Vegas.  Dressing inappropriately conjures up images of immaturity and trouble.  Always dress equal to one half step better.  See “You Aren’t Going Clubbing, Interview Attire 101”

4) Maintain eye contact, but don’t stare. If you’re constantly looking at the floor or wandering, you will give your interviewer the impression that you have no confidence, and/or that you don’t care. FBI studies show that during the shake down process, liars have a difficult time looking their interrogator in the eye.  At the same time, you don’t want to have crazy eyes and pretend it’s a staring contest. You will make your interviewer uncomfortable, and wonder if there’s spinach in his teeth. Maintain eye contact and practice looking away briefly during times of thought or transition.

5) Research the heck out of the company. If the company recently reported fantastic first quarter results, read all about it and figure out what drove earnings.  Understand the company’s strategic vision, which will hopefully jive well with your own.  No company has grown in a straight line, so pinpoint the stumbles as well, but understand how they learned from their errors and improved.

6) Research the heck out of your interviewer. More often than not, the HR person will give you a heads up on who you will be speaking to.  It’s important to research the person to the point where you are like a CIA operative.  Know everything you can about the person and their accomplishments.  If they studied Polish in college and like corgi dogs know it.  The idea is to not reveal to them everything you know, for that would be stalkishly freaky.  Instead, it’s important to be able to weave related interests with your potential colleague at choice times.

7) Interview them as much as they interview you. After a certain number of interviews, you should have a sense of whether they want you or not.  At this point really start using the opportunity to ask them about their experiences, likes, and dislikes about the company.  It’s unacceptable to not have any questions at the end of each interview.  You may be speaking with someone who actually hates his/her job, but have no idea because you aren’t asking about him/her.  Ask and investigate without being too nosy.  “How many years do you think the average person has been with the firm?” is a good question to always ask.

8) Always bring enough copies of your resume.  The idea is to make the interview as easy for the interviewer as possible.  Unless you’re speaking to HR, the interviewer is not a professional interviewer.  They could be speaking to you in between meetings on a hectic day.  Bringing your resume and other information for them to look over shows you are thoughtful and prepared.  The average time spent looking at a resume is 10 seconds, which also equates to the average amount of time an interviewer prepares to interview you!  Please read, “Examples of Good Resumes That Get Jobs“.

9) Be self-effacing while showing signs of brilliance. The arrogant interviewee will get booted faster than a rat on your favorite lemon meringue pie.  Talk about your failures and how you’ve overcome them to succeed in new ways.  Provide concrete examples of success, backed by results i.e. sales grew in my department by 25% after introducing a new method of selling.  Stay humble but show them your confidence.

10) Always follow up within 24 hours with a thank you e-mail or card. In each e-mail or card, do not write a generic message saying.  Instead, pick out a critical moment in the interview where you think brings out the best in you, or gives you the opportunity to show your skills further.  Perhaps the interviewer asked you about your most difficult moment, and you didn’t answer it well.  Use the thank you note to address the question further.

CONCLUSION

The number of qualified resumes are seriously piling up on my desk, making competition that much more difficult.  Focus on these initial tips to help yourself get ahead.  As a potential colleague, we just want to work with someone who shows promise and is a good person.  Don’t forget that when you do get accepted, to treat your job as if you won the lottery and not take your good fortune for granted!

Readers, any other interview tips you’d like to share?  How is the hiring front looking like at your company? Did you get the answer to the beginning of the post right without cheating?  Any good tough interview questions you’ve had?

Keigu,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

Tonight’s the night we find out who wins the World Series of Poker Main Event! The showdown is between Darvin Moon with 59 million chips and Joe Cada with 136 million chips.  Despite the chip differential, players know that things can turn quickly in heads up poker.  Anybody with enough patience, and a good amount of luck can win!

I’ve imagined winning the WSOP countless times. Each time I ask myself two questions:

1) If I had to choose between winning and only getting the WSOP bracelet or losing but receiving the prize money, which would I choose?

2) What would I do with $8.5 million bucks?!

The answer to question #1 is easy. I’d take the money for sure!  I’d then use $10,000 of the prize money to have a jeweler craft an exact same replica.  It must feel unreal walking around as the champ, but I’d rather have financial security any day.

The answer to question #2 is a little bit harder, but much more fun! First of all, we can painfully reduce the $8.5 million by 50% to get our after tax proceeds.  $4.25 million is still a lot of money, but gosh darnit, that sure sounds a lot less than $8.5 million!

WHAT I’D DO WITH $4.25 MILLION:

* $100,000: Fly 10 of my closest friends down to Vegas and we’d all stay at the penthouse suite at either The Palms or The Encore for a week long party.  We’ll eat at the finest restaurants and have bottle service every night at the clubs.  Hopefully, we’ll have such a good time we won’t remember a thing!

* $150,000: Remodel my parents house by installing new double paned windows, remodel their master bathroom and guest bathroom, and update the kitchen with new appliances.  I’d also get them a killer home theater system for $10,000 since they still have a tube TV with no cable.

* $50,000: During the 2 month remodeling process, my parents will cruise the world in a penthouse suite on one of the great luxury liners.

* $80,000: My parents have a beat up 1991 Camry that makes funny noises every time it goes.  A new Lexus LS450 would do, although they’d probably be just as happy with a $28,000 Honda Accord since they’re so low key.

* $50,000: Host a week long family gathering at Auberge du Soleil in Napa during crush month (September).  There’s something eating grapes picked right off the vine.

* $50,000: Travel for a month with the wife to Amsterdam, Prague, Athens, Rome, and the south of France.  This trip will be next year, since we just had a great time partying it up in Vegas!

* $20,000: Keep cash in a safe somewhere at home and practice “making it rain”!

* $0: Pay off no debt.  What you say?  It’s all accounting really.  When you have more cash than debt, why would you ever tie it up in a house?  Debt helps keep me motivated to work and secure my financial future.  Without any debt at my age, I’m afraid I’ll turn into a slacker!

* $125,000: Donate to a local organization such as The Omega Boys Club which helps educate inner city kids and keeps them off the streets.

* $3,600,000: Buy a stable value fund with a 4% yield and collect $150,000/yr in gross interest income.

CONCLUSION

With $3.6 million in the bank, I still won’t quit my job.  In fact, I think I’ll enjoy my job more because of the new found financial security.  Spending 15% of the winnings and saving the other 85% sounds like a good balance. Who knows, I may end up giving it all away.  But for now, it’s best to lock the remaining money up to avoid temptation, and let reality sink in before spending any more.  Besides, $150,000/yr in interest income is good enough, for now!

Readers, what would you do if you won $8.5 million dollars?!

Related Post: “Poker is Just for Fun – Don’t Rely On It For Steady Income”

Keigu,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Twitter @FinancialSamurai and subscribe to our RSS feed.

 A reader e-mails in, “FS, I’ve just had one of the worst freaking days of the year today at work. I’ve been busting my butt for this one client for the past 6 months, and when it was time to do their semi-annual review, we actually got worse in their ranking. To add insult to injury, they also provided some negative feedback, and I’ve known this client for so long. I thought we had a good relationship. I’m so mad because I’ve spent double the effort on them this year, and went backwards. They aren’t even a big client! What would you do? Thanks, Frustrated.”

Hi “Frustrated”, I’m sorry to hear about your situation. I’ve been there before, many of times, and all I’ve wanted to do was give up and yell. What’s important is to NOT act emotionally. Go for a walk, grab a drink, and take some deep breaths before you e-mail/call the client or discuss the issue with your manager. Too many times, people write things they don’t mean in the heat of the moment and end up regretting their actions. You must go about this in a rationale manner.

5 Suggestions For Handling A Difficult Client:
1) Thank the client for their candid feedback, and try and understand their perspective. Ask the client what your competitors are doing differently, and what you can do to improve. Your competitors might be smaller competitors who treat this “small client,” like one of your “big clients.” Or your competitors may really be stepping up their service because they’re afraid of survival, and need to do whatever it takes with even the small clients. Once you get a barometer for your competition, make a mental note and decide how to execute.

2) Provide your client with a list of things you have done for them during the voting time period. Perhaps it was a project earlier in the vote they may not have remembered. Ask the client to evaluate whether the things you did were helpful, and how you can improve if what you did were not. Many times the client is inundated with so many things that they take for granted what you’ve done for them in the past or simply do not remember! Make sure you remind them, especially during this process. In fact, after this first hiccup, make sure you remind them prior to the review.

3) After getting a better understanding of where they are coming from, start providing your perspective. You may be understaffed, or the client may not be considered one of the priorities in your firms rankings. Whatever it is, provide some background and make them understand your side of the story. For example, the client may be at the bottom tier and you aren’t given the proper resources to service this client as a result. Make the organization the “bad cop”, but mention to them you will do all you can to service them with the resources you are provided. More often than not, the client will appreciate your feedback. Make sure you are not trying to make an excuse for your poor results. It’s imperative to just lay out the facts. They might not be aware they aren’t the biggest client in the world!

4) After both sides get a better understanding of each other, you have to decide whether it’s worthwhile to pursue what they’ve asked. Obviously, in the ideal world, you’d be #1 with everybody. However, you can’t be all things to all people. The time you spend with this small client, may be time you don’t spend with a big client. If your big client’s relationships start suffering, you are definitely doing the wrong thing and will be penalized eventually. If you are resource constraint, like many are during this downturn due to layoffs, you must focus on the top 20-30% of your clients who provide the majority of your revenue. It’s the “80/20″ rule, and it’s held true by that rough estimate for the longest of time.

5) Finally, you must manage your manager’s expectations because at the end of the day, results affect your pay and potential promotion. Are you getting overly upset because your manager actually doesn’t care so much about this small account? Any rationale manager should understand that it’s more important you do well with your big accounts, and take what you can get for the small accounts, especially if you are resource constrained. And if she doesn’t, it is entirely up to you to properly educate the manager about the revenue upside and the cost associated with service i.e. the time spent, and the time not spent on other more important accounts.

CONCLUSION

I have a feeling you are somewhat of a perfectionist who wants to be the best at anything you attempt.  The problem with perfectionism is that it’s wrought with disappointment. We end up taking things too personally. We may even start getting that annoying back pain I wrote about in a previous post, “The Book That Changed My Life & Made Me Rich Again,” because we are so stressed! Maintain a rationale approach and have a candid conversation with both your client and managers to find a reasonable resolution.  Best of luck!

Readers, feel free to share your thoughts on dealing with a bad day. We all have one!

Keigu,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow me on Twitter @FinancialSamurai and subscribe to our RSS feed.

When we first bought our $1,200 HDTV six years ago, we told ourselves never to go to the movies again until we watched enough DVDs to pay for the purchase.  Every time we went to the movies, we’d have to pay on average $20 for tickets.  A promise was made that only after we watched 75 DVD rentals ($1,500 bucks in movie tickets saved – $300 for Netflix fee), would we treat ourselves out to the theater. We reached our goal within two years, and in the four years afterwards we’ve only gone to three movies!

We realized that once we went through the initial 6 month waiting period for the latest movies to come out on DVD, all was fresh again.  We’re now programmed to watch movies with a 6 month lag, bringing us the same opening night excitement.  The annoyance of someone sitting right in front of you in an empty theater and jabbering away is no more!  Furthermore, a 52″ screen and six point surround sound system sure helps replicate the big screen experience!

THE DVD METHOD OF CD INVESTING

Our programmed way of movie watching translates directly into how we employ our CD investment strategy.  With the money we carve out for retirement savings (not emergency fund),  we seek the highest yielding CD regardless of duration.  Current 5-yr CDs are at 3.5-3.75% for example vs. 1.2% for short term savings and 1 year CDs.  Every year we don’t put money in a 5 year CD is 2.3%-2.55% in lost interest.

Some may argue inflation risk.  Great we say, because rates certainly aren’t going to ramp instantaneously, but if they do, we’ll just dump our next year’s cash into another 5-yr CD with a higher rate.  Let’s say for one year, we earn 4% in a 5-year CD vs. 1% in a short term savings account.  With a positive 3% spread, our 2nd year short term savings account yield would have to ramp to 7% on average before the benefit of the first year is negated.  At 7%, you should happily throw in another chunk of change.  This is a problem of positives, not negatives.

There is a chance that you will need to tap your funds before the very initial 5 year period is done.  The worst “penalty” that can happen for a 5-year CD is the forefeiture of 6 months worth of interest.  Big deal!  Chances are low you will need the money after you’ve built an emergency fund.  By locking up your money, you are saving yourself from yourself.

CONCLUSION

Nobody knows how high inflation, and therefore rates will go.  But, what we do know is that long term yields are generally always higher than short term yields.  The yield at each duration reflect inflationary expectations.  After waiting patiently for 5 years, your entire cash savings portfolio will return the highest yield possible.  Meanwhile, every year, a good chunk of money comes due so you will always be liquid.

I’ve got six, five year CD’s yielding 6.5%, 6%, 5%, 4.5%, 4.2%, and most recently 3.75%.  The average yield is therefore about 5%, easily surpassing the current savings rate & current 5-yr CD rates of 3.5-3.75%.  You are allowed to withdraw the interest portion of your CD as well, thereby lowering the need to withdraw the entire tranche and incur a penalty.  By employing the DVD method of CD investing, your cash yield is optimized and you practice good long term savings habits along the way.

BONUS: Inflation Fighting Tips & How To Think About Inflation

1) Take on debt. If inflation is really coming, the solution is to take on as much fixed debt as your balance sheet can handle beforehand.  Inflation literally inflates away your debt, given you will be paying back your fixed debt with inflated future dollars.  In essence you are shorting treasuries, which will go down if inflation goes up, thereby making you money.

2) Buy hard assets. You may also think about buying as much hard assets as you can afford (property and commodities are good examples but not cars), because by definition your assets will inflate higher with inflation.  Your cash, on the other hand will be eroded by inflation, so you must at the very least always seek maximum yield.

Readers, feel free to share your CD laddering and savings tips!  Do you believe inflation is on the horizon, and therefore higher rates given all the monetary expansion?

Keigu,

Sam @ Financial Samurai

“Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

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Over at a new found site called ” The Writer’s Coin,” the 28 year old personal finance writer questions whether he should buy this house if he only has 13% down.  Mind you, he has been giving personal finance advice for a couple years now, and is even a guest poster on mega-site Wisebread, which Financial Samurai may one day contribute to.  Honestly, I felt like I was watching one of those Holiday Inn commercials reading his post.  A guy would provide some great advice and become a medical doctor because of his one night stay at the hotel chain.  But what about the next night when he has to sleep at home?

WC’s question got me thinking.  If someone who has been disciplined enough to write about money matters still can’t see the fallacy of buying a house with only 13% down, why are we so weak when it comes to housing? Do people just blindly fall in love with something and disregard every financial principal?  Doesn’t seem like WC has much more saved up than 13%, because who says “13% down” anyway?  Why not 10%, 15%, or 20%?  Heck, back in the good old old days, people paid 100% down.

How did we come to this pitifully low downpayment standard in America?  Probable explanation #1) It’s the Madoff Syndrome aka greed!  ”I want this, and I want it now!” and #2) The Nesting Syndrome.  There is a tendency for those in a long term relationship who want children to buy a place.  I don’t even have to read WC’s about page to guess he’s planning on getting married or having kids.   For the guy specifically, the itch seems to start at 30, if not sooner.  The desire of owning our own castle and showing we’ve “arrived” is strong. 

At the end of the day, if all you have in the world is not much more than 13% down to buy your place, FORGET ABOUT IT!  You are too poor, or you are desiring too much.  It’s that simple! If you get canned the day after you close escrow, you won’t have long to survive because of your lack of buffer.  If you have more money than 13% down, this is a different matter.  You may want to put 13% or even less down, depending on your borrowing costs, or your opportunity costs.

THE RULE

My rule for housing downpayment is simple.  Before you even think about buying a property, you need at least 30% of the purchase priced saved.  Let’s use a couple examples.

EXAMPLES:

$1,000,000 house.  13% down including closing costs = $130,000.  Left over money is let’s say $20,000.  A 6% interest only loan on the remaining 87% costs $4,350/month.  You basically have 2 months of payments coverage saved before you go start ruining your credit and entering the foreclosure process if you lose your job.  Property taxes alone cost $11,000/year!  If you only have $130,000 in savings to put for a downpayment, you cannot afford the house!

Instead, look at a lovely $500,000 house. Put 20% down or $100,000, and your remaining $50,000 (10% buffer) provides 22 months of coverage based on a 6% interest only payment on $400,000 ($2,000/month) and property tax of $5,600/year.   If for some reason this $500,000 is not good enough for you, too bad!  Rent happily.  Renting is not flushing money down the drain as some perceive.  You’re paying for a utility.  Use your lack of savings and income as motivation to earn and save more! Don’t make yourself fit a desired lifestyle, make your lifestyle fit your financial reality!

CONCLUSION

If we’ve learned anything from the past 18 months, it’s that thousands of people in America leveraged up too much and blew themselves up.  The irritating thing is that responsible renters and owners also got blown up in the process. We were collateral damage from the fall out!  Hence, I implore WC, and all those who don’t have at least 30% of the value of the property in cash saved up, to not buy the place for all our sakes.  Because it is we in the end, who suffer right along with you with our tax dollar bailouts and asset exposure.  The safer the debtor you are, the better it is for the world.

WC, I like your site, and enjoy reading your background story.  Please take my advice and wait until you gather a bigger nut.  Property isn’t going to suddenly spike in price over the next 1-2 years.  Property is like a stock, if you miss one, there will always be another one to buy.

Readers, what are your thoughts on how much to put down when it comes to property?  Why do you think people make irrational property decisions?

Related Posts: “Note To Self: Buy More Rental Property!”

Keigu,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Twitter @FinancialSamurai

Everyday, we are inundated with e-mails. I personally get over 300 a day, and other colleagues I’ve heard get 500.  Despite many of the e-mails being largely irrelevant, or impersonal given the blast distribution trend, it’s worth responding every once in a while with a “Thank You” and a recognition of what they’ve sent.

Most of the time all the emailer wants is for someone to respond and recognize their work.  How many times have you proceeded to review your e-mail AFTER you sent it, just so you can relish in what you’ve said?  Yesterday, I spent about 30 minutes consciously responding to about 12 e-mails which I normally wouldn’t have responded to, and it felt good.  Furthermore, I sent out another quick 22 e-mails of congratulation for those who got promoted to celebrate their success.  All replied, and were extremely appreciative.

50% of your work success is selling yourself internally, and the other 50% is selling yourself to your clients, if you have any.  If you aren’t client facing, then clearly your internal selling percentage goes up.  The whole idea of responding to many of your internal e-mails is to make the other end feel recognized.  A lot of times colleagues will send out blast e-mails touting their own success.  Instead of up-heaving in disgust, shoot a quick “Congrats and good work!” response to make them feel special.  After all, those who toot their own horn in this manner are generally insecure.

Reputations spread fast in any organization.  You want to build a big enough positive network over the course of your career.  With your big contingent of positive backers, promotions and raises come easier.  Organizations thrive on consensus building, and you must constantly build your personal brand.

Have you ever wondered what’s the matter with the job hopper who’s had 5 different jobs in 7 years in the same industry?  It’s because he’s good at selling himself at the gates (interview), but he’s unable to develop the support network necessary to keep him stably employed and rising within the organization.  He may say he’s jumping for opportunities, but we know better after the third job hop, he’s the problem and not the employer.  I’m always wary of someone who doesn’t commit at least 2 years at one organization, and so should you.

If you spend just 30 minutes of conscious effort every week reaching out to internal colleagues, you’ll have spent 26 hours of painless time over the year developing relationships.  Responding to e-mails is the easiest way to go, but if you can go one step further and give that acquaintance a ring, that works even better.

Goodwill adds up, and pretty soon, you’ll have reached out to everybody, and everybody will be saying nice and thoughtful things about you.  So before you mass deleted your e-mails again, pick 5-10 you’ve never responded to before and thank them for their information!

Readers, I’m interesting in knowing how many e-mails you guys get a day, and how you deal with the inflow?  Do you keep an empty inbox and read/sort everything?  Or do you keep your inbox quite full, and leave the irrelevant e-mails unread?

Also, do you have reservations about job hoppers?  Or do you think the days of being a loyal soldier are over?

Best,

Sam – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Who's Behind The Shadow Government?

After reading several of my favorite sites out there, I’m beginning to wonder whether there is a shadow government running America.  The “Cash for Clunkers” program will cost the US tax payer $3 billion to graciously put 700,000 people who drive beaters into cars costing 5-6X more.  Yay, there’s a one time boost to August US auto sales due to hundreds of thousands of people who can’t afford new cars (according to the 1/10th rule)!

Over at DINKS Finance, I’m reminded that the income limit for Roth IRA contribution for single people is $105,000.  So they’re telling us after saving a party-throwing $6,000 bucks, the moment you make over $105,000 you can no longer contribute?  Too bad for you 29 year old grad students out of business school with a median income of $105,000.  Oh yeah, and all you doctors who spent 8+ years of your life AFTER college and those bagillion hours studying, so sorry!  The government isn’t willing to help you save for retirement.  No soup for you!

Meanwhile, over at WSJ’s The Wallet, there’s mention that the government may lower the maximum contribution limit on 401(k) retirement accounts from $16,500 to $16,000 due to low inflation!  After 30 years of saving $16,000 a year, you’ll either have more or less than $480,000, depending how adept you are at blowing yourself up in the stock market.  August 31′s entry, “Get Rich in September & Buy Nothing” may very well be spot on after Tuesday’s romp.  Are we supposed to be able to retire on $500,000-$1,000,000 from our 401k given Social Security is going to zero?  Not if the potential wave of inflation has something to do with it given all the monetary expansion.

PROPOSAL

Come on US Government.  Promote savings and stop ruining people’s personal finances by making us buy things we can’t afford. The “Cash for Furniture”, and “Cash for Vacations” programs being debated around Congress aren’t a good idea!

Raise the IRA income limit to $250,000, consistent with the borderline of what Obama deems “rich.”  Why should doctors, lawyers, graduate students in finance be punished for furthering their education in fields where they make more money?  Many of them have massive debt to repay and aren’t exactly “rich” for the first several years.

Please also raise the 401K pre-tax contribution limit to at least $30,000 if not $50,000/yr.  It’s not like everybody will be able to save that much, but if a 45 year old faces the same $16,000 limit as a 22 year old right out of school, how does that make sense? $16,000/yr in pre-tax savings is just not going to cut it for many people when they are retired.

At the end of the day, please STOP spending more than you earn.  It’s embarrassing. Remember the old adage, “Do as I say, not as I do!“ No that’s wrong.  I meant to write, “Do as I do!” You can do it USA government!  Set a greater example for us and our children.  Go America!

Best,

Sam

Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries