Financial Samurai

Well, here we are!  It’s been six month since the original challenge was announced and I want to congratulate all of you for making it this far!  The network has grown to be a powerful one and now it’s up to us to harness it for the greater good  This is where the 2nd challenge comes in, which officially starts on August 16th when Yakezie.com is launched.

The 2nd challenge is simply to use the power of the Yakezie network to help others through monetary means or donations of our expertise, while at the same time grow our online revenue by various rates (i.e. 25%, 50%, 100%).  The good thing about percentage increase targets is that we can all challenge ourselves whether we have a $100/month site or a $10,000/month site.  More will be explained once Yakezie.com is launched.  The first challenge of getting our Alexa rankings below 200,000, and now below 100,000 still stands.  As long as we are part of the network, we should strive for progress or at least a steady state of satisfaction.

Some of the most interesting types of posts around the web are voyeuristic posts about what goes on inside the mind of the blogger.  Part of the reason why DVDs are such a hit is because of the “special features” section where you can watch outtakes and behind the scenes featurettes.  Many have asked whether I had a grand plan all along for this group, and the simple answer is no.  It was because all of you that the group flourished.  I’d like to share with you some of my thoughts as The Yakezie grew.  Perhaps you’ll do the same and post your own write-up as well!

DECEMBER, 2009 – BEFORE THE YAKEZIE.  Alexa Ranking 94,000. Read more…

"Carried By The Wind" by Veronika Nagy

My nose plugs up and I can hardly breathe when I’m around cats too long.  I don’t know why I’m allergic, I just am.  One time I stayed over a friend’s place with three cats, and I woke up with red hives.  It was a surprise that I was able to fall asleep at all, because I could have sworn I sneezed over 100 times until the underside of my nose bled.

One of my best friends invited me over to visit her childhood home this fall.  Her mother lives near Boston, and unlucky for me another downside of East Coast living is the enormous pollen count.  I remember countless days when I couldn’t go to work because my allergies were so bad.  Ever since moving out West, my reactions have been much tamer.  The San Francisco Bay acts as a natural filter, sucking out stagnant air to sea.

In addition to being out East, my friend’s mother also has a couple of dogs and cats!  She sees this trip as a fun homecoming to introduce me to where she grew up.  To me, I have no attachment there and it’s like going to a gas chamber for vacation.  Imagine only being able to breathe through your two front teeth.  That’s how I feel sometimes when allergies attack.  You can’t get enough oxygen, so you aren’t able to speak.  You lose energy and let sleep take over even though it’s in the middle of the day.

THE QUIET PLEA Read more…

Dear Readers,

It’s been a wonderful journey so far and I want to thank you for visiting my tiny slice of the matrix.  We may not always agree, but that’s the beauty of it all.  Through differences of opinion, we’re allowed to learn from each other and flourish mentally, and hopefully financially as well.  Besides, it’s not like I’m going to hold your puppy hostage or something if you challenge my opinion!  Hope you feel the same.

Sometimes it’s hard to to respond to all of your wonderful comments (7,100+ so far), yet I will always try.  I wish there was an easy way to tag all of the most interesting comments and show case them.  Perhaps I still will!  It’s so fun to visit other sites, comment, and interact, I want you to experience the same here.

Each blog has a different personality and tone to it.  I’d like to think that Financial Samurai is unique with a flavor that challenges conventional thinking.  We can go back to basics regarding budgeting, savings, and retirement planning.  Or, we can continue blazing new trails.  It’s really up to you frankly.  What would you like to read more of going forward?  Generally we should enjoy writing what we’d enjoy reading.

Finally, I thought it would be fun to dedicate this song to all the female readers who helped share their viewpoints.  Five String Serenade was composed by Mazzy Star in her 1993 album, So Tonight That I Might See.  The original plan when I learned Five String Serenade 12 years ago was to sing to a girl after an evening picnic on a beach somewhere.  I never got the chance until recently, and now it’s been recorded, in my own version for you.  Funny how things never turn out quite like you plan.

Here’s to another 200 posts!  Thank you again! Read more…

Yowza! Source: NY Times

Over 11 million people are estimated to have died by the hands of the Nazis during the Holocaust just 65 years ago.  5 to 6 million of the 11+ million were Jews and over 300,000 were Athenians during the Axis’ occupation of Greece.  It’s a fallacy to blame modern day Germans about the atrocities of the past.  Yet, just because the demons have all died, shall we forgive and forget?  Absolutely not.  The offspring and relatives of the 11+ million dead live on, and their stories will never ever be forgotten.

With a GDP of US$3.6 trillion, Germany is now the largest economy in Europe as well as the 4th largest economy in the world.  Germany also has roughly $50 billion in estimated loans to Greece, a large amount, but not an overwhelmingly debilitating amount given the size of their economy.  Saving Greece helps the Germans and the rest of the 27 EU members who in some way were all negatively affected by Germany decades ago.

GRAND STANDING AND FINGER WAGGING Read more…

Hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas!  We spent time catching up with family and exchanging small gifts.  Nobody went overboard on spending, which is exactly the way we all like it.  My parents have a penchant for re-gifting things from many years ago, and most of this year’s presents are no different.  One of the boxes contained 15 year old polo shirts that emitted a strong scent of moth balls!  I will cherish them forever, or until they fall apart, whichever comes first.

Our family realized early that buying presents for each other was quite unnecessary after we kids grew up.  We therefore made an unspoken pact to gift each other things with no effort or pretense.  In fact, it’s almost become a game as to how much of our used stuff we can offload onto each other!  I gave a couple over-sized shirts from 2003 to my father, and a packet of dried plums to my mother.  We all laughed at our gifts and took some happy photos.

Our idea of Christmas is the reunion of family.  We’re a family that’s constantly scattered throughout the world, and when we get to reunite, we don’t waste much time giving gifts.  Instead, we talk stories over meals, lots of meals that test all our dietary New Year’s resolutions.

May none of you have to go back to the office until Monday, January 4th or work too hard if you do!  We’ll be coming out with some fun short posts for the rest of the year since it doesn’t seem like too many people are around.  Happy Holidays!

Related Post: “Losing Your Way To More Money” (If you want to lose weight, you should read about my 6 month experiment.  Only one thing matters and it’s not exercise!)

Keiju,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

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

What is this blasphemy you say?  One of our main tenets is to observe what people DO with their money, and not what they preach.  The public clearly loves Bank of America and Wall Street again because how else would Bank of America be able to raise $19 billion from us, to pay us back?

In an “Open Letter To Vikram Pandit, CEO of Citigroup” we urged Vik to sell the 34% government stake back to the very public that bailed Citigroup out before year-end. Why?  So Citigroup can pay their employees big bonuses in 2009 by saying they are no longer under the government’s stewardship.  Sure, paying back $45 billion in TARP sounds like a lot, but Bank of America just did it!

In fact, joining Bank of America are Bank of NY Mellon Group, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and State Street who’ve all been able to pay back their TARP loans and pay their people handsomely this year.  This begs the question, what’s wrong with Citigroup, one of my main “go broke banks” used to optimize my finances.

SORRY, I DONNO

Read more…

Wall Street Bull

The following is a guest post by Elaine of Apprentice for Life. Elaine worked on Wall St. for 15 years after business school and provides some interesting thoughts on the much debated topic of Wall Street pay.  Elaine is a self-proclaimed “Lady of Leisure” (LoL) who enjoys traveling the world and experiencing life to the fullest.  I know Elaine personally, and she is one of the best examples of someone who has studied hard, worked hard, practiced good savings and investing habits, and decided to walk away on her own terms.

Please feel free to ask Elaine anything on the topic of Wall St. too, including the getting in and out process!  The topic of Wall St. pay will build steam especially as we head into the home stretch of the year when pay is determined.  Enjoy!

Wall Street Pay Regulation – How to Create a Win-Win Situation

Much has been written and debated over whether the government should regulate Wall Street bankers and traders’ compensation. The proponents and the detractors each have valid arguments to support their thesis. It is all but certain that some form of government regulation will be in place sooner rather than later. At the end of the day, the biggest question remains will the regulations work? The government can mandate certain rules to be met but as we all know, rules can be broken or circumvented. So here are my thoughts on how the Fed can help create a WIN-WIN situation: Read more…

Every now and again, it’s good for the little people to ask the big people for some help.  Our inaugural “Open Letter Series” is inspired by a bank teller friend of mine at Citigroup who lost her job through no fault of her own.  She recently found a new position at a private bank (congrats!) and wishes all her non-executive old colleagues to flourish again.  If you have an open letter idea in mind, please let us know!

Dear Vik,

Tax Payers Bail Out, Tax Payers Buy Back, Repeat, Get Rich.

After collecting more than $45 billion in government support last year, Citigroup is considered by many as the true “Bank of America”.  We the people own 34% of Citigroup, so we were quite disappointed when you decided to jack up our credit card interest rate from 7% to 14% earlier in the year.  We’ve never been late, have always payed in full, and are fully aware the Fed Funds and 10 year treasury yields are at record lows.  What happened to rewarding customer loyalty?  What’s more, you let go of our favorite bank teller at the main branch we went to for the past 5 years.

We’re happy you went on record last Thursday in NYC saying, “Yes, $100,000,000 in bonus money for one of your employees is too much.” However, we’re then disappointed you proceed to say “all the noise will disappear” if you continue “executing your strategy.” Trust us, as long as our credit card rate along with millions of others is usurously high, and as long as we still own a large chunk of Citigroup, the noise will never go away.

Our advice to you is quite simple Vik. First, just pay Andrew Hall his $100,000,000 in stock that vests over a 10-year period.  You know a contract is a contract and you’re going to pay him anyway despite what you were quoted earlier.  Suddenly, his bonus “only” looks like $10 million a year and critics will be tricked into appeasment.  In ten years, Andrew will probably ironically make more than $100 million given where you’re striking him today.  Second, take Timothy Geithner, Head of the US Treasury Depart out to Smith & Wollensky’s (don’t expense it though) and tell him over a hard vodka tonic and medium-rare rib-eye to hurry up and put a syndication together to offload America’s 34% stake!

You know the stock markets are back to their risk-loving ways.  As soon as the government offloads their stake, critics will have nothing to say.  You win because Citigroup essentially gets a “free” 10 month survival loan since you state the government is not all up in your business.  You’ve even been able to raise base salaries of thousands of executives by 50% this year as well.  By selling the government stake back to the very public who helped bail you out, you’re just in time to implement attractive pay packages to you and and thousands of employees for 2009. You can even hire back our hard working friend, who never caused any trouble.  Not sure if she wants to go back though!

Vik, by following our advice, you’ll be able to party like it’s 2007 again.  You can even raise base pay for executives by another 50% while the rest of America struggles if you want to (that might cause a revolt, so better not).  Given all this good advice, at the very least, can you tell your credit card department head to lower our interest rate down to 7% again?  We’re on a fixed income and what you guys did crimps our style.  Oh, and maybe you can give all the readers at Financial Samurai a reprieve as well.  If you accept the people’s assistance, please also protect your own common employees who aren’t making the mega-millions.  Thanks buddy.  Long live America!

Related Posts:

“Government Employee Entitled to $100,000,000 Bonus!”

“Do Higher Taxes Lead To Socialism In America?”

“America’s Shadow Government”

Keigu,

Financial Samurai

“Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”