Buyer Beware

“The Best in the Industry…” Rip-offs in the Auto Industry.

April 30, 2018
White BMW Sedan

Sauna. That’s what our Honda Civic sedan felt like in the Texas heat last summer. We used a windshield cover and parked in the shade when possible, but it still wasn’t enough to combat the heat. We’d been planning to tint the windows before the summer season starts. I got them tinted last month and wanted to share my experience shopping around.

Maybe you’re not that into cars. Me neither, but I also don’t like getting ripped off, and I’m sure everyone else feels the same. Last week, my coworker told me she didn’t want to fix her broken car horn. She wasn’t sure whether a mechanic would overcharge her. Even if you find cars boring, I hope you find this newsletter interesting.

In the automotive industry, prices and quality of work vary. How do you know you are getting the best value whenever you are purchasing a product or service? The answer is to research. With the Internet, it’s easy to be an informed consumer. The first page of Google search results about window tinting had enough information. To summarize, there are four types of films: dyed, metallic, carbon, and ceramic. I am listing the pros and cons of each so you know what I’m talking about in the rest of the article.

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Philosophy & Mindset

The Real Cost of Work

March 31, 2018
Person Using MacBook Pro

How great would it be if we could all make money in our sleep? Assuming Bill Gates slept 7 hours last night, he made $9.66 million in his sleep. Bill Gates makes so much money that if he were to drop a $100.00 bill on the ground, it wouldn’t be worth his time to pick it up.

Unfortunately, not all of us earns passive income. Most of us toil away at our jobs for a paycheck that’s just enough to last until the next one. Have you ever calculated how much money your time is worth? It’s not as simple as dividing your salary by the amount of hours you worked, since work comes with hidden costs. Individuals at the same company with the same job making the same salary could have different real hourly wages. That’s because real hourly wage is affected by commute, child care, and other expenses.

Say you got a job offer from another company that pays $10,000 more than your current one. It’s salaried though, meaning you work more hours for a set pay. The commute is longer too. By calculating the real hourly wage, you learn that the real hourly wage of the new job is half of your current one. Of course, if you want the extra $10,000, take the job, but understand that the value of your productive time is lower.

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Philosophy & Mindset

When Does The Commute Ever End? Hopefully, Before You Retire.

March 15, 2018
Woman Sitting In Driver seat

Location. Location. Location.

Where you live can make or break your bank. When deciding where to live, I argue that these factors should top the list:

  1. Location relative to your work.
  2. Location relative to your grocery outlet.
  3. Cost.

Commutes are time, money, and soul sucking. I worked a job once where the commute was an hour each way. I lasted six months.

Never again.

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