On The Money Trail With Al Jacobs

This on the money trail newsletter talks about success and if your on your way to it. Al Jacobs has pinpointed 7 ways for you to know if your on the way. These steps focus on the financial side of things and i think there are also many other ways in which success can be measured.

7 Ways to Tell If You Are on the Trail to Success
"At some point in most people'’s lives comes a realization that the dreams of youth and more sober aspirations of early adulthood may never come to pass. A childhood fantasy to become a famous movie star, a teenage obsession to excel on the athletic field, or a young worker'’s aspiration to be a millionaire, are among the hopes that remain a distant vision. But as years pass and illusions fade, each of us must come to terms with the success we achieve —or fail to achieve." Onthemoneytrail.com

# Money and Wealth News

Striking It Rich On The Net

This is an amazing story of a man who has hit the big time using a very unusual business model. He lined up customers before he could even deliver the services he advertised. It sounds strange but it worked for him, so have a read it will interest you!

New ways to strike it rich on the Web
"One of the many remarkable aspects of the Internet is how easily people can use it to pretend to be something they aren't. There are, of course, terrifying results, such as when crooks pose as your bank.

But David Carter has taken that capacity for misdirection and made it into a legitimate way to make money.
For instance, Carter didn't know a thing about asbestos when he launched AsbestosSurveys.com - yet it sure looked as if he did. He wrote about regulatory changes in his native England by culling data from a government website. He explained what property owners needed to do to comply. He even posted local phone numbers for his "business" in London, Manchester, and Birmingham, each of which was forwarded to an answering service." CNN Money

# Entrepreneurial News, Internet Company News

Google Breaks $500 a Share

What can you say about Google, it just keeps pushing forward and increasing in value. The companys share price has risen above US$500 and you have to wonder how much higher it can go. All i can say is i wish i had bought a few of their shares years ago.

Google's Stock Price Rises Above $500 for First Time
"Google Inc.'s stock price surpassed $500 for the first time Tuesday, marking another milestone in a rapid rise that has catapulted the Internet search leader into the corporate elite.

Continuing a recent surge driven by Wall Street's high expectations for the company, Google's shares rose $9.67, or nearly 2 percent, to $504.72 in morning trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

That left Google with a market value of about $154 billion just eight years after former Stanford University graduate students Larry Page and Sergey Brin started the business in a Silicon Valley garage." Time.com

# Major Company News, Google News, Internet Company News

Buying Homes On Your Own

You have to love surveys so here is another that found the percentage of Australians now buying homes on their own is increasing even though housing affordability has been decreasing. These days people are getting married later in life which is probably a big factor in the increase in singular home ownership. It makes sense that we all want to have a place to call our own and if your not ready to tie the knot then you have to buy your home alone.

Aussies go property alone
"The survey of 1000 people who were looking to buy their own homes within two years by mortgage broker Mortgage Choice found that almost 36 per cent would make the acquisition on their own.

That compares with 17.6 per cent who bought houses on their own over the past two years, the broker said.

The trend showed that even as people put off committing to a partner until later in life, they still wanted to invest in the property market, Mortgage Choice said." News.com.au

Real Estate News

Hewlett Packard Scandal

You have to love a good scandal from a large company and this one from Hewlett Packard who have prided themselves on privacy and codes of conduct is good. In an effort to stop information leaks, certain people decided to tap, record and use personal information which as it usually does has brought them unstuck and in a bit of trouble.

Ex-HP Chairman Dunn pleads not guilty
"Former Hewlett-Packard Co. Chairman Patricia Dunn Wednesday pleaded not guilty to felony charges for spying on reporters and directors in a scandal that sullied the reputation of one of Silicon Valley's most venerable and respected companies.

Dunn's appearance at the San Jose, California, courthouse was the latest development in the boardroom-leak scandal that tarnished the reputation of a company that had long championed privacy and aspired to a code of conduct toward employees and customers called the "HP Way." Money CNN

# Business Scandals and Controversies News, Major Companies News

New Ways of Giving

Making investments to earn more money for your chosen charity is becoming the next big thing in giving donations. Most big investment firms now run charity investment funds with low fees to increase your giving efforts. It looks like the old ways of giving are gone and investment philanthropy is paving a new path.

Rethinking charitable giving
Americans are as charitable as they've ever been, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. Last year they donated some $62.7 billion to the largest U.S. charities -- matching the highest year-over-year percentage gain in gifts since the publication started tracking those numbers 16 years ago.

But donors are different than they used to be.

The idea of just writing one check to United Way is far less popular than it once was. So is the idea of sending dozens of small checks of $15 for every group's appeal that arrives in your mailbox. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation -- created by the Microsoft chairman and his family to help reduce inequities around the world -- has inspired many to start planning their donations the way they plan their retirements. Yahoo Finance

# Philanthropy News

Asking For Flexi Days

I think we all should get a 3 day weekend to enjoy life more, but instead we toil away at work for most of the week just waiting for those 2 short days off.

Well this is a story of a group that managed to get a compressed working week to give them a 3 day weekend. We all want flexible working hours or a flexi day here and there so here are some tips to help you get there.

Power in Numbers: Asking for Flex Time in a Group
Sometimes there's safety and leverage in numbers.
Maybe you don't want to be the only one asking for a flexible work arrangement, especially if you get the sense that other colleagues would benefit from the same thing, but are either afraid to ask or just don't even realize that asking might be an option.

This could be the chance to partner with one or more people to explore the possibility of flex time. How do you work together to achieve your goals? ABC News

# World News

Do It Yourself Stock Investing

When it comes to investing in and picking stocks to buy many rely on financial advisors, fund managers or brokers, but a new wave is coming in and bringing with it people who are going down the do it yourself investment path. It's much cheaper to make investment decisions yourself because you avoid a heap of fee's and you also get a sense of accomplishment when your stocks payoff.

The experts don't always get it right anyway so with a bit of research, patience and courage we can all save on fee's and do it ourselves.

Go it alone
"Australia's biggest online broker, CommSec, now has 1.4 million accounts. Online information service The Intelligent Investor - by way of example - has gone from nothing to 10,000 subscribers in eight years.

The typical DIY investor is 50-plus, nearing retirement and probably has a self-managed superannuation fund. But Mark Johnston of researcher InvestmentTrends says there's an emerging group of younger DIY investors.

These investors tend to be male, 30-plus and on good incomes. "What they have in common is a high level of engagement and interest in their finances," he says.

CommSec general manager Matt Comyn sees the same trend. "Over the last 10 years, we've seen people getting into direct investing younger ... there's also more women becoming involved than you would have seen a few years ago," he says.

What's behind this interest in self-directed investing? Johnston says of the younger investors: "They tend to DIY because they don't think financial planners add value necessarily ... they don't necessarily see them as independent. I'm not saying they aren't, but that's the perception in this group - it's a common view." Money Manager

# Wealth News, Stock Market News

Politically biased Genes

Research is being conducted to determine whether we are born with politically biased genes. The thought is that the way we think about politics and how we vote is ingrained in our genes. Others are very skeptical about this research and I'm a bit the same, as it seems a bit hard to believe something like this would be genetically inherited.

Could Political Bent be Genetic?
"Politics may not be in your blood, but it may be in your genes.
A team of scientists is trying to prove that social attitudes -- including political attitudes -- can be inherited.
And the research they base that on, consisting of extensive studies of twins and genes, may back that up. A study found that identical twins frequently answered political questions more similarly than fraternal twins." CBN

# Political News

Mistakes Made With Unexpected Fortunes

Al Jacobs has written another newsletter worth reading for those who are coming into a large sum of money or those who have already received it.

It's interesting to see news stories about people who have wasted millions and send themselves into bankruptcy because they can't handle money. It has some sensible tips to help those who have no idea when it comes to money.

Seven Foolish Mistakes People Make When They Come Into Money
"There is something uniquely human about the way many of us mishandle money, particularly when its received unexpectedly. Whether it’s a bequest from a long-forgotten uncle, an unexpected court settlement, or a sweepstakes winning, suddenly coming into a stash of cash can unhinge any of us. Every day the media reports the misery befalling citizens who previously struck it lucky, but then fell on hard times." on the money trail

Money & Wealth News