The Platinum Living Network

I grew up in a family that had to be pretty careful with money. I remember in early elementary school when school lunches were 23 cents, my two brothers and I each brought home our two pennies and deposited them in a jar which was earmarked for our first trip to a restaurant. We finally had our first restaurant meal as a family when I was about twelve years old ... at a local restaurant's "2 for 1 night." Actually, we didn't quite make it as a family. My older brother was so nervous about eating at a restaurant that he developed an upset stomach at the last minute and had to stay home. Then I married Melanie, the "Platinum wife," whose money experience was, let's just say, the opposite of mine. Although her family was not wealthy by any means, her Dad always showered her and her siblings with pretty much whatever they asked for. This made for an, um, "interesting" first few years of marriage for us. Yet despite our differences, there is o...

This article is a little longer than normal, but I hope you'll agree that it's worth the time. Over the years, I’ve taught classes and given seminars in personal finance, budgeting, and similar topics, and I have received more positive feedback about one particular money saving tip than all of my other “imparted wisdom” combined. People still occasionally come up to me and tell me how they have used this method successfully. And I am not exaggerating when I say that in following this one piece of advice, I have personally saved tens of thousands of dollars. I’m quite sure I have your interest by now, so without further ado, let me give you my "prime directive." (drum roll please) ... When you feel like you want or need to buy something, put it on a list, but do not buy it right away. When an item has been on the list for a predetermined amount of time, say three or six months, feel free to buy it. How can this simple rule be so effective as a money saver? There ...