Jeff Rose is a 33 year old financial planner. He is fixated on trying to improve his credit score even though it’s 780. He opened up a second credit card last year to establish another line of credit and help boost his score. He said he doesn’t exactly know what actions will help or hurt his score, so wants to get it above 800 to ensure he gets the best rate if he refinances his mortgage….Jeff, chill out

According to Greg McBride, a senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com :

Those efforts may be futile because once consumers have FICO credit scores of 760, a higher one doesn’t mean they’ll get better interest rates on mortgages and credit card offers.

There’s very little incremental benefit to getting a score above that. It’s a lot more difficult to move the score up in any noticeable way, and little reward.

Consumers with scores from 750 to 800 who want higher numbers should continue what theyre doing, just for a longer period of time, said FICO’s Paperno. That means continuing to pay bills on time, keeping a low amount of debt relative to available credit and not opening accounts unless needed, he said.

It seems to me that many companies are capitalizing on the ignorance and fear around credit scores; to make a lot of money….

Flexo has a good post called Increase Your Credit Score  for those seeking more advice.

You can read the entire article on Credit Score Zealots here.

Do you know associates who have become fixated on their credit score?

Unfortunately, JD over at Get Rich Slowly has a post called A Place of My Own. Having done this journey several years ago; it really struck a cord with me. I thought I’d share some insights and hopefully good advice to those who may face this wretched experience!

What happened between the two is irrelevant and I’m glad he chose not to elaborate. I like how things are going so far. He states:

Kris and I are working together to build the best possible relationship going forward. We want to remain close friends.

Kudos to both of them for choosing this path!  Read more »

Do you need a new gig or are curious what to pursue in College? According to EMC becoming a data scientist may just be the ticket to your financial success.

Some 63% of data scientist say the profession is going to be undermanned for the foreseeable future-and half of those see it as a serious shortage. In particular, the explosive growth of sensors-the so called “physical Internet”-will provide organizations with an unprecedented wealth of data.

So, where’s the opportunity? Only 1/3 respondents in the study were very condident in their company’s ability to make business decions based on new data.

Data is the new oil, according to Andreas Weigend, Head of the Social Data Lab at Stanford.

You can read the complete story on Data Scientist here.

We’ve all experienced times when we just can’t sleep and are not on top of our game the next day-sound familiar? For me, if I’m tired day after day it’s hard for me to concentrate on financial opportunities. I’m focusing on the lack of sleep and it’s very hard to get to that state of mind where I look around and see an abundance of financial opportunities!

There are many remedies and basic things we all can do to increase deeper sleep and I was intrigued when I saw this article about the Renew SleepClock by Gear4. Read more »

Here’s a great inspirational post on mortgage debt-the elimination of such debt! It’s written by Crystal and the article is called: Mortgage Payoff Update. If you’re pondering throwing more resources towards your current mortgagee-this is a great read!

We’re all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find some one who’s weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.

Alex Gery quotes Dr. Suess

PS We just hope that their financial goals are compatible with ours

Who Can You Help?

I took a friend to lunch Friday and discovered that she has not the slightest idea how to start investing in the stock market. She is 22, single, part time student and works part time. Her family never talked about money and since she is a waitress, she has never been exposed to 401-k’s. She is not the lone ranger; think about how many people may opt out of working for corporations after graduation-we could have a lost generation of investors because no one mentored them. This is where all Personal Financial Bloggers can help-You have heard of the day once a year called Take Your Child to Work? I propose we take a friend to Scottrade or whatever firm you feel comfortable with!

So, this week I’m taking my friend to lunch and then to Scottrade to show her the ropes. Think about this: if you have never had any exposure to the financail world you may have many questions such as:

• How much money do I need to start with
• Does the firm accept cash
• How do I make subsequent deposits
• Should I have my boyfriend/girlfriend on the account with me
• What documents are needed to open an account
• What’s best, stocks, mutual funds, ETF’s or options

The whole process can be very overwhelming and extremely intimidating. I feel obligated to pay it forward and show someone my world and the financial riches that it can bring down the road.

I hope you’ll join me in this effort and take some one under your wing and expost them to a very confusing and potentially very rewarding world.

Do you have additional suggestions on how we can help our friends?

I received an email last month from Justin. He says:

Hey Steve. Good thing i found you. I also received an email on behalf of Rolex for registering the domain name (not disclosed for privacy). I would love to know how it was resolved. I can’t get  a hold of anyone and the attorney that sent it is gone for a while.

Justin found me because of a post I had written back in March of 2006 concerning Domain Name Infringement. I had purchased the domain name Rolex Watch Leasing because of my passion for mechanical watches and I thought there might be a market for leasing Rolex watches….boy, was I naive

Long story short, I got the cease and desist letter from Rolex and since I did not renew the domain name or host the website with the domain name; they did not pursue the matter. Just beware of this little lesson before you go out and waste your money on a great domain name!

Here’s a two-fer for 2012! I saw this article called Ask the Trainer by Linda J. Burch. It was called Tips on Maintaining Motivation to Exercise. Here are her top 10 suggestions:

• Do it for You (There is nothing more powerful than knowing that you could buy that new whatever, but instead you choose to save)
• Take Baby Steps (You’ve spent many years developing those nasty financial habits-give yourself a little time to correct them)
• Make Exercise a Given (PLEASE read The Richest Man in Babylon once a year)
• Give Yourself Credit (We all need an attaboy along the financial journey)
• Pace Yourself (You’re not the Stud/Prom Queen that you were in High School)
• Build a Support Network (Read those Personal Finance Blogs)
• Embrace Change (for those who are sick and tired of being broke;ask yourself if you are doing the same old things and expecting different results….don’t lie to yourself!
• Use the Right Equipment (Diversified Portfolio)
• Educate Yourself (Richest Man in Babylon, blogs, financial books)
• Eat Right (While you are eating right implement strategies to increase your cash flow)

OK, now you know what you have to do to get ripped-follow these same steps to increase your cash flow and 2012 could turn out to be your best year ever

Guess what? Most people give up on their New Years resolutions by February 15th. Since you now know this be extra cautious and have your plan in motion before then so you won’t be one of those losers for the new year!! Good luck !

There is a great post today over at Get Rich Slowly by guest author Natalie Peace. The article is called 5 Unusual Ways to Raise Successful Children! This is a must read for adults and their parents-Enjoy!