Kathleen D. Vohs, associate professor of marketing at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, is an expert in self-regulation, problems with spending, and the psychology of money. Among other things, her work reveals how people feel when they’re reminded of money they’ve spent (not so good), and how you can practice …
Saving & Spending
Cash for Clunkers: What Might It Really Mean to Car Buyers?
Yesterday, the House approved a plan that’ll give electronic vouchers up to $4,500 to car owners who trade in their old gas guzzlers for more fuel-efficient models. Similar “cash for clunkers” programs are already in place in Europe, and various bills have been discussed in the U.S. for months. Originally, the plan was offered as a …
When in Doubt, Shop Like Your Grandparents
Everybody’s heard about the last few months representing the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. But look around you. And talk to people who actually lived through the 1930s for a reality check. They’ll tell you that folks today—even ones who have “scaled back” of late—are living quite extravagantly by comparison. How …
Healthcare: Where’s Dr. Kevorkian When You Need Him?
“Nowhere else in the world is so much money spent with such poor results.” The lead of a Washington Post story about healthcare pretty much sums it up. Getting bureaucrats, doctors, hospital administrators, pharmaceutical companies, and the American public (remember them?) to agree on how to fix things is the problem. Healthcare is sorta …
It’s a Deal: Up to $150 Back at IKEA
Through June 14, IKEA is handing out gift cards worth $25 (if you spend over $100) up to $150 (if you spend over $600). Check out the offer, valid through this Sunday for purchases of select furniture,
Meet Joey and Freddy, Financial Geniuses
Jean Chatzky and Suze Orman better watch out. Joey and Freddy, hosts of their very own YouTube show, promise they can help you “Save a Dime in ’09.” Their advice? Steal sugar packets and toilet paper from fast-food restaurants, and consider having yourself incarcerated. Check out the video for these and other tips that are authorized by …
Cheapskate Wisdom from … John D. Rockefeller
“I believe that thrift is essential to well-ordered living.”
Banks Are Fun, Not Greedy Evil Money Sucks
A new slew of advertising campaigns clears things up the misunderstanding. (And that Bernie Madoff guy? What a prankster!)
Message to Congress: COBRA Bites
I am a statistic, one of the millions of Americans laid off in early 2009. And thus, my family is currently insured through COBRA, the federal program that guarantees continued health coverage for people who have left full-time jobs. The acronym stands for Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, but that’s just gobbledy gook. …
Without a Magazine, We Wouldn’t Have Healthcare Reform?
There’s much hubbub of late about how—or if—Congress will transform healthcare. The one reason even cynical me thinks things actually will change (slowly, incrementally) is that the situation is finally hitting us where it hurts: our wallets. Everyone agrees that healthcare spending is mismanaged and out of control. And apparently, …
The Latest Style: Dumpster Diver Deluxe
Who says L.A.’s elites are out of touch? As the LA Times reports, home furnishings made from recycled burlap, old brooms, and discarded barrels are all the rage, in a recession-chic style dubbed “dumpster diver deluxe.” Celebs like Kathy Hilton (Paris’s mom) and Leonardo DiCaprio have jumped on the trend, spending thousands of bucks on …
It’s the Cheapskate to the Rescue!
People are reacting to the economic downturn in different ways. Some folks are trying to change careers, whether they really want to or not. Lots of people are sensibly scaling back. Still others are taking a rather proactive approach: They’re turning into superheroes. No joke, as CNN reports.