Yet another snowstorm for the East Coast but a warm weekend ahead.  Here are my picks for the week:

–The Ultimate Retirement Account by Mad Fientist:  I gave an overview abouts HSA’s here.  But Mad Fientist gives a new twist on it which shows how great of an account it actually can be.

–Got Those Old Wanderlust Blues?  Don’t Be Worried About Moving House Too Often by A Young Pro:  Most people have the idea that they eventually have to “settle down” because it’s the right thing to do personally and financially.  This article argues that moving frequently is not only not bad, but it can make you richer if you sell at the right time and move for the right reasons.

–The 30 second habit with a lifelong impact by Robyn Scott:  Well written piece about one habit that can potentially change your life.  Will definitely give it a try.

–Why We are Not Really All Doomed by Mr Money Mustache:  Inspiring article and a great reminder that things are probably not going to be all that bad.  We should focus on improving ourselves and giving our best effort for society.

–The Cost of Living in the Suburbs by Suburban Finance:  Living in the suburbs has its advantages over city living, and vice versa.  This article goes into some of the costs of living a suburban life.  If you enjoy living in the suburbs, it would be a good idea to get these costs down as much as possible.

Some great articles for the last week of the month:

–Why You Should Really Do Your Own Taxes by Financial Samurai:  This year was my first doing my taxes on my own.  And I’m already looking forward to next year.  A really smooth and educational process.

–Americans Spend Nearly 50% of Their Income on These Two Things by Ready For Zero:  Not surprising on finding out what these two things are.

–Finance is a game of inches by Retire Happy:  I love sports analogies.  Non sports fans are missing out on these great analogies.  This article is spot on in showing how just like in sports, it’s the little things that matter in personal finance as well.

–Simple Things You Can Cut Out of Your Budget Now by Fitnancials:  It’s always a good idea to revisit your regular expenses and see if you can get them lower.  Then, use that savings to pay off debt or increase your investment/savings accounts.  This post has a good list of the most common things that can be reduced with just a phone call or two.

–5 Essentials For Paying Student Loans by Frugaling.org:  Even though the student loan interest rate deduction got me a few hundred back on my tax return, it’s still not worth having thousands of dollars in student loans.  Sam has some crucial tips on staying strong in the fight against student loans.

I’m not a big fan of snow.  Especially when it happens a lot.  But with temperatures hovering around 50 degrees lately, I enjoy seeing it melt away.

–How to Get Paid and Promoted Faster: Is your Nose Brown Enough to Get Ahead? by Financial Samurai:  Hard work alone is not going to get you ahead in your company.  A lot of people work hard, but the people who are able to market themselves effectively while working hard get the promotions.

–Frugal Friday Find:  Credit Card Churning by Brokemillenial:  A nice overview about the wonderful world of credit card churning.  Bottom line:  If you don’t have credit card debt and keep your expenses fairly low, there is a whole wide world of free trips and hotel stays in it for you.

For Reasons Races Make Better Investments than Gym Memberships by The Broke and Beautiful Life:  Stefanie recently wrote about her bad experience at a gym.  I agree that gyms aren’t my favorite place either.  Here she talks about how signing up for races is a much better (and cheaper) way to stay fit.

It’s been snowing almost non-stop the past 24 hours.  Gave me some time to find some great articles between all the shoveling:

–I Went to the Gym…And it was Awful by The Broke and Beautiful Life:  A gym membership is one of those things that people feel they must have.  Even if most people don’t use it.  That’s because unless you are a body builder, you can probably find a cheaper or more enjoyable way to get your exercise in.  Playing a sport, martial arts or even just running outside are a few things that come to mind.  For strength training, having some weights at home or joining a program like CrossFit might work.  Having to go to the gym for your workout just provides too many opportunities for excuses.

–What Do You Absolutely, Definitely Need to Spend Money on Every Month by Money Bulldog:  There are a couple of things that we HAVE to spend money on each month.  The main things that come to mind are food, clothing and shelter.  This post gives some ideas on how to minimize these essential expenses.

–Triple Value of Income by Mad Fientist:  Incredible post about how spending money instead of investing it is actually costing you.  The effect of taxes on your income is overlooked by many, but it can help guide you on the best way to use your money (hint:  it’s not getting a new BMW).

Looking forward to the Super Bowl in the cold.  Here are some enjoyable posts for the week:

–Best Tax Software for 2014 by Mike Jelinek:  There is a lot of good tax prep software out there.  This post goes into a good amount of detail and tells you which one is the best.

–Good Systems Can Make Your Finances Boring…And That’s a Good Thing by Planting Our Pennies:  This post gives a good example of the powerful effect of systems in personal finances.  If you don’t have systems in place, every day can be a hectic mumbo jumbo of bills and missed payments.

–Poverty, Perpetuated by Control Your Cash:  The President spoke about a new account in his state of the union address called a myRA.  Despite sounding very gimmicky, looking at the details of this account shows that it is not really all that useful for the people it is marketed for.  This post does a great job dissecting it.

Thanks to the Carnival of Personal Finance for featuring my post!

Richard Zimbalist OD, FAAO is an optometrist at Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital in Columbia, Missouri.  He is the developer of the popular optometric website, ODCareer.com, and welcomes blog submissions and case reports from other optometrists for publication.

Doctors are regarded as elite individuals in our society.  When you hear the word, most people conjure the image of a well-dressed professional with a white coat and stethoscope slung around their neck.  If you are interested in a medical career, do some serious soul searching first.  Is your aim to help people?  To earn a lot of money?  To cure cancer?  To have a family life?  I always had a fascination with medicine growing up and for years wanted to become an orthopedic surgeon.  It wasn’t until my last year in college though that I contemplated the necessary training to become an orthopedist. It would include medical school, internship, residency, and fellowship.  The total amount of additional education would come to 10 additional years after college; I wouldn’t start earning a real salary or have any semblance of a “normal” life until the age of 32.  I desired a career in medicine that provided me with a comfortable salary, traditional work schedule, and flexibility in career path options.

Not all doctors are medical doctors (MD).  The historical term has grown to include many other professions including dentists (DDS, DMD), optometrists (OD), podiatrists (DPM), pharmacists (PharmD), physical therapists (DPT), philosophers (PhD) and others.  There are many professions in the health field that enable you to work closely with patients as a doctor without the multitude of schooling.  The best thing you can do if you are interested in a medical field is to shadow a clinician.  When I decided that the MD route wasn’t for me, I took to shadowing many of the above professions.  I remember shadowing a podiatrist and actually made up an excuse to leave early because I was so repulsed by some of the feet that I saw! Shadowing provides you with an invaluable experience that you cannot google or read about anywhere on the web.  You will see what really happens on a day to day basis and most importantly, you will see if you can envision yourself in the field for the next 30 years.

I ultimately decided on optometry because it met many of the criteria that I wanted in a career.  Optometry is a great profession that has grown in strides during the past 20 years.  Optometrists used to solely prescribe glasses and contact lenses, however, we now evaluate disease, help with the legally blind, comanage LASIK, and much more.  Many optometrists have a traditional 9-5 workday although some work Saturdays also to provide extended hours for their patients.  There is a wide variety of practice options available to optometrists including positions in private practice, group practice, corporate, government and academia. I outline the various modes of practice on my website, ODCareer.com.  Amongst all of this, optometry was recently well ranked in the popular article 15 High-Paying Jobs for People Who Don’t Like Stress by Yahoo.

The old proverb which states, “The eyes are the window to the soul” has more truth to it than people realize.  Optometry is a great career choice for those who want a rewarding career in a medical field.

Everyone’s talking about Richard Sherman’s awesome post game interview.  In honor of that, here are some not so sorry posts I came by this week:

–Investing Your Health Savings Account in the Stock Market by Eyes on the Dollar:  I recently wrote about HSA’s here.  One thing I mentioned is the ability to invest or at least gain interest with the money in your HSA.  My plan doesn’t currently have the ability to invest, but this article goes more in depth into that.

–Why Young Adults Should NOT Choose Catastrophic Health Insurance Plans by Young Adult Money:  Interesting post on reasons why young adults should not opt for the so-called catastrophic health care plans, the ones the government wants them to get.  These plans have very high deductibles.  I say if you have the savings to cover up to the deductible, getting a cheap health insurance plan may be worthwhile.  You can also contribute to HSA’s.  It’s all about your tolerance for risk and your income potential.

–6 Low Cost Ways to Improve the Value of Your Home by Stumble Forward:  While we’re not looking to sell anytime soon, it’s always good to know ways to increase the value of your home.  This post talks about specific short term fixes to get done a year or so before you sell.  Good to remember.

–Big wins:  The quickest way to wealth by Get Rich Slowly:  Not all financial moves are created equal.  Cutting coupons for a week and preparing for your salary negotiation might take the same amount of time, but will definitely not produce the same results.  We only have a limited time on this planet, so make your moves count.

–Why Interest Rates May Go Up This Year and What it Means For You by Ready For Zero:  Nice overview of the inevitable rise of interest rates and how it can affect you.  The last few years have seen record low mortgage interest rates, but that will probably change in the next few years.  Learn how it may effect you and plan accordingly.

Though the matchups in the AFC and NFC title game were surprisingly predictable, they both look to be classics in the making.  Can’t wait until Sunday.  In the meantime, expand your financial mind with these great posts:

–5 Ways to Bring Out Your Inner Sherlock Holmes by AYoungPro:  Interesting list of different characteristics of Sherlock Holmes that we can apply to our lives.

–Retirement Planning:  The Yin and Yang of a Secure Retirement by Green Money Stream:  When it comes to retirement, many people focus on contributing, and rightfully so since most people don’t contribute nearly enough for retirement.  But the other side of the coin is withdrawing money, with the hopes that it will last throughout your post working years.  There are a lot of unknowns from now until retirement, but focusing on increasing contributions and being able to live on less will increase the chance that you will outlast your money.

–Real Financial Advice.  No Bullcrap by Control Your Cash:  A humorous breakdown of a really complex answer for a really simple question.  Don’t get into credit card debt.  Ever.

Check out some great financial posts at the Carnival of Financial Independence.  They were kind of enough to include one of mine as well.

Here are some posts that have piqued my interest this week:

–Best Rewards Cards of 2014 by Mike Jelinek:  This post provides a good overview of what to look for in a rewards card and gives their take on what are the best cards. The author clearly favors the Barclaycard Arrival World Mastercard (evidenced by the NINE sign up links present in the post).  It is a good card, but the annual fee greatly decreases its value after one year considering there are many cards that offer at least 5% back on lots of categories.  I don’t think there is ONE good card for everybody, but the Arrival is a decent choice.

–Save Money on Health care:  The Benefits of an HSA by Catherine Hawley:  Nice and informative post about Health Savings Accounts (HSA’s).  Opened my first one this year so we’ll see how it goes.  HSA’s have great tax advantages as you contribute to them with pre-tax income, they grow interest tax free and they can be withdrawn and used tax free for eligible healthcare expenses.

–Start the New year by Saving Money by Arthur Murray:  Nice and easy to digest money saving tips for the new year.  Love the recommendation and possible savings of a good credit score.

–5 signs your credit card sucks by Bargaineering:  I talk a lot about the characteristics of awesome credit cards, but a lot of people would benefit from just getting rid of their terrible cards.  This post gives the main traits of crappy credit cards.  Avoid them.

–Say No to a Boring Retirement with These Alternatives by MoneyNing:  Retirement is traditionally viewed as just chilling at home and watching TV for a few decades.  This should not be the case as people are living longer and sometimes with not enough money to whittle away their golden years.  It’s important to stay active once you call it quits from your traditional work, and this post gives a few ways to do just that.

Happy New Year everyone!  Start it right by perusing some of these great posts:

–Why You Can’t Get Ahead…Ever by Afford Anything:  Great motivational post on getting out of the scarcity mentality, where you feel there is only so much to go around and you have to just accept your lot in life, and getting into an abundance mentality, where you feel there is enough to go around for everyone and you just have to go out and get it.  Many people get stuck in the rut of just thinking their yearly income is all they have.  But with a little creative thinking and work, it is possible to make multiple streams of income to help you reach your goals faster.

–Book Review: Your Money or Your Life by Green Money Stream:  Kay reviews one of the first and one of my favorite finance books I have read.  It gives a good amount of practical info and is a great motivating book.  Make sure you spend your life energy in the right way, you only get so much of it!

–Are You Cleaning Out Your Own Wallet? by Mr Money Mustache:  Controversial post (look at some of the comments) on how we spend too much on cleaning products and too much time on cleaning in general.  I totally agree that we do.  There are cleaning agents for every single thing out there and the companies that make them seem to think we can’t live without them.  It just takes a few minutes of cleaning every week to keep most areas clean.  While I think showering every single day may not be necessary for some people, showering every 2-3 days during winter as the author says he does sounds a little dirty, especially considering he’s a contractor.

–Build Your Financial Nut: 401K Retirement Contributions Matter Less Over Time by Financial Samurai:  Great post by the wise Financial Samurai which shows that as you max out your 401k contributions, after a few years your contributions make up less and less of your portfolio.  When your account gets to be a sizeable number, HOW you invest starts to become more important than HOW MUCH you invest.

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