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5 Essential Early #Retirement Tips Everyone Should Know About

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Retiring early gives you an opportunity to pursue your interests and hobbies while maintaining your standard of living. You do not have to report to an office every day or live a structured life year after year. Many people are afraid to think about early retirement because of their dependence on their jobs. The greatest fear about early retirement is the lack of income to sustain your current or dream lifestyle. The truth is that many professionals have retired early and lived a better life than they did while working. It just takes knowledge and proper planning to retire early. If you have been thinking about retirement, but are unsure about how to get there, here are some tips to guide you in the process.

1. Do the Math

The way to overcome the fear of early retirement is to do the necessary calculations. Determine the amount of annual income you will need to maintain your lifestyle in your retirement years. The next calculation is to determine the portfolio you will need to get that annual income level. The latter calculation will help you make the right decisions on investments today. Take into account the safe withdrawal rate and inflation when estimating the retirement portfolio. The recommended withdrawal rate is 4% of your portfolio.

The rate means that you will not exceed that level of annual income if you want your portfolio to continue to grow. This means that your actual portfolio must be 25 times the estimated annual income to sustain your lifestyle. Remember that the cost of living will go up by the time you retire. Hence, you must account for inflation effects in your calculations. Since you cannot predict the inflation rate for the next say 25 years, use past data to estimate the inflation rate and account for it in your income and portfolio estimations.

2. Consider the Consequences On Your IRA Accounts

If you choose to retire today or in the next year, chances are that you will need more income to meet your needs. If you do not do the necessary calculations as outlined above, you will be forced to go back to employment to survive. You may be thinking of withdrawing from your IRA account to navigate early retirement, but that decision is costly.

The IRS charges you a 10% penalty for any early withdrawals from IRA accounts. Hence, you will lose some money if you choose to retire before reaching fifty nine and a half. The good news is that you can withdraw from your IRA account before the retirement age without a penalty by following the 72t rule. Anyone intending to retire early must learn the 72t distributions rule because at times the retirement portfolio will be insufficient to handle bills. The rule simply requires you to withdraw from your account in equal period withdrawals to avoid the 10% penalty.

3. Lower Your Living Costs

Retiring at an early age requires some sacrifices. For you to invest in the required portfolio estimated in the first step, you need to cut your spending. Save as much as you can today and invest or bank the money. You will need everything you can get to live a good life after. Analyze your current spending and identify the areas that need change. Do you spend too much on groceries or pay TV? Do you have to take a vacation every three months? You will have to cut off some of these luxuries depending on your level of income to afford an early retirement.

The secret to saving for retirement is to start early. Do not wait until you have three years or less to make drastic changes. Every saved dollar counts in this journey. It may be time to start checking the discounts, sales, and coupons on some items. You will reap great benefits from the sacrifices you make today.

4. Avoid Debt at All Costs

As you adopt the saving culture, stay away from credit card debt and any other form of debt. You cannot achieve your goal with accumulating debts. The interest charged will take away the largest part of your income from your portfolio. This means that you will withdraw more than the safe withdrawal amount and deplete it fast. Break away from the common myths that you must get a mortgage and buy a retirement home or a car loan to drive your dream car. You can rent a home as you slowly accumulate money to buy or build your own.

Pay off your credit card debts as soon as you can and avoid accumulating more debt on any of them. One of the considerations you may have to make is reducing your cards to one or two. Good debt may help you build your portfolio faster, but you must consider your ability to repay and invest wisely. Do not borrow for consumption or for luxuries even if you can repay the loans with your current income. Live within your means and cut down your expenses to the lowest level possible.

5. Consider Alternative Sources of Income

You may realize after doing the math that you may have to continue working longer than you want to build your portfolio. The way out is to look for alternative sources of income. You can take another part time job or start another side business to increase your income. In other words, you will work more every week and retire early. Look at your current schedule and find creative ways of using your free time to increase your income. Getting another part-time job or starting a new business may actually help you cut costs.

Conclusion

Retiring at an early age is possible if you start making the right decisions today. The kind of lifestyle you want to live after retirement should influence those decisions. Start by estimating the level of income that will give you the dream lifestyle and then make steps towards accumulating that income today. The steps include paying off your debts, saving more than you currently do, reducing your expenses, and increasing your current income. While making these steps, stay for focused on the goal and the fulfillment of living your life without work-related stress.

A Guide to the Most Gorgeous Gifts for Your Glamorous Girlfriends

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There’s one in every friendship group: the woman who has everything. Not only does she have everything, but all her belongings look like they’ve graced the inside covers of Vogue. She’s got glamor running through her veins – even a pair of washing up gloves look good on her. So, when it comes to buying her a birthday gift, the fear is real. She only buys clothes from one-off collections by private designers. She only likes furniture that’s made bespoke to suit her interior décor. However, she’s a great friend, and you want to give her something special; something that she’ll actually use and enjoy – and not just relegate to storage. So, here’s your guide to buying gorgeous gifts for those wonderfully glamorous friends.

Try jewelry – but make sure it’s different

If your girlfriend has enough of anything, it’ll be jewelry. However, she’s probably got a lot of the same: glittering diamonds and opalescent pearls. So, break the mold and give her something truly memorable and gorgeous – not just another pair of plain earrings. Colored diamonds and gorgeous gemstones are a perfect way to stand out from the crowd, as is hunting down rare precious stones embedded in subtle bands or bracelets. Companies like Leibish & Co. are a great place to start your search, as you’ll get a variety of traditional, gorgeous pieces, as well as adventurous stones, gems and colors. You could even look at having a bespoke piece made specifically for your friend.

Give memories – not just a present

While she might be a frequent jet-setter, there’s nothing better than getting to go on a day out or weekend away that someone else has organized. Whether you decide to do a meal and a show, or head away to a luxury spa for the weekend, you get to give her something money can’t buy: time. You can both relax and enjoy yourselves in a glamorous, luxurious setting. So, it’s not just a treat for her, but one for you too. Or, you could ramp it up a bit. Throw caution to the wind, and the stilettos to the back of the wardrobe. Organize an afternoon of extreme sport fun – from paragliding to quad biking, the adrenaline rush will be unbelievable. That’s something you can’t get from any amount of shopping or fine-dining.

Create something just for her

When someone’s got everything they need, there’s not much you can do. Well, except for creating something that only you can give them. This might be something like getting her a personalized item, like a luxury fluffy dressing gown with her initials on, or it might be finding a painting that no one else has. If you’re more creatively inclined, you could look at making something yourself. From perfume to pottery, there are plenty of places around that you can try your hand at making gorgeous gifts. Or, if you’ve been friends for a long time, why not put together a scrapbook or photo album, charting all your old memories? The effort you put in will be incredibly meaningful, and will give you both lots of enjoyment to reminisce over old times.

DripJoy K-Cup Single Serve @Coffee #Review Colombian Cheer & Dark Bean Daydream @dripjoycoffee

Reviews · 

I received the below mentioned complimentary product for the purpose of this review. All opinions and thoughts are 100% my own.

Do you own a single serve brewing machine that uses K-Cups? I never in the world expected to own one as my Husband game me one for Christmas. It just makes sense. So very easy to pop a k-cup in the machine and presto-You have a single cup of fresh coffee. This is why I was thrilled when the opportunity came about to review DripJoy Single Serve Coffee.

About The Company~

At DripJoy, we’re on a mission to Perfect the single serve coffee experience. For years coffee has fueled our productivity, while we sacrificed quality for convenience. Things came to a head when Zach Randall’s 4th single serve brewer broke. The time had come to fix this problem, if not for the world, then for ourselves.

We started by engineering a machine that avoids the problems of other brewers. Our technology reduces clogging, brews hotter & cleaner, and is guaranteed to work.

But why leave the Perfect cup to chance? So we started to source coffee directly from farmers across the world, roasting the beans while they were still fresh and not mixing coffee quality.

After fine-tuning our machine’s heat and pressure, we found the Perfect pairing – and we decided the world must have a taste! We extended the convenience of single serve with our GeniusDelivery™. Simply select your coffee, throw in a complimentary brewer, and get your Joy on.

My Thoughts~

I was very excited to sample 2 of their flavors of coffee- Colombian Cheer & Dark Bean Daydream. To tell you the truth as I always do, I cannot wait to try all of their different flavors. The 2 flavors I did try were:

  • Colombian Cheer-  is a Medium roast where notes of cocoa and guava swirl together to provide you with a semi-sweet and fruity experience that’s guaranteed to put a skip in your step and a smile on your face.
  • Dark Bean Daydream is a Medium roast that has hints of chocolate and lemon. K-CUP 2.0® COMPATIBLE Single Serve Coffee Pods. PREMIUM COFFEE sourced directly from farmers across the world. FRESH ROASTED beans with no mixing of coffee quality. GUARANTEED if you’re unsatisfied with a roast for any reason we’ll replace it for you with one you’ll love. 

The Colombian Cheer was the perfect cup of coffee and the slight hint of cocoa and fruity was the perfect combination. I never would of thought by adding certain flavor combinations in the right proportions that it would make the perfect cup of coffee. Next, I tried the Dark Bean Daydream which once again was sure to please and yes, It did put a smile on my face. With hints of chocolate and lemon, This cup of coffee had me pondering of the happy things in my life. Each cup was better than the last.

DripJoy K-Cup Single Serve Coffee has a few different ways to order: By coffee subscription, buy the cup or just buy their awesome brewer that is the perfect brewer for their “JoyCups” as they call them or any k-cups that you use.

I give DripJoy my highest recommendation and my thumbs up. You owe it to yourself to give DripJoy Single Serve Coffee a chance. They also sell on Amazon, So you know no matter where you buy that you are getting the best price.

Vive Precision Oral Thermometer #Review @vivehealthusa

Reviews · 

I received the below mentioned complimentary or discounted product for the purpose of this review. All opinions and thoughts are 100% my own.

     Do you own a thermometer in your home? I never, ever thought I would have a need for an oral thermometer until now. This is why I was thrilled to be offered the opportunity to the Oral Thermometer – Best Underarm, Rectal & Axillary Fever Medical Thermometer that is Accurate, Waterproof, Easy Read Display – Electronic Fever Temperature Monitor for Babies and Adults by Vive Precision.

Vive Health is the leader of Premier online retailer for home health products and durable medical equipment. This oral thermometer is both a must have for every home. I never realized just how affordable these were. I thought they would be in other words-Junk! This is so not the case as you can tell by the first feel when you remove the thermometer from the box that the product is well made and durable. Everything you need to take your first temperature is in that box.

About The Product~

  • Quick reading. Guaranteed accurate.
  • With the Vive Precision oral thermometer, taking your temperature has never been easier. Simply activate the thermometer, place it under the tongue, and see your temperature displayed in bold font on a large, easy-read LCD screen.
  • Each device has been rigorously tested for accuracy and consistency. It features an energy-saving automatic shutoff function, and displays temperature in both Celsius and Fahrenheit.
  • Perfect for all age ranges, from babies to seniors.

My Thoughts~

     I love how I just took it out of the box then out of the cover and pressed the button to turn it on and away you go. You are now ready to take a temperature. The tip to the unit is both flexible and pliable. It cleans up easy with either soap and water or an alcohol wipe. The digital display is very easy to see and read. I now fell ready to have the tools I need if my family gets sick or fells under the weather. I give this product my thumbs up and my highest recommendation. You owe it to your piece of mind to get one for your very own.

What To Do With Unwanted Gift Cards

Reviews · 

There comes a time when you’re cleaning out your home and realize there’s a lot of items you no longer want or need. It’s overwhelming when you’ve let your belongings pile up and now you have to sort through each item and decide what to do with it.

Unwanted gift cards are a real pain if you don’t know how to deal with them. In some cases you didn’t even know you had them, or it’s a store you would never shop at in the first place. Before you go throwing them away, consider your other options. See what to do with unwanted gift cards.

Raffle

If you are or know a blogger or work at a business, they’re always hosting giveaways. Whether it’s online or at a company reception, they have a need for gifts. See if you can use it for this purpose, or if you know a friend who would benefit from raffling off a gift card. It’s the perfect way to not let it go to waste. The recipient will be thrilled to have won anything in the first place.

Sell Them

If you no longer want your gift card, you have options. It’s easy to sell your gift cards online without any hassle to you, the seller. All you need is the name of the company where the gift card is from and the amount available. Sell your gift cards for extra cash and get them out of your pocket for good.

Regift It

You might not want your gift card, but it’s possible someone else is interested in the merchant. Give your gift card as a gift at a holiday or birthday party. There’s nothing wrong with regifting it if it’s not a store you like and you think the recipient will be genuinely happy receiving it. Make sure that if you do give it to someone else that the store is appropriate for the person you’re giving it to, so as to avoid an awkward situation.

Shop

Go shopping with your gift card and see what you find. If you’ve already tried to spend it, try again months later. Perhaps there’ll be new merchandise in stock for you. Maybe you’ll be pleasantly surprised and get a product you’ve been wanting in exchange for your old gift card. You have nothing to lose, so it’s worth a trip to the store to at least check and see.

Donate It

A nice gesture is to donate your gift card. Ask around in the community or where you volunteer and see if there’s someone who could use it for their group or business. Give them the card for free as a nice gesture and as part of your service. They’ll be happy to receive such a kind gift. It’s especially meaningful if you donate to an organization with whom you’ve worked with in the past.

Conclusion

It’s time to clean your home and gather all of your unwanted gift cards. There are plenty of ways to use them. These are a few ideas for what to do with unwanted gift cards.