Time Value of Money

June 26, 2011 1 Comment

Wikipedia describes it as “the value of money figuring in a given amount of interest earned over a given amount of time.  To investopedia, it is “the idea that money available at the present time is worth more than the same amount in the future due to its potential earning capacity.”  And to lottery winners who discover they can only get roughly half of what they won if they want the money up front, it’s a bunch of crap! But make no mistake about it; the time value of money concept is one the most fundamental in all of finance- personal, corporate, or investment.  It serves as the basis for everything from compounding interest to the valuation of firms and is critical to understanding, and ultimately making, any long-term investment decision.  But far from overly complicated, it is too often misunderstood or, at least, taken for granted.  If you don’t believe me, ask your friends how many of them stash away $20 or $30 each month knowing the power harnessed inside this simple concept.  Or ask yourself why in the world you loaned your friend $50 with the expectation of receiving exactly $50 at a later, perhaps much later, date. Or, going back to our earlier example, sit down with one of so many lottery winners who are angry when they learn that they’re really not millionaires.  Not right away, at least. Read more of this post

Filed under Accounting and Finance Concepts, Application (Excel, Access) and Process Development, Business Stuff Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

Exercise Tips

June 22, 2011 Leave a comment

Men’s Health is cranking it up.  I got three emails today and all of them caught my attention.  I love it when I get a morsel of information that I’m able to use.  I can’t wait to put some of these tips to good use.

Working on your core with a variety of side bridge exercises:
http://bit.ly/mFupxK

A quick 15-Minute complete body workout:
http://bit.ly/mNv90z

Weight Loss Tips with an hourly breakdown of meal and workout ideas:
http://bit.ly/iVjQza

Filed under Fitness Stuff Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Life Preparedness Kit

June 19, 2011 10 Comments

My kids started math camp this week.  I know what you’re thinking, “what kind of person sends their kids to math camp?”  But hear me out.  Aside from the fact that my kids love it so far, it’s a great learning and growth opportunity for their mother and me, as well.  You see, they normally attend a small, private school, the kind where everybody knows everybody and you always feel like your kids are safe.  Well, this Math Enrichment Program (sounds a lot better than ‘math camp’, huh?) is not at their normal school.  And to our surprise–and as it turns out fear– there are 800 students in this darn program.  So, dropping our kids off at such a large school, with so many kids is a little nerve-racking.  To say the least!

But let’s put aside my issues– I mean emotions– for a minute.  The purpose of this post is to point out something that struck me as I was driving away after the first day of the program.  I’d just left my kids and felt a bit uneasy.  For them.  Never had they been thrust into such a situation.  What I might call a social overdose–meeting and having to fit in with a whole new group of kids–they seemed a bit overwhelmed.  As I was driving, I could still see my daughter’s face when I hugged and kissed her goodbye.  My hand was also still hurting, a result of my son not wanting to let go of the security blanket he sometimes calls “daddy”. Read more of this post

Filed under Deep Thoughts and Philosophy, Family and Friends, Self Improvement & Motivation Tagged with , ,

45,000 Minutes!

June 13, 2011 Leave a comment

Rocky Balboa had been bullshitting for weeks. He was going through the motions, kidding himself that he was ready for his upcoming defense of the heavyweight title. And true to himself, Mickey, Rocky’s grumpy old trainer, told him like it was. “For a 45 minute fight,” he yells, “you gotta train hard for 45,000 minutes! 45,000!” He goes on to tell Rocky that he wasn’t doing nearly enough to be ready for a rematch with Apollo Creed, to whom he’d lost a close decision just a few months earlier. The message Mickey was trying to pound into his pupil’s head was simple. To go along with his rare combination of size, speed, and strength; Apollo now had extra incentive and motive, namely his desire to prove to the world that his beating of Rocky was no fluke. And Mickey knew he had to get Rocky ready.

Now I have to admit that I love the Rocky series. Yes, it’s extremely predictable, full of corny scenes, and far from cinema royalty. But I contend that within it are several messages to embrace, many life lessons to be learned. Read more of this post

Filed under Deep Thoughts and Philosophy, Self Improvement & Motivation Tagged with , , ,

Nifty way to troubleshoot formulas

June 6, 2011 Leave a comment

If you’re an experienced Excel use, it’s a sure bet that you’ve found yourself on more than one occasion with long, unwieldy formulas.  While these long, often nested, functions are a necessity when building complex spreadsheets, they can be a huge headache.  Luckily, Microsoft has created a way to help.

While editing a formula, using the F9 key will reveal the result of any selected portion.  Doing this allows you to troubleshoot and debug any formulas that don’t seem to be working correctly.

Let’s say, for example, that you are in charge of a fundraiser at your child’s school. Read more of this post

Filed under Application (Excel, Access) and Process Development, Business Stuff Tagged with , , , , , , ,

← Older posts

Newer posts →