How to Talk with Your Parents About Their Finances

Talking to your parents about their finances probably seems like one of the most awkward you conversations you could ever have. I'll bet it ranks right up there with the sex talk your parents gave you when you were a kid — or that you’ve had with your own children. I grew up in the South, where we don’t talk about money or sex. So when I asked my mom...

3w

Great lessons from great men

Because I write a personal finance blog, I read a lot of books about money. I'll be honest: they're usually pretty boring. Sure, they can tell you how to invest in bonds or how to find the latest loophole in the tax code. But most of them lack a certain something: the human element. Over the years, I've found that it's fun to read a different kind...

3w

What is a robo-advisor? An introduction to automated investment tools

One of the joys of writing a money blog like Get Rich Slowly is the continuing self-education. I'm always reading and learning about personal finance. A lot of the times — as in the past month — this education is about esoteric topics. I'm currently diving deep into the history of personal finance, a subject that's interesting to me but admittedly not...

4w

“Saving rate” vs. “savings rate” — What’s the difference?

Those who know me well will tell you that I'm something of a pedant. I'm not proud of it. Left to my own devices, I'm one of those who'd go around correcting everybody's grammar. It grates on my nerves when people mangle their usage of “me” and “I”, for instance. (It's never okay to say, “She gave that to my wife and I.” And you can't make “I” possessive:...

5w

GRS Insider #92: Racism is not a political issue. Racism is a MORAL issue.

Yesterday, as I do most Fridays, I sent the GRS Insider to folks who subscribe to the Get Rich Slowly email list. The email was unusual. It was more like a blog post than a simple summary of recent articles. I've had several people request a version they can share with other people, so — this one time only — I've created a stand-alone web version....

Jun 2020

A lesson in economic violence

J.D.'s note: Last September, I wrote that I didn't believe the world of personal finance needed more politics. I acknowledged that there were vast systemic issues that hold people back, but I argued that personal finance is personal. While I still believe that individual action is (and always will be) the primary driver of financial success, my “no...

Jun 2020

A candid conversation about race in America

Minneapolis, Denver, NYC, Oakland, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Louisville, San Jose, Des Moines, Detroit. The list goes on. These are just some of the cities that have experienced protests in the past week. George Floyd's murder (and murder-porn video) was one of the catalysts for these protests. But let's be clear: Sooner or later, this was going to...

Jun 2020

Who invented the index fund? A brief history of index funds

Pop quiz! If I asked you, “Who invented the index fund?” what would your answer be? I'll bet most of you don't know and don't care. But those who do care would probably answer, “John Bogle, founder of The Vanguard Group.” And that's what I would have answered too until a few weeks ago. But, it turns out, this answer is false. Yes, Bogle founded the...

May 2020

Great lessons from great women

A decade ago, J.D. shared some great lessons from great men. He had a wealth of material to draw from: biographies of historical figures from centuries ago, classic business texts, and the earliest self-help books. If you want to compile lessons from great women, however, you don’t have the same sources, because women have not been considered “great”...

May 2020

What’s the best long-term investment?

What's the best long-term investment? Because you're a money nerd (and a GRS reader), I hope your answer to this question was, “Stocks!” If the future is anything like the past, that's the correct answer. History has shown that stocks are the best long-term investment — and by a wide margin. Unfortunately, most Americans believe otherwise. As a part...

May 2020