The Inspiration for MoneyRemix

My Step-Dad

Growing up, I was raised by parents with low to moderate incomes, but I received everything I needed and wasn’t deprived of anything. Around the age of seven or eight, my parents divorced and my mom was forced to provide for me on only her income and a small amount of child support. Luckily, she had a close friend who allowed us to move in with her and the rest of her family and although it was pretty close quarters, we made do with what we had and were just thankful to have a roof over our heads.

Not long after the divorce, my mom started dating a man who would later become my step-dad. I was too young to fully appreciate it at the time, but my step-dad was absolutely incredible. He started his own, extremely successful contracting business from scratch and provided for my mom and I until I moved out on my own at the age of 21. For 14 years, he gave me nearly everything I ever needed and asked for, including my first car, my first computer, fancy vacations to the Bahamas and Aruba, and even a cash gift to cover closing costs on my first house. As if that weren’t enough, he even gave me a share of Berkshire Hathaway (Class B) (BRK.B) stock for Christmas in 2006.

With that said, my step-dad is my first and probably biggest inspiration for starting MoneyRemix. His generosity and success as an entrepreneur never cease to amaze me and will no doubt motivate me to live my life to the fullest.

Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey is something else - either you love him or hate him. For the uninitiated, Dave Ramsey is the host of his nationally syndicated radio program, The Dave Ramsey Show, and an accomplished author of 14 books - three of which were on the New York Times Best Seller list.

Personally, I don’t love him, but I really, really like him. I’m not totally in love with the Christian overtone of his program and books (not that there’s a thing wrong with it - just personal preference). Religion aside, I absolutely love his blunt, common sense approach to personal finance. He regularly tells callers that either they or their idea is just downright dumb, and although that might sound harsh, it’s the tough love a lot of us need to get our finances and lives back into shape.

I won’t go into further detail about Dave Ramsey in this post, but definitely look out for more posts about him in the future.

Interested in reading more about him? You may wish to read these books, written by Dave Ramsey:

• The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness
• The Financial Peace Planner: A Step-by-Step Guide to Restoring Your Family’s Financial Health
• More than Enough: The Ten Keys to Changing Your Financial Destiny

Warren Buffet

Warren Buffett and his legacy are really beyond words. Worth approximately $62 billion (as of this writing) and world renowned as one of the greatest investors of all time, he’s also one of the most level-headed and down to earth people you’re likely to come across. When he’s not strumming his ukulele, playing bridge, or indulging in his daily cherry coke, he’s acquiring new businesses and solving the world’s problems by donating billions of dollars worth of stock to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Rest assured, you will see a number of posts about Warren Buffett in the near future.

Interested in reading more about Warren Buffet? You may wish to read these books:

• The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America
• The Warren Buffett Way
• The Winning Investment Habits of Warren Buffett & George Soros

The couple on Tybee Island

Two weeks ago, my girlfriend and I took a long weekend trip to Savannah, GA and a nearby, tiny beach town called Tybee Island (view map). The day before we returned home, we drove out to Tybee from Savannah and after scrounging up enough change to buy us some time at the parking meter, we headed to the beach. To be honest, the beach was nothing amazing - it was clean and not terribly crowded, but I tended to focus on one thing nearly the entire time we were there: The older couple in the picture above.

They fascinated me. The woman never took her nose out of the book she was reading and her husband was completely fixated on the waves breaking on the shore. Between the two of them, not a single word was spoken. What was the deal with these two? Did they live in the mansion on the other side of the dunes? What do they do for a living? Is the guy in a coma or what?

Then it hit me - this couple was perfectly content. They didn’t seem to have a care in the world. Even though I was having a great time laying there, enjoying the weather and scenery with my girlfriend, I still had plenty in the back of my mind (How much time is left on the meter?, How am I doing on my vacation budget? How many emails will I have to contend with when I get back to the office?). How incredible would it be to be so well off that you can simply walk a block to the beach, unfold a chair, and snooze by the ocean, day in and day out, without a care in the world? By staying on top of my finances and diligently saving and investing my money, this is a goal that I can feasibly accomplish.

Other personal finance bloggers

There are some amazing personal finance bloggers out there. Almost two years ago, I stumbled upon Get Rich Slowly and the timely, well-written, practical articles really resonated with me. I soon began seeking out similar blogs and it wasn’t terribly long before I came across my absolute favorite personal finance blog of all-time, The Simple Dollar. Trent, author of The Simple Dollar, consistently posts some of the most useful and interesting articles on a wide range of topics at a breakneck pace - multiple times per day.

These bloggers are really on top of their game and their combined efforts will not only keep me well-educated, but will keep me on my toes as well.

A few other personal finance blogs I read regularly:

• Lazy Man and Money
• Consumerism Commentary
• Wise Bread
• The Digerati Life
• Prime Time Money

For the complete, up-to-date list of personal finance blogs I read, make sure to check out this list.

Final Thought

So there you have my five (and then some) inspirations for creating MoneyRemix. As I gain a steady audience, I plan to add you, my reader, as my next inspiration and will do my best to provide you compelling personal finance articles based on your feedback. Thanks so much for reading!