Tag Archives: Time

Activity CLUB

Ways to Have Fun on a Budget: Kubb

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With football season starting back up strong, tailgating games are back in fashion.  Some of the more popular games including Corn Hole and Ladder Ball offer a simple setup and team competition, but often lack a touch of strategy that makes another game great.  A Swedish game called Kubb is set to spread like wildfire among the lawn game crowd.

What is Kubb

Kubb is an easy to learn, yet challenging yard game for people of all ages.  Anywhere from two to twelve players can play at once making it great for any occasion.  The game is based on a simple concept of knocking over blocks with batons, but provides much excitement as the game develops to the eventual take down of the king block.

In general, this is how Kubb is played.

  1. Each team sets up 5 blocks on a goal line and a king block is placed in the middle of the field – let’s call it the 50-yd line.
  2. Teams alternate tossing 6 batons at the opposing blocks with the objective being to knock over all blocks on the opposing goal line and then the king block (think 8-ball).  If the king block is knocked over in any way before the right time, that team loses.
  3. The extra element of the game is that after each baton toss, the opposing team picks up any knocked over blocks and must toss them from their line of scrimmage to the other half of the field and attack these blocks before going after the opposing goal line.
  4. Always toss batons and knocked over blocks from the standing block closest to the 50-yd line.  Usually this is just your goal line but if the other team messes up, this could be further up field.

If you’re a little confused check out the official World Championship Kubb Rule Book. I have yet to find a person who has tried Kubb and not loved it, so find a way to try today.

Where to Get Kubb

The great thing about Kubb is that you can make it yourself in 15 minutes. Based on the advice of a good friend, I recommend going up to your local home improvement store (e.g. Home Depot) to purchase the following.  Most stores will provide the cuts for free or at a low cost.

  • An 8 foot 4×4 fence post with some type of styled top.  Cut 10 blocks that are 8in in length starting at the bottom.  This will leave you with a 16in piece with the styled top which can be the king block.
  • 2 round dowels (wooden poles) each a yard in length. Cut the 2 dowels into 1 foot batons so that you have 6 batons. I recommend using 1.25in diameter oak wood dowels to keep these as heavy as possible so they can knock over the blocks.
  • You can also consider purchasing 4 stakes to mark the boundaries of your field.

Altogether, this should cost $20-25.  Alternatively, you can purchase Kubb online for $60-80.

Activity C.L.U.B. Ratings

Community
10 – With room for 12, this game allows any group to enjoy a nice day outside.
Low Cost
8 – Although the game can get unreasonably expensive when buying online, ten minutes in a home improvement store makes the cost of this game a great deal.
Underrated
9 – It’s one of those games you have to see to believe so most people are skeptical before trying. Everyone ends up loving the game, so I won’t be surprised to see this on ESPN2 before long.
Beneficial
7 – Throwing sticks may not be the most physically challenging sport but at least it gets you outside.

For more great lawn games, check out the Wikipedia Lawn Games page.

(photo Johan Larsson)
Life, Money

Why and How to Buy Time

Outsourcing unnecessary tasks in your life is one strategy I believe will free you up to what you are designed to do best.  With that said, it can be hard to justify paying someone to do a task you could do pretty easily.  I’d like to present an idea on why paying for outsourced tasks is worthwhile.

Opportunity Cost and Time

Opportunity cost is a concept that generally urges someone to consider what opportunity they are giving up when doing something new. If the lost opportunity (a cost) is greater than the new opportunity (a gain), then the status quo should remain intact.

When evaluating what you are willing to pay for an outsourced task, you shouldn’t think about the difficulty of the task. Instead, you should consider what opportunity you are giving up when you do that task.

If you can be investing in skills or a hobby that could benefit you by adding a hundred dollars to your salary or giving you new income, then it may make sense to pay someone $10-$20 per hour of time saved. Even if that task is mowing your lawn and you are willing to do it yourself, the incremental value of that hour may justify finding someone else to cut the grass.

What to Outsource

When I discuss outsourcing, I’m not referring to shipping all your duties overseas (though that is a possibility). Most of the time these tasks can and will require you to invest in your local community. There are some tasks, though, that may best be served by someone around the world. Either way, you are creating jobs for others while improving your ability to contribute to and benefit from others.

Here are some simple examples tasks that anyone can outsource. Consider which ones may best help you and come up with your own that best fit your situation.

  • Home Cleaning – it may seem like something you’re supposed to do, but if that time is worth more to you then consider giving it up.
  • Lawn Care – people who live in apartments already outsource this. Consider giving it up if you don’t love getting outside every week to keep things green.
  • Personal Secretary – it’s not just for corporate managers anymore. Some people have found it worthwhile to outsource time consuming tasks like email to personal agents in India. Check out the 4-Hour Work Week blog for more crazy ideas.

Finally, don’t just weigh the amount of time a task takes you. There are always those tasks that provide us with a break from everything else in life or a chance to do something just for fun without worrying about money. Until you find the career that provides you with this enjoyment, don’t give these hobbies up.

Next week I’ll lay out some ways to use your free time as an investment in your future.  For now, I’m considering giving up home cleaning or lawn care to have more time to invest in my skills and revenue generating hobbies. What could you consider giving up?

Why and How to Buy Time is featured in the Festival of Frugality at My Personal Finance Journey.

Life

Hear Malcolm Gladwell and Steve Jobs for Free at TED

It’s always fun and beneficial to go to conferences where subject matter experts let you in on some of their secrets and how to advance in whatever you love doing. The downside of course is that conferences can cost hundreds of dollars and require days of your time. Although they still may be worth it, what if there was a place to go to get this content instantly and free?

Well, believe it or not, one website should be considered the YouTube channel of great speeches. This site, TED.com, offers hundreds of great speeches that cover everything from Money and Happiness to the Axis of Evil Middle East Comedy Tour.

TED.com Ideas Worth Spreading

TED started out as a conference aimed to spread ideas on technology, education, and design in 1984. They still hold annual conferences around the world, but the online site has given access to everyone for free. Additionally, all conference profits are dedicated to a TED Prize with the intention of seeking “goals of global impact.” For more information on TED and the why the group is trying to spread great ideas check out this page.

Best of TED

Advice is easy to find online, but it’s not always what you need to hear. Here are some talks, though, that may change the way you see life and the goals you choose to pursue.

Malcolm Gladwell – On Spaghetti Sauce

  • Gladwell is the well known author of The Tipping Point and Outliers. In this speech, he makes the case that there are no universal absolute desires (e.g. no universally perfect spaghetti sauce), but that each person seeks different things.  Companies and people should embrace this to appropriately find ways to make people happy.

Steve Jobs – How to Live Before You Die

  • Steve Jobs created a following of “Apple Fanboys” with his company’s iPod, iPhone, and Mac computers. This great speech at a Stanford graduation makes the argument that making the most of each opportunity, doing what we love, and counting our days is the best path to success. It also provides viewers an inside look at Steve’s life and what led him to making Apple what it is today.

Daniel Kahneman – The Riddle of Experience vs Memory

  • Kahneman is one of the best known researchers on behavioral economics. In this talk, he analyzes how people’s memories impact their happiness. Let me know what you think about his research on pain in surgery.

Jeff Bezos – Gifts vs Choices

  • Bezos created Amazon.com. In this address to a graduating class at Princeton, Jeff discusses how our lives are more based on the choices we make than on the talents we are born with.

What is your favorite? Have any speeches you want to recommend? Let everyone know in the comments.

Life, Money

Ten Great Time, Money, and Fun Facts

Life is full of interesting facts, tricks, and shortcuts. Here are 10 of the greatest regarding time, money, and fun.

Time

Money

  • If you can get someone to agree to the following pay scheme you will have $10 million in a month. Just ask them for a penny on day 1, two cents on day two, four on day three, and so on.
  • In a Ponzi scheme like Social Security, the rate of return is equal to the growth rate of members. With the US population growth rate and Social Security returns around 1% (before considering SS money is spent for other things), you could make significantly more money investing your Social Security tax in basic mutual funds or savings accounts.
  • Assuming you are the average American, your national debt burden is greater than $43K.
  • Income mobility is better than most people think. Between 1999 and 2007, people moved up from the bottom quintile of income earners 60% of the time and down from the top quintile 40% of the time. This is partly due to the fact that the top quintile pays nearly 80% of our taxes and the bottom quintile pays roughly 1%.

Fun

  • If you have just 23 people in a room, there is more than a 50% chance that two will have the same birthday.  With just 50 people, there is a 97% chance. This is known as the birthday paradox.
  • You can count to 31 using just one hand and to 1023 using two hands. Check it out on YouTube.
  • Despite being the best selling movie of all time, Avatar doesn’t even break the top 10 when revenue is adjusted for the times. Top three are Gone with the Wind, Star Wars, and The Sound of Music.

Know any cool facts or stats that didn’t make my top 10? Let us know in the comments.

(photo sam_churchill)
Life

How to Succeed – Lessons from Sim City

haljackey on Flickr

I loved playing Sim City growing up.  The game allows anyone to build the coolest city in the world.  Hate traffic?  No problem, build extra highways instantly. Love sports?  Perfect, a new stadium on every block. In Sim City, you make the rules and in the end your creation happens plus you get rich!  Although it’s just a simulation game, Sim City is a great tutorial on how you can succeed at any endeavor; it just speeds things up a bit.  If you reflect back on what helps people dominate at Sim City – small steps, delegation, and strong standards – you know what it takes to be extremely successful.

One Step At a Time

In Sim City you don’t create a massive metropolis just by wanting it; you take time to build on small successes.  It’s easy to imagine your ideal city, but odds are it never turns out exactly like you originally thought.  Your ability to react to unexpected problems and the needs of your people determines your true success.  Then as you gain more money and power you can start driving closer to your goals, but remember each small win is what brings you to success.

  • Have a plan but don’t over do the details.
  • Focus on solving the current problems and reacting well to unexpected situations.
  • Continuously check if your steps are moving you in the right direction.

Delegate Often

Timothy Ferriss is the current king on life delegation with his book The 4-Hour Workweek.  He outsources nearly every step in his life that he believes is not his to worry about it.  Similarly when you’re building your dream city you set the layout and provide infrastructure and let your Sims figure out the rest.  They decide how the buildings look, what industries to create, and how they live.  You do what only you can do and the Sims do the rest.  All your endeavors should be viewed this way.  There’s plenty of people out there who can help, and the more you can pass on, the more you can focus on what you are truly best at.

  • Outsource work when you can be doing something more important.
  • Take time to train others so that you have more time to do what only you can do.
  • Delegation helps others who need work and frees you up to do better work.

Strong Standards

A strong city builds itself but relies on the infrastructure created by the leader.  In the city this may be appropriate taxes, proper zoning, and efficient means of transportation.  When you delegate out work you are allowing others to succeed and help you succeed, but this will only move in the direction you want it to if you have strong standards for others to build upon.  This may be the most intangible factor to your success, but also the most critical.  Consider your goals, your standards of success, and your ethics and then decide how to communicate them to the people supporting you.

  • What are your goals, standards, and ethics?
  • How do you plan to use them to influence others?

Success is easier than most people imagine.  By focusing on the next step instead of getting lost in huge plans, by passing off all the work that you are not meant to do, and by developing an infrastructure for others to follow you, you can achieve your dreams.  Take some time to figure out what this means for you and start achieving one step at a time.

What’s a goal that you realized was easier than first thought?  Got any games that help put things in perspective?  Let others know in the comments.

Featured, Life

Do I Really Need to Read?

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I recently met the well-known M.D. Ben Carson, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins, and his story is of great inspiration.

Why Read?

Ben Carson grew up in a poor area of Detroit, Michigan. His father left his family and the odds of him “becoming something” were low. As a young child he performed poorly in school and was bothered by classmates poking fun at him when grades were announced. Luckily, his mother with her third grade education was wise enough to realize that the answer to getting out of his aimless life was to start reading. Continue reading Do I Really Need to Read? →

Carnival

Find Time, Save Money, and Have Fun Blog Carnival – 1st Edition

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Welcome to the 1st Edition of the Find Time, Save Money, and Have Fun Blog Carnival from Obsessed Analytic.  Each edition will feature the best blog posts online with great ideas for you.  This week features great posts regarding saving money with planning, time wasters, tips for young people, and party games.  Be sure to check them out and vote on your favorites below.  Also, if you have a blog submit your posts or host in the future to help attract readers.

Best Overall

Continue reading Find Time, Save Money, and Have Fun Blog Carnival – 1st Edition →

Money, Technology

No Cash! How to Pay Via Text with Venmo

Cash is a great system that helps many people control their spending, but for those who have taken hold of their budget there is a great benefit of cashless systems like online banking. The newest method of exchanging money that may lead the way in the next decade is paying over your mobile phone via text message. One of the best young companies to offer the service is Venmo.

Try out Venmo now by using invite code “obsessed-25“.

How Do I Pay With Text

Paying via text is very similar to paying via email and online with PayPal. You essentially tell Venmo who you want to pay and how much and Venmo will arrange the transaction. This requires an account to be set up with Venmo prior to or following the transaction so that you can move the money into your normal checking account.

The format for sending money with texts is fairly intuitive.

Pay <number or username> <amount> for <memo line>

For example, if you need to send me $10 for dinner you would text the following to Venmo (646-863-9557)

Pay ryank 10 for dinner last night

Benefits and Concerns of Paying With Text

Paying with a text message offers a number of great benefits.

  • Quick – Payback friends or businesses instantly without carrying cash.
  • Free – Unlike PayPal, transactions are free when using the Venmo network.
  • Easy – Request money from people who owe you (Venmo has a “Trust” feature to instantly charge friends in your network for money)

There are also some concerns with paying via text, but hopefully these will get cleared up as the concept becomes more mainstream.

  • Security – Is it safe? Venmo helps by letting users cancel transactions within 24 hours online and recommends that users use a PIN to lock their phone. Other competitors require a PIN for each transaction to help add a level of security.
  • Simplicity – Not everyone wants to set up another account online to manage money, but Venmo helps make this easy by allowing users to sync bank accounts straight from the phone
  • Ubiquity – Until the service gets popular it may be hard to explain to your friends why they should pay with text. The concept has gained more familiarity, though, with the “Text to Haiti” campaign which helped raise over $50M.

Try It Out

Venmo is available via private invitations only right now, but has provided me with 25 invitations for my readers. Use the invite code “obsessed-25” to try it out. After signing up, let me know what you think or send the following text message to Venmo (646-863-9557) to donate $1 to the blog.

Pay ryank 1 for cool blog

Other Reviews Online

Venmo review on AllThingsD
Venmo review at Thrillist
Venmo – The Future of Payments
Venmo’s Simple Loaded Premise – Pay Your Friends from Your Phone
Venmo Possibly Abolishing Friendly IOU
Venmo – SMS Based Payments

Life

How to Live Beyond Time and Money

This past week I took a short break from blogging to reflect on everything else in life. As wonderful of a hobby as blogging has been for me, I always like to take some time to reflect on my life and make sure I’m heading in a good direction. Although I enjoy looking at great ways to save time and money, the past week of reflection have helped me remember the important things in life. So if you’re ever stuck in a time when money or time or some other personal worry is overwhelming you, I hope you come back and think about these ideas on living beyond money.

Time is Limited and Money is only a Tool

I always like focusing on finding time and saving money because they are two things that are very useful.

  • Time is our greatest commodity and most limited resource. We all have the same amount per day and will make some decision on how we use it.
  • Money is the great medium of exchange. It allows people to serve others indirectly in a way that has helped millions.

But while useful, optimizing your time and money can be a distraction.

  • If you spend too much time worrying about your time, then you won’t have any time left to worry about.
  • It’s not worth it to save up millions while giving up great opportunities. Money is a tool that should be used wisely.

Take a Break and Serve Others

If you find yourself in a phase where all you worry about is time and money, then take a break to serve others. Sometimes thinking about money and time gets me so caught up on myself that I need a way to look outward. Here are some ways to impact others.

  • Buy some friends dinner. This helps build relationships and reminds you that treating your friends is a lot more fun than treating yourself.
  • Support a cause with Time. It’s easy to write a check to help someone, but take the next step and spend a day building a Habitat house, working at a homeless shelter, or aiding someone with a handicap. This will greatly impact your heart and remind you that you are blessed to have as much time as you have.
  • Reflect on your priorities.  Taking time to step back and think about what your priorities are versus what you are actually doing should help figure out what’s out of line.

Don’t Be Mastered by Time or Money

In the end, time and money shouldn’t control you. They are two things that if used well can make your life great or destroy it if used poorly. Whenever you realize that your life is being run by a constant need for more time or money, just step back and think about what you are really living for.

Thanks for your time. What are your thoughts about living beyond time and money? Leave a comment or send this to a friend.

Money

Learning What to Spend and Where to Save – Part 2

Last week, in Learn What to Spend and Where to Save – Part 1, I wrote about buckets to consider when setting up your budget. Although it’s different for everyone, it’s important to understand the types of saving you need for different goals in your life and how much you should constrain yourself on spending. This week I’ll offer some great places to put your money based on my research and own experience. If you have any suggestions you want to offer, feel free to help the readers by adding your recommendations to the comments below.

Continue reading Learning What to Spend and Where to Save – Part 2 →