Blog - Making Sense Of Cents

When was the last time you did something that scared you?

August 13, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 23 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Scaring yourself is a good thing – it means that you're pushing yourself to do something new and outside of your comfort zone. This can help you grow as a person and continue to improve. #scareyourself #motivation #dreamlife #lifetips I'd be lying to you if I said that our new sailing adventure didn't scare me.

We are currently around three months into our new boat life. We are very happy with our purchase and the huge life change that we have made.

We are excited for our future, all of the amazing places we will visit, and all of the learning experiences that we will get to have.

However, making this huge lifestyle change has been a little scary for me.

The first month of boat ownership was an interesting one. Before we bought our boat, we were constantly told that there are two best days in a boat owner’s life:

The day you buy you boat.
The day you sell it.

And, for a moment there, I thought that was right, haha! [Read more…]

The exact template that helped my site earn $95,000 in affiliate income last year

August 10, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 57 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Hello! I have a great guest post from Mike Pearson. He is very knowledgeable when it comes to SEO and used his expertise to earn $95,000 as an Amazon affiliate, with 88% of his traffic coming from Google. He only works a few hours per week on this and has had huge success! Below is what he did and he teaches you this in this HUGE guide that is over 5,000 words. Enjoy!

Hi all, my name is Mike and today I’m going to show you how you can really increase your affiliate income by following the SEO and keyword research blueprint that I’m about to lay out below.

If you can execute on the steps I’m about to show you, then your SEO will improve and your Google rankings will go up and your organic traffic will increase, allowing you to make more affiliate sales for your blog.

By the end of this post, you will know …

What a user’s intent is when they’re searching in Google and how to capture them along the sales funnel
Why your blog’s “relevance” is so important to ranking in Google and how to use this to your advantage
How to uncover dozens of keyword ideas that are perfect for generating affiliate income
How to find keyword ideas that your competitors are already ranking for
How to analyze a keyword’s competitiveness and whether it’s worth going after

(Also, I have a bonus at the very end that will help you create epic pieces of affiliate content that rank in Google). [Read more…]

11 Real Ways To Make Money Before The Holidays

August 8, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 13 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Are you looking to find ways to make extra money for Christmas and the many other wonderful holidays of the season? Find ways to make holiday cash for Christmas here. #holidaycash #waystomakemoney #waystomakeextramoneyforchristmas #holidays After reading the title of this, I know what you’re thinking – but, it's August! But, now is a great time to start preparing for the holidays, instead of waiting until November and December.

The fall and winter holidays can be so expensive. Between Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the many other holidays, the average person tends to spend around $1,000 just on gifts. This amount doesn't even account for other holiday spending, such as travel costs, food, get togethers, decorations, and more.

A lot of you were wanting to know about the different ways to make extra income during the holidays, such as ways to make extra money for Christmas, for many different reasons: to increase your monthly income, to save more money, to help pay for holiday expenses, to have more holiday cash, and so on.

This led to today’s post about making extra income during the holidays! After reading this, you'll learn about the many different ways to make extra money for Christmas and any other holidays that you may celebrate.

If you would like to save $1,000 for the holidays, that's just $250 a month for the next four months. If you find ways to make extra money this early in the year, then saving for the holidays is very doable! [Read more…]

The Factors That Go Into Your Credit Score

August 7, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 5 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Hello! Today, I've partnered with Lexington Law to dish out some knowledge on the factors that go into your credit score.

Have you ever thought about the various factors that go into determining your credit score?

You actually have a lot more control in your credit score than you think!

This is important to know because your credit score can play a major role in you and your family's life. While you shouldn't go crazy and completely obsess over improving your credit score (life is already as busy as it is!), it is important to learn more about them due to the impact they may have.

Your credit score can influence the interest rate you receive on a loan, buying a home, finding a rental home, attaining certain jobs, your insurance rates, and more.

While your credit score can impact your life in a big way, that doesn't mean it's hard to increase your credit score. [Read more…]

Would you risk your relationship and finances to cosign for a friend?

August 6, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 16 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Cosigning a mortgage or other type of loan can be a horrible idea. In fact, it turns out bad for a lot of people every year. Before you cosign, read this! One of the worst financial mistakes a person can make is cosigning for another person.

Okay, before you think I'm a heartless person, just hear me out.

No matter how well you think you know someone, mixing money and relationships can completely change things. What you may have thought was a wonderful friendship or family relationship may turn into a horror story.

It may seem very innocent – you’re just helping a good friend or relative get a loan. Really, if it was that simple, I’d tell everyone to do it. But, being a cosigner is making a major financial decision that you need to seriously think about before agreeing to.

A cosigner may be needed for different things such as a:

Mortgage
Rental home
Car loan
Recreational vehicle

And more. [Read more…]

10 Easy Instapot Recipes – My New Favorite Gadget!

August 3, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 14 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

My 10 Budget Recipes roundup proved to be popular, so I'm back at it again with 10 Easy Instapot Recipes.

As you can probably guess, I finally purchased my first Instapot!

We've always had a slow cooker. I bought one about ten years ago for a whopping $14, and I've used it multiple times a week ever since.

I've definitely gotten a ton of value from that small purchase and decided to upgrade to an Instapot since my crockpot was falling apart.

If you're looking to get your own Instant Pot, I recommend checking out the one I purchased – Instant Pot 3 Qt 6-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Sauté, Steamer, and Warmer.

Food is one of the largest expenses a family can have each month, which is why I'm a big believer in, and lover of, weekly meal plans. If you are looking for some new easy Instapot recipes to add to your weekly meal plan, then you've come to the right place.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the average family of four spends around $700 to $1,000 a month on food. That’s a lot of money, especially considering that most families waste a large amount of their food each month! [Read more…]

Ditch Your Car And Walk More

August 1, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 16 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

4 Reasons To Ditch Your Car And Walk More As I recently said in Welcome To Paradise – We’re Living On A Sailboat!, we no longer have our Jeep. Since we are preparing to cruise and will be leaving the marina soon, we no longer have a need for full-time use of a land vehicle.

Now, technically we still own our Jeep, but it’s currently being stored at Wes’ parent’s house. We love it and put a lot of time and money converting it into an overland vehicle that is great for exploring the country without worrying about needing a place to stay. But, for now, as it’s being stored far away, we are completely carless.

Due to ditching our car, we will be commuting by dinghy, folding bikes, and walking.

Some of you may feel bad for us, but we're actually really excited! Perhaps this novelty will wear off eventually, but for now, we're excited to make this change. [Read more…]

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