Life Archives - Making Sense Of Cents

Living Your Best Life Starts With No More Excuses

February 18, 2019 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 20 Comments

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Living Your Best Life Starts With No More Excuses #livingyourbestlife #dreamlife Have you ever thought of something you wanted from life, but then told yourself it couldn’t happen? This could be something like getting a promotion, paying off your debt, or retiring early.

Well, you’re not alone.

Everyone is guilty of making excuses, and I know that people will continue to make them until they realize that excuses are just that – excuses. My goal today is to get you on the path to living your best life, excuse free.

As a personal finance expert, I hear a lot of reasons for why a person can't save money, pay off debt, live the life they want, reach retirement, and so on. These people see the success of others and give themselves a reason for why they can’t have the same reality.

Just think about the last time you said, “That won't work for me because (insert your excuse here).”

I hate seeing this because you can start living your best life if you just say, “no more excuses.” [Read more…]

My Year In Review – Looking Back at 2018 and Looking Forward to 2019!

January 7, 2019 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 32 Comments

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Looking back on the previous year is always a lot of fun, and it’s interesting to see everything laid out in a one year period. I get to see what I did and didn’t do, reflect on everything, etc. So, I am happy to present my 2018 year in review.

2018 was a crazy year. But don’t worry, it was good crazy!

One of the biggest reasons for the chaos is that we made a major change in 2018 – we went from RVing to living on a sailboat.

That big change made for an amazing year.

Before that switch, we traveled to many new areas in the RV. We also climbed mountains, rode our bikes a TON, hosted several family vacations, then we sold the RV, bought a sailboat, and more.

On top of all of that, Wes traveled even more than I did – he logged over 5,000 nautical miles, sailed all over Europe, as well as sailed the Caribbean. [Read more…]

45 Ways To Live Life To The Fullest in 2019

December 31, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 25 Comments

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45 Ways To Live Life To The Fullest in 2019 #howtolivelifetothefullest #dreamlife Do you feel like your life isn’t going the way you want? And, do you want to start to live life to the fullest?

If you want to make a change for the better in the new year, one that will help you live life to the fullest, today is the day to start living the life you want.

2019 is the year for you to change your life for the better.

No matter how life is going for you, I believe that we are all in charge of our life. And, even when bad things happen, we get to decide how we handle those setbacks. Because of that, I believe that everyone can live life to the fullest like they want to.

If you feel that things are not going the way you want them to go, then change it! You can improve your life and how you perceive it by changing your actions and reactions.

For that reason, I’ve packed this post with my best and most actionable tips for 2019 so that you can learn how to live life to the fullest in the new year. I know that you can make this new year your best ever. Enjoy, and I hope this year is a great one for everyone. [Read more…]

Ask Me Anything

October 31, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 240 Comments

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Last year, I published my first Ask Me Anything here on Making Sense of Cents. That went super well, so I decided to make it more of a regular thing!

Ask Me Anything is literally that – you can ask me anything. If you’re struggling to figure out what to ask, here are a few of the topics you may want to know more about:

Personal finance
Blogging
My life
Travel
RVing
Sailing
Being location independent
Business
Making extra money
Questions about my dogs

And so on, and so on.

Seriously, ask me anything in the comments below, and I will take the time to answer every single one. Of course, please nothing inappropriate or creepy. I'll let you be the judge of what is creepy, I guess, haha!

All right, go for it, ask away!

P.S. If you're looking to see all of the comments and questions, make sure to hit “Older Comments” or “Newer Comments” below. The comments break apart in pages once there are over 50 comments.

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

August 13, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 35 Comments

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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!

4 Mindsets That Will Rob You Of Your Dream Life

June 4, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 38 Comments

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4 Mindsets That Will Rob You Of Your Dream Life #dreamlife Are you your own worst enemy?

Recently, I read a discussion in which people were talking about the ways they hold themselves back and cause themselves to fail at their dreams.

This got me to thinking about all of the habits and mindsets we use, sometimes unconsciously, to hold ourselves back, and trust me, I’m even guilty of some of these.

This is something I've talked about extensively on Making Sense of Cents – how you are often your own worst enemy when it comes to reaching your dream life.

We all do have things that hold us back, and I don’t want to overlook or underestimate the difficulties people face on a daily basis.

But, today, I want to talk about a few ways people self-sabotage and may fail at reaching their potential, then robbing themselves of their dream life. [Read more…]

29 Money And Life Lessons I’ve Learned

May 21, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 29 Comments

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29 Money And Life Lessons I've Learned

I always think it’s a good idea to reflect on any life and money lessons you’ve learned throughout the years. While it helps me see what mistakes I have made, it also reminds me that I’ve made good decisions too. Whether they have been good or bad, I’ve learned a lot of valuable life lessons.

I usually just let my birthday fly by, but I realized that my birthday would be a good time to think about the lessons I’ve learned and share them with you.

I published the first of these posts two years ago, 27 Money And Life Lessons I’ve Learned, and last year I added another for 28. That’s one lesson for every year, and now I can add one more lesson, which I plan on doing for each new year ahead of me.

I really think self-reflection is a good idea because we can learn so much from the past, both the good choices and the mistakes we’ve made.

And, I've made mistakes, but I've also made some great choices. I've learned a lot of valuable life and money lessons, and now I am happier than ever. [Read more…]

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