Reading the news lately makes me a little uneasy about the world of debit cards… how can J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank of America justify putting a cap on spending limits at $50 or $100?  Its that even possible to implement?  How would capping our spending even benefit them?  It looks like under the new rules of the Dodd-Frank financial reform, it looks like it is possible for them and others to do this.  This capping of our precious spending limit might be the result of the “interchange fees” that take place every time you swipe your debit and/or credit card at any place of business.  Currently when you swipe your shiny card, your bank charges the retailer approximately $0.44 for the transaction.  With the Dodd-Frank financial reform in place, this would mean that come July of this year those interchange fees would be limited to $0.12 for the transaction.  As such, companies like J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank of America will be losing out on valuable money.  Those companies feel like they in turn how have to charge their customers more for banking to recoup those lost interchange fees with such ideas like the spending cap, small monthly fees to have a debit card and maintenance fees for having a monthly checking account.  What do you think about the changes?  Does it make you want to take all your money out of Bank of America and try a different bank?  If so, here are some suggestions for what to look for in a new bank:

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I went to an event this past weekend with a local group of bloggers called Boston Bloggers.  I had not formally met most of the girls, but knew their blogs well as I have been following each of them for a while.  The event was at Howl at the Moon which is a new hot-spot in Boston that is a dueling piano bar.  Naturally, it was loud in the venue and we had reserved tables by the stage so I had a little trouble hearing everyone’s name when they introduced themselves and which blog was theirs.  Some of the girls actually had business cards for their blog which was great because I could place a blog with a name and face.  However, I felt a little out of the loop because I did not have business cards for my blog.  I did have business cards on me, but they were for my consulting practice and they are a little formal for my blog.  It got me thinking about the need for business/networking cards and if they are considered to be passe at this point?  Is there a need for me to invest in The Financialite business cards?

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When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing that crosses your mind? Is it when your caffeine fix is going hit? Is it how many minutes it will take you to get ready to hit the local Starbucks? If it is, I cannot tell you that you should NOT go. I’m not going to tell you cut out your coffee because I know that will never work. You would just blackout at the thought of not having your coffee and stop listening to everything that I said. Who am I to stand in the way of someone and their tall caramel macchiato?

I’m not a coffee drinker (read: I have stomach issues and caffeine irritates it), so I do not feel the itch at all throughout the day. I do however wish I owned a Starbucks because frankly the stores are always busy. They constantly have patrons at all hours of the day. I see some people that grab coffee on the way to work, people lined up during their lunch hour, people out the door mid-afternoon and people there all hours of the night doing work.. the place is a cash cow! When it comes to budgeting most people avoid asking me my thoughts on their coffee drinking because they know deep down that if they cut out even one coffee a day, it would save them so much money per week/month/year that they could have been using to pay down some of their other bills. I do not need to be the one to tell them that – nor do I want to see them cut out coffee and have to deal with their withdrawals

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However, I love that the new year is a time for a fresh start!  Its a time to start thinking about what is important in your life and what you need to declutter from your life.  Now that February is here and the holidays have died down, its a good opportunity to look around your office space and think about what you need to organize. Whether its tidying up your desk or purchasing new items to help you organize, you have to make the effort to declutter your office space.  I feel very strongly that an organized office space increases your efficiency and makes you look more professional.

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