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I just realized that I have been tracking my net worth for over two years.  In that two years I have had some ups and downs, but this month was fairly average.  As always, you can visit my full report at NetworthIQ.

Want to know how and why I track my net worth the way I do?  You should probably buy my new book, that I launched today, the Personal Finance Arsenal.

I first mentioned that I am working on an eBook quite a long time ago.  I was not lying.  The big day is here.  And for a limited time, I am giving my readers the chance to get the book for 50% off!

Visit the Personal Finance Arsenal to get your copy through a secure online connection.

This resource gives you a step by step approach to build a “fire and forget” automated personal finance system.  If you have ever struggled to keep your finances under control, or if you are looking for ways to make it easier, this is the book for you.

No more fees.  No more overdrafts.  No more headache.

The Personal Finance Arsenal is packed with 42 pages of personal finance expertise from Eric.  He was worked in banking, corporate finance, and has two finance degrees.  His goal, as you know if you are familiar with Narrow Bridge, is to make life easy on you.

Visit the site for a sample section of the book and a link to buy.  If you trust me and want to buy it straight from this page, just click on the purchase button below.

Money back guarantee. If you do not find the tips in this book useful, send me an e-mail within seven days for a 100% refund.

I have recently read a study that demonstrates that the average person is willing to put up with bad fees, horrible customer service, and a bad experience at their bank because it is simply too inconvenient to move.  I am apparently an anomaly, as I am in the process right now and I don’t think it is all that bad.

As I said last week, I am preparing to move my primary banking from ING Direct to Charles Schwab Bank.  I have nothing bad to say about ING, but the benefit of check writing and no ATM fees is a big draw.  I also have my brokerage and credit card accounts at Schwab, so it will be easier to have everything under one roof where I have only had exceptional customer service.

When you are moving banks, the key is to understand your cash flow and slowly bring everything to the new bank.  If you use direct deposit, automatic payments, and online bill pay, you will surely forget about something and pay an overdraft fee or have a payment returned if you try to hit the switch all at once.

To ensure I don’t make a mistake, I am moving slowly.  Step one, which I am on now, is to move my income into the new account.  This is not going to be all at once, as I still plan to pay bills at ING for a couple of months while I move things over.  I have my work direct deposit set to put $100 into the new account on payday.  Assuming it works, I will move 50% the next month so I can start moving my bills to my new bank, but I want money at ING in case an unexpected bill comes in there.

Over the next few pay periods, I will slowly move all of my income and expenses into Schwab, leaving an emergency cushion of about one month’s rent, the highest bill I have, in ING Direct.  I already have the new account on Mint.com, so I am tracking income and expenses from both banks.

I do not plan to keep my ING accounts open indefinitely.  While I feel some emotional attachment to ING as I signed up at a pivotal time in my life where I really began to take control of my financial situation, it is not logical to maintain an account just to keep it open.  Unlike credit cards, closing a bank account has no impact on your credit score.  As long as all of my income and expenses are moved and the account has had no activity for a few months, I will move everything to Schwab.

Charles Schwab Bank, like ING Direct, is primarily an online bank.  Schwab has one branch in Reno, Nevada, but otherwise operates by mail and internet only.  I plan to keep my US Bank account open, as I have for about ten years, as a backup.

Have you ever moved banks?  Please share any tips you have in the comments so we can all learn from each other’s experiences.

I have been invited to the private beta of Plantly, a new investment advising site.  The site has an interesting concept.  You simply input the amount you want to invest, the time horizon, and your risk tolerance.

From there, you are given a list of mutual funds to invest to meet your objectives with

I think it makes things a bit oversimplified, but the idea is very good.  If you invest in diversified mutual funds and ETFs, you will statistically be up in the long run.  It is always hard to know exactly what to do with your money, and Plantly has the potential to be a great way to pick your investments.

If you decide to invest based on the advice of this site, be sure to read the prospectus for the fund and understand the fee structure and how the fund determines its investments.  You can sign up for a beta invite on the homepage.  Let me know what you think in the comments.

P.S. Thanks to Budgeting the Fun Stuff for including me in this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance.

Over the years, the way we listen to music has changed dramatically.  I remember my first Sony Walkman cassette tape player.  I used to rock out to the Ninja Turtles soundtrack and Michael Jackson’s album Bad.  While my tastes have evolved little, my method for listening to music has. (If you can’t pick up on sarcasm on the internet: that was sarcasm.)

My first CD was the Top Gun soundtrack.  I still listen to the song “Danger Zone” when I am on a plane taking off.  It makes me feel like a BAMF.  I rarely buy CDs anymore.  I just pre-ordered the new Linkin Park album, but for the most part, I have gone digital.

I got my first MP3 player in high school.  It held a whopping 32mb, or about 5 songs.  I learned about the incredible potential of music that does not skip when on a bike or running.  I changed my five songs regularly, but it was not until I got my first iPod in college that my music collection began to expand.

In my college days, I used questionably legal methods to amass a collection of nearly 40gb of songs.  My tens of thousands of songs could play for weeks without repeating once.  I have still never listened to a big number of them.  I keep my 60gb iPod full of songs.

Now, we are in a new age.  There are two great online resources that I use for listening to music.  These work on smart phones as well, but I use the PC based version.  Those sites are Pandora and Grooveshark.

Pandora is the best resource I have found to discover new music.  Pandora lets you create custom radio stations based on songs you like.  I have found dozens of new artists and songs from Pandora.  If you reach a song you don’t like, you can just click skip.  You can only skip up to five songs at a time, but it is rarely a problem for me, as the site picks great songs consistently.

Grooveshark is the next generation of music, in my opinion.  On the site, you can find virtually any popular song and create a music library for free.  The site is ad supported, which you can remove for $3 per month (or a handy user script).  I am amazed by the ability to start and stop any song I can imagine for free instantly.

How do you listen to music?  Do you buy from iTunes?  Do you get old fashioned CDs?  Are you one of the proud and true that still keeps a vinyl record collection?  Are you web based?  Is there a better site that I have not seen yet?  Please share in the comments.

I have been a very happy user of a combination of US Bank (since 2000) and ING Direct (since 2007) for a while now.  ING has paid very competitive rates and the online bill pay has become increasingly useful.  However, I am up for a change.

I generally keep a pretty low balance in my US Bank account, as it does not pay interest.  It usually does not matter, but I use that account for both ATMs and writing paper checks.  Occasionally, I want to write a check or make a big withdrawal, and I have to wait for a few days for the ACH to go through from ING.

In hopes of consolidating my accounts, I am planning to switch my primary checking account to Charles Schwab.  I am already a Schwab brokerage customer and I have the Schwab Visa rewards card.  I have been thrilled with the overall customer service and a few extras have tipped me over to signing up for the checking account as well.

The two biggest reasons to change are the problems above.  Schwab offers free ATM use at any ATM worldwide and refunds other banks ATM fees (up to a six transactions or $9 per month for refunds).  They also give you check writing ability.  While I enjoy ING’s online check writing, sometimes you need a real checkbook.

The biggest hesitation I have is interest.  ING pays a better interest rate on checking and savings accounts than Schwab, but the few dollars per month is an opportunity cost I am willing to get over for checking.  I am considering the savings account as well.

I will give you an update a few months in, but I am excited to take a step to consolidate and simplify my finances.  I have nothing bad to say about ING, but I was having trouble resisting the draw of Schwab High Yield Investor Checking.

In The Office, Michael Scott is the ultimate example of horrible personal financial management.  He is a hilarious, obnoxious version of what not to do.  His antics can actually teach us something about how to manage our money.

At one point, Michael was in a relationship with a woman named Jan Levinson. Jan, his former boss, was accustom to a certain lifestyle. That lifestyle involved spending a ton of money. Despite her unemployment, she latches onto Michael and influences him to live a lifestyle that he cannot afford.

While it is funny to watch Michael struggle through the situation, it is one that is very familiar for many people. Whatever the reason, living beyond your means is not sustainable.

Many guys have been drawn into a relationship where they feel that they have to spend a lot of money to impress the girl. I am no relationship expert, but even I know that is not a healthy relationship. Dating should be based on mutual respect and enjoying each other’s company, not money.

Michael has made other critical mistakes along the way. In one episode, Michael bought a new condo. Yes, it is a good idea to buy if it is the right thing for your situation. However, he got in too far without understanding the implications of the transaction.

If you are going to make any long term financial decision, such as buying a home or car, it is incredibly important to understand what you are doing. At one point, a string of bad financial decisions leads Michael to “declare bankruptcy.”

Michael is the reason I have a blog. He is a person that has a good, stable job. He should be in great financial shape. However, he lives beyond his means. He spends money that he shouldn’t. He enters into contracts that he does not understand. He is, simply put, horrible with money.

I really do enjoy watching The Office. I work in an office and enjoy the antics on the show. I can often relate to the situations the characters face. However, I do not look to any of them as an example of how to deal with my money.

In Fight Club, Tyler Durden famously said that “the things you own end up owning you.”  I have written about how hard you have to work for your possessions once before, but I decided to take it a step further and find out how much time I have to work every month to pay bills.

It turns out that I spend nearly 75% of my time at work for recurring bills, including rent, student loans, and utilities.  That means only about ten hours every week are for the things I like to do, such as eating and entertainment.

Click to See Full Size

You can also build a calendar like this.  I have put together a free spreadsheet on Google Docs to help you figure out how much of your paycheck goes to fixed bills.  From that spreadsheet, I created a second Google Calendar that I used to input the work days per month.  It turns out that my biggest fixed expenses are taxes, rent, and student loan payments.

This was an eye opening exercise.  Take a run through and let me know how it goes in the comments.

Thank you to Jason at Live Real Now for including my post wrapping up the Starting a Small Business series, in this week’s carnival of personal finance, the Elvis is Dead edition.

This post is part of a series called “Starting a Small Business,” where we look at the steps to start a business and make it big.

I have worked hard to bring you a beginner’s crash course in what it takes to start a small business and take it through to success.  It is not easy and not certain, but the possible rewards are fantastic. 

If you are ready to become your own boss, take the time to read the entire nine part series:

1. Starting a Small Business
2. The Idea
3. Why Write a Business Plan
4. Testing Your Idea
5. Open For Business
6. Increase Revenue and Cut Costs
7. Go For The Big Time
8. The Exit

But before you rush off and start your new business, read this story about the American tourist who traveled down to Mexico and found an interesting entrepreneur:

An American businessman was standing at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

“How long it took you to catch them?” The American asked.

“Only a little while.” The Mexican replied.

“Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” The American then asked.

“I have enough to support my family’s immediate needs.” The Mexican said.

“But,” The American then asked, “What do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor.”

The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds you buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats.”

“Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own can factory. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But senor, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions.”

“Millions, senor? Then what?”

The American said slowly, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos…”