Did you see the story last month where Maryland commercial real estate company St. John Properties gave its employees a huge year-end bonus? It was all over the national news because of the size of the company (198 employees) and the size of the bonus ($10M total). A Laudable Move There’s a lot to like […]
On My Nightstand: Shoe Dog & When Helping Hurts
It’s summertime and I have a bit more time to read. There’s no school activities for the kids, and Nora is off school also, and frequently on the road, visiting people and places. Here’s what’s on my nightstand. None of these books are new, but I like each of them for different reasons. BTW, I […]
What We Can Learn from Two Celebrity Job Applications
In March, Pippa and I flew to Portland, Oregon to visit Lewis & Clark College. She was in the homestretch of her college search. When she met up with her student host for a planned overnight, I wondered what to do. I love to cycle, but the nearest bike rental shop was four miles away […]
I Completely Destroyed the Rear Window of My Car
I’m the self-appointed ‘Best Driver I Know,’ so it came as a real shock to hear the rear window of my Scion xD violently implode as I was backing up recently. I mean totally disintegrate into a thousand tiny bits, one of which I later found had rocketed all the way to the front seat, […]
Our Fee-Only Financial Advisor Inadvertently Contributed to Our Retirement Fund
A few years back, Nora and I decided we needed to see an independent financial advisor. We’d been putting it off, because Nora gets really basic guidance from a retirement specialist who drops by her school on occasion, and we had very little cash. Probably because we’d blown it all on tuition. Once we made […]
For My 16-Year-Old Daughter, 8 Lessons on Finding That First Real Job
Pippa is a junior in high school so naturally she is thinking about colleges…and majors…and jobs. She’s a confident girl, but utterly lost about what jobs or career to pursue. That’s not unusual at her age, but I think she thinks it is. The girl in her class who has always known she wants to […]
Selling Unused Household Items Is a Win-Win
If possible, I like to score a win-win. That applies to relationships, but also making money. Can you make a living while also making a positive impact on the world? Can you earn a paycheck while being a good Christian witness? A few notches lower on the significance scale, but a win-win nonetheless: Can you […]
My Time in the Bathroom When I Should Have Been at My Desk
I had a former job where I spent extended periods in the bathroom. I know what you’re thinking: Poor Barnaby. Must have be suffering from urinary tract infections or chronic explosive diarrhea. Well, I wish that were the case (ummm, maybe not), but the truth is more embarrassing: I saw work as a time when […]
What Is the Cost of a Long Commute?
When is a long commute worth it? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself ever since I took a job in Annapolis, 33 miles from home. That’s 24 miles more (one way) than my previous job in Baltimore. I wasn’t looking for a job that far away, it’s just what happened when I got aggressive […]
One Can’t-Miss Strategy for Landing Your Next Good-Paying Job
I have one piece of advice to anyone looking for a job: Don’t Do What Everyone Else is Doing. This applies to your first job or your 10th. An entry-level job or a senior management position. A summer internship or a Christmas-season job. This advice is related to the conventional wisdom that you are more […]