Today’s guest article is written by Forex day trader, Thomas Grow. Thomas is a staff writer for ForexTraders.com and certainly has some interesting things to share.

Life has been pretty rough for many of us, these last few years. Personally, in a very short amount of time, I’ve managed to lose my job, my house, my Hummer H2 (my baby), my 401(k), my pension, my savings, my lay-off severance, and I believe probably darn near my mind, as well.

I’ve learned a few valuable lessons along the way. Unfortunately, I learned these AFTER making the mistakes instead of before… but really, isn’t that the way most of us end up learning our life lessons?

In order to ensure that all of our suffering is not for naught, we should always make sure that we walk away from our mishaps with lessons to prevent us (and others whom we care about) from making these mistakes again.

I was fair to ruining all aspects of my life at once, not just in one area. I’m an equal opportunity destroyer. For me, here are some lessons that I have personally learned, from a trading and investing perspective:

1. Buy High, Sell Low… Not a Good Strategy

You’d think this one would be obvious. Yet, time and again, I seemed to be very good at mastering this strategy like some hidden super-talent. As a relatively new forex trader, I have had to learn the hard way that this is not a good strategy. I think I’ve mixed a couple of the words around in that phrase, “Buy High, Sell Low”… does the word order really matter? I’m thinking that, possibly, it does.

2. You Get What You Pay For Or At Least What’s Coming

Note to self:  If you’re going to be trading your last few dollars in the hopes of somehow buying yourself back onto the yellow brick road, then at the very least, be very selective in whom you choose to work with as your trading middle-man. Just because you are saving a pip on the spread, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your overall savings will be a pip. Choose the wrong forex broker, and you may soon find yourself the victim of habitual slippage, or even worse, a toaster to the back of your head when your wife realizes how much money you just lost on your last trade through the discount platform you are using.

3. Don’t Dive In The Shallow End

To have fun in a murky, piranha-infested pond (all the rage), you can’t just dip your big toe in the water and test the temperature. After all, it may feel fine to you, and the piranhas’ teeth may seem too small to cause much damage, but that big ol’ iron rod sticking up at the bottom pointing up may be a problem. Same goes with your investments. I “dipped my big toe” a couple times in an invested. I thought I was being really prudent by testing it out first before taking a major jump in the amount I was investing. Unfortunately, that little toe-dip wasn’t enough. Had I decided to wade out and do some more research, perhaps I wouldn’t have impaled myself financially on Murphy’s iron-stick-in-the-mud spike-o-rama in the middle of the dirty water. Instead of holding a new wad of greenbacks, I get to suffer from financial gangrene. Nice.

4. Mo’ Money, No Money (or, Easy Come, Easy Go Really Fast)

When you do find a little success in some of your decisions, whether it be a good investment (well, until it’s not anymore) or a good trade, it’s easy to start relating to the Top Gun-esque quote, “I feel a need… a need… for greed!”

The fact is, when you start make a little bit, it’s always better to take your money and run, rather than going double or nothing. I tried that the double or nothing thing. I won the nothing part. Yay. Don’t forget the song lyrics, “You got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them, know when to walk away, know when to run…” (Ha! I bet that song will be stuck in your head the rest of the day now!) Don’t forget… that song is called “The Gambler”. And that’s exactly what you’ll be if you take your chances and go for the big wins, instead of remaining cautious.

Summer Break’s Over

So when you look back on the trials you may have or may be going through, remember that there always is, if you choose to look hard enough, a silver lining to those very dark storm clouds. You are not a failure for going through the things you go through. You are only a failure if you don’t learn from the things you go through. Consider this a very expensive tuition in the college of life. Hopefully, lessons learned and applied will help you to be, not just well-weathered, but well-prepared for the future that lies ahead. May you make the most of your past, in order to make the most of your future.

One of the principal questions that most of the prospective homebuyers have is ‘how much house can I afford?’ in reality. It is a fact that housing prices are low in 2010. But, it is also true that thousands of homeowners are losing their cherished homes to foreclosure. That is why it is necessary to know whether you can really afford to buy the house so that you don’t have to go through the humiliating process of foreclosure.

Ways to determine how much house you can afford:

The easy and effective ways to determine how much house you can afford are given below:

1. Housing expense ratio: The housing expense ratio, also known as front-end ratio, is the percentage of your gross monthly income that will go towards paying your mortgage/ housing expenses. A major portion of your payment will go toward loan principal and interest (P+I).Your housing expenses have to be within 28% of your gross monthly income. However, a portion of your housing expenses will also include property taxes (T) and homeowner’s insurance (I). Thus, your total housing expenses can be represented as P+I+T+I. This is a smart way to know ‘how much house can I afford’ easily.
2. Debt-to-income ratio: Your debt ratio is the total of your P+I+T+I and any other debt expenses divided by monthly gross income. Debt ratio will evidently be of higher percentage, as majority of people have credit card debt or other loans. Normally your debt ratio ought to be less than 36%. For example: If your monthly gross income is $5,000, then your total debt expenses must not be more than $1,800.
3. Down payment: If you can’t afford to put down at least 20% of the home purchase price, then you will be required to buy a private mortgage insurance (PMI). Therefore, check whether you can make the required down payment.
4. Home maintenance expenses: Most of the first time homebuyers don’t think about this but the fact is you will have to keep some spare cash for home maintenance cost. You will also be required to keep some extra cash for unforeseen expenses such as appliances break down, replacing carpets, renovating kitchen, remodeling bathroom, and etc. So check whether you can afford to bear those expenses.

Finally, the homebuyers may also be required to pay Homeowner’s Association Fees. So, another way to know ‘how much house can I afford’ will be to figure out the amount of money you have to spend towards Homeowner’s Association Fees.

First impressions are very important to the prospective home buyer, so it’s important to put yourself in their shoes and look at your home as someone else would see it. Preparing a home for sale properly can make all the difference as to how fast your house sells.

First observations

All too often we are so used to our own home that we don’t see it quite the way a stranger would. We take a lot of things for granted or may not even notice – we are so used to them; so if you want a really objective view, why not ask one of your friends to give you their opinion. But make sure you ask someone who won’t be too afraid of hurting your feelings to tell you what they really think.

Ask them about first impressions, and how the house feels to them. Does the house look dirty or have any strange odours? It’s amazing the difference a coat of paint or tidying and rearranging the furniture can make.

Preparing a home for sale is not necessarily expensive, but a bit of time and effort can go a long way to improving first appearances. Here are a few tips to get you started.

12 home improvement tips

1. Tidy up

Put all those clothes and oddments away out of sight and back where they belong. Another suggestion is to put your personal items out of sight, family photos and souvenirs can take up a lot of space and can be distracting to the potential buyer. You already know you will be packing up to move so why not get a head start by packing up those things now?

2. Rearrange your furniture

Now you have cleared away the personal stuff you might have more room to move furniture around. Try and make your rooms feel spacious but arranged in such a way to feel friendly and comfortable. If your furniture is old and a bit on the shabby side maybe purchase a couple of throw overs or some slip covers, just to brighten the room, and distract the eye from the furniture. If you were planning on getting rid of any furniture or household items now would be a good time.

3. Odour free

One of the most offensive things when walking to any home is if there is a strange smell in the air. Old houses often have a musty stale smell, but it’s not that hard to freshen up your house these days – there are lots of products available that will mask or remove unwelcome odours from your home.

4. Carpets & paintwork

Dirty carpets give a terrible impression plus make the room look bad. If you can’t afford to have them professionally cleaned you can hire a carpet cleaning machine and do it yourself. You might be pleasantly surprised to see what colour your carpets really are once you wash them down.

5. Pets

Pets may well be man’s best friend but they don’t help you sell your house, if they are making it smell. Keep litter boxes clean, or even better put them outside; you might not smell anything but a person who doesn’t have pets will see animal hairs and smell pet odours instantly.

6. Sparkling clean

One of the best impressions you can give a person walking into your home is of sparkling clean windows and mirrors. Giving your chrome taps and fittings a polish is easy these days with wipe over cloths. Put out your crystal vases with a nice display of flowers to add a nice touch, and last but not least make sure you dust and polish the furniture.

7. Lighting

Another suggestion, particularly if your house is a bit on the dark side, is to switch on the lights. Just remember to get rid of any dead insects and dust.

8. Kitchen

Check for dirty dishes in the kitchen and that all surfaces are clean and spotless. Take extra special care to check the oven, you would be surprised how many people open the door and look inside.

9. Bathroom

Is your bathtub and shower recess spotless, no dark rims round the edges, no mould peeping out between the tiles? Good, because buyers will notice these things and a nice bright shower curtain helps if you haven’t got a glassed in shower.

10. Leaks

Check all your taps to make sure there are no leaks; replacing burnt out light bulbs is a good idea as well.

11. Garage

You might be surprised what’s hidden in your garage when you come to tidy it.

12. Garden

Cut the lawns and hedges; trim the flowers and any overhanging trees or bushes.

Whatever time you need to spend on preparing a home for sale will be worth the investment if the prospective buyer makes an immediate offer.

This article was written by William Eve. William writes about saving money, investment loans and real estate for Home Loan Finder. If your a first home buyer or looking to refinance, visit the Home Loan Finder website for great advice and competitive mortgage products.

This past weekend I went shopping for a bunch of things, one of which was a pair of shoes.  The sales person rang up my credit card but apparently hit the wrong button.  The register read my card number as the amount of a travelers check.  The register read that the store owed me change of $32,000,000 (rounded).  I took it in stride and patiently waited for them to load up a few suitcases of cash which would allow me to be on my merry way before they would notice their error.  Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and they made the correction.

That leads me to another personal finance question though.  What happens if you are at a register, give the guy a $5 bill and he thinks you gave him a $20.  You end up with change far exceeding the amount you gave to the guy (or girl).  What is the right thing to do?  Accept it as free money?  Give it back to the guy and let them know their mistake?  Does it matter if the error is a huge amount of money or if its just a tiny sum?

One thing I didn’t expect at this new job was the dress code. Even though it’s business casual, it is more “wear whatever you’d like besides sweats.” I think it gets explained away because the people there are “marketing people”. Now, I am totally cool with this. I like wearing jeans most days. However, those around me are making me judge my own appearance (not in an uncomfortable way, just making me think I need to dress the part, as one should).

Over the past handful of years, I have not shopped for clothing much. In particular, last year I bought two shirts, a pair of jeans, and a pair of shoes. Not much. So when words like Ferragamo and Bruno get thrown around, I am slightly outclassed as I should be for a young urban professional that hasn’t made a ton of money (forgive the fact I was wearing an understated Zegna suit at the time).

I have already broken some of the guidelines I learned from The Millionaire Next Door. Prior to reading the book I had previously spent too much on suits, shoes, etc. Luckily I never bought a really pricey watch. So now I am faced with a dilemma. I don’t need to go to work pimped out and dressed to the nines. But, I do have to fit in at this place (which most of my closet allows me to do so).

I think my wardrobe needs to get livened up (especially as i get rid of the shit I will never wear again).

Is this something that typically happens at a new workplace? Different types of wardrobes for different employers?

The new job is going well I feel. It’s been less than three weeks and already I am immersed in the marketing field (something I swore I had little interest in when I was at Butler University — Go Dawgs!). No offense to my previous jobs, but I feel like I am doing challenging and demanding work for the first time since I left grad school.

With that level of demand and a constantly changing workflow (no day goes as planned in an agency apparently) I have been given/forced to work overtime. The cash is good, in fact, really good, but i can’t help but feel a bit guilty about it. Would I be putting in as many hours if I was salaried? I actually think the answer is yes, and I would probably put in more. There are things I wanted to accomplish this weekend that may have taken an entire day, but if I did that, I would have to bill it. This whole situation is great for my wallet but not for my conscious.

I actually think the reason for my guilt is due to my cognizance of my financial situation. For the past two years (since I started my concierge job) I have been measuring opportunity cost for every minute of my life. This is no different. However, I do have someone that has to sign off on this specific opportunity cost. I can spend 8 hours revamping a report to make it easier to use, but is that the best use of my time or the clients money? Furthermore, I give a shit about my employer. I am grateful that they took a chance on me and because of that, I want the company as a whole to succeed. I don’t want to exploit them for the purpose of building a travel fund or an emergency fund.

I know what you are thinking, “the employer would fire me tomorrow if it was in their best interests, so don’t feel bad and bill them as much as you can.” I get that message and it’s probably advice I have given to others over the years. But, I would gladly work 60 hours a week at this place with no qualms (I am enjoying it that much) but I don’t think my employer should have to dish out thousands of extra dollars each month simply because I love my job.

We will see how this all shakes out. My first week I billed 3.5 hours of OT. This past week was 9 hours. I ate a small portion along the way, something I probably shouldn’t have done, but I don’t feel that I that training and education costs should merely be a oneway street. I was tasked to do a job, and if I can’t do it fully to start, I need to get myself to a place where I can on my own time. It’s like a professional athlete. They are paid for practicing and games, not for off season workouts or extra weightroom hours in-season.

Am I approaching this whole situation from the wrong light?

Today MD from Studenomics and I are debating a hot button personal finance topic: Should you pay for your kids’ college education.  He takes the stand that you shouldn’t while I am stepping up to the plate for those that believe you should.  Be sure to check out his article HERE and let us know what you think.

I make no qualms about it.  I was incredibly fortunate and walked away with a private school education and a master’s degree from a top-10 program in its field with only $18,000 in student loans.  The majority of my college was paid for my father with his Amex (if you weren’t aware, if you pay for a college education on your credit card, you are likely to earn enough reward points to get a 50 inch flat panel when all is said and done).

Now, contrary to what you are going to read, I actually believe with MD over at Studenomics on why a kid should pay for his or her own college expenses.  But, where is the fun in a debate without at least one-person playing devil’s advocate.  Read on to see why parents, kids and both parties benefit from paying for a child’s college expenses.

Why – For Parents

There is some incredible savings that can be had by setting up a 529 plan for your kids’ education.  While there may be some state deductions you can take for contributing to a 529, there are no federal deductions.  However, that doesn’t mean this plan isn’t the shiz.  If you put money into a 529, it will grow tax-deferred.  When you go to withdraw funds, it will be free of federal taxes.  That is some serious savings.  Considering there are no income limits in order to contribute and the contribution limit in most states greatly exceeds $300,000, this is one of the best vehicles to invest.  Oh, and for the control freak parents out there (read the next paragraph too), the money inside of a 529 doesn’t ever leave the donor’s control.  If for some reason you would rather not give the contents of the 529 to your kid, you don’t have to.  It’s not their money, it’s yours.

To go along with the money remaining under your control, the obvious benefit of paying for your kids college is that you now have a say in their decision.  I am not suggesting you hold this over your kids’ head. But if you feel they need to work hard for grades in high school or they need to apply for scholarships to help offset some of the costs, you have the means to persuade them.  However, I do urge you not to limit their school choice or their choice of study (being a Jewish kid, the old joke was, “what’s your major? Law or medicine?”).  Let them be an individual, but you do have some say in how they reach the end goal by using your means.

Why – For Kids

The benefits for paying for your kids’ education greatly favor the children, but that shouldn’t be a surprise.  There are two major benefits that will make a difference in your children’s life if you pay for their education.  The first benefit is that they will be able to focus on more things than just making money while in college.  That means they will be able to spend more time studying, more time looking for quality internships (even if they are unpaid) and more time partying.  Yes, partying – on your dime! The relationships that people foster in college last a lifetime and help to build a social network and framework for their careers.  You should be proud to have your kids be partying with your money, as these types of relationships will make them far more successful than the average college course.

The second benefit is giving your kids a fresh start upon completion of college.  Instead of feeling weighed down by a mountain of debt they will be free to go after their dreams.  There are enough examples of personal finance bloggers that feel bogged down by student loans and end up taking a 9-5 job they can’t stand because they feel the pressure to pay down their debt.  Us readers can empathize with them.  If you have the means to aid your kids, this may be the greatest benefit of all.

Why – For Both Parties

There are some additional benefits to paying for your kids’ college for both parties.   Primarily, after college you can get rid of your kids and they can get rid of you. You paid for college, therefore if they hold up to their end of the bargain, they should be able to find work at go out and start their lives.

Economically speaking it makes sense as well.  Making best use of your money and your kids’ money, using a 529 saves you from capital gains tax as well as saving your kids from having to pay interest on loans they would otherwise have to take out.

Thanks for reading my side of this debate.  Be sure to check out the flipside over at Studenomics and let us know what you think by leaving a comment.

What a week this has been.  Since the blogger happy hour last Thursday, my life has gone in all sorts of weird directions.  Lots to tell and it all ties into personal finance.  Things get better as you scroll down, so I hope you pick up on my excitement.

Plutus Awards

First, and most importantly, I want to tell you that I have been honored with probably the coolest thing since I have started blogging.  I was nominated for two Plutus Awards (twice for one award!)

The Plutus Awards were put together by Flexo of Consumerism Commentary and are going to be awarded to the best of the finance world.  There was an entire section and several categories devoted to blogs and bloggers.  A lot of my favorites received several nominations.  Congrats to each of them.  Voting begins today, so take a look below at the categories that I was nominated for along with some really amazing competiton.  I am truly humbled to be associated with these great writers.

Plutus Award Category: Best Multi-Part Series

• Blogger Showdown (Budgets Are Sexy)
• Core Tenets of Get Rich Slowly (Get Rich Slowly)
• Friday Financial Foul Ups (My Next Buck)
• Myths (Financial Highway)
• The Spectrum of Personal Finance (My Next Buck)

Plutus Award Category: Best Kept Secret Personal Finance Blog

• Carrie… On the Cheap
• Eliminate the Muda
• My Next Buck
• Out of Your Rut
• Frugal Zeitgeist

Best of luck to all of those nominated in these categories.  I am super excited to be in such amazing company.

Becoming a One Trick Pony

This past weekend, I quit a job for the first time (delivering  pizzas doesn’t count… my car got totaled).  Effective Monday, I am no longer a concierge at the apartment building.  Its kind of a shame, but I have made some great friends there and surely have some memories.  After 20 months of 7 days a week without a day off, I am happy to try and reclaim some of my mid-twenties back.

Unfortunately, I am reminded of a Henry Rollins spoken word bit where he rants about people saying they want to “catch up” on sleeping or “catch up” on reading.  He went on to say something to the effect of you, “You can’t take each day for granted.  You either sleep or don’t.  You either read or you fuckin’ don’t.  You can’t ‘catch up’.”  Makes me feel a bit like “reclaiming” my mid-twenties is an impossibility. At least I have no debt and a lot of mutual funds to show for it.

Taking That One Trick and Hoping to Improve It

As of this morning, I have given my notice to my actual 9-5 employer that I am no longer going to be working for them after two weeks.  I am moving to a marketing agency to work in their marketing intelligence department!  I am really excited about this opportunity as it will give me a whole new skill set and allow me to use my brain in a way I haven’t since late in college and grad school.

One thing to note is that I will be a contractor for the time being at this position.  Which means I am self employed.  I want to give a big shout out to Cash Money Life and Money Blue Book as I used their information about estimated taxes and self employment taxes when making my decision to take my career in this direction.  You will see a lot more writing about how to truly live as a self employed individual.  I will talk about my quest for health care and dental coverage, filing estimated taxes, writing things off, etc.

As you can see, its been an exciting couple of days.  Forgive this being a week with only this post and a Foul Up on Friday.   Things are just a bit hectic and show no signs of calming down.

By now most of you know us bloggers opinions on pay day loans and check cashing places.  But to be honest, I have never walked into an Ace Check Cashing location.  The closest I have been to a pay day loan place is in some of the movies I have seen recently.  Its funny though, each of these interpretations have something in common, which probably leads to my distrust of these types of institutions: Desperation.

Movie Examples

Lets look at my first movie example: Rounders.  This was an awesome flick with some of the best actors of our day in Matt Damon and Ed Norton.  There is a scene towards the end where Matt Damon has to go to a check cashing place in order to get the $10,000 he needs to play poker against the russian mobster played by John Malkovich.  Maybe Damon’s character has a bank, but at 10pm in the morning, when you need at least five-figures in cash, it’s the 24 hour check cashing places that you have to go to.

Another movie that brings us to a check cashing establishment: Catch Me If You Can.  Here Leonardo DiCaprio goes to several check cashing locations and passes off fake checks which he created so he could stay ahead of Tom Hanks’ police character.  Yeah, this is a scam, but if you are running from the police, and able to make fake payroll checks, by all means, go to town trying to cash them (just be prepared to reap the consequences).

A really bad flick (sorry to be a hater) that also shows a check cashing shop in all its glory is: Cut Off.  The smokin’ hot Amanda Brooks stars in this film where she is cut off from her wealthy family and decides to start knocking off check cashing establishments with her scumbag boyfriend to continue living her spendthrift lifestyle.  As you can imagine, this is a bad idea, especially if you acidentally shoot a security guard (not to give away any plot details).

What would make me use a check cashing service

As stated above, each example involves desperation.  When writing this article, I started to think, “what are the reasons I would find myself at a check cashing location or needing payday loans?”  I think for the most part my answers were all less than likely to ever occur.  Check em below:

• Running from the mafia
• Running from the feds
• To settle a large gambling debt
• To cash a check when out of town
• To bail out a friend from jail
• To hide my financial situation from a spouse

I will consider myself fortunate as I have good credit, I have credit cards that aren’t maxed, and I have an emergency fund.  However, I know, and I am sure you do as well, people that don’t have even ONE of those three things.  For them, check cashing locations are an attractive option to getting the necessary funds for their survival.

I think we’d be surprised.  A lot of people in this country do use check cashing establishments.  A lot of people don’t trust banks and a lot of people have no other options.  Personally, I wish it weren’t the case, but I understand that these places do serve a purpose in most communities.  Its those that go to them in times of desperation that are really putting themselves in danger.

This is a guest article by Flexo from Consumerism Commentary. Flexo is currently on a ten-day, ten-venue tour.

“It ain’t the money.”

I started my career out of college working for a non-profit organization involved with the arts. Yes, after graduation, I took myself and my thousands of dollars of student loan debt and walked away, at least temporarily, from the career my education and certification would have otherwise directed me: teaching. I wasn’t exactly clued into personal finance at the time, so I made some mistakes with my money and my life decisions.

Although I ended up leaving my non-profit aspirations behind after years of mismanaging my finances, I would be in a better position to return now. I’m a fan of the benefits that non-profits provide for communities and for their employees, and working for a non-profit can be a great starting point for any career — or life.

The one drawback is, of course, they don’t typically pay well. But even that can be interpreted as an advantage.

1. Non-profits force you to focus on your personal finances. I failed at this until reality kicked in, but a job at the lowest end of the salary scale should make you consciously consider your money situation. This is an opportunity to be forced into several good habits that, while even if abandoned when cash flow improves in the future, will continue to underlie your philosophy and relationship with money.

Low income will force you to learn budgeting techniques as well as to track your expenses. You will discover how to live on less money than your friends.

2. You will learn the meaning of hard work. While there are some exceptions, most non-profit organizations do not have the resources to comfortable achieve their missions. A lack of resources like capital and staff requires everyone to pitch in more. In my experience with the non-profit where I worked, even with hundreds of un-paid volunteers, the organization’s staff of ten worked 80 to 100 hours a week during some parts of the year.

3. You will broaden your skills with multiple responsibilities. In addition to long hours, you may find that your responsibilities include more than just one function. In my ten-person office, we each had multiple responsibilities simply because there weren’t enough people for everyone to be a “specialist.”

For example, my primary function was to run an educational program for 30,000 high school students across hundreds of high schools, but I also maintained the organization’s frequently-updated website, manned the customer service telephone line for the teachers we supported, provided hardware and software technical support to the other staff, functioned as a network administrator, planned and managed events, shuttled volunteers from airports to event sites, and designed our operations-related databases.

4. Meet talented and passionate people. While working for a non-profit, you will have the opportunity to surround yourself with some of the most amazing people you will ever know. One way of improving yourself is to seek the company of people who are the best in the world. Get to know the people who sit on the organization’s Board of Directors because they share the same goals and often bridge the gap to the for-profit world.

5. Doing what you love will keep you motivated. If you love your job, it won’t feel like work. That will be a great benefit when you will be spending most of your waking life for the benefit of the non-profit. If you align your occupation with something you are passionate about, your performance on the job will be better than if you were to work in a corporation without passion.

6. You can change the world. For a corporation, particularly a public company beholden to shareholders, your job always boils down to increasing the company’s bottom line. There is little personal reward in that goal, so corporations make up for this by offering salaries, bonuses, stock options, and a slate of other benefits. In a non-profit organization, you are also “paid” by the satisfaction of doing something good for the world’s benefit, whether it is saving lives, reducing poverty, making education affordable, bringing enrichment opportunities to children, or some other worthy cause.

Working for a non-profit organization isn’t for everyone, but it also isn’t only for the rich who have little need to build wealth for their family. You can have a comfortable and rewarding life, and you can build wealth, by working for a non-profit.