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Shiny & Sundry

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Time LifehackThis time lifehack was originally posted at blooom.com/blog under Brent’s pen.

Seven or more hours of sleep per night? That’s what the National Sleep Foundation recommends for adults. A half an hour of exercise each day? Those are numbers from the Department of Health and Human Services. One hour to eat per day – says who? The USDA, that’s who. With so many things to do in life, we decided to crunch all the numbers of what the experts “recommend” you do in a 24-hour period — and the total adds up to 30 hours in this nifty time infographic!

Well, that’s life for you: 30 hours of steps to perform in 24 hours of moves. See how we can free up a move for you!

Meet Our Fictitious Player Kari: She Can Relate to the Time Infographic

Kari’s a 37-year-old single mom with two kids: Jasper, who’s 8, and is always playing baseball; and Cassie, a 4-year-old who enjoys finger painting butterflies.

Kari works full-time at a local department store, and loves picking up her kids from school after work. Once they’re all home, Kari feeds the kiddos, helps them with their homework, puts them to bed, and finally makes sure everything is all set for the next day. After that, she decides to spend some time before bed researching 401ks and financial planning. But 10 minutes into her research, she falls asleep. Her 24 hours are up, but the time infographic says she has six more things to do.

Sound familiar?

A Managed Account Can Help You Lifehack a Move

At this point, you’re thinking the same thing as Kari: How in the world can I get all this done? Life is a tough game. We all have hectic schedules and can relate.

We’re not positive whether you can lifehack your way to all 30 moves. But we do know one thing — a managed 401k account is one lifehack you can play to get closer.

So … what is a managed account?

Your BFF of personal finance savings here. Heard of savings crafts?
Using Crafts to Create Piggy Bank

Okay. Full disclosure: I’m probably doing this in the reverse order of what I should … but you really should stick around for the fun.

So … a fear fact, a friend to help and then like good friends do … we’re going to go out for some fun.

Fear Fact: We’re Not Saving Enough. Period.

First, the savings fear fact. According to The Associated Press – NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 66% of Americans would struggle to pull together $1,000 to cover an emergency.

If you’re a homeowner, it’s not hard to imagine $1,000 bill of any kind. And, apparently, this statistic is not isolated to people making less than $50,000 year. Even America’s wealthiest households would be challenged to collect the money without selling something or borrowing it. Of the households earning more than $100,000 a year, 38% say they would have some difficulty coming up with $1,000. 1. 

And this saving struggle affects people’s ability to save for retirement. Our wheelhouse, for sure. When the same Associated Press poll asked people if they will have enough money to retire on time, 54% called the likelihood … dubious.

Why We Care? Your 401ks Best Friend

We know every dollar counts. That’s why we provide education on all manner of savings approaches, not just getting mooola into your 401k.

If you’re a saddled with debt, we outline the common question of whether it’s better to pay off the debt (the student loan variety in this example) or investing in your 401k .

Or, if you have no debt and are eager for a saving strategy, we implore you to try the 10% Savings Trick for retirement and an emergency fund.

But friends should not only be about lending advice but also ready to have some fun.

Some Savings Crafts Fun: The New Piggy Bank

A couple months back, I go into get a haircut and Lauren (she, Michelle or Parker generally cut my hair – I like to diversify) and I get to talking. At first, it’s the typical stylist/client small talk.