استعملت مكافأة محفظة أن [كيب ترك وف] كلّك [فرقونت فلر] أميال

باستثناء بنفسي الوقت من يتذكّر كلّ من ك [فرقونت فلر] برنامج أرقام, [إإكسبيرأيشن دت], ويكدّس أميال ونقطات ب يستعمل مكافأة محفظة. يترك هذا موقعة حرّة أنت خلقت حساب أن يخزّن كلّ من أميالك ويمنح برنامج معلومة في واحدة مكان.

كيف هو يعمل

أنت تبدأ ب يخلق بسيطة [لوجن] اسم وكلمة سرّ مع مكافأة محفظة. أنت ستكون يمكن أن يختار من أكثر من خطّ [فرقونت فلر], فندق, [كر رنتل], و [كرديت كرد] مكافأة برامج. مكافأة محفظة يبرمج قوارن مع كلّ مكافأة وب يدخل في ك برنامج [أوسرنم] وكلمة سرّ سيحدّ كلّ من معلومتك تلقائيّا.

• مكافأة يعطي محفظة أنت الخيار من ينقذ كلمت سرّك مع هم أو محلّيّا على حاسوبك. أنا أوصي يحافظ كلمت سرّك محلّيّا إن هو يكون حاسوبك فقط.

أنت أيضا ستكون يمكن أن يدخل أخرى معلومة مثل بريد إلكترونيّ إشعارات عندما يبلغ أنت مؤكّدة نقطة أو ميل هدف أنت قد ثبتت وسيكون [إميلد] 90 أيام قبل عندما أميالك لبرنامج خاصّة حوالي أن يمضي. (يساند الصيغة حرّة من مكافأة محفظة فقط 3 عمليّة زفير إشعارات مهما.)

مكافأة محفظة قارن

هناك ليس أيّ شيء ميل حول القارن, هو بسيطة أن يبحر ويعدّل البرامج [أس ولّ س] نقطات وأميال أنت قد حدّرت فوق. أنت يستطيع أيضا استردّت نقطاتك من خلال مكافأة محفظة أيّ سيسحب معلومة مفيدة مثل [هوو مني] كثير أميال أنت سيحتاجون أن يأخذ الرحلة إلى أرجنتين. هناك أيضا ساحة حيث أعضاء يستطيع عدّلت صفقات هم قد تصادفوا و `توصيلات' لذلك أنت يستطيع شاركت بعض من معلومتك مع صديقات.

• There are two versions of Award Wallet; the free one and then Award Wallet Plus. Aside from getting an unlimited number of expiration notices (instead of just 3 for the free version) Award Wallet Plus lets you record and pull more information from each reward program. (You get to set the price for an Award Wallet Plus subscription.) For most travelers though, the free version of Award Wallet will suit the basic purpose.

A Useful Web Tool

I wasn’t paid to write about Award Wallet, I just thought it was a useful website that will make life a bit easier for travelers. One big mistake most travelers make is not using mile or awards programs at all, or neglecting to include their information when booking a flight or hotel. The more programs you sign up with the hard it becomes to keep track of each one. I’m always fumbling to find specific reward program numbers myself. Award Wallet is free to use and is an excellent tool to use in conjunction with the Frequent Flyer Master eBook.

Do You Use Credit Cards To Finance Your Travels? [POLL RESULTS]

Several weeks ago I introduced you to the hidden underbelly of traveler debt and asked if some of you are using credit cards to finance your travels, and to what extent. I was a little surprised that only a few of you responded you’ve got some debt on your accounts, but glad that’s the case.

Debt is difficult to manage and can help you travel in the short run but negatively effect your plans down the road in a big way. There are many good ways to reduce debt and save for your travels like cooking peasant meals, cutting your electric bills in half, or using some unconventional methods. Personally I recommend the direct approach and overcoming debt all together.

How To Figure Out The Best Places To Travel On A Weak Dollar

Much has changed since I originally wrote the best the places to travel on a weak dollar and the subsequent 7 up and coming best places to travel on a weak dollar. (Iceland can now be taken off the list, like I predicted, prices are making a steady increase now 18 months later.) You can still find relatively good deals in any country you travel to, but if you want to find your own best places to travel on a weak dollar, here’s how you can create a personal list for yourself.

Make A List Of Where You Want To Go (Don’t Omit)

Start by creating a list of the places you want to travel and don’t leave off any place just because you “know” it’s expensive. Once you have this list you can group it into regions, in order of personal preference, or any other categories. You may begin to notice similarities in the cultures and places you’ve chosen, or the reasons you chose them (i.e. wonderful beaches).

Look On The Borders

As soon as a countries economies turn their focus on tourism and the industry takes off, so do the prices. It’s one of the reasons that independent budget travel to Cuba and other popular destinations is so expensive according to Lauren Quinn. One good way to get around this is to look right across the border of the expensive places you want to visit. Thailand is a good deal, but Cambodia is better. The Mediterranean coast of Northern Cyprus is just as lovely as the Turkish one but about a quarter of the price.

• Borders don’t cut off cultures, peoples, regional foods and traditions. Also, if you book your hotel, hostel, or other accommodations near the border you can see both the ‘expensive’ country and the cheaper one you elected to visit. It will cost less and you’ll add variety and get to make a few cultural comparisons in the process.

Remember though when looking for cheap places to travel, when a country or area’s neighbors start to get expensive it’s one of the warning signs of losing that cheap destination.

Use The Right Tools

There are some great digital tools you can use to see how one currency is holding up against another.

• My favorite is the Economist’s Foreign Exchange Map which shows in a nice graphic interface how any two currencies are moving against each other and at what rate.
• The Currency iPhone app (which also works on the iPod touch) gives you real time updates on current exchange rates you can use for last minute trip plans.
• Google makes converting currencies very easy and Google hacking your next trip is a good skill to learn.
• The news. It’s not a very sexy or automated, but you can gather a lot of information and get a good idea of where economies are headed by monitoring local and regional stability and economic trends.

Leave Your Comfort Zone

It’s easy to set your focus on one single destination and the longer you do the more complacent you might be on considering other places where your dollar (or other currency for that matter) might go a bit further. At this stage you may consider canceling your trip if the economy (or dollar) takes a turn for the worse. Instead take a look at 8 places in the world you should visit but might be scared to or use these methods to figure out where to go.

I’d still suggest these destinations that are good deals and less crowded than their neighbors.

• Nicaragua
• Cambodia
• The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
• India
• Indonesia
• Micronesia
• Nepal
• Zambia

Especially in the case of the dollar, which is doesn’t go to far in the Eurozone or the UK, there are always many other countries with much weaker currencies. The best part is that they don’t tend to be too far (or different) from the more expensive options.

[photos by: shyb, nathangibbs, Jeff_Werner]

The Hidden Underbelly Of Traveler Debt

It’s lurking out there, the aspect of financing your travels many travelers don’t talk about. Debt. Many travelers are funding their journey using debt in some form and racking up hefty bills to keep their trips going. Debt is the short path to traveling and the simplest way to get there is by credit card. It’s much more prevalent than you think and if you’re considering traveling in the long term you’ll do yourself a favor by avoiding the dark (or red) side.

The Easy Path

Credit essentially reduces the amount of time you have to wait to buy most things, including airline tickets. Traveling now in the long or short term is not worth paying off debt later. You can avoid the underbelly of debt by first off assessing your own financial situation and then doing something most travelers are good at – minimize.

• Overcome debt by hacking away the inessential.

Reducing

Many people who want to travel or follow a vagabond lifestyle are good at reducing and saving…at first. The more you cut back and save, the increased temptation you have to spend on other things. You’re saving now so why not buy a few tickets to Europe and just pay yourself back? Often you don’t end up paying yourself back and will still have a wonderful trip at that.

That’s where the troubles can begin.

More Travel Less Saving

As your travels increase the more you want to keep the momentum going and maintain the sense of freedom and exhilaration traveling can bring. The problem becomes almost a cycle, except that the debt actually keeps you grounded and makes it virtually impossible to leave the things that may tie you down. Funding your travels with more and more debt also can’t continue indefinitely.

First Thing’s First

Save for each of your trips before you take them so you don’t have to rely on plastic to pay for any part of them (you can’t payoff in time). Get real and add up the numbers, what are your total credit card balances?

• Don’t finance your travels with credit. Attack the credit card debts you have and knock them off, then you can work on your simple travel budget.
• Turn your skills into money, Elance is a great resource to look for freelancing projects.
• Learn some of the travel secret ways to save when you do travel.
• Try the free online tool BillShrink to efficiently hack away at those credit card payments.
• You can pay off $50,000 in debt with a 20K salary in 10 steps and 5 years.

Is It Really So Bad?

Having debt isn’t a necessarily bad thing, it only becomes troublesome when every time you travel the total amount increases and you take your next trip before whittling it down. Dumb Little Man has a good set of ways to maximize credit card reward programs and Bankaholic has a good set of tools to compare various rewards programs, interest rates, and more.

But Life Is Short

There is the argument that life is short and with the future unknown, getting into a little bit of debt to see Thailand fox example, is a good trade. It seems as though younger travelers subscribe to this line of thinking more than middle-aged and older people. Take a look at your average life expectancy and consider that we live in the safest time in human history. Chances are you’ll live long enough to pay off your credit card balances.

Why The Traveler Debt Cycle Won’t Be Going Away

Human beings are poor assessors of risk, one of the reason why things like hotel terrorism plans are a waste of time. People in debt will still take trips because they find “a great deal” (there are always great deals somewhere and deals come back on everything) and will spend because they perceive they are saving.

The Taboo of Traveler Debt

I suspect there is much less saving going on among travelers than it seems or who at least use plastic as much as the general population (which varies quite a bit around the world). Debt is a big issue, the elephant in the room that isn’t talked about very much. Much of travel writing focuses on saving or getting a good deal – but what about if you’re already a few grand deep in credit card bills?

[photos by: iandavid, alancleaver_2000, MENE TEKEL]

How Would You Put $10 To Good Use For Traveling? [RESPONSES]

You can use small amounts of unexpected money you get as gifts, find in the couch, or otherwise for traveling, provided you make the small effort it save it. Below are some of the responses I received when I asked,

“What creative ways do you save or spend for traveling the small amounts of unexpected money you get as gifts or find in your pockets?”

• Stephanie: All my money generally gets lumped together in one mass sum but these smaller bits are useful for buying things like guidebooks or other travel supplies.

• Shannon: A friend donated cash to me while I was in Scotland for my trip and I very specifically used that money to see a Fringe show…with the extra $20 though I picked out one that I was sad that I wasn’t going to get to see, used the extra few dollars for a beer, and then enjoyed the heck out of it!

• Akila: Now that we’re traveling, we put any change or extra amounts we find into a bag and then spend it on internet charges or laundry. It’s not particularly romantic or fun, but it works!

• Mark H: I’m also a change in a jar (actually an old margarine container) person.

• Quickroute: I’d buy beer but then I’m Irish – What d’ya expect!

Considering we all tend to run into or accumulate these micro-quantities of spare money, it’s best to account for them in your simple travel budget.

[photo by: alamosbasement]

Interview With Stephane Pingaud About New Service Cost4Travel

Stephane Pingaud recently got in touch with me about a new project called cost4travel. I was intrigued and wanted to learn more about this free service. Stephane shares some information about this new service which I think many travelers will find useful.

In a ‘tweet’ of characters or less, what is cost4travel?

cost4travel provides a way for travelers to record and reference their travel costs, so that other travelers can budget realistically for their future trips.

How did cost4travel come to be?

cost4travel is the result of a personal travel experience (a 2 month, country-wide, backpacking family trip in Thailand, back in summer 2007) during which we asked ourselves many times: are we being ripped off by this speed boat owner, scooter rental agency or dive shop, shall we search for cheaper accommodation? etc.

Upon my return to Europe, I felt the web would be an ideal platform to let travelers exchange and share between each other travel cost-specific information, to the benefit of the entire traveling community.

What differentiates cost4travel from other travel price comparison tools online (i.e. Kayak)?

Travel meta-search engines, while very useful in the travel booking process, do not offer a complete picture of the travel costs to be expected from upcoming trips. They rely on suppliers’ data gathered by spiders, and cover only the flight, accommodation and car rental components of travel, and do not offer qualitative reviews.

For these reasons, we saw an opportunity in developing what I’d call a ‘social’ travel search engine, where price information will come from the travelers themselves, not the suppliers. It would also cover an extensive range of travel-related products, from flights to accommodation, taxis, ferries as well as related services like restaurants, sports & activities, insurance, visa fees etc.

(The first version of www.cost4travel.com only covers flights, accommodation, car rental, ferry, train, bus & taxi and finally restaurants. We will add other services as we progress, starting with attractions.)

What stage is cost4travel now?

cost4travel is not yet a company; we’re still at project phase, managed entirely and exclusively by the two co-founders. If the adoption rate and data contribution are satisfactory, we hope to be able to secure a partnership with investors and establish the company.

We have a first (beta) version online, open to anyone, that shall help us define with the validity of the concept with the traveling community; it allows travelers to centralize and organize the costs of their trips in one place, and therefore be always up-to-date to what they’ve spent on their travel. With this information, we’re building cost4travel’s cost database which will in the future help travelers search for the lowest, highest and average prices for selected travel products, destinations and dates, by fellow travelers, and read associated comments.

However, the version currently online does include a very basic search module, which offers travelers the means to view specific trip and travel reports as data is initially inputted. It goes without saying the number of  trips from other travelers you can search is very limited due to the fact the number of travelers using the site to centralize and organize their own travel cost reports is still very low (we launched last week).

The site is only in ‘international’ English and targets any traveler worldwide who’s got a basic knowledge of that language; we’re planning to localize the site in many languages when we have secured financing and can therefore get more resources.

What do you hope or envision cost4travel to become in the coming months?

Our immediate goal is to get enough visibility with travelers in North America and western Europe in order to establish whether the concept of our web site can fly, i.e. leisure – and possibly un-managed business – travelers do want to better organize their travel costs and control their travel budget. If they do, we grow our cost database and therefore are in a position to provide relevant results to travelers that will use our future ‘social’ search engine.

If they do, it’ll also mean that:

1. Potential investors will be interested in cost4travel, leading to company creation and first round funding.
2. We will be able to speed up our development cycle, initiate the development of mobile applications, introduce a loyalty program for travelers, look at innovative product features etc.

I hope to be able to tell you in January that all these things are completed and/or their way.

Are there any cool features you’d like to share that you haven’t mentioned yet?

The truth is that the key features of our site is My Trips, which lets travelers create trips online, upload travel costs associated to these trips and then manage those as well as individual cost items as needed. For instance, you can check how much how much you paid in flights, hotels, car rental , restaurants etc for a specific year(s). This is the feature which will enable travelers to get a good grasp on their travel budget.

Now, regarding the feature that I have not mentioned yet, you’ve got My Alerts. All My Alerts does is to inform by email whenever someone has uploaded to cost4travel a travel cost for a service and a destination that you’re interested in, and obviously give you the details of that cost, and associated comments.

Thanks again Stephane, best of luck with cost4travel. I’d encourage any readers who check out the site to leave your feedback here in the comments to get your take on the site and thoughts on the idea itself.

How Would You Put $10 To Good Use For Traveling?

Budgeting big expenses is easier than accounting for spending on little things, and the opposite holds true as well.You may get small monetary gifts on special occasions, make a small amount of money from your travel blog, or win a $25 Travelocity gift card (like entry #9 in The Cheesiest Travel Photo Contest).

Spending a big sum of money is easy, but it’s usually hard to figure out how to spend a small gift. Amounts to small to cover an entire flight, but enough for an ubiquitous kitchen magnet.  I’m curious,

What creative ways do you save or spend for traveling the small amounts of unexpected money you get as gifts or find in your pockets?

$10 is a start, but what about $7, $2, or less? Does that money simply exist out of the budget (that is you spend it on a whim) or do you meticulously keep track of it for your next big night out? For me, it’s usually either or. I spend it as ‘free money’ or put it in savings right away.

I’d like to hear your creative system for handling small amounts of money that pop up randomly from time to time as you travel.

[photo by: David Robert Wright]

Use Corporate Discounts To Get Better Deals No Matter Who You Work For

Large hotel and car rental chains, as well as many airlines, all give corporate discounts for employees of large companies that most anyone can take advantage. Hotels, airlines, and other players in the travel industry typically give these discounts to entice the huge business a corporate partner can give them.

Since sales staff will rarely verify your employment by a corporate partner you can often get a corporate discount just by saying your work for (some specific) Fortune 100 company.

In addition to discounts, a corporate connection (or just by saying you have one) can get you bumped to the front of the line when there’s a shortage of rental cars or you’re a few behind first in the standby line. While I won’t debate the ethics of doing so, the best way to maximize your corporate discounts is to research ahead and not be shy to ask.

Pick Your Company

You’ll need a company that you’re an employee of but generally anyone on the Fortune 100 is a good bet.

Call Ahead

Prior to booking any hotel, rental car, or airline reservation give the specific branch a call directly and ask if they have a corporate discount. Don’t be shy and call around to see what’s available and which companies have agreements with which chains. No need to go into details of exaggerate (you’re just an employee, not the CEO).

• Don’t forget to check for conferences in and around town the dates you’ll be there. Hotels usually have discounted rooms for those attending corporate and private conferences (like Comic-Con). Do a simple Google search to find conferences of all sizes.
  

Head Of The Line

We’ve all seen chaos at ticket counters and hotel lobbies when things are overbooked. People go up to the clerk and fall back to the crowd in a rotating line of frustration. Using your corporate connection you can go up to the counter and get yourself bumped to the head of the line and maybe even get a better deal while you’re at it. Your ‘corporate discount’ may entitle you to an upgrade, so while all of the rooms are booked there might be a presidential suite you can afford.

• You’ll be more likely to get your way in any situation if you use Sun Tzu’s The Art of War to win battles at the ticket counter.

Sorry, We’re Out

A busy weekend where there are no rental cars, rooms, or flights available usually means not available for the general public. Companies usually set aside a certain number of cars, rooms, seats, etc. for valued members, which generally includes those with corporate connections. All you have to do is say you’re traveling for (insert Fortune 100 company here) and ask if there’s anything available for preferred customers.

• Don’t panic if you’re asked to show some proof of your employment. Just say you don’t have any – if that costs you a discount then so be it.

Keep A List

It’s best to be organized and keep track of which places gave you which discounts so you’ll have less reconnaissance to do next time you book. You can also try changing companies to see if perhaps some get better discounts than others.

Things To Remember:

• You don’t necessarily need to be wearing a business suit when you ask or when you show up.
• While large chains are usually a safe bet ask for corporate discounts and smaller hotels which may not advertise their corporate partnerships.

All You Have To Do Is Ask

You don’t have to wear makeup, change your voice over the phone, or come up with an elaborate story about how you became the most powerful person since Steve Jobs. It’s as simple as coming up with a company big you work for (whether you do or not) and asking if that hotel, rental car company, or airline offer a corporate discount. The worst that can happen is they don’t or won’t give you one which is where you’ll be if you never ask anyway.

[photo by: thinkpanama, Warder Jack, koalazymonkey]

Cook Peasant Foods To Save Money and Time For Traveling

One of 5 ways to increase your travel fund is to spend fewer nights out. As I mentioned on Dan’s post, knowing how to throw together a meal can help you do just that. In my travels I’ve noticed some common themes among the peasant foods (many of which I grew up on) around the world – they are cheap, hearty, and easy to cook and expand upon.

Cooking your own meals is one of the best ways to save money whether you’re at home saving for your next trip or on the road already. You can learn a lot from the locals in any country by taking notice of the staple foods and how they’re prepared, while at the same time learning about the culture around you.

1. Grains: Quinoa

This South American grain was known to the Incas as “the mother of all grains” and has a high complete protein content (~15%). Quinoa can be prepared much like rice (1 part water to 1 part quinoa), mixed with an assortment of spices, and goes great with chopped onions, tomatoes, next to a plate of beans.

Using whole grains you can even make no-knead bread or go with the always-easy grain to cook, rice.

2. Beans: Chickpeas

Hummus, falafel, chana masala, the list goes on and on. Also known as garbanzo beans, chickpeas are high in protein and fiber, like quinoa. Chickpeas are cheap and can be cooked and mashed in almost an endless number of ways.

Chickpeas are legumes like beans, lentils, and peanuts – all of which have a high protein content and are very easy to prepare (boil and and add to it).

3. Fruit: Guacamole

The basic ingredient of guacamole, the avocado, is high in fiber and unsaturated fats making it a filling and healthy meal. The nice thing about guacamole is that it doesn’t require cooking and all you need other than avocados are onions, tomatoes, chilies, and cilantro. You can try adding lemon or lime based on your tastes and get creative with your own recipe.

Grab some chips or bread and you’ve just gotten your grains and 3 fruits in one sitting.

Add Some Spice

I once heard a world-famous chef (don’t recall which one) say the only difference between him and everyone else was he knew what spices to use and how much to add to a given dish. There is one common feature you’ll find to many international staples – spices, and lots of them. Most spices are cheap and can pack a punch of flavor to many of these peasant dishes which tend to be bland on their own (especially grains and beans).

Start from the bottom up and build your meals on the foundation of most peasant meals around the world – grains, legumes, and spices. (I could also add soups based on staples to the list as well.) Eating out all the time is one of the worst things to do on your staycation and a fast way to go through your money when traveling. It turns out that these and the other 5 easiest foods to cook are also some of the cheapest and can generally be bought in bulk.

You can combine these foods with countless spices to create unique flavors and save a substantial amount of money so can save money for traveling and show off your cooking skills on your next trip.

[photos by: massdistraction, bricolage.108, Seitti, Oberazzi]

Overcoming 7 Major Obstacles To Traveling The World – #2: You Think It’s Too Expensive

“In building a statue, a sculptor doesn’t keep adding clay to his subject. Actually, he keeps chiseling away at the inessentials…It is not daily increase but daily decrease; hack away the unessential.”

-Bruce Lee

A number of you are planning to travel the world one day, which won’t happen unless you can overcome these 7 obstacles. Here’s Part 1 of the series.

One of the biggest obstacles and first things people say to hold themselves back from traveling the world is “it’s too expensive” or “I can’t afford that”. As I mentioned last week in overcoming your comfort at work, it is hard for us to break our routines and money is no different. Money is probably the most common way you’ll talk yourself out of traveling the world when in reality it’s not much different than any of the other obstacles.

You Don’t Realize How Little You Need

The less mobile you are the more stuff you have. If you’ve got a large apartment or own a home all you need to do is look around to see how much stuff you’ve accumulated. It would probably take you hours to count it all. How long would it take you to count the things you really need?

• We get used to having certain things, forget how much those things are costing us, and confuse them with what we need. The result is thinking that you can’t afford chai lattes, premium cable, or eating out every night. When the reality is you don’t really need them (and probably won’t miss them too much when you’re traveling.)

The more you travel the more you’ll realize what you really can’t do without. But the first step to traveling the world is to go through the process at home. Start one room at a time and think about it. You can even sell some of your old books and CDs to raise funds for your travels.

Less Not More

Don’t make the mistake of thinking you need to make more money to travel the world when what you need to do is spend less. I know, you already think you’re frugal enough but I’m willing to bet that I could chop through your budget like a machete in the rain forest.

Some Ways To Spend Less

• Live Spartan, picking and choosing how to spend your money on what you enjoy.
  
• Start using your computer more. You can watch TV (Alluc), call people (Skype), and work from anywhere (an amateur’s guide to location independence part1, part 2, and part 3) all on your computer – so why pay extra to do it?
• Take what you save and put it aside for your next trip using a simple travel budget.
• Save 50% on your power bills for 6 months to pay for your next trip.
• Start making stuff instead of buying it, cook, and avoid credit.
  

Make A Budget, Make A Budget, and Track Your Spending

It’s virtually impossible to accurately calculate how much you’ll need to travel the world, survive, and do some fun things if you don’t calculate the amount of money that you need. (I mean need in the literal sense. You don’t need an iPod.)

Most people say it’s expensive to travel the world, that they can’t afford it, or it’s impossible simply because they don’t know how much it really costs. Where will you be going makes a big difference too, for example an individual can live on $500-600 a month in Thailand.

Quantify

Money is an obstacle primarily because we don’t quantify it and it’s easier to use it as an excuse rather than crunch the numbers. Once you do you’ll end up with a number that is much lower than you ever dreamed. I’ve seen people do this and watch their faces light up with an “oooooh”.

Crunch The Numbers

You’ll hear endless stories about how cheap it is to live in India or Tanzania but you need to personalize what you are hearing.

• Start by finding out how much you spend in a month, without cutting back. Now get rid of any major debts on things you can sell (like a house or car). A large part of money you need has been cut away.
  
• Begin by working your way up, not down. Food, water, shelter – not new shoes, coffee maker, bicycle.

Flip The Equation

Money buys you things so we try to make more money for things we think we need. The opposite works too though and the less things you have, the less money you need – which is an easier way to make things work for you.

Set aside some time to calculate what you want to do, where you want to go, and what you don’t need. It’s easier to tackle a problem on paper than in your head.

Now that you’ve got some realistic financial goals, know how much you need to get by, and have started ditching some junk to fund your next trip, you’ve got a solid foundation on which to begin building your grand plan. I’ll cover that topic in Part 3, next week.

[photos by: diankarl, winterofdiscontent, Yersinia, mollycakes]

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