Retirement planning: It's not just money
Posted: March 24, 2012 at 12:15 am
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Most retirement planning emphasizes financial considerations. How can I plan for the way I'll live after I leave work? -- David, Miami, Fla.
Many of us get so caught up in the financial aspects of preparing for retirement that we forget the reason we do all that saving, investing and planning in the first place: to have a meaningful and satisfying post-career life.
So "lifestyle" retirement planning is every bit as important as crunching the numbers, even if it doesn't always get the same attention.
If anything, lifestyle and financial retirement planning complement each other. After all, you can't really know how big a nest egg you'll need without having an idea of how you want to live in retirement. And the kind of life you'll be able to lead will depend in large part on how successful you are at accumulating savings.
It's essential to factor lifestyle considerations into your financial planning, especially in the ten years or so leading up to retirement. Here are four ways to do that:
1. Envision your future. As you enter the home stretch to retirement, you'll need to address big questions like whether to continue living in your current area or move to a new city or town like one of the 25 profiled in MONEY's Best Places to Retire.
But you'll want to focus on small-picture issues too, even down to how you'll actually spend the hours of each day once your work routine no longer provides the structure for your day.
One way to sharpen your vision of the future is to rev up a tool like T. Rowe Price's Ready-2-Retire. Among other things, this tool allows you to pick different retirement activities (travel, pursuing creative interests, going back to school, etc.) and then prioritize them based on how important each is to you.
For a deeper dive, you may want to attend one of the growing number of pre-retirement seminars that can help you manage the transition from the work-a-day to retirement. For example, the North Carolina Center for Creative Retirement in Asheville, N.C., offers two three-day "Paths to Creative Retirement" workshops each year where participants explore options for retirement and figure out which are the best fit with their goals and values.
2. Do a test drive. Once you have a sense of what your ideal retirement might be, give it a trial run to see if the fantasy squares with reality.
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Retirement planning: It's not just money
Mates go for more success, nearly three decades on
Posted: at 12:14 am
TWENTY-eight years ago, Michael Murphy, Dale Mitchell and David Ryan savoured premiership success.
Today, with a strong bond forged through cricket, the great mates are hoping to once again win the games ultimate prize.
They may not move as fast as they used to and the grade might be a rung or two down from where their careers peaked, but the Brierly Christ Church life members, who have played a combined total of more than 1080 senior games, are as excited about todays division three showdown with Russells Creek as they were all those years ago.
The trio played in the Bulls most recent premiership, the 1983-84 A reserve flag, and would dearly love another one as the end of their careers near.
Murphy, who turns 50 in two weeks, is adamant the grand final is his swansong.
I had retired . . . several times, Murphy said.
But (son and coach) Nathan talked me into playing a few games because they were short of players. A few games turned into most of the season.
But its been far from a chore for the paceman, who now describes his speed as slow medium.
I just enjoy playing with mates Mitch, Dave Ryan and Gary Stonehouse. To come back and have a year with them has been great.
Murphy said his knees were buggered and he had to use his personal relationship with the coach to not bowl at training during the week.
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Mates go for more success, nearly three decades on
Oxnard College baseball hoping for a run of success
Posted: at 12:14 am
It hasn't been all sea breeze and endless blue sky in Oxnard this spring.
The frustration has been on a rolling boil at the Condors' Nest, where the Oxnard College baseball team has struggled to plate enough runs to support a strong pitching rotation.
"We've got good pitching and we play defense," Oxnard head coach Jon Larson said. "Offensively, it's been hard to watch."
The proud program of professional hitters like Terry Pendelton, Paul McAnulty and Erik Komatsu, of four all-state sluggers (Jake Mahan, Mario Landeros, Jonathan Erb and J.C. Aguayo) in just the past two seasons, is hitting just .260 and slugging .310 through 20 games.
"A lot of Mendozas," said Larson, referring to the Mendoza Line, which in baseball parlay is hitting below .200. "I can't explain it. It drives me nuts."
A pair of draft-caliber sophomores in smooth centerfielder Westley Wright and quick-handed shortstop Kevin Minjares have attempted to carry the offense.
Wright's .388 batting average is fourth in the WSC North. The Moorpark High product also leads the team with 21 runs scored and six doubles, as well as two of the team's three triples and one of the team's two home runs.
"He's long and swings like a man," Larson said. "He's pretty dang good."
Minjares, who has already signed to play at the University of Oregon, is hitting .333 with a team-high 14 RBIs.
The rest of the team is hitting .230.
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Oxnard College baseball hoping for a run of success
Brew-haha at Starbucks Investor Conference
Posted: at 12:14 am
By Tom Gibbs - March 23, 2012 | Tickers: GMCR, MNST, NSRGY.PK, SBUX, WSM | 0 Comments
Tom is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.
Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) has issued more game changing press releases in the past two weeks than most of its competitors have announced in the past year. Soon after Starbucks unleashed its plans to expand into the $8 billion premium single-serve coffee market, as well as its full launch into the premium juice market with its Evolution Fresh branded stores, the retailer has shown that it still has other tricks up its sleeve. In digesting the message from the coffee kings March 21st investor conference, it is clear that the relevancy of the Starbucks brand is swiftly growing.
Starbucks Refreshers
The retailers latest venture uses the extract of unroasted (green) coffee to create a light and, as the product name implies refreshing energy drink entry into the $8 billion industry. Refreshers, sweetened with stevia and lacking huge energy boosters like taurine and additional caffeine, will be a lighter competitor to popular market incumbents including Red Bull and Monster (NASDAQ: MNST). However, this should not imply that the product has little chance of success, as it will be targeted towards a more sophisticated, coffee-enjoying adult core group, and is intended to further boost the traffic that patronizes Starbucks stores in later day parts. Many of the corporations new product offerings, including juices, teas, expanded food menus, and even after-work alcoholic drinks (wine/beer) have acted to spread out the traffic at worldwide Starbucks locations.
Although more than three-quarters of the traffic has traditionally come in the morning day parts (5 am 11 am), an increasing percentage has been spread out into early afternoon and late night day parts. Refreshers are intended to further enhance this trend, evening out the number of employees the corporation needs on staff throughout the day, and creating a less crowded, more intimate Starbucks experience for consumers.
If Starbucks Refreshers enjoy even a fraction of the success as other entries in the market Monsters revenues have grown at a 30+% CAGR over the past decade the new venture should add a hearty revenue stream in addition to the corporations core offerings.
Deeper Penetration into Single Serve
The Starbucks/Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR) pairing to co-produce Starbucks-branded k-cups for the Keurig machine has been a suitable first step into the premium single-serve market. Starbucks shipped more than 100 million branded k-cup packs during the first quarter of the year, and the retailers own venture into the market with its upcoming Verismo machine will give it further access to unlock the benefits of Green Mountains razor/blade sales model.
Being released during the holiday season alongside Starbucks Verismo is Green Mountains own high-pressure Vue machine. Similar to the existing low-pressure Keurig, Starbucks will continue its relationship with Green Mountain through the Vue machine, co-branding Vue packs for release in department stores and general merchandise retailers.
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Brew-haha at Starbucks Investor Conference
Online information
Posted: at 12:13 am
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Web Design Training Course – Online Education
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UNC brings rarity to online MBA programs: Credibility
Posted: at 12:13 am
By John A. Byrne, contributor
UNC Kenan-Flagler's Chapel Hill campus
(Poets&Quants) -- Marissa Hunt and Ben Walker are trying hard to coax a few million bucks from four venture capitalists in a San Francisco conference room. But they're pitching a rather peculiar idea and there's skepticism all over the faces of the people they're trying to sell.
The idea: a retractable shield that covers the top of a kitchen drawer when closed to keep out dust and prevent the drawer from jamming. They call the product "Drawer Shield" and the tagline they're using to promote it is "Content protection with NO CATCH."
"It's made of sturdy material," says Hunt, imagining something quite different than their prototype, which is taped together from bits of Styrofoam, cardboard, paper and balsam wood. "Think of the cover on an iPad."
"It's really easy to install and real cheap," insists Walker, trying to gin up some enthusiasm. "This can help sell kitchen cabinets."
But no one is buying it. The feedback is tough.
"I personally have zero use for this," says one potential investor.
"It's just not a problem for me," adds another.
Nonetheless, the four venture capitalists hand over $500,000, a pittance for the pitching pair who were hoping to get at least $2 million.
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UNC brings rarity to online MBA programs: Credibility
Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network to Air Online Learning Higher Education Series Featuring American …
Posted: at 12:13 am
NEW YORK, March 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --The Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network, Inc. (HITN) today announced the premiere of Online Degrees, a new four-part online learning education TV series partnership with American Public University (APU). Debuting on March 29, the series adds a new dimension to HITN's current College Admissions 411 education series.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100611/CL19523LOGO-a )
The inaugural program, "An Introduction to Online Learning," and the three subsequent weekly episodes will air during primetime on HITN, covering science, technology, engineering and math studies (STEM) with emphasis on information technology, space studies and environmental sciences. The series will shine a spotlight on the online learning experience and industry-specific degree programs to help Latinos considering online education make informed decisions about their educational options. It will also present an inside look at APU's collaborative, interactive learning environment and 100% online certificate and degree programs, including interviews with APU President and CEO Dr. Wallace E. Boston and students, graduates, faculty, deans, and administrators.
"Giving Latinos an inside look at the process of obtaining a degree through online learning will help close the achievement gap and broadens college education options for working Latino adults," said Florentina Balseca-Almonte, vice president of content for HITN TV.
"We're pleased to collaborate with HITN on this important educational initiative," said Michelle Maldonado, APU's associate vice president of corporate & strategic relationships. "APU's breadth of career-relevant programs helps make quality education accessible to Latinos and other adult learners seeking to advance their education, while making a difference in their workplace, with their families and in their surrounding communities."
About Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network
HITN , Inc. (The Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network) was established in 1983 as a non-profit organization with a mission to advance the educational, socio-economic and cultural aspirations of Latinos in the US and Puerto Rico through technology. HITN-TV is the first U.S Latino-controlled, non-commercial, Spanish-language, media company delivering educational programming to more than 40 million homes nationwide on Satellite and Cable focusing on Health, Financial Literacy, and Education. http://www.hitn.org.
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Yoga students send service project overseas
Posted: March 23, 2012 at 11:18 pm
Five women from the Acres of Love Park City Chapter "Mountains of Love" are scheduled to leave for Johannesburg, South Africa, this week to visit one of 22 homes supporting HIV positive foster children. Mountains of Love member Missy Kelly and Randi Jo Taurel, who offers "Yoga with Randi Jo" in Park City schools, partnered together to establish the community service project.
Students participating in Yoga with Randi Jo from Jeremy Ranch, Parley's Park and Trailside Elementary along with the Weilenmann School of Discovery and Another Way Montessori worked on scrapbook pages over the course of eight weeks. The pages were compiled into a book that Kelly plans on giving to the seven children living at the Bridges to Forever home sponsored by Mountains of Love.
"Each week the students work on a project and they have a page that they can tell these children what we're about. The students write or draw about who they admire, or something good they want to do in the world," Taurel said, adding that more than 40 yoga students participated. "It gives them a chance to become not only a part of the community but the world and we're representing the schools."
Students at Jeremy Ranch Elementary School are practicing "Seva," which is an act of selfless service with no expectations of getting anything in return, Taurel said, adding that they are also learning that yoga relieves stress. JRES fifth-grader Emily Sageser said this is her first year practicing yoga. She hopes the Mountains of Love kids will be able to feel the same benefits when they do yoga with Kelly.
"I've learned that if you sit down and meditate it calms you down and I feel that it (the book) will help them understand us and it will make them happy," Sageser said.
The Mountains of Love nonprofit was founded in 2009 by Parkite Melissa Fischer and now consists of 17 Park City women including Kelly. The group traveling to Johannesburg will meet the foster children ranging in age from four to 14. The group then plans to travel to Mossel Bay, South Africa, where the children can fish, do yoga on the beach and experience the ocean for the first time.
For more information about Mountains of Love or Yoga with Randi Jo, visit http://www.yogawithrandijo.com . To learn more about the national nonprofit Acres of Love, visit their website at http://www.acresoflove.org .
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Yoga students send service project overseas
Lululemon hosting 500-person yoga, dance party in Copley Square
Posted: at 11:18 pm
By Johanna Kaiser, Town Correspondent
Copley Square will be glowing with neon yogis Friday as a yoga store new to Newbury Street hosts a mass hip hop yoga class and dance party in the park.
Lululemon Athletica, a clothing and gear shop for yoga and running, recently opened its second Boston location on Newbury Street. To celebrate, the store is hosting a yoga and dance party for 500 people from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday.
Goldie Kaufenberg, a yoga instructor and Lululemon community ambassador, will lead the first 500 students in a hip hop yoga class while a live DJ plays.
The store asks that anyone who would like to participate in the class bring their yoga mat, a photo I.D. to use a pair of headphones during the class, and bright clothing.
Please wear your brightest neons and whites as we are glowin' up Copley Square! reads the events Facebook page.
The night wont end when the class does. After stretching through hip hop yoga, participants will have a chance to dance.
Once we are savasana'd out headphones will come off and the DJ will turn up the volume for an epic dance party you wont want to miss, the event description reads.
Lululemon Athletica also has a store in the Prudential Center. The new store is located at 337 Newbury Street. -- Twitter: @YourBackBay, @JohannaKaiser E-mail: johanna.yourtown@gmail.com
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Lululemon hosting 500-person yoga, dance party in Copley Square