Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Better Copays

To continue in the same vein of trying to find ways to decrease health care costs, I want to address another issue - copays. Copays are designed to share the cost of a doctor's visit or a drug prescription between the patient and the insurance company. This (slightly) helps a person think twice before going to the doctor over something trivial or having a prescription filled that they may not really need. Have you ever had a precautionary script given to you? Just in case you need it you can have it available to you. If it wasn't for the copay, you might just fill it and let it sit on your shelf for two years.

But the problem comes when it is time to shop around for your prescription. Who does this? Not me. I like my pharmacist, so I go to him. It costs me the same $10, $30, or $55 irregardless of who fills it - my favorite pharmacist or some other one down the street. I almost never know the actual cost of the medicine (what the insurance company pays). It might cost less at another pharmacist, but I don't know because I don't ask and I don't shop around. It's all the same to me - just the copay!

Now if my portion of the copay was tied to the actual cost of the drug, if I could save money because one pharmacist charged less for the medicine than another, then I would be very inclined to go to the cheaper pharmacist or ask for less expensive drugs. Simple market dynamics in action. So, instead of having fixed copays, I think we should pay fixed percentages of the cost of the medicine. Example: if my insurance plan had a 20% copay for drugs, then I would certainly shop around and buy the drugs at the store with the lowest price. I would even ask my doctor before he writes the script about options that cost less than the latest and greatest high dollar drug that he is probably getting a kick-back on.

Case in point - I can get my generic drugs at my local pharmacy for a simple $10 copay or I can go to Walmart (and now other places) to get a $4 generic. Guess what? I will endure the hassle of going to Walmart to save $6 per prescription! Why? Am I cheap? Maybe cost suddenly matters when it affects my wallet! I've even brought Walmart's list of $4 drugs to my doctor and asked him if there was anything on the list that would work for what was ailing me! It works!

Likewise, if a doctor's visit copay was a fixed percentage of the actual costs instead of a fixed dollar amount, then I would seriously consider my doctor's costs and shop around to see if his billing is reasonable. Right now, I never ask because it's all the same to me - either $20 or $40.

I really think that insurance companies with their current plan designs have done a disservice to health care costs because they have removed and isolated the patient (
consumer) from the costs of their care. While at first this seems nice and comfortable, a great way to get health care at predictable prices for the consumer, it completely removes any initiative for saving money. Anywhere! The patient never makes a decision based on their actual cost of care. The insurance companies have fixed pricing contracts with providers and only pay what's in the contract. Since when has fixed pricing ever resulted in a free market or lower costs? Let the airlines be an example many years ago.

There must be a simple connection between the cost of services and the patient's/consumer's wallet.Then natural market forces would then begin working on the prices that doctors and companies charge and the services that patients request. It just might be a better way.




Sunday, December 14, 2008

A Better Health Plan


The President elect has begun asking for ideas on how to make our health care system better. I have a few thoughts on the topic, but they may be naive. They're also not fully complete, but are just ideas being formed. Maybe you readers can help fill in some of the gaps. I also admit that I barely understand the complex nature of the health care system. I do know it is very controversial - but we need new ideas. Also, these ideas are my own and do not necessarily represent the ideas of anyone else, including my employer...

The first thing that must be considered when you think of a new plan is understanding what is it that is broken that needs to be fixed? In my understanding of the national dialog, the two issues are 1) that many people don't have health coverage and 2) the health costs are climbing too fast. So the solution must provide a means to keep the costs down and a means to provide for those who don't have insurance. If I understand it right, the biggest reason that people don't have health insurance is that they can't afford it. Therefore, if the costs were brought down, then the number of people with coverage would naturally go up.

So when I think about how to address these issues, the following things come to mind:
  • Don't nationalize it. Just look at Canada and their costs. I can't think of any good models of nationalized health care.
  • Move away from the group health insurance model to an individual health insurance model.
  • Under this model, people shop around and purchase their health insurance like they do for their auto or home. This will provide free market forces and competition, which means lower prices.
  • Employers would provide health insurance premium vouchers to allow their employees to purchase whatever plan they choose on the open market. If the employer is currently paying $600/mo per family for health premiums, their voucher value would then be the same $600/mo.
  • Provide tax incentives for employers who currently provide health insurance to their employees to continue with the vouchers for their employees.
  • Provide incentives for employers who don't currently provide insurance to start providing vouchers of some value. Tax rebates or credits might do the trick.
  • We are required by law to carry auto insurance. Is this going too far for health insurance?
  • Provide incentives for people to save money themselves with their health care. One way could be high deductible insurance plans with tax exempt medical spending accounts to cover the deductible. Remove the copay for an office visit. Then each individual will begin asking how much a doctor will charge for services and maybe even shopping around for better rates. There are still the Dr./patient relationships that enter the equation and would make changing tough. But certainly for lab work, this would be easy! Then, if there is money left over in the spending account at the end of the year, it goes back to the individual as simple taxable income. Don't punish people by making it a use it or loose it endeavor (like current medical spending accounts are). Reward people for saving.
  • Provide incentives for good personal health. People who smoke and people who are overweight are shown to be at high risk for lots of medical problems and expenses. These are two things that people can (usually) control themselves if they want to. Therefore, if there were incentives to quit smoking and to exercise regularly and eat right, there would be huge future payoffs in both longevity and lower heath care costs. I think the best way to do this is through significant insurance premium discounts for non-smokers and those who can show they exercise regularly.
  • Structuring the health insurance industry like the rest of the insurance industry - on a risk assessment basis. The auto insurance industry charges higher premiums for those with a higher risk - like teenagers and those with previous accidents or tickets. They lower your premiums if you haven't had any claims for 5 years or if you are in a low risk age group (married and over 25). If you have extra safety devices in your car, you qualify for premium discounts. Home owners insurance premiums go up when you have a previous claim. They go down if you have a security system. These are simple risk calculations. What if the health insurance industry had similar risk factors calculated into individual premiums? Smokers would pay more than non-smokers. People who exercised regularly would pay less than those who don't, etc. People who get an annual physical get discounts on their premiums. People with lots of previous claims would have to pay a higher premium than those with no claims.
  • What about people who are not employed? Their biggest front burner issue is lack of income. So they are probably on unemployment or welfare. While they are on these programs, the government could probably provide a voucher for their health insurance. I don't like this idea as a long term solution, but for a short term solution, it is palatable.
Today, I don't shop around for my family's health care - because the cost of a Dr's visit doesn't matter to me. My insurance company picks it up no matter what. This is the inherent problem and biggest disconnect in health care today. The person who chooses the provider is not the person who is paying. If we where to remove this disconnection so that each individual is connected to the cost of service and has incentives to save money and live healthy, then I think this would be a better way.

Thoughts?


Monday, December 8, 2008

The Auto Industry Microsoft Bailout

Here's an idea just for fun - what if Microsoft did the auto industry bailout instead of the feds? Not by loaning them money, but by simply buying the companies outright. Microsoft has enough cash and short term investments to buy Ford, GM, and probably Chrysler outright at their current stock prices (notwithstanding the Trade Commission and Monopoly fouls)! Then they could run them the Microsoft way.

So then I started thinking - what would a car be like that was made by Microsoft? Here might be the results:

1) You start your car by pressing Ctrl->Alt->Del

2) You get free upgrades each week to fix the bugs. New starters, new wipers, a new radio, etc. just shows up if you enable "Automatic Updates."

3) Sometimes, you can get a new service pack if you need to - but you really don't know why you need them.

4) When it isn't running right, just shut it off and restart it. No problem...

5) You would buy a "Home" version for personal use and a "Pro" version for driving to work.

6) You have to periodically take your car to the shop to remove all the ads and junk that just shows up in the trunk. You don't know how it all got there and it's too hard to remove yourself. But it weighs the car down so much it just can't hardly be driven anymore.

7) After 2 or 3 years, it just doesn't go as fast as it used to. It now takes 20 secs to go from zero to 60.

8) It comes with all sorts of free features and accessories from the factory, but you don't use them because the aftermarket parts work 3 times better.

9) You have to have a signature on the car somewhere to make sure it is genuine and not an illegal version.

10) It becomes uncool to drive the car instead of whatever Apple is selling.

11) When you buy a new house, you can get a new Microsoft car installed in your garage at little cost compared to their price at a store.

12) When you shut the car off, you will need to wait about a minute for it to finish.

Hmmmm. Just a few thoughts. Maybe the auto companies need to keep beggin' the feds....




Wednesday, December 3, 2008

An Emergency Fund

One of the first things that we all need to learn from the uncertainty in this economy is to be ready for bumps in the road. If you're a fan of Dave Ramsey like me, then you are well aware of the baby steps he sets out. The first and third steps are about starting and then fully funding an emergency savings account for - you guessed it - emergencies. Like this one.

The first and largest obstacle to building an emergency fund is wanting it. We have to really, really want it! If we want things more than an emergency fund, then we will never have one. Some might say that they can't afford to save, but I think that those who actually can't afford to would be a tiny minority. You would need to be at or below the poverty level to not be able to save something. Most folks simply spend as much as they earn or more and then don't have anything left to save. Living like you make $70K/yr when you only make $60k/yr is a recipe for disaster.

The second obstacle to building that emergency fund is having a budget and sticking to it. Many folks will simply balk at the word "Budget" and run! But I want to tell you about an easy and incredibly effective way to do it. And when the method is easy combined with desire - you've got success!

I've been using Mvelopes Money Manager by Finicity for years. It's way better than Quicken, MS Money, or even a spreadsheet in my opinion. For a small monthly fee, you can have instant visibility to your spending and know exactly how much you have left for any given budget area. Do you have enough to eat out tonight? Just a quick check and you can answer yes or no. And if yes, you can do it with no guilt or worry about what it will do to your other bills. You've already planned for them and know that you will have enough when those bills come in later in the month.

Budgeting, when done right, actually provides peace and security to your finances, not grief and stress. Stress is doing your finances the same way you've always been doing them and expecting them to turn out differently next time. Wrong! Try Mvelopes and see why I so highly recommend it. It automatically goes out to your bank(s) and credit card(s) each night and fetches your transactions. They show up the next day and you simply drag and drop them to the appropriate envelope. Whey you buy gas, you drag that purchase to the fuel envelope. Groceries to the food envelope and gift purchases to the gift envelope, etc.

Did I say gift? How would you like to actually to have money available to buy gifts for Christmas and not stress about it? It comes around every year whether you plan for it or not. So start planning for it and you will enjoy it much more. Simply set aside some money each month and when December rolls around, you're ready to go shopping without that credit card!

Will the car need new tires next year? Plan for it by setting aside some money each month in one of the envelopes and when next year comes around - presto! You can pay cash for those tires instead of putting them on a credit card and worry about when you can afford to pay for them. It's amazing!

When you get paid, you simply fund your envelopes according to your saved plan. Simple. Need to make an adjustment this paycheck? No problem. Just tweak your allocations slightly on a per paycheck basis.

I manage my budget in about 5-10 minutes every 2-3 days. That's all! Really! I can check it from any computer or mobile device and I can find out how much is left in any envelope very quickly. I even manage my own escrow for my house with it. Are you tired of your mortgage company adjusting your payment each year because of tax or insurance estimates being wrong? Do it yourself next time. It really works well!

Mvelopes Money Manager is helping me meet my financial goals and live a stress free financial life. I really believe it's a better way.


Friday, November 14, 2008

A Good Pruning

When I prune my shrubs and trees, it seems painful at the time. Large branches fall and there are large piles of debris to be cleared away. Sometimes, someone comes by and says "Wow - are you sure you should be cutting that much off?" But the next year, those trees and shrubs looks great. They are healthy, well groomed, and just the right size for my yard.

Could it be that this economic downturn is like a good pruning? That what remains will be healthier and much better than before? If I didn't prune my shrubs, they would get large, uneven, and unsightly - growing in places I don't want them to grow. What if that is what is happening to us right now?

What if this economy is just a reflection of unhealthy, ungainly growth? Growth based upon deficit spending with no way to pay. Consumers just buying things on credit and worrying about the payments later. Homeowners with mortgages and no reasonable way to make the payments. After all, what good lender approves a loan with no verification that the monthly payments can be paid? Or that the borrower is telling the truth about their income? Maybe it's good that such lenders fail...

What if the result of this is that people learn to buy things with cash, not credit? What if they learn to save and not borrow for everything? To actually put money aside for an emergency or for a rainy day? Or to actually verify income and their ability to make the payments on a home mortgage? Wow - who would've thought?

When things get easy for long periods of time, we have a natural tendency to get very lazy and complacent and we begin making assumptions that probably aren't true. We start putting our trust in things based on quicksand instead of real security. We forget that bad things can happen and when they do, we are shocked instead of prepared.

I hope that as the result of this pruning, we rethink our priorities, we readjust our values and we change where we look for security. Each of us has our own values and priorities for our lives. But it seems to me that the things I've mentioned could be embraced by everyone with tremendous benefit to all. I think it's a better way to live.





Sunday, November 9, 2008

Can you fix it?

The dishwasher just broke and it won't run anymore.  The brakes on the car are making that awful sound for about a week now.  The computer keeps getting this pop up that just won't go away.  The more things we have, the more things break!  

So what do you do about it?  Call a repairman or bring it to the shop?  That's expensive.  Fix it yourself?  "No way," you say!  You don't know how those things work, so there's no way that you can fix them.  You feel trapped with no way out.

One of the better "life skills" that I was taught is how to fix things.  My Dad taught me much of what I know.  Car things.  House things.  Toys.  Motorcycles.  Electrical things. Lots of things.  

I was also given an inquisitive nature when I was a child.  I was always taking things apart to see how they worked and then tried to put them back together again.  Sometimes they worked again - sometimes not.  But Dad would help me or tell me what I did wrong and how to make it better again.

This ability to fix things has paid huge dividends over the years.  When things break - which they always do - I usually have a better than 50/50 shot at being able to repair it myself.  And when I do, it saves a TON of money!  How many times do we just cringe at the rates for a service call and wish that we could do it our self?

This is especially true for car repair.  I am now able to repair about 3/4 of my issues that come up on my cars.  This really helps because I buy used cars and then keep them up myself.  It's a great combination - see my article here.  

I will also be teaching my kids how to do basic repair on their own cars.  When they start driving, I feel it is essential to understand some basics about the mechanics underneath so that they have some level of understanding when something breaks.  This will save them tons over the years of car ownership and will also give them the ability to talk with mechanics when they need to.  They don't have to be able to fix everything.  But they do need to understand simple things like the battery, the brakes, the tire pressure, oil changes, air filter changes, etc. Then having some level of theory on how an engine works, how an air conditioner works, how a transmission works will pay huge dividends when troubles come up.  Depending on their interest and their mechanical aptitude, I could teach them much more.

As for things around the house, I will try to teach my kids as much as possible.  Sometimes they're not interested, sometimes they are.  But that's because they don't yet know that they need to be able to do these things themselves at some level someday.  Or maybe they'll marry a man who can do this himself - who knows.  I hope the fathers of my daughters' future husbands are teaching them how to do these things, along with many other life skills.

If you don't know how to do some of these things already, then take a few minutes to learn something each time something needs repairing.  There are tons of places on the web that show how to fix specific things.  But more importantly, let's teach our kids how to fix things.  It's a better way!



Sunday, November 2, 2008

He will keep me awake at night

No matter who gets elected on Tuesday, neither one will get everything right in my opinion.  Neither one has all the answers that I am looking for and neither one will fix what's ailing our economy.  However, one has the potential to keep me up at night extremely concerned and angry over the consequences.

It won't be his tax policy.  Even though I don't agree with it, I will probably still sleep sleep at night.  It won't be his medical policy.  Again, I don't agree with it, but I will sleep at night.  It won't be his foreign policy.  I don't agree with it, but I think I will still sleep.  

It will be his moral policies that keep me awake at night.  His insistence for "a women's right to choose" along with the makeup of Congress that will keep me awake.  How will I sleep when the person in the highest office of our country wants to pass laws to "protect" an individual's ability to kill a baby - their very own baby?  Why is there this "god" in his belief system that a woman must have the ability to terminate her unintended pregnancy with a simple choice?  Why is the life of this child not protected in our country and in our government?  Just because a child is invisible to the eye and completely dependant on their mother, doesn't make him or her less of a person.  Doesn't he believe that this person in the womb has the right to choose anything?  Ever?  How about the right of a child to take their first breath?  I believe this right exists!

His judicial choices will also keep me awake at night because it is our supreme court justices who have made this current ruling in our country.  There is no doubt in my mind that there will be new justices appointed during this next presidential term and they have the power to interpret the Constitution through their own world view.  The impact of their decisions will affect generations to come - both my children's and my grand children's generations.

This is why I will be voting for the soldier.  He is the one who has fought for our country and has placed his life on the line so that others can have life.  He understands the value of life and what price has been paid and must continue to be paid to protect it.  And, I will be able to sleep at night.



Friday, October 31, 2008

Growing up like Zac

I am really enjoying watching Zac grow up. I haven't known him but for a few short weeks, but I am hooked on his adventure. He will turn 17 soon and is doing things that some of us will never know, let alone seriously contemplate. Would I ever send my son out on the ocean by himself to circumnavigate the globe in a small sailboat? Wow! Actually, I would love to do this myself, but I don't think I would have the courage to send my child out on his own. Am I too protective? Maybe.

Zac is growing up and learning things that most of us will never learn and could never be taught in a classroom. Survival. Pacing. Navigation. Conservation. Communication. Ingenuity. Decisions under stress. How to handle loneliness. Dependence on others. Dependence on self. His inner strength to endure and persevere. He is seeing places first hand that we only read about and see in pictures on the web or in blogs.  It's incredible!

I want my children to learn these same things. But I struggle with the method. The control freak father in me wants to protect them and guide them each step. But the testosterone laden man in me wants them to take risks, learn first hand, maybe even fail some while the consequences are minimal.  But am I willing to let them be tested and take risks when the consequences are high? When their very life depends on their succeeding? No way!

If you were to ask me whether or not I was an "umbrella" parent, I would've said no way. But maybe I am after all. I would love to be on Zac's boat myself. But I would not want to have one of my kids on it! I'm guessing that I'm not weird but just a normal Dad on this. Where is the line when it comes to protecting vs letting them go? I know my wife and I are in different places here - I chalk that up to the general difference between Mom's and Dad's. I push the envelope while Mom holds back. Thank God for Moms!

But Zac isn't pushing the envelope, he's defining a whole new package.  I fully applaud and support his efforts and his parent's. It helps me to realize that doing hard things - larger than life idealistic endeavours, is worthwhile, realistic, and not out of reach.

Thanks Zac for showing me a great way to grow up.


Monday, October 27, 2008

Robin Hood

I guess he thinks he's Robin Hood and is going to rescue everyone from the rich people.  To "spread the wealth" or to move it from the rich to the poor - that is the Robin Hood principal.  In the woods, it's called stealing.  In the government, it's called taxes and welfare.  Some would even call it socialism.

I love giving to and helping the poor, as long as it is actually giving and not taking away.  Giving the needy help, giving them a job, giving them needed care and justice is very important in any society.  These are all good things.  But they must be provided in a loving way, not by raising taxes on the rich and calling it "spreading the wealth."

The business man with money must be allowed to invest and hire people, not to be taxed and have it taken from him.  In my opinion, that's punishing success.  Economic success comes from the top down, by allowing the people who've succeeded to invest and to hire others to succeed with them.  I think the reason countries like China and India are growing and changing so much and poverty there is diminishing (not gone yet) is not because we shipped food in to them, but because we shipped jobs in to them.  Now they work, earn their own living, and spend or save or give their own money.  People with money hired people without money.  Then they all had more money.   I think this is a better way than Robin Hood.

Regarding taxes - I'm actually quite fond of The Fair Tax.  I think I'll need to write on that some day soon.  

Please go out and vote this week or next Tuesday.   Let your opinion be heard.



Sunday, October 26, 2008

Throw $100 Out Your Window


A friend of mine bought a new car yesterday. I'm sure the salesman and the dealer were happy to have sold a car in this market - any car! He traded in his other car which was only about 2yrs old. He told me that he got an "incredible deal!" He got a $35,000 car for $15,000, he said. Of course, this is net of his trade-in which was probably a $15,000 trade-in. So, I estimate that he still paid nearly $30,000 for the new car. I wonder if he figured this out yet. I also wonder if he realizes that his trade-in cost him around $25,000 two years ago which means he lost about $10,000 since then on it. I also wonder if he knows that his new car will probably be worth about $15,000 in two years. Maybe $18,000 if he takes good care of it. That's a loss of $12,000 to $15,000 in just two years which is $6,000/yr or more in lost value!

Let me put this in perspective - loosing $6,000/yr is like throwing a $100 bill out the window as you drive to work every week. Every week! Just pick a day - say Friday, and throw your $100 bill out the window! Ouch! Every once and awhile, throw out two just to keep up. Dave Ramsey taught me this!

It's called depreciation. It's the single largest cost of owning a new car. You can find proof in the consumer reports magazines or just calculate it yourself. If you've ever sold a car you bought new, you don't need someone else to tell you how painful it was to find out that it was only worth _______ when it came time to sell it. Often times, this problem is made even worse by having a loan on the car that is still more than the car is worth! Ouch - that's called being upside down.

I don't buy new cars - I buy used ones. I think it's a better way. I buy them after someone else has absorbed the depreciation cost. Then, I drive them for a few years and sell them for somewhere near what I paid for them or just a bit less. If I buy a car for $3,500 and drive it for 3 years, and sell it for $2,500, I've only lost $333/yr in depreciation. If I buy a $9,000 car and drive it for 3 years and sell it for $6,000, I only loose $1,000/yr. I've saved nearly $4,000/yr in vehicle costs minus maintenance.

Maintenance you ask? Yes, there might be maintenance costs on a used car. But it should never add up to $4,000/yr! Just don't buy an old Hyundai or KIA (or a few others). Buy a Honda or Toyota. No guarantees, but they have a better record as good used cars. Investigate and learn what the good ones are. You won't regret it.

The authors of the book "The Millionaire Next Door" documented the same thing as they interviewed actual self made millionaires in America. They discovered that most millionaires don't get rich by buying new cars. They buy used cars and are usually quite frugal. So understand - a new car is not your pathway to building personal wealth. It is actually your biggest hindrance.

Buy used - I think it's a better way.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Better Worship

She worships better now.  I see it in her eyes and in her face as she sings aloud to God.  It's different now.  It's beautiful!  Not that it was bad before, but it is now less hindered.  Eager and anticipating.  Like before you go on a trip, you anticipate it and thinking about it makes you happy.

It's just different now that this thing came into our lives.  This tumor.   This brain tumor.  This cancer.

Before this past May, I always thought that if she ever got some sort of cancer or life threatening illness that she would be really upset with God.  That she would be angry, question him hard, say "Why me" over and over and be in despair over it...  But she's not.  She's hardly had any complaints and I think is really at peace with it.  Not that the Dr's have given her a time frame because they haven't. 

But she worships better now with cancer.  It's just like Job I guess.  Will people still worship God in bad times as well as good?  Actually, it seems, they worship better in hard times.  In good times, the things around us distract us and make us feel like all is going to be OK.  But they're just things.  When times are tough, hard, or life threatening, it's just us and God.  Pure worship!

Thank you honey, for showing me a better way to worship!


Monday, October 13, 2008

Shawn and Holly

I saw it tonight.  The love.  The friendship.  The caring.  The willingness to do anything for a friend, no matter how unnecessary it seemed to them, it was important to her.  So they did it for her.

They've been there through everything.  Nine years of fighting - they've been there with her and her husband.  For them.  Along side them.  Carrying them.  Crying with them.  Celebrating with them.  Now crying with them again.  She is done fighting now.  There's no more that can be done but to keep her comfortable and wait.

Shawn and Holly are people that songs should be written about - except that I can't write songs.  I 'm not sure I can even write...  They were faithful to their friend when they said "I'll be there for you" and didn't really know what the road would look like, where it would turn, how rough it would be, or even how long it really was.

My wife and I said "Who are our Shawn and Holly?"  I think we know who they are.  But everyone needs a Shawn and Holly in their life because no one knows what tomorrow may bring.  These are the friends that will do ANYTHING for you.  And I mean anything.  For any length of time.  No matter the cost.  No matter the pain.  They will fly with you to the other side of the world.  They'll care for your kids.  They'll forgive and understand your ugly times.  They'll only remember the good times.

Maybe another great question is "Who are we Shawn and Holly to?"  Are we willing to go to any extreme for someone?  We can't do it for everyone - we just don't have the capacity.  But for at least one person or family?

Shawn and Holly - they've shown me the better way.

Friday, October 10, 2008

A Better Gift

Today, I finished reading the Old Testament.   I read how God called his people "Evil" because they were offering gifts to him. Evil? Really? Why is that? They gave him their offerings...

Oh, I see - the gift was flawed. It wasn't the best of the flock. Or perfect - like him. The people had some blind and lame animals that they didn't want or need, so they gave them as offerings to God thinking that God would be OK with that.

The problem here is that the people treated God as the left-over God. Not the first or the most important. They forgot how jealous God really is.  This makes me wonder if we offer God the same blind and lame sacrifices today?  Do we give what we have left over each month? Only what we didn't need for ourselves?

I think there is a better way. God wants and deserves the best of our flock. The first of everything we earn. Giving is a priority and a pleasure because we worship Him. He tells us to give this way - to honor him with our gifts.  But, honor only comes when we treat as first importance, not last.

Are you considering cutting back in your giving due to the current financial crisis? How about if we cut back on other things that we really don't need and give to Him despite our fears. That takes faith.  And, it is a better way to give!

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

If it works...

...what do you do? Do you leave it alone out of fear of breaking it or suddenly making it not work? Or do you find yourself wanting to improve it? What you do under this dilemma may actually tell a lot about you. There are two sayings that tend to rule this decision - a) "If it works - don't break it!" or b) "If it works - improve it!"

I guess for me, I'm a tweaker. I usually think that things can be done a little better, a little faster, a little bit more efficient, etc. I'll make an adjustment here, a tweak there, just small iterations that add up to large improvements over time. I guess that's why this blog exists - TIABW.

Are you a risk taker? If not, you will most always land on "Don't break it!" If you are a risk taker (like me), then you might tend towards "Improve it!" I guess it really depends on the application. If you're Intel making chips at a factory, you always "copy exact" the next factory. But technology in general works on the principal of improving it or your competitor will for you. When software is written, we know that if you make changes, it might break something unexpected. But you have to make changes to improve it, fix it, or add features. Besides, no piece of software is ever completely done - ever.

What about life? Do we keep doing life like we've always done it out of comfort? Out of fear that something bad or unknown will happen? What if there are better ways of doing life? Are we open to learn and change? Or do we get grumpy in our old age and just growl back at change.? We all know someone who is simply stuck in their ways and won't change. We always say "I won't be like that when I get old." Hmmm. Are we approaching this point when we don't want to try new things?

There is also a personality issue here. Some people just don't like change and must plan for changes. Otherwise their cart gets upset and they are out of their comfort zone. Others, just love change and actually can't stand to do things the same way twice. Maybe, somewhere in the middle is the healthy ground we should aim for.

We should always be teachable and humble enough to admit that maybe we don't know more about a particular issue than everybody else. No matter how smart or "wise" we get, there is always something more we can learn. I learned that here. And here.

So please, leave your comments on these entries and teach me a thing or two...


Monday, October 6, 2008

Be Flexible

Why does my car have to have only one shape? Sometimes I want to drive a sports car.  Sometimes, a regular sedan.  Is there a way to have both so that I could choose depending on my mood? Maybe this is how it could work.  BMW is thinking outside of the box and is trying to better connect our emotions to the automobile.  This only makes sense to those who love cars and can really connect emotionally to their cars.

If nothing else, it would be fun to drive!  But will it keep me safe?  I guess rocks would just bounce off it and the car door next to me wouldn't bother it a bit.  Hmmm... maybe this is a better way?





Saturday, October 4, 2008

Measuring Fuel Efficiency

Is there a better way to measure fuel efficiency?  You know - mpg's.  We all use mpg's to compare cars or trucks and figure out which will use less fuel.  If I were comparing two cars whose ratings were 15 and 20 mpg, I would say the 20 mpg car had a big advantage in efficiency.  But if I were comparing two cars who's ratings were 40 and 45 mpg, initially I would say that the 45 mpg car also had a big advantage over the 40 mpg car.  Right?  Well, not quite.

A better way to measure fuel efficiency is to calculate fuel used for a given distance.  Say we took an average year of driving - 12,000 miles per year.  How much fuel would these cars use?  Well, a car that gets 15 mpg would use 800 gallons of gasoline while a car that got 20 mpg would only use 600 gallons, a total savings of 200 gallons per year.  Quite a lot.  But now for the higher mileage cars.  A car that gets 40 mpg would use 300 gallons of fuel, while a car that gets 45 mpg would use 267 gallons of fuel for a total savings of only 33 gallons per year.  Not very much.

What does this mean?  It means that the more fuel that a vehicle uses, the more impact an improvement in fuel efficiency will have on your pocket book.  Meanwhile, the higher mileage models don't have as much savings to gain.  See the chart below and notice how the slope decreases as the mpg's increase.   In the real world, this means that the automakers who try to improve the mileage of the big vehicles are making the most impact (Tahoe Hybrid) while the smaller cars (Civic Hybrid) don't actually save as much because they already get such good mileage.

So think in terms of fuel used per year, instead of MPG.  It's a better way...



Friday, October 3, 2008

Google has a better way

Did you ever wish that your employer treated you better than they did? Do you ever feel like they are just squashing the creativity out of you and your co-workers? The rules. The budget cuts. The formality. The cube farms. The boredom. Or whatever...

Google might just be on to something. They have perks - lots of them. But not just perks for perks sake. That would miss the point. They have an agenda behind their perks. They are social engineering creative moments and atmospheres for their people - they call it "People Operations." Hmmm... Sound interesting? Take a look at this video and pay close attention to the comment at the end about hiring intelligent people. It might just be working.

Here is Google's better way...


Wednesday, October 1, 2008

A Better Bailout

The bailout in Congress is being widely discusses around the watercooler.  Is it a good idea to "Nationalize" these bad debts and assets? Is it absolutely necessary for our financial systems to keep operating?  Maybe there is a better way to pull up before crashing?

Dave Ramsey thinks that he has a better way, a "Common Sense Fix" to our financial crisis.  If you agree, follow his steps and send a message to your congressional representatives.    I like Dave's thinking on many fronts.  Voice your opinion now!

Monday, September 29, 2008

My Hope

I guess I put my hope in the banks - in my account balances. On Thursday of last week, I banked with WaMu. On Friday, my bank was suddenly JPMorgan Chase! My bank failed overnight (MY BANK!!) and was bought on the cheap by the new owner so that the gov't wouldn't have to rescue it. I thought banks couldn't fail anymore? This isn't 1923 after all. I thought my money was "safe." Where was I putting my trust?

There is a better way - I found it here. We're told not to place our hope in wealth but in God himself. This week, with the stock market plunge and the bailout debacle- we are painfully reminded of our weaknesses in this world.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Microsoft needs a better way

Have you seen the video of Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld designed to promote Microsoft and Vista? I am sure that for $300M to their new ad agency, there is a better way to promote their product. Come on - our media dept at church (Cam you rock) could easily do a better job with .001% of the money. Not to mention the high quality acting ability of Bill...

Really, There Must Be A Better Way (TMBABW)!


Going to the gym





Do you drive to the gym?  I used to.  Until I realized that when I drive there, I spend the first 10-15 min on a stationary bike or treadmill to warm up.  Just like everyone else.  Why?  Not why do we warm up.  Why drive?  I live only 3 miles from the gym.  Probably not much different on average than the others there.  But the parking lot at the gym is full of cars.  I think there is a better way...

Now, I ride my bike.  I did it yesterday.  Just 10 minutes to get there and I'm warmed up and ready to work out.  When I'm done - I ride home.  A short aerobic addition to the workout.  And, it saves gas - mabye I'm just cheap...

Try it - you'll like it.


Shiny Chrome

Today’s better way is Chrome. I am demo’ing it right now as I write this. It is really fast and I am impressed so far. If you’re using IE, dump it. Firefox is better. So the question that must be answered is this: Is Chrome better than Firefox? For me, SPEED IS GOOD! It trumps most other requirements because I am impatient with computers. And Google’s Chrome is very fast…

I've recently had some lockup with Chrome and I do understand that this is a beta.  So with a little patience, I continue...

Let me know your experiences with Chrome.

Trying a new blog

As I tryed to start a blog on Facebook, I imagined that There Must Be A Better Way (TMBABW)! So as I try this new host (Blogspot) I will experiment to see how this goes.  This is also my first attempt at a real blog.  I'm not sure I even have anything to say... But we will find out in short time.

Of course the blog is entitled There Is A Better Way (TIABW).   I am always wanting to find or share better ways of doing things, especially life.  In general we tend to do things the way we've always done them, because we either don't like to change, or just don't know any better, we keep doing what we're doing the same old way.  The problem is that we will always get the same old results... if we expect different results by doing the same thing - we must be insane!

So, here's to a better way....
Roger
 
Lijit Search