Bye Bye Hygge, Hello Lagom

Image by Elias from Pixabay

As we navigate our way through the gray, cold days of winter, embracing the Danish concept of hygge, a new Scandi concept is making its way to our consciousness. This time it’s the Swedes who are sharing their wisdom and smart ways of living.

Instead of leaning into cozy firelight, warm woolen socks, and mugs of hot chocolate, we say hello to lagom. Roughly translated lagom means ‘just the right amount,’ that is, not too little and not too much. This applies to everything from treats to cars and the weather. It equates to finding the right balance in our lives and achieving contentment. We leave excess and think about frugality and fairness. While hygge is about a fleeting sense of comfort and well-being, lagom is a way of life.

In Our Home

Embracing lagom in our homes means we can achieve a happy and balanced way of living. In order to do this, it isn’t necessary to be extravagant and spend lots of money.

Build Your Savings Without Struggling

It's vital when you have a family to have a pot of savings that you can dip into in a time of crisis. You never know when something will come along that needs to be paid for. It could be a school trip, a new pair of shoes, or something more major like fixing the washing machine or a holiday? Having some savings to rely on in this situation is certainly going to make your life a lot less stressful. But how it is possible to get to the point where you have a healthy savings fund if you are already working on a tight budget? Read on to find out.

Earn a little extra on the side

A great way of having some extra money to squirrel away for a rainy day is to take on some low key extra work on the side. It's not about getting a taxing second job, as this can be pretty stressful. Instead look for things that you enjoy, or that aren't too much hassle and try and to monetize those.

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For example, you may love to draw or craft in your spare time. Then you could try making greeting cards and small gifts that you can sell at craft markets or on a handmade site like Etsy. Or, maybe you have a talent like playing a musical instrument or sport? Then teaching or coaching kids that want to learn will allow you to do what you love, and get paid for it. You can even join online money making sites like Swagbucks. There you can fill in a few surveys while watching your favorite TV show, or waiting in the supermarket queue and get paid for doing it!

Full Price Is For Fools

Another way you can build your savings is to avoid paying full price for anything. While this may sound a little penny pinching, what is the point of paying more than you have to for the very same items?

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Most people aren't aware that it is possible to negotiate a price on many items, especially high-value ones like cars, RVs, and rendering trailers.  At the very least you can often get them to throw in added extra for free like insurance.

Another way to you can avoid paying full price is to check voucher sites like DontPayFull.com. By doing this you can buy an item online at greatly discounted prices, and in some cases, get free shipping too. This means you will then have more cash to sink into your saving fund.

Bye Bye Clutter, Hello Profit

We always hear about how we should declutter our homes, but it can be a struggle to find the time and motivation to do so. But something that will get you motivated is knowing that you could make a little money from your clear-out.

The secondhand market is thriving thanks to auction sites like eBay, and it really does seem like one man's trash is another man's treasure. So try selling some of your higher value items before just sending them to the dump. You will be recycling, and making a profit, which you can use to add to your savings as well.

Have a lot of lower value items, and you can't be doing with the hassle of putting these on an auction site? Then it can be a better idea to have a garage sale. Rather than trying to get the best price for every item, make everything at $1-$2. Then you will be able to move things quickly, and you will have less to get rid of when it's all over.  

Packed Lunches

Also taking your own lunch for work, and for this kids when they go to school, is another fantastic way of saving some serious money. Most of us know that it is way cheaper to buy the ingredients and put together a lunch ourselves. But time pressure and convenience often get in the way, causing us to rely on prepared items, bought on the day instead.

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If you are really serious about building that savings fund, work out how much you are spending big on lunches as a family. Then see how much it will cost to make a packed lunch for everyone. By comparing these, you will be able to see how much extra you can put into the saving every month, for just a little more effort.

To make it easier, stick to pre-portioned items and sandwiches which can be made the night before and refrigerated. So it doesn't interfere with your morning routine too much. Remember you need to make it as simple as possible or you won't keep up with it, and that means you will end up loosing the savings you could have made.

Ditch the City and Go Natural

The diaspora of city dwellers to the natural world is a tantalizing prospect for those who have become tired and altogether disillusioned by the hustle and bustle of city life. To move into a place that is largely uninhabitable, though a great idea, does bring with it a whole host of danger, and precaution must be taken.

For instance, the rigors of mountain living must be considered for anybody planning on moving to one. To go from living in a country such as England that consists of low plains where elevations typically don’t rise about 1000 meters to living on the side of a mountain, you may want to consider a common condition known as altitude sickness that occurs when you climb to a high altitude too quickly. If you suffer from it merely by going there, imagine living there? But if you’re determined not be deterred, tips on how you can go about dealing with and preventing it include: moving around in a slower fashions in order to adapt to the lower oxygen level; climbing gradually; and more extremely the administration of acetazolamide, as and when directed by a professional health giver. Living in a house or cabin on a mountain range requires a lot of precaution and work too. Mountains are made mostly out of rock, and rock is prone to fall; rockfall protection should be sought before even moving into your dream mountain getaway, of which more information can be found here. Finally, the snow. Dependent on where you are, of course, each winter brings with it a healthy dosage of the snow. In England, it’s considered a disaster when only two feet’s worth of it fall, so imagine having to deal with 264 feet that needs to be moved out of the way and is constantly being repositioned by the wind? The rigors of dealing with mountain snowfall require a high level of fitness and muscles mass, which could make it especially difficult for those of an older generation.

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But living in the snowy utopia of a mountain side is not all doom and gloom and is in fact is sought out especially by some. Ski fanatics Fransesca and Steve quit their day jobs and moved to the slopes from London, even taking their baby girl Annabelle with them, in order to set up their own business Chalet Roches. This was brought about by their shared passion of skiing, cycling and hiking, so the French village of St-Gervais in Haute Savoie in the French Alps.

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So what’s stopping you from your very own natural diaspora? Yes, there are risks when you step into areas such as mountains or going to live in a waterfront property, because natural disasters can and will happen at any time. But there are dangers to living just about anywhere. What with the possibility of crime and adverse weather conditions, any property, any where, could be the subject of misfortune.

But if upping sticks completely in order to become at one with nature seems too far of a step, maybe try a camping vacation and just plant your poles there, for now. Baby steps.

Swag Slopes Team Challenge #swagbucks

Here's another fun team challenge to help you earn SB from Swagbucks! For those of you who don't know what Swagbucks is, it's a website where you can earn cash back on everyday tasks you do online, and I talk about it a lot here on The Kerrie Show.

Swagbucks wants you to join in the fun! Pack your warmest snow gear and pre-register today! The Swag Slopes Team Challenge begins Monday, January 23rd. 

All members who participate and contribute at least 400 points to their team’s total will receive a SB bonus in the form of a SB Swag Up Rebate! Members of the 1st place team will receive a 40 SB Swag Up Rebate, members of the 2nd place team will receive a 20 SB Swag Up Rebate, members of the 3rd place team will receive a 10 SB Swag Up Rebate. Your SB Swag Up Rebate will be made available on Friday, January 27th and will expire on Sunday, February 12th at 7:59am GMT or 11:59pm PT

Ready To Start (Again): A New Career For A New You

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Do you feel like you are stuck in some kind of rut? Are you concerned about your finances? Are you just plain bored and getting up every morning, taking the train to work with the same people that you know nothing about, to sit at a desk job which you have no idea how to do, even though you've been doing it for 10 years?! Then maybe it's time for a shake up in your career! Because we live longer lives now, it is not uncommon for people to change careers. In fact, people are now likely to have three careers in their lifetime. So, if you are fed up of your first one, maybe it's time to move on to the second. And the benefit that you have over a 21-year-old, fresh out of college, is two simple words: life experience. So use it to your advantage. Here are a couple of career choices that you might want to think about.

Care Worker

If you are looking for a career that has a bit more meaning, then being a care worker for old age pensioners or people with learning difficulties is a very rewarding choice of career. If you want to work in this environment, it generally means long hours, and it does involve getting your hands dirty in many different ways. But if you relish the notion of helping someone with a learning difficulty to feed themselves, or to spend hours with an elderly lady playing relaxing board games or talking about old memories, this can be a very enjoyable career on top of all of the hard work.

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Financial Advisor

We've all had issues with money in the past. What would you tell your younger self if you had to do it all again? Would you tell them to squander their money, or would you make sure that they make smarter financial choices? The role of a financial advisor combines working with people and working with money (which are two lovely things). If you wanted to train as a financial advisor, it could take quite a bit of time, but you will also need to pass an exam. However, there are many tools that can help you with this such as http://crushthecpaexam.com and many other websites.

Starting Your Own Business

You may find that any choice of career may not fit. So maybe you should start your own career that suits your own specific set of skills! Have you got a hobby which is something you are very good at? Many people are now running a business by making small items or trinkets and selling them via websites like eBay. If you love looking after kids, then maybe starting your own play center, catering for all different ages, and giving adults an opportunity to have a break (as every parent needs to have some time off). Look for the one skill that you have which nobody does around you. This is the key to making any business stand out in a crowded marketplace.

Work for Yourself 

Maybe working for someone else just doesn’t suit you or the lifestyle you crave. Many people are now choosing to use the skills and interests they have to bring in an income, without any limitations that can happen as a result of being employed by somebody else. This could be a specific skill you have such as teaching guitar, or offering therapy or coaching if you are qualified in this area. Selling goods is another popular option for people who wish to work for themselves. Leelinesourcing can find you good suppliers to help you to sell the best imported products online. Be unique in what you offer to the market making sure to find ways to stand out from the crowd.