The American Express blue cash card is one of the best credit cards to use for your moving expenses because of it’s cash back program and it’s services that can make the details of moving easier.

The cashback you earn on the money you spend for moving expenses won’t be spectacular but it will help you move more quickly into the highest cash rewards tier.  Moving expenses can definitely add up: buying boxes and shipping materials, renting moving trucks, hiring movers, cleaning out or repairing your new or old home, paying for gas, paying deposits, etc.  Of course there are things you can do to reduce your moving costs but it’s still an expensive life event.

Earn Rewards Faster

Blue Cash from American Express earns 5% cashback on gas, drugstore, and grocery purchases after you’ve reached the second tier of spending.  Putting all of your moving expenses on the blue cash card will help you reach that 5% cash back level more quickly.  Of course this same concept could apply to any big ticket expenses in your life.  For example, when we finished off our basement we put almost all the expenses on our blue cash card so we reached the level of 5% rewards really quickly that year.

Save Money on Moving Expenses

American Express occassionally teams up with other companies to offer you a discount if you pay with one of their credit cards.  For example, if you use your Blue Cash card to rent a truck from Budget through their website for the next two months, they’ll give you 15% off the cost of the rental.

Dispute Charges

When you move to a new place you’ll be spending money at new businesses and with new service providers.  You can use reviews and referrals to help figure out which ones you can trust to hire or buy from during and after the move but you still might end up having a bad experience with a business.  One of the families I know that moved recently had some issues with their moving company and is still working to dispute charges that were put on thier credit card bill.

If you’re billed by such a merchant for something you don’t feel you owe, American Express makes it easy to raise a red flag. Of course most credit cards have the ability to dispute charges but American Express makes it easy to initiate.  Your online records have a button where you can open an inquiry and their interactive services team will walk you through the steps necessary.

Online Statement Record Keeping

If you need to keep track of all moving expenses for budgeting reaons or if you need to submit a portion of the costs to your employer for reimbursement then the online statement that Amex provides is very helpful.

Unlike other cards that simply list the charge amount, a brief merchant description, and the date; American Express provides all the detail you need when submitting expense reports

Here is an example of the detail for one of the charges I made recently on a business trip to Chicago.  This is an expense my company will reimburse me for but I couldn’t find the reciept anywhere once I returned home.  The good news is that my online credit card statement provided more than enough information for me to submit it on my expense report.

Save Time & Money Moving

Moving can be a tedious and expensive process so we all look for ways to cut the cost and stress of the event. The American Express Blue Cash card can help with cash back rewards, discounts on moving, disputing charges, and managing your expense reciepts. Of course not all businesses accept American Express cards so it’s helpful to carry a cash back visa card and some extra cash when moving as well.

So what’s the secret to getting ahead at work? I asked my co-workers for their best career advice when I surveyed my peers for professional feedback as I left my last job.  Here’s how I worded it:

“Please share one piece of advice that has been the most valuable for you in furthering your career and professional development. Make it your best career tip, the one that’s been most effective for you”.

I got an interesting mixture of tips ranging from work/life balance, to avoiding embarrassing mistakes, to acting like you know what you’re talking about when you’re in charge.  I worked with a lot of these people for many years and for the most part they’re pretty smart and reasonable workers so check out the tips that have served them best in their career:

Be Honorable and Decent

I have always tried to do the honorable and decent thing. I’m not sure that it has helped my career in a tangible sense, but I am glad that I have done it even if it hasn’t.

If something goes wrong, it is better to confess and fix the problem than conceal the problem. The cover-up is almost always worse than the original problem.

It is much better to deliver bad news in advance than it is to deliver it by surprise at the last minute.

Take a Deep Breath & Pause

Take a few minutes before responding to anything.  Read that email or listen to that voicemail several times before responding – especially if it is a high pressure/client sensitive situation.  The initial reaction to a message may not be what the sender intended as well as you may find an alternative message you wish to convey and if you react quickly, you may miss the point or miscommunicate.

Work to Live, Don’t Live to Work

Don’t put your ALL in your work, share some with your LIFE.  After being sick, it was very clear that jobs, projects, and other highly prioritized events in my life could vanish overnight.  Your family, friends, and things you enjoy should get the best time and attention you’ve got.

Learn and Record

Ask lots of questions and take lots of notes!!

Issue Management

No matter what, there are only three ways to deal with a bad situation:
1.  Talk to someone to see if you can change it;
2.  Leave the situation;
3.  If none of the above work, change your attitude.

Management Tip

When in a management position, you do not have to know the answer to everything. Be prepared to know how to get the answer.

Always Be Positive

always stay positive around your peers. a positive attitude, no matter how much you don’t like a situation, will go further is being successful, than you will ever get by following the crowd of people that bitch about how bad things are going….

Don’t Over-Worry

If you can’t control it, worrying about it is a waste of time.

Learn the Rules

Procedure, procedure, procedure!  Especially in Corporate America, you have to know how things get done.  If you don’t know, ask.  You have to know what the proper procedures are before you can know how to bend them without breaking them.  And as a programmer, you will have to bend them sooner or later.

Put Family First

Don’t sacrifice family time for more pay and responsibility at work.

If you’ve gotten something out of the series of career tips I’ve been running over the last few weeks, click here to subscribe to Money Smart Life for more money tips and advice for a better life!

Have any career advice of your own that you’d like to share with everyone? Feel free to leave your tip in the comment section below.

Career tips are most valuable when they are specific and come from people who are familiar with your industry or working environment.

Career Feedback

Readers were inquiring about the results of the 360 degree feedback survey I ran when I left my job so I thought I’d share some of the responses.  A little background, I was a team lead in my last position and was responsible for a group of software developers, ranging in size from 3 – 6 people over the last several years.

Self Improvement

One of the questions I asked was, “Name and explain 3 things I need to work on professionally that would make me a better person to work with.” Here are some of the things other team leads and some of my team members think I need to improve on:

Be less tolerant of poor performance from your direct reports.
Related to above, don’t step in and ’save’ your direct reports too often. They need to be accountable for their mistakes.

I sometimes struggle with delegation and in an effort to make each project successful I would step in and help carry the load of their projects if they were behind their due dates.  There were a few cases where projects were behind due to poor performance of team members and I should have done a better job addressing their weak points so it wouldn’t happen again in the future.

1.  Better organizational skills, his desk looks like mine
2.  Work more with junior developers to make them more self sufficient.

My desk was definitely messy : )  I need to come up with a filing system at my next job.  Going back to the first response, I let my team members lean on me too much, I should have done more to “get them out of the nest”.

The only thing I think you need to work on are verbal (speak more clearly and loudly) and written (make documents more universally readable)communication skills

I do tend to mumble when I’m thinking out loud; I need to work on my annunciation when I speak.  I’ll have to follow up on the “make documents more universally readable” point and see what they meant.  Maybe I put too much unexplained technical jargon in documents.

As my team lead and coworker I seriously have had zero issues with you but if I have to come up with something that will help you professionally, the only thing I can think of is talk slower at times, Not all of us can keep up

I mentioned that I mumble when I’m thinking out loud, I also tend to talk really fast when I’m excited or “in the zone” and solving problems.  I need to remember to take deep breaths between sentences if I feel like I’m talking too fast.

The only other thing i can thing of is showing confidence in your answers and decisions . not that you were really weak in this area, but once again, something that might need to be better developed as you move up…”

Of course being in charge means you have to make decisions, something I’m not always the best at. Some days are better than others but there were definitely times when I’d go back and forth before making a big decision about a project or issue.  I need to come up with a systematic way of analyzing decisions and gauging risk that will allow me to make faster decisions.

Feedback Results

The responses are still coming in but so far my survey has shown me areas where I can improve my communication, organization, leadership, and delegation skills.  I’ll share some of the other results later in the week.

When you leave a job behind, if you don’t solicit feedback from your co-workers, you’re missing out on a golden self-improvement opportunity.

Last Day of Work

Today was my last day at work, after working for this company for almost nine years I’m making a change and trying something new.  As I filled out my exit interview online and answered question after question about my boss, my group, and the company I realized I was providing human resources and management with a lot of useful feedback.

360 Degree Feedback

I saw an opportunity to help myself professionally so I built a short survey with SurveyGizmo and emailed it out to my managers and co-workers.  After working closely with me for many years, they knew my strengths and weaknesses well and it was a perfect chance to have them tell me what I was doing well and where I needed some work.  Getting feedback from all levels of your job hierarchy like this is sometimes known as 360 feedback:

“360-degree feedback, also known as ‘multi-rater feedback’, ‘multisource feedback’, or ‘multisource assessment’, is employee development feedback that comes from all around the employee. “360″ refers to the 360 degrees in a circle. The feedback would come from subordinates, peers, and managers in the organizational hierarchy, as well as self-assessment, and in some cases external sources such as customers and suppliers or other interested stakeholders.”

Self Improvement Survey

Our typical review process is top-down, from our managers only, so this was a perfect chance for peers and my team members to let me know where I needed work.  I kept it short so people would have time to take it and left the answers open ended so they could write as little or as much as they wanted.  Below are the questions I asked:

1) Describe my contribution to one project where I did a great job or helped you out.  Pick one that really stands out in your mind and explain why you were impressed with my performance. Just to let you know, these are for the resume in case my next job doesn’t work out

Testimonials are wonderful things for a resume.  If you spent years successfully completing projects, don’t hesitate to ask for some documentation of your effort.

2) Name and explain 3 things I need to work on professionally that would make me a better person to work with. It could be a better employee, manager, developer, communicator. Just describe 3 things you think I do poorly or that could use improvement.

Not everyone gave three but most people gave at least one thing I could work on.  After looking through the responses, there were several things I wouldn’t have thought of that could definitely increase my value as an employee if I could improve them.

3) In your mind, what are my 3 best attributes? I’m looking for professional development feedback here so please don’t answer something like nice shoes.

It’s helpful to know what you’re good at.  Especially when you’re in an interview and they ask for the 3–5 adjectives that best describe you or what your strengths are.  Now you don’t have to think about it, your co-workers will tell you!

4) Please share one piece of advice that has been the most valuable for you in furthering your career and professional development. Make it your best career tip, the one that’s been most effective for you

Everyone has a nugget of wisdom to share that has made their work life easier or help them in getting raises and promotions.  Why not find out everyone’s “secret to success”?

On the Way Out the Door

Of course you can run a survey like this while you’re still working at a company too, the benefit to doing it when you’re leaving is that people feel more open about sharing your pros and cons since they don’t have to work with you anymore.

I also asked for their email address (non-work) as part of the survey so that I can keep my professional network growing the next time it’s time for another job change.  Of course I made the email optional so they didn’t have to share if they didn’t want to.

So next time you get a new job, make sure you find out from your peers, managers, and underlings where you can improve so you can fast track your way to success, and hopefully corresponding raises and promotions.

If you love your job, consider yourself lucky, there are many people that hate their boss, their job, and what they do. If you are unhappy with your job, you owe it to yourself to figure out what it is about the work that you don’t enjoy and change it.  Life’s too short to spend it working in a job you don’t like.

What Do You Like/Dislike About Your Job?

As you may know I recently found a new job and had to fill out an exit interview for my current employer, giving them feedback on my experience with the company.  As I answered questions about my boss, my group, and the work I did, I realized that I was going through an exercise in job quality improvement.   In order to attract and keep good talent, the company was reviewing the components that can make or break a job so they can do more to remain competitive in the industry.

What Can Make Your Job Better?

Then I realized that this exit interview is actually a perfect set of questions for any employee to ask themselves to help gauge how happy they are in thier job.  I’m including all 20 questions below so that you can evaluate your job.  Your answers will show where there is room for improvement. You’ll benefit from taking the time to answer these questions whether you love your job, think your job is just okay, or are already looking for a new job. 

Love Your Job
If you’re content where you are, just remember there’s always room for improvement, you can talk to your boss about any questions or concerns the survey raises.

Unhappy with Your Job
If you’re not really that happy but don’t want to look for a new job, these questions can help identify your main gripes with the work you do and figure out the main things you need to address to be happy at work.

Looking for a new job
If you’re on the job hunt, these are all things you’ll want to consider when selecting your next job.  No point in jumping from a job you hate into another that’s not so great. You could definitely use some of the topics covered in the questions as evaluation criteria in your job comparison tool.

Job Satisfaction Survey

Here they are, 20 questions that a big company asks its employees when they leave the company.  Answer them about your current job to see how happy you really are or what you should look for in your new job.  Some of the questions are worded such that they assume you’re leaving, just play along and see what you come up with.  For example, your answer to the first question, “Why are you leaving the company”, should reveal right away a high level list of all the things you don’t like about your current job.

I started off this piece by saying, “If you love your job, consider yourself lucky”, but in reality many people who work in jobs they enjoy are there because they took the time to answer questions like these and then acted on their answers.  Take the time to answer the questions below and help yourself find a job that you look forward to going to each day. I know 20 questions can be a lot to answer so I alternated the colors to keep your eyes interested : )

1) Why are you leaving the company?

2) What prompted you to look for another job? 

3) Before making the decision to leave the company, did you investigate other options that would have enabled you to stay?

4) Could anything have been done to prevent you from leaving the company? 

5) What company will you work for?

6) What type of work will you be doing?

7) In what way do you consider your new position to be different?

8 ) How would you rate your immediate manager? 

• Demonstrated fair treatment
• Provided recognition of your job performance 
• Developed cooperation and teamwork
• Was available to answer questions
• Resolved problems in a timely manner
• Provided resources/information to perform your job duties
• Communicated policies, procedures and expectations
• Provided regular, timely performance feedback
• Encouraged suggestions and new ideas 

9) What would you have done differently if you were the immediate manager?

10) How would you rate the following in your department?  

• Teamwork within the department
• Teamwork with other departments
• Communication within the department
• Communication with other departments
• On-the-job training
• Equipment provided
• Physical working conditions
• Overall morale 

11) How did your management communicate job expectations?

12) Was your workload usually?
Too Great   About Right   Too Light   Too Routine

13) Were your skills and abilities sufficiently utilized?

14) What did you think your chances for advancement were?
Good   Fair   Poor

15) What did you like most about your job or department?

16) What did you like least about your job or department?

17) What did you like the most about the company?

18) What did you like the least about the company?

19) Evaluate the following company-paid benefits:  

• Paid holidays  
• Paid floating holidays 
• Paid vacation or PTO 
• Paid sick time 
• Rate of pay
• Stock service awards program
• 401(k) plan match/profit sharing
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Long-term disability insurance
• Life insurance 

20) Evaluate the following additional benefits/services:                        

• Vision insurance 
• Voluntary life insurance/AD&D 
• Short-term disability insurance 
• Leave of absence policy 
• Wellness programs
• Educational assistance
• 401(k) plan
• Direct deposit
• Total pay card
• Internal on-line job posting  

If you do decide to leave your current job just remember to calculate the costs of a new job, carefully evaluate the new city if re-locating, plan for health insurance coverage, make sure you rollover your 401k, and give two weeks notice so you don’t burn any bridges.

This job satisfaction survey and tips on job evaluation are part of the Career Finances Guide.

As I was looking for a new job I was reminded of how many key personal finance concerns are tied to our employers.  Of course it’s not just how much you’re paid but also things like health insurance, retirement savings, and even life insurance or disability insurance coverage.

Career Finances

The financial intricacies of finding a good employer can be pretty overwhelming and in some cases can be the cause for people staying in jobs that aren’t necessarily right for them.

I heard a piece on the radio a while back that talked about the history of corporate benefits and how they fit into the economic landscape of the United States.  Due to the rising cost of providing these benefits and smaller profits resulting from increased global competition, corporations are cutting back on the benefits they offer.  This leaves us employees the task of maximizing the benefits we can get from our job and learning about what we can do to cover the gaps.

Managing Job Benefits

While there are certainly things you can do to increase your salary, such as learning the company salary policy and promoting yourself you should be sure to consider all the financial aspects of the job you work in.  In the coming days we’ll be covering some of common issues and questions people encounter about benefits and finances when looking for a job.

So far we’ve covered a tool for comparing jobs, tips on determining the cost of relocation if you move for a new job, and some of the expenses of a new job that you might encounter.

Click here to stay tuned for more coverage of career finance.

Quitting your job can be quite a liberating experience.  The weight of “all things crappy” in your job is lifted off your shoulders and you feel as though you can finally breath again.  Yet, no matter how bad your job seems at the time you leave, it’s wise to quit your job gracefully and not burn your bridges.

My Two Weeks Notice

After almost nine years of working for the same group, I had a long talk with my boss yesterday where I gave my two weeks notice and let him know I was taking a better job for a lower salary.  Of course I didn’t word it in that way, he asked about the reasons I was leaving and I was honest yet tactful.

The main reason for exiting cordially is that you never know when you’ll need a job or a reference in the future so it’s smart to keep the relationship you built intact.  In my case it was also because I’ve become friends with my boss and many of my co-workers.  However from a purely career-centric point of view, leaving gracefully keeps your professional network intact should you need to call on it sometime down the road.

Here are a few things to consider as you leave your job for greener pastures:

Give Two Weeks Notice

In many companies you’re required to give the official notice and go through an exit interview otherwise you forfeit being paid out accrued benefits such as vacation days.  Some companies have a policy that you can’t be re-hired in the future if you don’t give proper notice before leaving.

Wrap it Up

It’s really tempting to wash your hands of everything you’ve been working on and cruise through the last two weeks but if you dump a load of work on your co-workers or boss that will be the last thing they remember about you.  If you come looking for a job or referral in the future that last bitter memory will likely be the first to pop up.

Transition Responsibility

Let people know where all the bodies are buried.  Train your co-workers on necessary tasks and document important processes.  If you don’t do this you may be getting phone calls and emails for weeks or months after you leave your job.  Plus your co-workers will really appreciate the documentation.

Manage Change

Try and avoid the sinking ship syndrome.  When someone leaves a group, especially if they’re in a leadership or key operational role, the people left behind often ask themselves whether they’ll be the last ones left on a sinking ship. 

• Why are you leaving?
• What will happen once you’re gone?
• Is the group or company in trouble?
• Will they have to work overtime to make up for your absence?
• Should they start looking for a new job as well?

These thoughts will likely go through people’s heads in a time of change but you can help calm their fears by the way you handle your exit.  Announce your departure personally to your core team, the people you work with on a daily basis, so that they hear it from you instead of the rumor mill.  Tactfully explain your reasons for leaving, don’t bad mouth the company or other co-workers.  Be ready to answer questions about transitioning responsibilities and shifting project work. 

Smile On the Way Out

Those poor suckers are still stuck working there and you’re moving on!  So smile and be friendly on the way out the door.  You can’t help but feel bad for your co-workers as you leave for bigger and better things.  If you can quit gracefully and leave as a friend it will be better off for your career in the long run.

I’ve been on the job hunt lately and one of the questions employers frequently ask is if I’d be open to relocation.  Here are a few tips from the Financial Planning Association on some things to consider when relocating for a job.

Make sure you thoroughly research the new city well before agreeing to take a job there.  You have to weigh potential salary increases against the cost of living in the new city.  Here are some resources you can use in your research:

• Local newspapers and city magazines, either in print or online
• The destination city’s Web site
• The destination state’s department of revenue and education Web sites
• Online real estate listings 
• Your tax and financial planning professionals
• Utility websites and the American Automobile Association (AAA) daily fuel gauge report to determine your energy spending

Here are some ideas to incorporate into a money plan for a future move:

Study the destination’s cost of living: Most people have a fantasy spot or two in their minds of where they’d like to live.  For most, it’s all about the weather, the culture and creature comforts.  But before you relocate, drill deeper. For starters, onsite or online, it makes sense to study not only rental rates or home prices, but property, local and state tax rates, food and entertainment prices, and given current energy concerns, utility and gasoline prices and whether public transit options are available. And don’t just focus on current numbers – read ahead to see where these costs are going.

Check ahead on insurance: It’s particularly important for self-employed business people to check on what individual and group health insurance may cost in a new destination. But everyone should check on what rental, home, auto and even new life insurance policies may cost. On the home or rental insurance front, it’s also a good idea to see if there are restrictions on any pets or property insurable in that area. If you are changing employers, you should make sure your former employer keeps you on your health plan through COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) so you will have coverage until you move on to new insurance. It’s also a good idea to make sure that insurance will cover you adequately in that new city or state.

Compare benefits:  If you have the option of moving to a new city through a transfer at your employer – or if you expect that to be the only option for keeping your job – it makes sense to do some casual investigation in your human resources department right now to check moving allowances, whether all current benefits will extend to a new location, or whether there are any improvements over your current benefits after the move.

Talk to your tax professional: If you are moving more than 50 miles farther from your former home than your old main job location was from your former home, your move will meet one of the main requirements that will allow you to deduct expenses related to that move. You’ll want to talk to your tax professional about that and other major tax issues you’ll face at your new location, and you may also want to go over deductibility of items you may want to give to charity so you don’t have to move them.

Check critical amenities: It’s important to know the quality of an area’s schools (this is important for all taxpayers, not just those with school-aged children), crime rates in various neighborhoods (and if they’re improving or deteriorating) and the quality of nearby health facilities.  Having access to the best private or public services where you live is always smart money thinking.

Plan your financial services before your move: The financial professionals and services you currently use may or may not be available to you if you move to a new city or state.  If you are working with a longtime tax professional, tax attorney or financial planner, see if you can still work with them after you move.  There might be a host of reasons those relationships may need to end. Various professionals may need to be licensed or certified to serve clients who live in other states or countries. The time to look for a talented referral is now, not on moving day.

Pack smart:  All critical financial data and papers should be organized and ordered so you don’t lose key documents. Carry them with you if that’s possible. At the same time, if you keep financial data on your computer, do a thorough backup that you can keep in a safe place with all your key documents and files.

This post is produced in association with the Financial Planning Association (FPA), the leadership and advocacy organization connecting those who provide, support and benefit from professional financial planning.

Being young comes at a premium price when it comes to auto insurance. Insurance companies view young people under 25 as a high risk for making claims. It’s not that they hate you. They have factual statistics to back it up. Teenage and college aged individuals are the most likely age group to get into an accident. Some of it is due to inexperience driving, making poor decisions, and reckless driving. But, this doesn’t mean that every college student is a bad driver. In fact, the vast majority of you are very responsible drivers. Here’s a look at five tips to help you get better rates on your car insurance premiums.

1. Choose a higher deductible. For collision and comprehensive coverage, choose $500 or $1000 for your deductible, but make sure that you stash enough cash away in an emergency fund to cover your deductible if you do get in an accident.




2. Choose a safe car to drive. You can’t get around the fact that an insurance company will give you high rates based on your age. But, you can control what type of car you drive. Typically, a 4-door sedan with high safety ratings will yield lower premium rates than a sports car or SUV. I know, the Honda Accord doesn’t get the chicks, but the money you’ll save on insurance premiums can go towards money for dates.




3. Skip on collision coverage. Most young people drive clunkers. I drove a 1987 reddish-pink Nissan Sentra for two years. It was worth about $1,000. A friend of mine drove a $2,000 Pontiac Firebird for a year. If you have a clunker, you probably don’t need to pay for collision. Any car with a book value of less than $3,000 warrants skipping out on collision. The amount you’d spend on the premium could be saved every month and pay for another clunker.




4. Get good grades. Most auto insurance companies will give you a 10% to 15% discount on your auto insurance premium for having good grades. A 3.0 GPA or higher is usually the standard for receiving the discount.




5. Buy another policy with the same carrier. Many insurance companies will give you a discount for having multiple policies with them. I recommend coupling your auto insurance with renter’s insurance. Most college students don’t buy renter’s insurance. It will protect your personal property in an apartment from theft, vandalism, fire, water damage, and many other perils that can destroy your stuff. The best part is that you can pick up a $20,000 policy for $10 to $15 dollars a month.

Search Online Insurance Quotes
The web makes it easy to shop around for coverage. Here are a few places you can get insurance quotes online so you can compare their rates right away:

Saving money is a learned habit. You’re not born with the gift of knowing how to save money. If you develop this habit throughout your college years, you will be very successful with your money. You will typically spend 10% to 15% of your monthly income on insurance premiums in your lifetime. It’s worth it to put the effort into saving money on your premiums.

Some of the earlier articles in this series cover the best checking account for college students, how you can make extra money in college, and the best student credit cards.

Stay tuned for tomorrow when we’ll cover saving money with student discounts.

These tips for saving money on auto insurance for college students is part of the College Student Money Guide.

When it comes to commodities investing there are an unbelievable number of scams out there.

I am not kidding when I say that there are literally hundreds of companies out there just waiting to railroad you through the door, part you from your money, and happily send you straight to the gas chamber.

I know we’ve talked a little bit about how to decide what a good commodity investment might be.

So, I wanted to conclude this series by giving you the information you will need to avoid the evil villains of the investment world, and hopefully, get your financial happily ever after.

The secret to spotting commodity scams:

There is one major test that every single commodity scam will fail:

They will promise to make you a lot of money fast, with little to no risk.

• Penny stocks to make you rich!
• The next Berkshire Hathaway!
• The price of Gold/Wheat/Oil is going to skyrocket, get in on the ground floor!
• They all boil down to one simple thing: Get rich quick! No risk!

Now, frankly we are all smart enough to realize that there is no such thing as “get rich quick”. You wouldn’t be here reading this blog if you weren’t. However, there are not many things in the investment world that are as risky as commodities. Particularly commodity futures. If someone is telling you there is little to no risk involved, turn around and run the other way as fast as you can!

There are also a few other notable ways to spot a scam.

1. Long “squeeze” pages - We’ve all seen these. They are single page advertisements on the internet designed to keep you reading and convince you to act against your better judgment. If you land on one of these pages, click away as quickly as possible. Nothing good can come of it.
2. They are in a hurry to get your money – “Prices will skyrocket in the next few days!” or “Invest now before it’s too late.” Seriously, we’ve probably all bought enough junk off of infomercials that we should know better by now! I still have that stupid Ab belt from the 1990’s. You know the one I mean – the one that delivers low grade electrical shocks and promises a 6-pack. Didn’t work for me! And these basic commodity and futures scams are no different.

   Legitimate companies and investment opportunities don’t need to come and beat your door down to get your money. They are already making enough profit on their own. That brings me to my third and final point.

3. If they appear to “need” your money in any way, shape or form - Run away. Far away. If they are calling you at home, emailing you, or cyber-stalking you in any way, drop them like a crazy ex-girlfriend and head for the hills!

Always take these steps before you invest your money:

• Find a legitimate broker, and make sure that you get a risk disclosure document. Your broker is required to give it to you by law. Anyone who tries to tell you it’s “just a formality” is scamming you.
• Explore your options carefully.
• Sleep on your options. At least overnight, maybe several nights, before you invest your money.
• Only invest in funds that have a minimum of 3-5 years of solid performance.

Follow those rules and you are far less likely to wind up on the bad end of a commodities deal. There is so much risk involved in commodities anyway, why choose a risky company to invest with?

For more information on commodity scams you can check out The U.S Commodity Futures Trading Commission web site.

I hope that you have enjoyed this series on commodity investing as much as I have enjoyed writing it for you. If you liked it, you can offer your feedback here for a chance to win $50. Thanks!

The Princess Bride photo is © Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation 1987.

Writer Auditions – Author Connie Brooks – Offer Your Feedback