Today is Selection Sunday and college basketball teams around the country are anxiously waiting to learn their fates.
Will it be that coveted last spot in the NCAA tournament? Or relegated to the NIT? (Sure, playing in any tournament is nice, but the NIT pales in comparison to the real deal.)
If you are like me and your team is sitting in the first four out list (as of time of this writing) you see a lot of similarity to financial issues. My team, the University of Tennessee, is on the outside looking in. They lost in their conference tournament when a win would have likely locked up a bid to the NCAA tournament.
Instead they lost, but even with a loss they aren’t completely out of the running. They are just reliant on a bunch of other teams losing in order to propel them into one of those last few spots in the tournament.
Don’t we often run our finances this way?
We miss doing things right and do just enough. We cut corners, and suddenly find ourselves reliant on someone or something else to save us. That might be a relative lending us money or just hoping that our employer continues to employ us.
Don’t live your financial life like a NCAA basketball bubble team. Take control of your finances with some of these great reads:
Investor Junkie | Self-Employed? Save for Retirement with a Defined Benefit Plan
Wise Bread | 5 Things 30-Year-Olds Don’t Have Enough Of
Planting Money Seeds | First-Time Homebuyers: Avoid These 4 Mortgage Pitfalls
The Chicago Financial Planner | Investment Diversification – A Look at the Basics
Yes, I Am Cheap | I’m Unemployed & Coming Out The Closet
Bargaineering | How to Ask for a Raise in a Tough Economy – Our guest contribution!
The College Investor | 5 Things Your Millionaire Neighbor Isn’t Telling You
Money Q&A | Five of the Most Important Tax Deductions You Cannot Forget
Couple Money | Paying Down Debt is Boring
Free From Broke was featured in the following carnivals:
Financial Carnival for Young Adults – 20s Finances
Yakezie Carnival 3/3/13 – Personal Crossroads Edition
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie – Wild Weekend Edition
The Carnival of MoneyPros | The Happy Homeowner
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Financially Digital – Blog – Yakezie Blog Carnival Round Up
Credit Card Blog – Cardguys.com » Festival of Frugality Visits the Card Guys Blog
Carnival of Personal Finance #401: March madness | NZ Muse
Carnival of Wealth, Office Memo Edition | Control Your Cash: Making Money Make Sense
Festival of Frugality # 378 – March 5th, 2013 Daylight Savings Celebration Edition
Tax Carnival #114: March 2013 Tax Lions and Lambs – Don’t Mess With Taxes
Carnival of Personal Finance #399
Thanks for including my post. My team Marquette is a lock as is my sentimental favorite St. Louis (the late Rick Majerus was a Marquette alum, assistant, and head coach who I had the chance to meet a few years ago in a skybox at a Milwaukee Brewers game). I grew up watching Marquette in the Al McGuire days (’77 champs and ’74 runners up) and have been hooked ever since. My wife has her undergrad degree from there and my MBA is from MU as well.
Thanks for the mention this week!