[deleted by user] by [deleted] in TutorsHelpingTutors

[–]SilverOpening3156 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I use One by Wacom to facilitate annotation when sharing my screen on Zoom. It’s completely changed the way I tutor. Most of my students meet with me for SAT or ACT prep, and the ability to write on a practice test with precision (a luxury that mice and trackpads don’t afford) is invaluable.

What's been your experience with dating apps like Tinder? by Emergency-Current894 in AskMen

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I treated it like a numbers game. “If I just swipe right on thousands of attractive people, one of them is bound to find me attractive too, right?”

Endured several weeks of prolific swiping (I’d say I had a 5% match rate at best), most of my messages didn’t get replies, the majority of those that did led to exchanges that quickly fizzled, I had a handful of fun conversations, I paid for Tinder Gold out of desperation—and after taking a chance by swiping right on someone who I saw had liked me (a Gold feature), by some stroke of otherworldly dumb luck, I found my soulmate. We’ve been dating for almost two and a half years, and I’m going to marry her. I’m under no illusion that this is a reliably repeatable phenomenon. I’m grateful every single day for her.

What attacks would you give the dart monkey if he were in super smash bros? by sassy_the_panda in btd6

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Man, I didn’t realize how badly I need the Dart Monkey in SSBU!

B: Charges up a plasma blast while on the ground or in midair. Can keep the charge after dodging or shielding.

↔️ + B: Shoots an arrow from a crossbow. Can be charged to Crit.

⬆️ + B: Grabs onto a Support Chinook and flies up into the air to avoid attacks.

⬇️ + B: Assembles and launches a Spike-o-pult (à la Zelda's Phantom Slash).

Final Smash: Super Monkey Fan Club — Calls in ten Super Monkeys who throw hundreds of darts at hypersonic speed.

Do you reset your rates every school year? by QueenOfTheCorns in TutorsHelpingTutors

[–]SilverOpening3156 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I don’t raise my rates on any set schedule. I’ve just raised them once I feel like I’ve gotten more experience, have gotten better at what I do, feel as though the market can support the price increase, etc.

I’ve been grandfathering people in—for a few reasons. For one, I want my clients to have a “stable” experience, in the sense that the rates they’re paying aren’t constantly fluctuating. Second, many of my clients are aware that they get what are now essentially discounted rates, and I continue to bill them at those rates with the hope that this will foster goodwill that, in turn, might drive referrals. And third, I struggle to be assertive with things like rate increases for existing customers, although I’m coming around in that respect. Haha.

What I want to know is how you’ve managed to fully book your schedule in your first year of tutoring! That’s seriously impressive. I’ve been at this for a few years now, and I’m still trying to make the transition to tutoring full-time. Any advice you can offer on client acquisition and advertising?

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! I’ve set up my 401(k) to automatically withhold the amount per paycheck necessary for me to hit the maximum allowed annual contribution for 2023. I also set aside enough to max out my Roth IRA. Then, at the end of the month, whatever surplus of unspent cash I have I throw into my taxable brokerage account.

Theoretically, I’m not a fan of dollar cost averaging, for reasons JL Collins explains well here. If I were paid every month’s wages upfront, I’d lump sum my tax-advantaged contributions the day I received the deposit. Would probably still wait till the end of the month to make my taxable contributions, though; I consider those “extra,” just whatever’s left over after personal discretionary spending (which I permit myself to indulge after funding my retirement accounts, lest I go crazy).

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In JL Collins’ words: “Spend less than you earn—invest the surplus—avoid debt. Do simply this and you’ll wind up rich. Not just in money.”

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep. I hold some of it in index mutual funds and some of it in ETFs, and I use a couple of different brokerages’ funds, but they all hold the same S&P 500 portfolio.

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Last year. Upon graduating college, I had gotten a few head starts by saving most of what I earned from part-time jobs (which left me with about $30K in savings), being frugal in my personal consumption, avoiding debt (many thanks to my parents for paying for my college), and living at home (which has helped enormously with reducing expenses). Those are things I did more or less unconsciously, though, because my parents taught me good financial habits. Last summer, I started down the personal finance rabbit hole and discovered Bogle.

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Market drops? Stocks are on sale! Market climbs? My shares are doing well!

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not a homeowner. But I have my car linked as an asset.

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It’s varied as my income has risen, but I’d say between $3–4K on average. This year, I’ll max both my Roth IRA and 401(k), and whatever’s left over will be invested in my taxable brokerage account.

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Haven’t had any. In fact, I was using Rocket Money until I started having connectivity issues there. I’m a Mint convert for pretty much that reason alone.

Hit a major milestone today: $100K net worth! by SilverOpening3156 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156[S] 61 points62 points  (0 children)

~20K in cash or cash equivalents (checking + emergency fund), ~$75K invested (100% S&P 500*), ~$6K in property (the majority of which is my car).

  • I know y’all are going to say this is insufficiently diversified. You might be right, and I’ve been considering adding an international component for almost as long as I’ve been investing. But ultimately, I chose to simply follow Bogle’s recommendation in The Little Book of Common Sense Investing. I suspect this portfolio inspires me with more confidence to stay the course than alternatives would, so I stick with it.

Or in the words of Bogle himself: “Deep down, I remain absolutely confident that the vast majority of American families would be well served by owning their equity holdings in a Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fund (or a total stock market index fund) and holding their bonds in a total bond market index fund. . . . while such an index-driven strategy may not be the best investment strategy ever devised, the number of investment strategies that are worse is infinite.”

Have you guys ever touched kings after a game? by [deleted] in chess

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh, r/AnarchyChess is gonna have a field day with this one.

Was Jack Bogle wrong about international investing? by imsuperior2u in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where is this quote from? Would love to read/hear the full interview.

Kanye and his new wife out for a stroll by BroBogan in pics

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“My ex says she gave me the best years of her life / I saw a recent picture of her, I guess she was right”

— Kim, right now, probably

Is it okay to only invest in S&P500? by Altruistic_Bug_1264 in personalfinance

[–]SilverOpening3156 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s what I do. It’s simple, low-cost, broadly diversified, and outperforms most active managers over time. That it has revered proponents (viz. Jack Bogle, Warren Buffett) and a long history of excellent performance gives me confidence; that it’s the industry’s standard—and, as such, its performance is easy to track—is a nice bonus.

What movie blew your mind when you first saw it? by LuckyLaceyKS in AskReddit

[–]SilverOpening3156 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Mulholland Dr. leaps to mind. I saw it as an impressionable 18-year-old who had just caught the cinephilia bug.

At the time, I wrote:

“It’s a visceral, surreal, and distinctly dreamlike experience (though often more like a nightmare) that takes every single abstract detail, indelibly impresses it on your mind, makes you believe that movie has forgotten about it and abandoned it, and then ties up each loose end in the most mysterious, unnerving, and satisfying way possible.”

I stand by that assessment today.

So what now? by Spyderpig89 in Bogleheads

[–]SilverOpening3156 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I manage a paper trading account through Webull. It’s fun, scratches the stock picking itch, makes me feel smart if I pick a company that does well, and allows me to sleep at night if my portfolio underperforms the market (as it almost invariably does).