Philosophy Archives - Page 15 of 15 - The Outlier Model

Creating a new normal

CF / February 21st, 2011 / No Comments

I’m big on doing “the little things right” – pulling the shower curtain closed so it can dry properly, closing lids of containers after I use them, turning off the lights when I’m not in a room… and more! My mind is often organized as one giant checklist that I like to periodically refer to. That’s the way I am. I am forever thinking about the little details. But not everyone...

Getting rid of the backup rug

CF / February 18th, 2011 / No Comments

Up until 2 weeks ago, I had a rug propped up against a corner in my living room. I bought it 2 years ago when I lived in an apartment with hardwood floors. I ended up vacating that apartment rather unexpectedly due to a fire, and aside from a brief appearance in my condo, I haven’t used the rug since then. I kept it for a while because I liked the colours. It had taken a long time for the...

Posted in: Minimalism and Frugality, Philosophy Tagged with: cleaning house, craigslist, garage sale, getting rid of stuff, minimalism

Questioning the necessities – Owning a car

Owning a car, car sharing, car, having a car, buying a car

Brian / January 26th, 2011 / 6 Comments

Growing up, I lived the rural lifestyle. I believed that part of becoming an adult was owning my own car. Often, owning a car makes a log of sense in a rural setting. Sporadic transit and long distances between amenities can make car ownership logical. Now I live in the city, and as part of a growing urban population, the necessity of owning a car is something that can seriously be questioned. Costs...

Posted in: Minimalism and Frugality, Philosophy Tagged with: benefits of car sharing, car coop, car share, cost of owning a car, modo the car coop, zipcar

The Outlier Model

CF / January 10th, 2011 / No Comments

In Wikipedia1, an outlier is described as: “An outlying observation, or outlier, is one that appears to deviate markedly from other members of the sample in which it occurs.” What does that mean for personal finance? For living simply? For life? For me, it describes much of what I hope to accomplish. It means that by doing things differently than the “average” North American consumer,...

Posted in: Philosophy Tagged with: assets, debt, income, outlier model