It’s getting paid again and again without doing extra work. 1. The Royalty Route. No, I don’t mean being related to kings and queens. That’s getting paid for doing no work. I mean you write a book, invent a game, record an album, and you could be collecting checks for years. 2. The Tycoon Track. Make Read More …
Why not a do-it-yourself life-coach web site? You answer a questionnaire about your medical health, mental health, financial health, career (hours worked, stress, respect), religion, relationships, worries, hopes and dreams. You get back a priority list of suggestions and references. OK, at most it’s a cursory overview, and it could be a ballpark guess, but sometimes we all miss the obvious: Read More …
First of all, there’s no need for dollar coins at all, if the Treasury adopted my “FREE MONEY!” proposal for putting ads on the dollar bill. But say the powers that be opt for Plan B, switching to dollar coins, to save millions on frequently replacing bills, which wear out more rapidly, then the answer’s Read More …
Alas, newspapers grow ever shorter on space, so it is with no great anticipation I share some ideas for features that readers might find of some interest. Consider this Part 1 of a series. Contest Mania. Who isn’t interested in free money and merchandise, ways to win them, and people who have done so? Are Read More …
There’s the Useful Edition: 5 more ways to tie a tie. How to tell better jokes. How to listen. What to get for Mother’s Day. 5 foods that lower cholesterol. 5 foods that raise it. Painting without spattering. And so. Then there’s the Trivia Edition: Your basically useless but interesting facts. Could also have the Brain Food Edition, which, Read More …
Ever use that algebra and calculus you learned in high school? Most people don’t, I’ll bet. But every day we make decisions or encounter information involving odds and numerical evidence. Play poker? Buy a lottery ticket? Decide to fly or drive? Read a story about how married people live longer? Or how a drug cuts the risk of a rare Read More …
Seeing some old guy waddle to the mound in striped flannel pajamas is pretty ridiculous. And a majorly missed marketing opportunity. Put coaches in knit or other casual shirts with team logos, and fans might buy more. (You can pretty much buy anything with a team logo these days.) Theory was you needed a uniform Read More …
New line item on federal income-tax returns: Number of $1 chances you’d like to buy to have all of your income taxes refunded. Bet 50 million people would buy at least a single chance. You’d keep drawing tickets till half the pot is awarded. Profit for feds: $25 million or more. Earmark for a worthy Read More …
Here’s my nightmare: I’ll buy a winning lottery ticket but forget to ever check it. Here’s my solution: Lottery ticket subscriptions. It’s like having season tickets to a sporting event. Every game, or every so often, you get the same numbers. If they ever hit, this computerized system automatically contacts you. No waiting in line, Read More …
Could charities parlay tax breaks into bigger donations? Scenario: Generous Jill is in a 15 percent tax bracket. If she donates $1,000 directly to her favorite charity, she saves $150 on her taxes, right? But say the charity is also supported by Benefactor Bob, who is in a 30 percent bracket. He could give the Read More …
Imagine if our currency had a little “Brought to you by” section. Sell enough sponsorships, and voila, free money! Blasphemous! Sacrilegous! Tacky! you say. But this could be an ideal form of welfare. Free money for the poor, at no cost to taxpayers. Couldn’t possibly raise a dollar per dollar-bill? OK, how ads on coins. Read More …
Back when the ratings of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? were falling, I offered an explanation and a solution in a newspaper article. Diagnosis (besides overexposure and foolishly butting heads with other strong shows): Viewers like to think they could win. Questions seemed fairly easy (making it fun to watch with your kids), and Read More …