Blog - Page 6 of 25 - MikedUp Blog

Monica’s Weight Loss Update After 2 Months on ‘The Plan’

May 22, 2019 No Comments

On March 16, 2019, my wife struck fear deep into the depths of my heart when she said, “Honey – I need help losing this baby weight. I’m starting this weight loss journey and I need your help… Please.” I wrote about how she had asked for fitness help in the past, I got a little too ‘agro’, and she ultimately quit working out with me for… oh… 7 years after that ‘incident’. So when she reached out 2 months ago for some help losing the baby weight, I told you all how I was both terrified and excited at the same time. I’ve worked with folks who’ve lost hundreds of pounds and also managed to lose 65 pounds – forever – myself. So, we had a bag of tricks to pull from… Which was nice. Well – we came up with a plan and […]

Business, Personal Development

Are you Interested in a $200/Hour Side Hustle? Here’s One

May 20, 2019 No Comments

In my opinion, blogging for money – by itself – doesn’t work. Much like anything else you find success with, you have to absolutely love the process. Unless you’re retired or work a very flexible job, growing your blog and increasing profitability take many early mornings and late nights. Making money while blogging is consistently putting in the work, night after night, month after month, and year after year. Personally, I had to cut my blogging teeth for nearly 3 years before I’d see a $100 paycheck. But that’s ok – I wasn’t in it for the money. I love the process I love to write, enjoy interacting with others in the community, and I really enjoy learning more about personal development and then distilling and sharing that information with YOU – the reader. All this to say 2 things: 1- Blogging, most […]

Business, Family

How to Live ‘Happily Ever After’ and Work With your Spouse

May 15, 2019 No Comments

“Mom and dad were arguing so I just left the room.” One of our employees was relaying the “discussion” to another and although we were all laughing about it after the fact, neither my wife nor I enjoyed that this took place. We’re hyper-conscious that the “freedom” to work with your spouse can have catastrophic consequences, which is why we’ve implemented the tactics below to make sure that becoming business partners didn’t get in the way of ‘happily ever after’. I had the great pleasure in talking with Tom from Maple Money all about working with your spouse and the do’s and don’t’s based on my family’s experiences. In fact, this post comes directly from that conversation. I was lucky to have the opportunity and I’d really recommend you heading over to listening to Tom’s podcast then stopping back here to read more of the details. […]

Business, Finance, Personal Development

Low Unemployment Aside – How Will you Stand Out?

May 10, 2019 No Comments

In this Current Events Friday’s Post (CE-Friday’s), I’ll be adding my two cents on the current job market and what it means for you landing that dream job you’re thinking of applying to. Here’s a hint: they aren’t just going to gift it to you… CE-Friday’s – “What you need to know today in less than 500 words” I wrote 2 weeks ago about how the current unemployment rate of 3.8% has kept me up at night. But as with most things in life, there exists a dichotomy. As a small business CEO, hiring can be an incredibly difficult thing to do when you’ve got candidates pouring in. But in the current market, that’s not necessarily the case. Starting out just 2 years ago, it was common to receive at least 20 applicants for an advertised position. Three weeks ago we posted a new […]

Finance

Build Wealth and Ensure a Wealthy Future with these 6 Steps

May 6, 2019 No Comments

This post was originally published on The Money Mix and is republished here with their permission. Adding to that, this is a great guide on how to build wealth and ensure a wealthy future for your family. I am excited to share this with you! (Photo courtesy of Steve W.) You have a great job and make a good income. You’ve paid off your student loans and credit card debt. Now you’re ready to save and invest. But you’re not sure how to invest your money. I have good news. I’m going to introduce you to six basic steps on how to invest your money. It will be unlike many of the other “how to” articles on investing. Before you think about investing a dime, we need to set the foundation. Without it, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to have a successful investment […]

Family, Finance, Personal Development

10 Best Work from Home Jobs for Stay at Home Parents in 2019

May 1, 2019 No Comments

I am very excited to welcome Ben and the team from Dollar Sprout to the blog today for 2 reasons. 1) They’re phenomenal to work with and 2) they know their stuff. So, when they asked to write about the best stay at home jobs, I thought you guys would love to hear what they have to say! Take a look at the 10 best they’ve outlined below and let us know which ones you’ve tried or which you’re stoked to try in the comments section. 10 Legitimate Stay at Home Job Ideas for Parents in 2019 The best part of being a stay-at-home parent is the fact that you have the opportunity to spend more time with your kids and witness more of their developmental milestones first-hand. Still, taking care of your kids and managing the household can definitely seem like a full-time job […]

Family

I’m Not Allowed to Say “Jiu-Jitsu” for the Next 4 Months…

April 29, 2019 No Comments

My wife had a point… There was work, our daughter, ‘the project,’ my daily workout, life, the blog, and now I come to her with a detailed, concise, and targeted pitch about why I (and we) need to start training jiu-jitsu. She stared through me with a bewildered look on her face, let me finish through my rehearsed closer line, and simply said (I’m paraphrasing), “You’re not allowed to say jiu-jitsu for the next 4 months. Don’t think it. Don’t say it. And you know exactly why.” I didn’t take offense. The comment wasn’t made in a condescending or exasperated tone. It was matter-of-fact. Cold. Straight. Truth. So in order to see it as such in the moment, I had to detach from the situation and see her point of view, because very rarely will she put the foot down so emphatically. “She must have good reason to do so,” I thought to myself. […]

Finance, Family

Mortgage Free or Huge Investments – Which is Best?

April 24, 2019 No Comments

I am thrilled to welcome back Jon to the blog! He’s written before about non-traditional wireless phone plans, financial resolutions for the new year, and paying off $89,000 in student loans with his wife – and living to tell about it. And today he has another treat in store for us! Jon and Heather (his wife) recently purchased a home, and in the time since that big-ticket buy, they’ve been weighing the pros and cons of paying off the mortgage early vs. investing their extra income (they were debt-free, after all…). In this post, Jon breaks down all the components of which is best – mortgage free… or huge investments? Mortgage Free or Huge Investments – Which is Best? When it comes to getting a mortgage, in the personal finance community I’ve heard everything from: “Pay off your home as early as you can,” all […]

Fitness, Family

How Not to Have a Stress-Induced Heart Attack Before Age 35

April 22, 2019 No Comments

How NOT To Have A Stress-Induced Heart Attack #Stress #anxiety #calm #meditate #peace

Sweaty palms, elevated heart rate, and the constant stream of incomplete yet highly punctuated thoughts… All the while, I was lying in bed thinking, “It’s 0200… GO TO SLEEP!” Which provided exactly 0% help for the situation. Here we were with another one in a string of sleepless nights where it’s not an uncooperative child or a specific argument that’s got me all ‘riled up’ and thus not sleeping. Nope… What’s happening is an accumulation of 1,000 tiny stressors over the course of an extended period of time all compounding to produce what seems like immediate proximity to the breaking point. Whatever that means… I didn’t know how to characterize that point, just that it was near. And what seemed present on the other side didn’t sound so appealing. (Photo courtesy of MKulp Photography) I felt unhealthy and I needed to do something about it. But I […]

Finance, Personal Development

When you Wake Up to a “Bank Overdraft” Alert

April 17, 2019 No Comments

Worse than sipping a warm coffee by the fire with your wife and 1-year-old daughter right before Christmas time and realizing that I somehow paid my mortgage twice in the month of December is… Waking up April 1 and seeing during the morning status check for our bank accounts that our personal checking account had some lint immediately to the left of the 4-figure number. Wait, what? That “lint” isn’t moving off my phone screen. It was right then when I saw the “Bank Overdraft” alert pop up… Confusion and terror overcame me all at once as I began soul-searching to see how I could’ve sunk to this new (balance) low. And it was a Saturday, which meant that even if I could get to my bank that day and deposit some newly found funds that totaled more than the 4-figure sum… those dollars wouldn’t post […]