2019 – My Goals, Dreams, and Aspirations for “The Year of Change”

2019 - My Goals, Dreams, and Aspirations for "The Year of Change" #growth #goals #2019 #personaldevelopment #dreams

2018 was busy… We moved our fledgling dental office, MikedUp Blog kinda-sorta exploded (positively), I worked 3 jobs for a while, got too stressed out, then rebounded again, we took on a ton of debt (willingly), our business grew, and (most importantly) – we found out that my wife is pregnant (with #2)!! Whew… I’m tired just from typing out that sentence. While all of those things are amazing (except for the stress – but that ended up being positive in the end), I knew that 2019 would need to be different if I plan to keep up at this pace. So in this post, I will introduce you to my goals, dreams, and aspirations for 2019 – “The Year of Change” (YOC).   Why am I branding 2019 as the Year of Change?   Well, because of a few things. Some big announcements and some smaller ones – some […]

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2018 – The Year and My Goals in Review

2018 - The Year and My Goals in Review #business #family #finance #dreams #goals #2018

Well, hot diggity… Time flies. Way back in January (2018) I was inspired by a fellow blogger’s post in which he outlined his goals for the year ahead. I had vague visions of what goals I hoped to accomplish this year, but in early January – these aspirations weren’t documented. So, in essence, they had a worse chance of becoming realized. With the winds of inspiration at my back, I set out to outline and describe my goals for 2018 (the title picture of this post is worth the click…). I even went so far as to create a spreadsheet for these goals, where I would record values, pass/fail marks, and leave notes about experiences had.   For the first 4-5 months of the year, I killed it with the goals, writing on the spreadsheet included. And over the summer, I published my mid-year recap of the 2018 goals with my […]

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The business of fitness – with Mighty Mick

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Mighty Micks is not only a gym in my hometown, but it is also a place to gather, improve together, and better our fitness levels as one group, one community, and… dare I say, one family. This is the story of my entrance into Mighty Micks and the man that brought it all together.     Yeah, honey… I had a good workout   I was in the living room, on the ground, staring up at the rotating blades of the ceiling fan. My heart was beating through my ribs and sending percussion waves to the glass of water on the table next to me (slight exaggeration). It was in the low 90s outside with what felt like 100% humidity. That, for some reason, seemed irrelevant during my earlier decision making process. Oh, and I was coming out of a 5 day’er (sickness) that came complete with fever, aches, pains, […]

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MikedUp Blog’s No-BS Promise to “The Team”

MikedUp Blog's No-BS Promise to "The Team"

It’s currently 8:47pm on Tuesday evening as I write these words right here… And as of right now I have no post to publish tomorrow at 0533 – Wednesday, October 24. It’s not because I’ve procrastinated and just didn’t do it. Or because I have no other post to slot into this timeframe in a pinch… I actually have posts scheduled out for the next 3 weeks, but I’m not using one of those today.   You see, I had a guest post scheduled to run today titled: “How Bad Financial Habits Might Actually Be Great For You”    But in an honest moment, I disagreed with the tone, points, and just about everything of substance in the article… I was going to sell it to you as – “C’mon, all. Let’s see the alternate viewpoint and make an informed decision.” But that would’ve been a lie. There weren’t useful things […]

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Can you Have Healthy Teeth without Spending a Fortune at the Dentist?

Can you Have Healthy Teeth without Spending a Fortune at the Dentist? #budget #saving #spendingless #dentalvisit #healthyteeth

I’m either the worst businessman in the world… Or there’s some other explanation why the CEO of a dental practice would be writing an entire post detailing how you can strategically and systematically save BIG money at the dentist’s office – and still have healthy teeth.   I’ll let you decide.   But as someone who runs a dental practice that prides itself on taking care of people (both customers and our staff), I saw a great opportunity here.   Our goal is to have the happiest and healthiest patients around… And last I checked, patients tend to be happier with both healthy teeth and a healthy pocketbook after visiting our office.   So, today I’m pulling back the curtain and giving you the cold hard truth about what you can do to save money at the dentist’s while maintaining your healthy teeth   The good news – you can […]

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My Wife Made Twice My Salary Last Year – So I Cut Her Pay…?

My Wife Made Twice My Salary Last Year - So I Cut Her Pay...? #income #marriage #femalebreadwinner #communication

I am a red-blooded 207 pound driven former-athlete of a man that feels the intrinsic drive to provide for his family. I am evolutionarily wired to protect, provide, and reproduce, and whether I like it or not – many of my decisions are subconsciously influenced by these long-established forces that are well beyond my control. So, when I tell you that I cut my wife’s salary by 75% last year – does any part of you think it was because my ego couldn’t handle her being the female breadwinner…?   (I’ll get back to that)   (Photo courtesy of MKulp Photography)     Before you get out the slings and arrows, let me start with some facts – then some clarification   My wife is a dentist who owns our family business – 100%. And although I currently work a day job as a forensic scientist, many of my nights […]

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Why We’re Happy Taking a Few Extra Years to Pay Off Debt

Why We're Happy Taking a Few Extra Years to Pay Off Debt #SavingGoals #financialplanning #debt #saving

Guess what – Paying off debt at an accelerated rate can be harmful to your health… More than that, you may not be making the best decision for your financial future. “Why?” You ask – Being debt free isn’t the only mark of financial success. In fact, I’d argue that your saving goals can be significantly more important than being debt free…   Depending on your specific situation.     I met with our accountant last month, and throughout the first half of the meeting, I kept reinforcing a few of our current financial goals. “By throwing an extra $X at this loan, we’ll be able to knock that loan out 2 years sooner…”   I was focused on getting rid of a few of these debts we have as fast as we possibly could. And for a half hour, I lost sight of the bigger picture.   My accountant […]

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How I Increase Productivity and Get 25 Hours Out Of a Day

How To Increase Productivity By Getting 25 Hours Out of a Day #productivity #efficiency #goals #tasks #progress #personaldevelopment

To successfully increase productivity for an extended period of time, it is essential to have a well thought out plan in place. Sure, you may get lucky and be ultra-productive for a few weeks or months, but eventually, the absence of a solid plan will lead to increased stress and burnout. Trust me… I’ve been there.   But once I had a handle on my stress and anxiety, I turned my focus to a full proof plan that would allow me to increase productivity while still enjoying the finer things in life…   This is that plan:   (Photo courtesy of Justin Montemarano)     “Dude, how in the world do you find time to do all of that?!? It’s like you get 25 hours in a day…”   This was a friend’s response after hearing about my revolving priority list (below). It wasn’t a beat-my-chest brag sesh’.     […]

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Breaking Down Blockchain Tech – And Its Big Potential

Breaking Down Blockchain Tech - And Its Big Potential #blockchain #crypto #cryptocurrency #tech

Hi, Team! I’m excited to share the below post about blockchain tech and it’s big potential! If you’re like me and have been hearing about “cryptocurrencies” or “the blockchain” for a while but don’t completely understand what it’s all about – this post is for you!   The post comes to us from Alexander who blogs over at daytradingz.com  |  He started his blog in 2016, sharing his experiences in short-term investing as well as revealing insights about major vendors in this segment.   It’s obvious that Alexander has a great understanding of finance, our markets, and how fintech applies to them all. I’ll let Alexander drop some of his knowledge here! Take it away, Alexander:   In 2017, blockchain tech experienced a unique bull market, even if at the time there had been several course corrections   Basically, all the cryptocurrencies were worth more compared to the previous year. However, […]

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Why YOU Need to Start a Side Hustle – NOW

I Need a Hustle - Why You Need To Start a Side Hustle #SideHustle #earning #income #debt #passion #skills

Hi, Team! I’m excited to bring you the post below from Peter Koch – a serial entrepreneur and founder of SellerAtHeart.com blog. “He’s a hustla, baby…” And he’s chock full of wisdom about why YOU need to start a side hustle – like right now. Have you been thinking, “I need a hustle?” Well, Peter has your motivation. This guy’s a rock star and I’m thrilled that he’s agreed to write for us today. Take it away, Peter:     Allow me to take you back to your childhood   If you’re anything like me, you were probably involved in some side hustles from an early age, but you just weren’t aware of it.   For instance, I never mowed the lawns or delivered newspapers for pocket money, I had an entrepreneurial spirit and I used to sell candies in school to my classmates. The money I then received for my services was pretty miserable […]

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