One Generation to
Rule Them All

• Ignored.
• Unappreciated.
• The Forgotten Generation.

It’s all too easy to dwell on the negative as a Gen Xer. Not that we care, of course. But still … it just doesn’t seem quite right, right?

After watching the trailer for Star Wars Episode IX, seeing Tiger Woods make a miraculous career comeback to win at Augusta, and feeling my own anticipation for Avengers: Endgame, I was motivated to write something I’ve been thinking about for a while.

Truth is, we’re not the forgotten “middle children” between Boomers and Millennials. Reality is, we’re at the center of it all.

Why Generation X is Running the Show

Keep going-

Brian Clark

P.S. Don’t be a slacker … buy some Further stuff. Maybe a cool t-shirt. Or a rockin’ coffee mug. Man, I can’t believe you made me ask. Sorry.

How to deal when you’re drowning in debt

By Brian Clark

According to a recent LightStream Survey conducted by the Harris Poll, Generation X has the most debt when compared with Boomers and Millennials. Worse, 22% of Gen Xers feel that they’ll never be able to pay it off.

It’s a tough situation. And it doesn’t get easier when we’re raising children, caring for aging parents, and trying to save for something resembling retirement.

While it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, the way to begin any huge task is with a first small step. But it’s also smart to have a plan that shows you where that first step should land.

Reduce the mountain with an avalanche

When you have a mountain of debt, it’s psychologically tempting to tackle the largest amount first. Or maybe knock off a few smaller amounts for the satisfaction of seeing them gone.

But the popular “debt avalanche” repayment strategy says you pay off the highest-interest debt first, while making minimum payments on other loans. High-interest debt is increasing your debt the fastest, and that will slow your repayment progress.

Here’s an example from The Balance. Suppose you have:

• $23,000 in student loans at 4.29 percent
• $3,000 in credit card debt at 15.59 percent
• $12,000 car loan at 3.5 percent

With the debt avalanche approach, you’d make only the minimum payments on your student loans and car payment each month, and pay as much as you can on your credit card debt.

Find and funnel extra cash

In the example, you’re also quickly getting rid of your smallest balance first, which is great for motivation. But remember, the loan amount is irrelevant — your focus is solely on attacking high-interest debt in descending order.

Once you’ve identified and ranked all your various loan amounts and interest rates, then you can start cutting back on spending and pay as much as possible on the target debt. Whether it’s $10, $100, or $1000 a month, find ways to funnel your cash in that direction.

The key is to pay as much as you can over the minimum on the highest interest rate loan you have at the time. It still may take a while, but the avalanche method will get you there faster than otherwise.

A “Debt Avalanche” Could Get You out of Debt (The Balance)

Work inside the box for greater productivity

By Trudi Roth

We each have our own way to organize the day. Lists tend to top the, well … list, but they’re not necessarily the most productive use of your time. That’s true whether they’re comprised of to-do’s, won’t do’s, or accomplishment-celebrating ta-das.

Organizing your daily workload by tasks can be a trap for procrastinators and perfectionists alike. Plus it’s way too easy to get hooked on crossing the small things off your list while leaving more important tasks festering until the last minute.

So enough with the lists. Let’s trade in those endless laundry lists for sensible, finite, and disciplined timeboxing.

Focus on time, not tasks

Timeboxing is simple: you block out a set amount of time on a calendar to work on each task.

Like speed dating, it’s all about cutting to the chase by minimizing distractions and maximizing focus. And when time’s up, you move on to the next task without worrying if it’s complete or not.

This is why agile software developers favor timboxing to help deliver high-quality work, faster and more often. It’s also why it nabbed the top spot in a Harvard Business Review survey of the top 100 productivity hacks.

Boxed up & ready to roll

If you’re working solo, chunking out projects into time-bounded tasks helps eliminate overwhelm, and simplifies complex work you may by avoiding. It also helps you finally make time for important tasks that we tend to put off, like learning something new.

If you’re working with a team, up-leveling transparency with a shared calendar supports greater collective productivity with less chance of anyone over-analyzing tasks, missing deadlines, or going over budget.

The trickiest part is deciding how to break up your tasks and how much time to allocate for each one. Don’t stress; this improves over time. Just be sure to include breaks in your schedule like meetings or commutes, as well as contingencies for unexpected interruptions.

This is one case where thinking inside the box is a great antidote to analysis paralysis. Stop letting work box you in, and start timeboxing for more control of your schedule — and your personal satisfaction.

How Timeboxing Works and Why It Will Make You More Productive (Harvard Business Review)