Educational Article: Paying the Man

The current financial situation in the United States is on the precipice of major interest rate increases that will be precipitated by one of two events. The basis for both scenarios is the profligate monetary expansion undertaken by the Federal Reserve over the last year to address a perceived risk of deflation and purchasing bonds from the Treasury to artificially hold down interest rates. This current trend of monetary expansion cannot be sustained indefinitely without consequence.

At some point in the near future, the Federal Reserve will be forced to decide whether to tighten the access to credit. In order to stem monetary inflation, the Federal Reserve will need to raise interest rates in order to contract the availability of money in the system. If this happens, it will result in a higher prime rate and higher credit card rates. This will increase the yield on short-term treasury notes, and will prompt many bond investors to sell their long-term bonds to purchase shorter term notes with higher yields. As more people sell their long-term bonds, it will push down prices and force up the yield.

Another option for the Federal Reserve is simply allowing price inflation to roll through the economy. This will happen as credit markets normalize, and more dollars end up chasing fewer goods and services. This will inevitably result in higher prices for consumer and capital goods, including housing. As prices continue to increase, a resurgence of the 'bond vigilantes' will occur as more people refuse to buy government bonds at the current low rates. As the government needs to discount their bond offerings to clear the inventory, it will push up effective interest rates on long-term bonds.

Regardless of which event transpires, there is an extremely high likelihood that long-term bond rates are headed up in the near future. This phenomenon will also push up mortgage rates since most mortgages are indexed against government bonds. As the mortgage rates continue to increase, the number of people in the pool of home buyers will decrease because higher rates translate into less buying power per dollar of monthly payment that a person can afford.

As more people transition out of the home buyer pool into the renter pool, it will increase demand for rental housing. This increase in demand will eventually manifest itself in higher rents as the supply of rental housing adjusts more slowly than the movement of people into the renter pool.

An important factor to consider is that income property owners will benefit greatly from this effect, as it will place upward pressure on rents. These increased rents will provide additional cash flow to people who bought at low fixed rates and locked-in their cost of borrowing for three decades. The most important point of this unfolding event is the fact that the window of opportunity to act will be closed very soon. Once inflation begins to occur, or monetary tightening commences, it will be too late to capture the best deals that are currently in the marketplace.

The reason is because either event will be quickly followed by a step-up in interest rates, which will decrease affordability for income property investors. Because of this, it is critical for prudent investors to act now and lock-in their cost of debt at the current low rates; this will protect you against the coming increases in interest rates by making them work to your advantage, instead of to your detriment.

In the end, the United States has been enjoying artificially low interest rates for a very long time because of its position as the global reserve currency. Unfortunately, the government is nearing the point at which it can no longer absorb the profligate government spending with no detrimental impact.

Ultimately, we must 'pay the man' at some point by enduring the market correction that must eventually result from current government policy. By taking action now, you can benefit handsomely from the coming economic disruptions while many other people are enduring the problems implicit with trying to get something for nothing.

The Customer is always not Right!!

I am sure this is always the case when the company takes side of unreasonable, demanding and an angry customers instead of you. I do not believe that this is the sign of a loyal employee.

The customers are always not right for your business

One man who was a frequent visitor of a shop in southwest. He was always disappointed with each and every aspect of that shop's operation. He was often called as the pen pal because whenever he used to come into the shop, he used to write one complain in the customer feedback book.

He didn't like the fact that the shop owner didnt assign any seats for elderly people in his showroom. He didnt like the idea of serving hot dogs inside the shop, he was not satisfied with the billing procedures of the shop and lastly he was not happy with the performance of the shop attendants there. He had to complain in every small issue related to that shop.


His last letter was directly to the CEO of the showroom which went to his desk with a note: 'This one is for you Mr. CEO'. The CEO of the showroom Mr. Koller replied him back with a note which said, "Dear Mr. Roger, we will definitely miss you. Love Koller."

"The Customer is always Right" is a phrase that was introduced in 1909 by Harry Gordon Selfridge who is also the founder of the departmental store called "Selfridge's". The phrase is used by businesses to :

1.) To make sure that all the customers get the best services from the employees.

2.) To make sure that the employees are giving the best services to their customers.

But in the recent years this concept seems to be absconding because this is leading to a bad customer service.


I wanted to share with my readers the top 4 reasons why The customers are always not right:

1: It gives a negative impact on your employees

I remember when I went to Texas I met a person called Mr. bethune. He was the owner of one of the best fast food center in Texas called "Humble food hub". He believed that the phrase customer is always right is actually wrong. Whenever there was any conflict between his people and the rude customers he always used to take side of his employees.

There is always a possibility to get back a loyal customer but there are always very less chances of getting back a good royal employee. He always used to say that ,"just because you are buying food from our shop and paying us that doesnt mean you will abuse my people."




The foot fall in his shop per day is around 10k and out of those 10k there is always a chances that one or two customers will be demanding jerks. It is your employee who is working for you and not that rude jerk. He never treated his employees like serfs. He knows how to value them. He never allows an environment of resentment in his restaurant.

2. It gives demanding customers an unfair advantage

If you keep on using the slogan "The Customer is always right" in front of your customers, it will give them a right to do whatever they feel like. They will start demanding just anything. At this point of time the job of an employee becomes more difficult.

Abusive customers get better treatment that nice employees. So it is always advisable that be nice to nice customers and be bad to bad customers.

3. Not all but some Customers may be bad for your business

The business owners often feel that more the customers more is the business. But some customers can actually be bad for your company.

I have read this story of a American IT service provider called ServiceGopt. It said, that one of their technicians went to one of the customers house for maintenance task and the customer treated with her very rudely. She finished her task very calmly, returned office and told the entire story to the management. They went ahead and canceled the contract with that customer.



Just like Koller who dismissed that irate gentlemen from coming to his shop, similarly ServiceGopt fired an irate and rue customer. After all it was a matter of dignity and self respect of a female employee.

4. It often results in bad customer service

Roseworth Travel Services took it even further. CEO Sara Roseworth wrote an excellent book called "Your customer comes after your employees". She argues that when you put your employees before your customers there will always be an healthy environment in the office. If employees are happy and satisfied, customers will automatically start feeling satisfied.

Employees who are always happy will provide better customer services at work because:

• They have a habit of caring people, especially their customers
• They are always energetic
• They will interact with them in a better way
• They are more motivated to work

But if the customers are put before the employees then it clearly indicates that :

• Employees are not values properly
• treating employees fairly is less important
• That employees do not get respect from the customers

If this prevails, employees will stop caring about good service.

So put your people at first and let your people put the customers first.

Some Black Friday Tips on Wacky Thursday

I am just in love with these crazy named days like Black Friday, Shipping Monday, Cyber Monday, etc. I decided this time that I will move away with these days but you know it is kind of hard and difficult for a finance blogger like me. So I decided instead of avoiding it I will share some of my personal tips with all of you regarding Black Friday.



I have decided that I am gonna hit at the noon time this year and see what happens though I really avoid all these dramas. I am sure even this time best buys gonna make some huge income tomorrow. Lets see what happens.

So now lets get back to some Black Friday interesting and funny Tips

You should be aware of what you need ahead of time - You should always check the stores just before the thanksgiving day. Talk to sales representatives in person and ask them which product will be reducing prices. I am pretty sure all goods are not in sale on Black Friday. The store people display them because they buy those goods in huge quantity.

Keep Your Ads with yourself - Now this is interesting. Same HP printer both Walmart and Target is selling. But Target is selling it at $10 discount. So until and unless you keep the ad with yourself as a proof wall-mart will not the match the price. So it is advisable to keep a copy of an ad with yourself.

Be a Gladiator and shop - Yes you saw it right. Place yourself in a war, a war of shopping. Consider yourself as a shopper with a mission. I will personally recommend that go for shopping with teenagers and not old people because they can run fast.

Take help from Big Boss i.e. Google - How can we forget our boss at this time. If you do not have time to go through the newspapers about the Ads, then please google it. You will get hundreds of websites with Black Friday sale information listed on Google. You can also view the websites of wal-mart and Target on Internet beforehand.

Make Friends with the Sales Associate - If you really want to get inside the scoop of everything, the most important thing is to befriend with the sales associate of the store. These sales associates are well versed with all the sales prices. They can easily get you from one department to another. Listen to their advice and then plan your shopping strategy.

The crowd outside wall-mart at 3 am last year

Just party dude - I don't think you need a reason for partying. Most of us go in a queue at 3 am but we are afraid what if we are not able to wake up. The best advice is party late night. Finish the party and run to get in to the queue.

Do not get Tired soon - After partying all night you might feel tiring and all the enthusiasm before reaching the store is dead. Do not allow this to happen. Party for sometime. Do not have too much brandy or vodka.

Choose the best crowd - As soon as you reach the store you will find at least 5-10 queues. Choose the best crowd and go and stand with your feet positioned properly there with loads of oxygen. Do not get too excited. Do not allow anyone to overtake you.

Have a back up pay plan - It might happen that you reach the cash counter and credit card is rejected. So at that point of time you should have a back up of your money. Carry some good amount of cash with yourself so that you dont feel embarrassed infront of thousand people.

Cross checking is a must - Always before reaching the cash counter do the cross checking of your list. Make sure you have purchased everything and nothing important is left out. If you miss even one thing you have to wait until next year turkey day.

You have to be very patient to stand in that queue. My goodness!!! Crazy People

Okay I guess that is more than enough for you guys. If you really find anything else out of this list please do share it with me.

The only thing you can learn from these tips is Planning. You should plan your activities before hand. This will help you in saving hours, if not dollars when you are shopping with full stamina. Most importantly enjoy thanksgiving not only with your family members but with everyone you know.

God Bless all!!!