For many people it’s time to pack away your flip flops and haul the business suits out of the wardrobe as the official holiday season comes to an end.

It’s probably also time to check your visa credit card statement where no doubt you’ll start regretting the moment you handed over the plastic card telling your other half ‘why not, we’re on holiday’.

For others, the holiday season has just begun.

As the days start getting shorter and we wake up to the sound of rain pitter-pattering on the window, I know it’s time to escape the chilly winter.

Not only does the weather play a huge role in my desire to get away, but now is the best time to grab last minute deals as the winter blues set in. When I first began booking flights on my credit card through the ‘cheap deal’ websites I was a bit weary of the process.

My trust plummeted after an error message popped up seconds after entering my credit card details.

Had they taken my money and not produced a receipt?

Should I re-book or will I be charged double?

Thankfully, the error message was referring to website issues and not the transaction. Since then I’ve booked copious amounts of flights, hotels and activities using my credit card online and now I wouldn’t do it any other way.

It’s quick, it’s simple and it’s secure.

Most, if not all, travel businesses which operate online will have a safe and secure transaction system which makes ticket bookings a lot easier than withdrawing large amounts of cash to pay a travel agent. To make sure the web site is secure look at the bottom of your browser for an image of a padlock. The web address should also start with “https” instead of “http”.

Not only do websites email confirmations and receipts but the transaction can be seen on your credit card statement instantly. Therefore, if anything does goes wrong, you have evidence of payment within minutes.

The best credit cards to use online are ones that give you a level of security or travel insurance. Some credit card companies will refund your money if the airlines go bust- which has happened in the past with the collapse of Zoom and Silverjet.

You will find these credit cards often have higher fees but do make a note that you are getting a level of security in return.

I know I would opt to pay a little bit more to know I’m covered if anything goes wrong while booking online. Would you?

And interesting post on Techmeme started my day this morning called Time To Hang Up the Pyjamas. It was an article by Daniel Lyons who had set up a highly-trafficed blog called The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs a couple of years ago. The gist of the article is that he put loads of effort into monitising the blog, but failed to generate anything that would surpass what he could earn holding down a normal job. Here’s a poignant part of his article:

My first epiphany occurred in August 2007, when The New York Times ran a story revealing my identity, which until then I’d kept secret. On that day more than 500,000 people hit my site—by far the biggest day I’d ever had—and through Google’s AdSense program I earned about a hundred bucks. Over the course of that entire month, in which my site was visited by 1.5 million people, I earned a whopping total of $1,039.81

A number of other blogs were quite quick to point out that the blog resulted in his rise to relative fame, a book deal and his new job at NewsWeek, but millions of bloggers around the world will never earn as much from AdSense as he did. What he DID DO, however, was raise his profile so that his net worth was much higher than it would have been otherwise.

Articles like this always help put blogging in perspective and help people focus on the why they blog. Using a blog to earn money isn’t impossible, there are a number of companies out there who will pay a blogger for their efforts, but it’s no different to being paid for dropping leaflets in someone’s mailbox. The amount you can earn is constrained by the time you have available and the moment you pull back you’ll see your earnings dry up. Selling advertising space on blogs is another money-earner, but without fresh, compelling content and the traffic it brings, well, that’s another non-starter. In my humble opinion, the worst reason to start a blog is to generate enough income to quit your day job.

On the other hand, a blog can do wonders for your profile, image and self-esteem. It can serve as an outlet for you to talk about your passion, to meet like-minded individuals, to show off your strengths and seek opportunities. A blog can help you build online relationships which will benefit you in the long term in many diverse ways. Monetary benefits are a possibility, but they’re always much harder work than you originally imagined when you decided to set down the blogging path.

photo credit: Dan4th

I just came across some links that are all about making money online.

• How to make money on the Internet – Blogging
• Why Most People Fail Online
• How to Make Money Online Without Spending a Cent
• Why The Job-ification of Your Passion Can be the Ticket to Hating Your Life
• Top 50 Update: Make Money Online Blogs – New is Hot

Source: WorkConnexions

Do YOU have any other links you’d like to recommend for the list?

Did you know for example that nearly half of those responding earn a salary between $45,000 and $85,000 per year in nearly equal groups. Here’s a chart of how salaries are split into bands showing the ranges of all the respondents to the survey placed themselves in:

My favourite sections are the ones that are relevant to a global market, particularly the parts outlining Top Tech skills that employers are looking for, and Top Certifications that actually mean something. But don’t just take my word for it, read it for yourself

Speaking about mortgages, I did have an interesting experience yesterday. My mortgage is with Abbey and after my 2 year “special deal” my interest rate had risen to their Standard Variable Rate (SVR) last year, which is slightly more than 2% above base rate. As it’s good practice to do, I was ready to switch mortgage to a new mortgage, but in October offered me a 0.04% above base rate deal, which I thought was pretty good. In January this year, I noticed that my mortgage repayments hadn’t dropped so I phoned up to see what was happening. They acknowledged that there had been a problem there end, they would sort it out and backdate the mortgage switch, giving me a refund on the extra interest I had paid.

Yesterday, I noticed that my mortgage payment STILL hadn’t dropped, so I phoned them up again. Once again they acknowledged that there was no problem with my application, but that “the team that was handling my case, no longer existed”. Wow! This was 6 months down the line and they STILL hadn’t managed to effect a change that couldn’t really have taken more than a few minutes! I can only say I was NOT impressed!

Anyone else had any mortgage woes they would like to share?

Well, according to some experts, the Base Rate may drop as low as 4%. And that’s pretty good news for anyone who has borrowed money. Basically, a 0.25 percentage point rise, for example, would push down monthly repayments on a £150,000 interest-only loan down by £31.25 – or £375 a year. So you can see how a drop of 1.5% can be really helpful to anyone who has borrowed money (or is looking to borrow money). Basically, if you’re planning on borrowing money for Mortgages or Secured Loans, then the lower the interest rate; the better.

A drop in interest rates isn’t good for everyone of course. Besides mortgage rates dropping it also means that savings rates drop. This means that people who are cash positive and have money in the bank will be getting less interest on the amount. But, I guess, some people win and some others lose.

What about you? Do you have owe more money on your mortgage .. or are you cash positive and are living off the interest on your earnings?

One thing I learnt today is that there are instruments called 125% Mortgages. These are usually made up of a 95% mortgage on property together with a 30% unsecured loan. This is particularly useful for people who have trouble getting a deposit together, or if you’re planning to do some work on the property after you buy it. Must keep that in mind next time we’re looking at property!

That reminds me. I need to get in touch with my mortgage company. They offered me a better rate a few months ago, but it doesn’t seem to have kicked in!

I must say that I’m sad to see the currency I grew up with be totally annihilated, but Dow Jones states the advantages pretty succinctly:

“Adopting the euro will mean less currency risk for exporters, more competitive economies for consumers and, most importantly, a stable currency environment for much sought-after foreign investment.” (taken from MaltaMedia News)

It will be an interesting four weeks ..

Second Life uses a model that mimics real life, however, there are a number of MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) that use virtual money as reward and as a way to advance in the game. This has given rise to a massive industry in virtual goods and services that is predicted to hit $4 billion in 2008.

This has given rise to a wealth of possibilities for individuals and businesses working in these economies and reaping real world benefits. From people who develop and sell property in Second Life to companies who sell and buy WoW gold, there are hundreds of opportunities out there for people to tap into. All it takes is a spark of ingenuity and the drive to follow through with your ideas.

I remember reading an article about this in Time or one of the other magazines you find on the newstands. Does anyone remember which one it was?

The reality is that lots of money can be made (or lost) on the property market. Whether you’re looking at the rental market, or looking to invest in property, the upward trend in prices is bound to make your investment seem a lucrative one. However, my advice is always to learn as much as you can about a market before you decide to take the plunge. And real estate investing is no exception. There’s lots of information available, both online and offline and you need to read up quite a bit to be able to separate the wheat from the chaff and glean some valuable information.

Online channels can provide lots of information in this respect. Take the REIClub.com for example. It’s a repository for loads of information, forums, tips, advice and resources around understanding the property market and the opportunities and risks that surround it. So, as always, keep informed. Information is power!