Charles Geisst is calling for national usury laws. EDIT: He doesn’t mention a specific rate in his book, so I sent him an email and asked him what kind of rate he was talking about. His response: “Probably set it to float at about 400 basis points above conforming mortgage rate[s].”

My question to you is:

My opinion….

I hate regulation but in this case I think some sort of cap is a good idea. Here’s why I think this way:

Extremely high interest rates are usually charged to those who have no business borrowing money in the first place. The high interest rate, though compensating the lender for the increased risk of loaning money to people of limited means, only seems to insure that the borrower will default or at least not be able to meet the payments, requiring them to take out another loan. Peolpe who borrow money at extremely high interest rates are almost destined to fail.

Of course the issue with placing caps on interest charges, is that it will force payday lenders out of business. It will also most likely lead to loan sharks—a sort of black market for money. But, for all I know, those people may already exist.

Thoughts?

The sight got me to thinking about what makes a good employee? I came up with a short list of my own ideas. If I was a manager, this is what I’d like to see in an employee (or associate):

1. A good employee knows what job they are supposed to do and does it without prompting. When they are done with that job, they ask for another job. They don’t just stand around.

2. A good employee hustles! Those hours that you are on the clock don’t belong to you, they belong to the company (that is what you agreed to when you took the job). An employee who does otherwise is stealing from the company.

3. A good employee treats customers (even rude customers) with respect and courtesy. SMILE (even though you don’t want to).

4. A good employee picks up trash and doesn’t just walk by and leave it on the ground.

5. A good employee takes pride in their work and in their appearance.

6. A good employee asks their manager what they can do to improve their performance.

7. A good employee has fun on the job.

8. A good employee does more than they are asked.

9. A good employee goes out of their way to serve a customer’s need even if it isn’t in their department.

10. A good employee asks for more responsibility and promotions if they feel they are deserved.

Okay, those are my thoughts. What about you?

In your opinion, what makes a good employee?

Tomorrow we’ll tackle what makes a good manager.

What was your first job?

My first job was working for a restaurant called O.K. Corral in the town I grew up in. It was a restaurant that took over the building that was vacated by Sonic. My job was to get clean and cook. I HATED THAT JOB! HATED IT! I remember one night the assistant manager sent everyone home around 8 PM and then we got really busy and I it was just me and the assistant manager running things. I wonder how many orders I screwed up that night.

The owner was a slimeball who actually tried to burn the place down. I worked there for about 3 months I think. After that, I went to work for the grocery store in town. It was a much better job.

What was your first job?

Should the government put forth measures to curb executive pay?

I’m torn on this issue. On the one hand, I abhor the idea of government intrusion. On the other hand, I don’t like the idea of companies excessively paying their managment. Here lies the problem: who decides what “excessive” is? A person who makes $50,000 per year might think that someone who makes $150,000 is recieving “excessive” pay.

I think what we need and would do the most good is transparency for public companies. Shareholders should have access to executive pay information. They should be able to see EXACTLY how much an executive gets paid (perks, golden parachutes, insurance coverage, retirement benefits, retirement perks,…). All of that information should be available to the public without having to fish through company documents and then only coming up with an estimate.

Transparency would have the added benefit of limiting excessive pay since those who set the pay would know that their actions would be scrutinized by both shareholders and the general public (the “market”).

What are your thoughts?

I don’t think the iPod is a goner. My wife bought me the 160 GB Classic last year and I LOVE IT! I would not want to be without it. I also would not want to have to use my phone as a music player. I like having them separate.

I hope Apple continues to make the iPod and make it better. They could do lots of enhancements like:

1. Allow albums to be arranged in order of the release year. I sometimes like to listen to albums in chronological order but the iPod lists everything in alphabetical order.

2. Allow all the songs by one artist to be displayed in alphabetical order. Yes, you can use the search feature and you can see ALL songs in alphabetical order…it’s just a hassle if you have lots of songs.

3. Make the iPod bigger. I hate to say it but even with a 160 GB iPod, I’m running out of room. It’s not so much because I have a lot of music (I do) but because I rip my music at a high quality, which takes up more space. A 250 GB (or bigger) iPod would be lovely.

4. Allow for more album information. It would be cool to add composer information and guest artist information.

I don’t think the iPod is dead. What do you think?

The article seems pretty clear that Mozilo was aware of just how bad things were while he was dumping his company stock. Mozilo had always played the “I-don’t-know-how-this-could-have-happened” card. I remember reading in the Wall Street Journal (I can’t remember which article exactly) Mozilo saying something like, “No one could have seen this coming.”

Sure, pal.

Assuming that these charges hold up and Mozilo is convicted, what do you think should happen to him? What would be considered justice in your opinion?

I think he should be stripped of all his worldly possessions and wealth. If he were younger, I’d make him lay railroad tracks or fill potholes on America’s crumbling highways…lol.

Of the following, which are the most important lessons in saving and investing for parents to teach their children?

Select up to two options:

A. Live within your means

B. Begin saving at an early age

C. Avoid high interest debt

D. Get sound financial advice from a trustworthy resource

E. Learn how to invest wisely

Personally, I think ALL OF THE ANSWERS ARE IMPORTANT and I think ALL PARENTS would be wise to teach their kids these lessons.

But…

The survey asked for two suggestions so I chose A and B, which was in agreement with the majority of Generation X survey-takers. Avoiding high interest debt is also important but would be moot IF kids were taught to save at an early age. Like I said, all of the lessons are important.

Which two do you think are most important and why?

Take the Schwab Survey.

Do you expect an inheritance sometime in the future?

My wife and I don’t for a couple of reasons:

1. My grandparents have all passed away and left what little they had to their kids (my parents and their siblings). My wife’s remaining grandparents are healthy and doing great.

2. Our remaining parents are still fairly young (they were all born in 1951) and will most likely need their savings to provide for their retirements.

I think inheritances will be limited to families who have a substantial estate or maybe a family business. I think everyone else is going to spend everything they have (and more) providing for themselves during retirement.

Thoughts?

I’m thinking a small Dell would suffice but as I said earlier, I really don’t know. Inexpensive computers (I’m thinking $400 – $600 price range) are out there. It’s the software that makes them expensive.

Any suggestions?

It looks like they finally might be making a movie based on Ayn Rand’s book, Atlas Shrugged*. Here are the possible candidates to play the lead role of Dagny Taggart:

Angelina Jolie
Charlize Theron
Julia Roberts
Anne Hathaway

Angelina Jolie is supposedly the front-runner but I think I’d rather see the part go to Chalize Theron or Anne Hathaway.

I know it’s a silly question, but who would you pick? Most important of all: would you go see it?

It’s Friday…let’s have a little fun.

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