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Broke is Beautiful

A Cash-Strapped Life is a Creative Life

Monday, April 19, 2010

Money is a Poor Motivator for Creative Problems

Posted by Laura Lee at 7:12 AM
Labels: money, motivation
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Buy The Book Here

Buy The Book Here

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Laura Lee's books on Goodreads
Blame It on the Rain: How the Weather Has Changed HistoryBlame It on the Rain: How the Weather Has Changed History
reviews: 9
ratings: 40 (avg rating 3.28)

Broke Is Beautiful: Living and Loving the Cash-Strapped LifeBroke Is Beautiful: Living and Loving the Cash-Strapped Life
reviews: 6
ratings: 33 (avg rating 3.71)

A Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical DanceA Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical Dance (Book & CD)
reviews: 1
ratings: 16 (avg rating 4.09)

100 Most Dangerous Things in Everyday Life and What you Can Do About Them100 Most Dangerous Things in Everyday Life and What you Can Do About Them
reviews: 4
ratings: 26 (avg rating 3.15)

The Pocket Encyclopedia of Aggravation: 101 Things that Annoy, Bother, Chafe, Disturb, Enervate, Frustrate, Grate, Harass, Irk, Jar, Mife, Nettle, Outrage, Peeve, Quassh, Rile, Stress Out, Trouble, Upset, Vex, Worry and X,Y Z You!The Pocket Encyclopedia of Aggravation: 101 Things that Annoy, Bother, Chafe, Disturb, Enervate, Frustrate, Grate, Harass, Irk, Jar, Mife, Nettle, Outrage, Peeve, Quassh, Rile, Stress Out, Trouble, Upset, Vex, Worry and X,Y Z You!
reviews: 1
ratings: 21 (avg rating 3.22)

Selected Reviewer's Quotes

"Author Laura Lee may have well written the Brokelyn manifesto, the recession-victims’ King James Bible and the brokester I Ching all wrapped into one. Her new book, Broke is Beautiful, is a vast, thoughtful and intensely researched tome on the value of living the cash-strapped life."-Tim Donnelly, Brokelyn

"Laura Lee gives readers a good array of thoughts and wisdom and makes for a very entertaining and fun read. 'Broke is Beautiful' is a choice and highly recommended read which shouldn't be missed for those who want to live well when they have got nothing in the wallet."-Midwest Book Review

"If you're feeling down about the state of your exchequer, pick up this cheery little book...guaranteed to make you feel better about life in 'times like these.'"-Salem MacNee, Charlotte Observer

"It's not a how-to book, but more of a philosophical study, pointing out that most creative people aren't incredibly wealthy, and that happiness isn't tied to material goods."-The Detroit News

"Lee wants people who read her book to re-envision the economic culture, look past the mentality of buying and selling and find ways to enjoy life even if you don't win the lottery tomorrow."-Bill Lynch, Charleston Gazette

"Read 'Broke is Beautiful.' It's funny!"-Diana Page Jordan

What does "Broke is Beautiful" mean?

Broke is Beautiful is not only book, but also a philosophy of life. Being broke is not abnormal. Being rich on the other hand is freakish. While there is lots of propaganda out there in favor of wealth, little is written about the advantages of being bust out beggard and bankrupt. And broke, my friends, is beautiful! True security comes from the knowledge that you can survive in an insecure world. That is the knowledge that is gained through hard times and hard knocks. It helps if you can look on your brokeness as a way to lighten your load and a chance to test your creativity and resourcefulness. Where once the broke person felt isolated in an affluent society, today everyone is counting his pennies. Being broke is the new black! I invite you to join me in discovering new ways to think about money.

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Interviews with the Author

Interested in having Laura Lee as a guest on your show? Find out more about arranging interviews via this link.

Here is a list of selected past interviews and reviews that are still archived on the world wide internet thing.

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Factoid of the Day

If the $5.15 an hour minimum wage had risen at the same rate as CEO compensation since 1990, it would now stand at $23.03.

Source: Mother Jones

Quote of the Day

"The only reason a great many American families don't own an elephant is that they have never been offered an elephant for a dollar down and easy weekly payments."-Mad Magazine

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      • Annie Leonard The Story of Stuff on The Colbert Re...
      • Coming Out of the Broke Closet
      • Real Detroit Weekly Features "Broke is Beautiful"
      • You Don't Need a Safety Net: An Interview with Chr...
      • Dreams on Ice
      • Broke is Beautiful: Upcoming Media
      • Throw It Away
      • How to Eat: Weeds, Yum!
      • What Makes Life Worth Living?
      • Quote of the Day: Debts to Be Paid
      • Buy Without Money and Delight in Fatness
      • Erotic Capital and Karmic Debts
      • Erring Your Ditry Laundry
      • Woman's Day Radio
      • Video fo the Day: Is Your Stuff Holding You Back?
      • Media Notes
      • Science Proves It: Giving is Contagious
      • Why Broke is Beautiful. Listen to Cathy's Candor ...
      • Tune In, Turn On, Be Broke!
      • Money is a Poor Motivator for Creative Problems
      • More Money Butterflies
      • Video of the Day: Begging 21st Century Style
      • We Discovered How To Make Fire! Act Now and Get a...
      • Seeking Guest Bloggers
      • Going Forward with No Plan
      • Video of the Day: Gypsy Junker
      • Video of the Day: Redneck Rocket Stove
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      • Video of the Day: Obsessive Shopping
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      • Work Harder, Make More Money...NOT!
      • Broke and Beautiful Person of the Day
      • Classic Broke and Beautiful Folk: Dolly Freed's Po...
      • How Much Do You Need?
      • Video of the Day: The Uniform Project
      • What is Thrift? The View from 1919
      • Problems with GDP as Economic Measure
      • From the Bad Predictions File
      • Rags to Riches
      • Luxury Goods and Waste
      • Schaden-Frugality
      • Documentary Film: Modern Day Slaves
      • Middle Class and Broke in LA
      • Does Happiness Depend on Owning a Dream Home?
      • The Book is Now Available
      • Video: It Takes a Village
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Broke and Beautiful Resources

  • About.Com: Money, Emotions and Stress
  • Active Local Currencies
  • Acts of Sharing
  • Advocacy for the Long Term Unemployed
  • Affluenza (PBS program on consumerism)
  • Air BNB (rent private apartments for travel)
  • All Things Frugal
  • American 99ers Union
  • American Community Garden Association
  • American Public Radio's Sustainability Page
  • Angel Food Ministries (discount food, no income requirements)
  • Anxiety Culture
  • Art 4 the Homeless
  • Bank Tracker Investigative Reporting Workshop
  • Barterquest (barter site)
  • Bee Culture (bee keeping)
  • Berkshares (local currency)
  • Best Selling Real Estate Authors: Where Are They Now?
  • Better Together (social capital)
  • Beyond Money (Yes Magazine)
  • Billshrink.com
  • Bizhemia
  • Bonfire of the Brands
  • Book Mooch (book barter)
  • Borrow Tools
  • Broke Ass Gourmet
  • Business Alliance for Local Living Economies
  • Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood
  • Cardratings.com (independent credit card comparison)
  • Carpart.com (Used Auto Parts Market)
  • Center for Commercial Free Public Education
  • Center for Responsible Lending
  • Center for the Study of the Public Domain
  • Cheap Cooking
  • Chegg.com (textbook rental)
  • Choose to Save
  • Cities on the Cheap (entertainment discounts)
  • CLAWS (Creating Livable Alternatives to Wage Slavery)
  • Click Homeless (Supports Homeless Bloggers)
  • Co-Op America Green Pages (eco-friendly products)
  • Collaborative Consumption
  • Community Bike Programs
  • Community Exchange Program
  • Conscious Consuming
  • Couch Surfing (travel lodging with individuals)
  • Credit Karma (truly free credit tools)
  • Debtors Anonymous
  • Dive The Film
  • Drive Less Save More
  • Dwelling Portably
  • E.F. Schumacher Society (local currencies and economies)
  • Economists and the Powerful
  • Economists and the Powerful
  • Ecosquid (sell or recycle old technology)
  • Enough (UK anti-consumerism campaign)
  • Estate Sales Network
  • Ethical Consumer
  • Ethical Markets TV
  • Etsy (crafters marketplace)
  • Everyday Simplicity
  • Executive Paywatch
  • Expendable Edibles (ideas for using food that would go to waste)
  • Fair Companies (sustainability videos)
  • Family Inequality
  • Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund
  • Fatwallet.com (consumer savings)
  • Feeding America (has a food bank locator)
  • Fight for Independents
  • Find a Co-Op
  • Flat Broke and Green
  • Flux Factory (collaborative art projects)
  • Foraging with the Wildman
  • Force For Good
  • Free Sample Site
  • Freebin
  • Frugal Hacks
  • Frugal Living in the UK
  • Funding Circle
  • Gas Buddy (find lowest gas prices)
  • Gift Flow
  • Giveaway of the Day (daily free software)
  • Global Ecovillage Network
  • Global Freeloaders
  • Global Rich List (calculator to put your wealth in international perspective)
  • Green Economy Initiative
  • Groupon (Group buying)
  • Growth Busters
  • Help Exchange
  • Homeless Forums
  • Homeless Link (UK)
  • Homeless Voice
  • Hospitality Club
  • I Need a Freakin' Job
  • ILostMyJob.Com
  • Independent Arts and Media
  • Instructables
  • Job Hunter's Bible
  • Jobs with Justice
  • Karma Kitchen
  • Karma Tube
  • Kick Starter (crowd funding of creative projects)
  • Know Your Options (UK)
  • Landshare
  • Layoff Move On
  • Layoff Support Network
  • Less is More Balanced
  • Living Without Money
  • Living Without Money (television program)
  • Locate a Library
  • Low Impact Living (eco products)
  • Maplight (Money and Politics)
  • Measure of America
  • Measuring Real Wealth (Yes Magazine)
  • Modest Needs
  • Moneyless Man Manifesto
  • Moral Economy Project
  • Move Your Money
  • My Year Without Clothes Shopping
  • National Association of Free Clinics
  • Needy Meds
  • Neighbor Goods (share with neighbors)
  • Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America
  • New American Dream
  • New Economics Foundation
  • New Economy Daily
  • New Economy Network
  • New Rules Project
  • No Job Survivor
  • Non Consumer Girl
  • Non-Corporate Radio Association
  • Not Eating Out in NY
  • Odd Job Nation
  • On the Commons
  • Plastic Jungle (discount gift cards)
  • Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign
  • Prosper (peer to peer lending)
  • Prosperity (Scottish monetary reform site)
  • Rainwater Club
  • Ready for Zero
  • Recession Resources
  • Recession Wire
  • Redefining Progress- Genuine Progress Indicator
  • Reel Changes (crowd funded documentaries)
  • Reinventing Money
  • Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping
  • RSF Social Finance
  • Share Some Sugar
  • Share the World's Resources
  • Shoestring Magazine
  • Shopaholics Anonymous
  • Simple Living Network
  • Simplicity Resource Guide
  • Slow Movement
  • Smart Unemployment
  • SNAP (food stamp) Eligibility Tool
  • Snap Goods
  • Social Capital Gateway
  • Soul Shelter Balancing Meaning and Money
  • Spirit of Money Collaborative
  • Sponsume (UK Crowdfunding Site)
  • Starving Artists
  • State of Working America
  • Stop Usury in America
  • Stopping Overshopping
  • Stuff Unemployed People Like
  • Survival Insight
  • Sustainable Economies Law Center
  • Swap At Home (barter)
  • Swap Savers
  • Swap Simple (barter)
  • Swap Style (fashion barter)
  • Swap Treasures (barter)
  • Swap.com
  • Take Back Your Time
  • The Budget Babe
  • The Diaper Bank
  • The Duct Tape Guys
  • The Dumpster Project
  • The Economic Populist
  • The Freeconomy Community (UK based)
  • The Freecycle Network
  • The Gift Economy
  • The Joy of Not Working
  • The Mesh: Sharing/Barter Directoy
  • The Pavement (magazine for homeless readers)
  • The Recessionista
  • The Simple Dollar
  • The Starving Artists Way
  • The Thrift Shopper
  • The Ultimate Cheapskate
  • The Whole Earth Catalog
  • Thred Up (clothing exchange)
  • Title Trader (book and music barter)
  • Trashbank (barter)
  • Trust Art
  • UnClutterer
  • Unemployed Friends (forum for networking with other unjobbed)
  • Unemployed Meetup Groups
  • Unemployment Haiku Weekly
  • Unemployment Party
  • United for a Fair Economy
  • University of the People
  • Value for People (community currencies)
  • Veggie Trader (trade your garden surplus)
  • Warm Showers (hospitality for traveling bicyclists)
  • We Are Visible
  • Wealth for the Common Good
  • Work Away
  • World Leisure Organization
  • Yard Sale Queen
  • Yes! Magazne's List of Common Security Clubs
  • Zipcar (car sharing)

Further Reading/Our Broke Friends

  • $5 Dinners
  • Abundance Blog at Marelisa Online
  • Adbusters Culturejammer Headquarters
  • All Things Thrifty Home Accessories and Decor
  • AMFI - Free Fashion Challenge
  • Bargain Babe
  • Bargain Becky
  • Becoming Minimalist
  • Beyond Money
  • Bible Money Matters
  • BitterWallet
  • Blog | ReadyForZero
  • Boot Sale Sounds
  • Brokelyn
  • Cage Free Family
    No Such Thing As Reality
    10 years ago
  • Centsational Girl
  • Cheap Like Me
  • Child of the Nature Isle
  • Common Security Clubs
  • Consciously Frugal
  • Consumerist
  • CoolWorks.com - What's New - Jobs in Great Places
  • Creative Breathing
  • Credit Slips
    Creative Destruction in Small Business Bankruptcy
    3 years ago
  • Crowd Surfing
  • Design Delights
  • Do The Green Thing: Stories, videos, and more
  • Ecobunga!
  • Enlightened Economics
  • Escape From Cubicle Nation
  • everydaytrash
  • Exile Lifestyle
  • FearLess Blog
  • Festival of Frugality
  • Fine Diving in Chicago
  • Free Music Archive Blog
  • Free Range Humans
  • Frugal Ideas from the Parsonage
  • Frugal Recipes
  • Frugal Upstate
  • Grist - the Latest from Grist
  • Guillaume's blog
  • HelpOthers.org: Anonymous Acts of Kindness
  • Hillbilly Housewife
  • InvisiblePeople.tv
  • Jean-François Noubel's blog
  • Jim Hightower's News and Commentaries
    Washington, DC – Ralph Nader Presents Breaking Through Power
    10 years ago
  • Lesley Voth
    Denim Sound Textures by ISKO™
    7 years ago
  • librarian.net
  • Libraries Matter
  • Little Homestead in the City
  • Look What I Found!
  • Married with Luggage
  • Miss Thrifty
  • New Escapologist
  • New Urban Habitat
  • No Impact Man
  • Not Eating Out in New York
  • Notes From The Frugal Trenches - A Downshifting Journey
  • OECD Better Life Initiative
  • Open Culture
    Tim Curry (RIP) Breaks Down His Most Iconic Roles: Rocky Horror, Clue, Muppet Treasure Island & More
    1 day ago
  • Personal Finance Buzz - Published news - Frugality
  • Plastic Manners
  • pligg - published
  • Positive Money
  • Post Growth
  • Real-World Economics Review Blog
  • Reduce Footprints
  • Simple Mom
  • Simple. Organized. Life.
    Improve your IQ and Reasoning
    3 years ago
  • Social Capital Blog
  • stonesoup
  • Studenomics
  • substance over stuff
  • The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss
  • The Everyday Minimalist
  • The Friendly Anarchist
  • The Grocery Cart Challenge
  • The Homeless Guy
    What Do You Really Want?
    10 years ago
  • The Idler
  • The Ingenesist Project
    Technology Risk
    1 year ago
  • The Intern
  • the middle finger project
  • The Monetary Future
    Featured Articles and Writings of J. Orlin Grabbe
    6 years ago
  • the nef triple crunch blog
    Danger of ghettoisation of the poor as government axes housing benefit
    16 years ago
  • The Non-Consumer Advocate
    Four Frugal Things -- A $3.50 Bathroom Upgrade!
    2 days ago
  • The Official Ramen Homepage
    Roy Choi Does Instant Ramen
    11 years ago
  • The Path Less Pedaled
  • The Politics of Well-Being
  • The REXpedition
  • The Rubbish Diet
  • The Shamanic Economist
  • The Simple Dollar
  • There, I Fixed It.
  • thesimplerlife.net
  • Things to do in Denver when You're Dead Broke
  • Trends in the Living Networks
  • Trust is the Only Currency
  • Unconsumption
  • Wasted Food -- Jonathan Bloom on food waste and how it can be avoided
  • WEB OF DEBT BLOG » HOW WISCONSIN CAN TURN AUSTERITY INTO PROSPERITY – OWN A BANK
  • What's Mine is Yours
    Amplify Festival 2013
    13 years ago
  • Wise Bread
    What’s a Good Credit Card for Your First International Trip? A 5-Factor Decision Guide
    1 day ago
  • YES! Magazine New Economy