Ethics

It's been super fun getting feedback about my book. I get a handful of emails a day from people I've never met before thanking me for inspiration, education, and for an overall good read. (If you have written and I haven't responded back to you yet, then your email address was mistyped.)

The only partially-negative feedback I ever get comes through interviews I have had which bring up the subject of ethics in my path to a million dollars. Kimberly Palmer over at Alpha Consumer actually blogs about it today.

I understand from afar these reporters viewpoint. But I explain that I do know all of my tips are not for everyone, I make that statement in the book several times. This is my story of how I got by on as little as possible. I don't think I lied or cheated to get where I am, but using some creative scheming, sure.

For the umbrella recyling idea: I've owned a bar and restaurant, not to mention worked in the service industry most of my life. The lost and found is a necessary evil of unclaimed goods in every store. As nice as it sounds, donating them all to a charity is on everyone's mind, but it's hard to do without a car or without much free time to spare. This item rarely gets put on the top of the to-do list of restaurant and store owners. Many are appreciative to reduce the lump of umbrellas in the lost and found whenever possible, I know I was. And I do advocate if using this strategy to take an umbrella from lost and found and to leave it in another lost and found for another person, for good karma's sake. Or better yet, returning it from where you borrowed it from. Either way, you save $5 and no one gets hurt (just wet.)

The popcorn bag trick I did on a few occasions too. As I say in the book, "Desperate times call for desperate measures. And nothing's more desperate than paying $7 for a large popcorn and watching a chick flick with your girlfriend." There are no indications at the theater that "refillable popcorn bag" had to be for one showing. I probably would say it's unethical only if that statement was explicitly stated somewhere. Otherwise, I'm buying what I want to buy - a refillable popcorn bag. But being an older, wiser, newly 30-year old that's a business owner, I can see that gray line for sure. In my twenties though, I was a man on a mission without a penny to spare.

I could go on, but I think most of these are victimless. I would always take the worst umbrella in the bunch, buy a drink at the concession stand as courtesy, and I always explained to those with me what I was doing. I never felt I was being secretive or deceiving, but creative. And those around me during these "cheapskate moments" seemed to agree. I was always just "being Alan", constantly looking to save a buck whereever I could. Unethical? Not in my eyes, but I know some disagree.

I think entics require a victim. Someone who loses out for my gain. I don't see this happening in my situation. But then again, that's just my two cents.