(written by me 6/6/2002 – shared for the first time here on erica.biz)

Do you know that moment when you are programming something that really pushes the limits of the language you’re working in, and you just sit there and wonder, “Is this going to work?” And you draw out 50 possibilities and narrow it down to the one that uses the least amount of code, and suddenly everything just seems to click? You look up and it’s 30 minutes later and all of a sudden you dare to test it and it WORKS.

And it hits you that this minute, this instant, this moment when it all fits together, is why you are a programmer. (more…)

What do you really want out of life? I’m willing to bet that your goals include a form of “spend more quality time with my family” and “Have more days when I am truly happy.”

We all have goals, dreams, and hopes, but all too often they’re quashed as we join the rat race to make more money, to then spend that money, which means we have to make more money, to spend more money…an infinite treadmill that, judging by many of the statistics I’ve read recently, some of us are never able to get off of. (more…)

Previously, I wrote a post about secret eBay and craigslist hacks that will save you thousands of dollars online.

But what if eBay and craigslist don’t have the product you want, or you would really prefer to buy a new product? That’s when it is probably time to shop retail. How do you get ridiculous discounts at retail? I am going to show you a few tricks I have used to save on everything from Newegg.com computer purchases to any American Airlines flight (even the cheapest ones!) (more…)

This is a blog response to Steve Pavlina’s blog How to Be a Man.

As with Steve’s blog post, I don’t believe this advice all applies only to women. Steve picked the theme, so I am sticking to it.

Throughout the post, I will also share examples of women who have been personally inspirational to me. It is my hope that you will find inspiration in their stories as well. (more…)

You — my readers — have been asking me some fabulous questions for a while now. Today starts the first in what I expect will be a fairly regular series I’m simply going to call “Ask Erica.” The first question in this series is surely on some of your minds — not about me, but about you. The question is: Why should you decide to become rich? (more…)