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When I was in third grade, my mom worked at a small diner near our house. Every morning before school, I’d walk there for breakfast and read the sports section of the Canton Repository. That habit stuck with me, and soon I was arriving early to school just to read the newspaper in the library.
I wasn’t the best student, but if they had quizzed me on what was going on in the world, I’d like to think I’d have aced the test.
Newspapers became such a big part of my routine that, even when I was pinching pennies, I always made room in the budget for subscriptions. While I was living in Long Beach, California, in a small studio apartment above a garage on an alley, I subscribed to multiple newspapers. One of them was a printed edition of an out-of-town newspaper: the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
For me, reading the newspaper wasn’t just about staying informed—it became a cornerstone of how I approach life. It helped me make better decisions and, ultimately, live a more fulfilling life.
That’s why, when a friend’s daughter was graduating from college, Rachel and I were brainstorming gift ideas. We decided on cash, but I also suggested a digital subscription to a major newspaper. I was hoping it would provide her with valuable insights to help guide her in life’s big decisions.
If I had to recommend three articles to help Laura make smarter, more informed choices in her next phase of life, here’s what I’d choose:
Learn the Secret Ingredients to Doubling Your Money–Time: In his New York Times article, Jeff Sommer interviews Charlie D. Ellis about his new book, Rethinking Investing: A Very Short Guide to Very Long-Term Investing. The key takeaway? Ignore the fear-driven headlines and focus on the long-term. If you invest with decades in mind, today’s threats to the stock market won’t matter much. Instead, we should focus on “the remarkable record of compounded, reinvested stock returns over many decades.”
The article offers striking data about compounding: If you had invested $1,000 in the S&P 500 sixty years ago and reinvested all your dividends, you’d have nearly $390,000 today. That’s the exponential power of time at work.
Discover the Quiet Power of Walking: In his Athletic article, Rustin Dodd writes about how Bruce Bochy, a Major League Baseball manager and a lifelong walker, discovered the value of walking. His long, peaceful walks gave him time to think—about lineup decisions, game strategy, and tough conversations with players.
After a tough loss to Milwaukee, while managing San Francisco, he decided to take a four-mile walk back to the team’s hotel. When he arrived, he realized how much better he felt. Walking became his routine and allowed him to explore many cities and neighborhoods of San Francisco during his career.
But Bochy is not alone. Steve Jobs, the former Apple CEO, held walking meetings. It has been said that Ernest Hemingway walked along the Seine in Paris to find relief from writer’s block.
Build a Financial Life That Actually Makes Sense: Jonathan Clements is one of the clearest, most practical voices in personal finance. I’ve followed his columns in The Wall Street Journal for years, and his advice has helped shape how I handle money.
In Want to Bolster Your Finances? Follow These 25 Principles—a standout piece from his book The Best of Jonathan Clements: Classic Columns on Money and Life—he touches on everything from investing to insurance to home ownership. One line always stuck with me:
“Don’t invest in a vacuum. If you are dutifully saving for a long and active retirement, it makes no sense to smoke, drink heavily, and never exercise.”
It’s a great reminder that financial health doesn’t mean much if your physical health is falling apart.
This article doesn’t just tell you what to do with your money; but it shows you how to think about your money.
Newspapers taught me how to think and how to make better decisions. I hope Laura finds the same value in her subscription. And if one day she finds herself walking to clear her head, investing for the long haul, or quoting a finance column to a friend—I’ll know that gift was exactly what she needed.
Digital subscriptions to newspapers are a fantastic idea. My wife and I subscribe to the NY Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Guardian (UK). They often have different perspectives on the same events. I’ll make my own mind up about issues, but I want to hear the competing voices.
Completely agree!
Mike,
I’m like you — when I signed up for The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, I wasn’t just after more news, but a wider range of opinions.
I have to admit, I was intrigued by the title of your story, not sure what it referred to. I too have always loved reading printed newspapers, going back to my days of being a 12-year old delivery boy for the Bergen evening Record, a newspaper I would deliver every weekday after school (and early Sunday mornings for the large, insert packed Sunday edition).
There would always be extra copies at the local distributor’s home where I picked up my route and I would keep a copy to read when I was finished delivering (my family didn’t subscribe as we couldn’t afford it). Although my initial interests may have been reading the sports section, I always went thru the whole paper including following many columnists whose regular writings I came e to look forward to reading.
I also miss the printed paper but start my day with digital subscriptions to several local and national papers. This is something my adult kids will never do choosing to get their news from Facebook or,other social media sources. What a shame!
My question is, are your adult children really getting news or opinions from “Facebook or other social media sources”. Even though even traditional media seems to be dangerously leaning more towards opinion I still keep up with the goings on through this medium.
Dennis, my parents would rise early to read the newspaper before work each morning–all of it, straight through. My mother still reads the local weekly and saves them for me to read when I visit.
I’ll also plug the value of walking, for mental health as well as that of the body. The recent early-morning walks my wife and I share generate more conversation than sweat, but are becoming an important part of our fitness routine.
Ed,
When my wife and I walk, we burn more words than calories — and I think that’s a good thing. I believe it brings us closer together: just the two of us, alone, talking about our lives.
Great article, Dennis! I finished The Best of Jonathan Clements last week and had the section Lists to Help Your Money Along marked to give to our kids (and made notes for myself). Enjoyed the humor in the article, Your Finances Are Under Control When...
Charles Darwin also had a walking path, called sandwalk. My husband created a walking path thru our woods and along the lake that I walk twice a day. I enjoy planning my day, reflecting on the week, and appreciating nature.
Cheryl,
I also enjoy going for walks a couple of times a day. I used to listen to music while walking, but now I leave my AirPods behind. The silence helps me clear my mind.
I had to cancel physical newspapers when they kept showing up after I put them on hold while I was traveling. I get several summaries by email every morning.
I’m fine with walking, but mostly not with talking at the same time. Horrified at the idea of a walking meeting!! If you walk fast enough for an aerobic workout you don’t have enough breath for talking (or at least, I don’t), and if I’m walking for pleasure I don’t want work (or sometimes even a friend) intruding.
Kathy,
When I was working, I had a walking meeting with a young man in his 20s who was on my staff. He had received a lot of complaints, and the meeting didn’t go very well.
I went by his desk and said, “Bob, if you have time, let’s go for a walk. I need to talk to you.” It was late in the day, and I was tired of sitting in my office. I wanted to get out and stretch my legs. He listened to what I had to say and agreed that he needed to do a better job.
The next morning, he came into my office, closed the door, and told me that I made him feel like a child by asking him to go for a walk. I never really understood how I had offended him, but that was my first and last walking meeting.
Possibly that was an issue from his childhood, but he could justifiably feel that serious meetings take place in offices.
“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”
— Thomas Jefferson (Letter to Edward Carrington, 1787)
“The only way to protect the right to publish is to publish.”
— Katharine Graham (played by Meryl Streep), The Post
Through my first 9 years of education, I was about as bright as a small appliance bulb, until somehow I enrolled in a speed reading class. Learning to love reading changed my life. I hope your thoughtful gift is life changing for your friend’s daughter.
When working, I’d often do walking 1-1s with team members. In retirement, my daily habit is a 3-5 mile walk/trail run through our neighborhood and a nearby wooded park. Good for the mind, body, and soul.
We also are newspaper junkies. Even as young married grad students with no money we’d find enough to get home delivery of our local paper. It was only back in 2019 when we were moving to a condo with a secured entrance to the building that we reluctantly gave up home delivery of a print newspaper. We still use our Apple News feed to keep up, but it’s not the same. Sometimes when we’re staying in a nicer hotel, they’ll have the paper in the lobby or by the elevators for guests. I always grab one and bring it back to the room for my husband, who still misses reading a print newspaper.
I loved that article about Bruce Bochy and walking. Obviously as a Giants fan, I adore Bochy himself, but I also love to walk and appreciated the insights about how walking outside can stimulate creative thinking. I definitely have found that. My rowing machine puts me into a calm, centered place because of the repetitive strokes, but if I have a problem to think through, I go for a walk.
I thought about you after I read the article about Bruce Bochy. I knew you were a big Giants fan.
Excellent piece as always Dennis.
I’m a newsaholc. I read news from a reputable source online daily (I have recovered from the news stress I wrote about months ago). I have a burning need to know what is going on locally, in my state, nationally, and worldwide. Knowledge for the most part relieves my anxiety. It also helps my finances, like knowing if the current legislation passes congress I will be able to convert another 6K into my wife’s Roth due to the additional deduction for those 65 and older.
In college had to read my local paper and the Boston Globe sports section to keep tabs of my (losing) teams. Best damn collection of sports writers in the country in the 70s.
David,
You mentioned that when you were in college, you read The Boston Globe to keep tabs on your favorite teams. That was the main reason I had The Cleveland Plain Dealer sent to me in California—so I could also keep up with my childhood teams.
Back in the late 1970s, before the internet or ESPN, the only way to get decent coverage of your favorite sports teams was through the newspapers.
Dennis,
I have found that the coverage of the Boston sports teams is becoming an information desert (this is amazing as we New Englanders are avid, some might say annoying, professional sports fans). It seems to be more the writers are watching the games on TV then writing about what they saw, rather than being on site. It can be days before I see an article. BTW I must admit I’m talking about coverage on local sports apps, not the Globe.
David,
The Los Angeles Angels’ radio team doesn’t travel for road games—they call the games remotely from Angel Stadium in Anaheim, using the TV feed. Angels owner Arte Moreno doesn’t want to pay for their travel. Meanwhile, the TV broadcast crew does go on the road.