Melanie Allen

Austin, Texas

American journalist & happiness expert with bylines on MSN and the AP News Wire. Topics include self-actualization and the quest for a happy life

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Articles

Partners in Fire

3 weeks ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

“How much money do I need?”It seems like a simple question, one that all of us must answer when planning for our financial futures. However, it’s missing a crucial component:For What? Determining how much money you need is an impossible task if you don’t know why you need the money. We’ve got you covered. Here, we explore how much money you need for some of life’s most challenging financial questions. How Much Money Do You Really Need?
Partners in Fire

3 weeks ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

All life is a stage, and we are but the players. The good news is that if you aren’t happy with your current stage, you can change it. Life consists of stages, and although we don’t have full control over where we are at each point, we have far more than we believe. Learn how to use life stages to your advantage to grow into the person you want to be. What is a Life Stage? Life stages are defined portions of your life.
14 Impressive Millennial Skills Technology Made Useless

3 weeks ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

Millennials grew up in a time of rapidly changing technology. They were the first generation to have computer labs and access to the internet to help with school projects, but they were also old enough to remember life without constant connectivity. The generation navigated school during the transition period from the Industrial Age to the Information Age. The rapidly changing landscape meant that the things they learned in school (and life) became obsolete.
22 Must Have Blogging Resources You Need to Excel as a Blogger

4 weeks ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

Blogging is a fantastic hobby and a great way to make money on the side, but growing your blog takes a lot of time and energy. You also need help, but the online world delivers with fantastic blogging resources to start and grow a successful website. What Are Blogging Resources? Blogging resources are the tools and materials you need to start and grow your blog.
You Are Stronger than You Think

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

You are stronger than you think. I know you believe that, because you are here, reading this right now. You only need a little boost to find that strength. I can help. As a certified life coach, I help people find their inner strength and give them the courage to pursue the life they’ve always wanted. You Are Stronger than You ThinkIt starts with believing in yourself. You are strong, brave, and most crucially, capable. You can handle anything life throws at you. I believe it, and you must too.
Fellows, Abandon these 12 Unattractive Hobbies if you Want a Date

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

Dating gurus claim that hobbies are key to finding a partner, but they leave a crucial piece out. The hobby matters!But men and women have vastly different ideas of unattractive hobbies. Here, women share the male pastimes that turn them off. Unattractive Hobbies that Repulse WomenSomeone recently polled the internet and delivered an authentic list of unattractive hobbies in men. If you’re a man looking to date a woman, you should avoid these unattractive hobbies like the plague.
The 30 Best Discord Bots for an Effective & Engaging Server

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

Need help managing your Discord server? There’s a bot for that. Whether you need moderation, flair, engagement, or tracking, there’s a Discord bot to meet your needs – and probably more than one. With the thousands of bots available, how do you know which to add to your server? We can help – discover the best Discord bots for all your server management needs!What Are Discord Bots? Discord bots are automated scripts that can perform functions in your server.
Discover the Cost of Living in 2022 - How Much Has it Changed?

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

The cost of living constantly changes. We first dived into the average cost in 2020, then updated all our numbers in 2022 and again in 2025. We decided to save the old data from 2020 and 2022 to see how inflation impacts the cost of living over the years. Here’s the 2022 cost of living. Unfortunately, most of our old sources have updated their content, so they no longer show the costs from 2022. I’ve removed those links. How Much Did Life Cost in 2022In 2022, the US faced rampant inflation.
Partners in Fire

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

I just finished reading the fascinating work Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson. The book was published in 2012 and didn’t touch much on current affairs (especially in the United States), but it offers intriguing insight into why our nation teeters on the edge of destruction, though the authors may not know it. The Premise: Extractive Political and Economic InstitutionsHey folks! Transparency Disclosure- Some of the links in this article are affiliate links.
10 Strange European Habits Giving Americans the Biggest Culture Shock

1 month ago | partnersinfire.com | Melanie Allen

Different cultures have varying approaches to life. Travelers may stare wide-eyed at perfectly normal practices in the country they’re visiting while locals wonder what the problem is. It’s always entertaining to gain insight into our cultural differences, learning that different doesn’t always mean wrong or bad. While scrolling through Reddit, I came across a question on the popular r/askreddit sub asking American users to describe uniquely European habits they just don’t get.