The Muse

Jim Wang at Bargaineering has a concise guide to the popular social lending networks. When I first became involved with social lending through Prosper, it was the only shop on the block. Now there are competitors, each offering their own twist to the social lending business model. (One not mentioned in this review is Kiva, which is a charitable lending site. You don’t earn returns on your money  but it’s a good way to help people off their feet.)

I financed our back yard work through Prosper and got an outstanding rate, far below even the local credit unions. I’m considering dropping some money into LendingClub and earning a nice return when the time is right. In either case, I’ve saved (or earned) myself the difference in what the banks would charge (or yield) by borrowing (or lending) directly.

Given the current worries over bank instability, I’m curious to see which way these P2P lending sites go. Will individuals be less likely to trust other individuals, in fear of loans that will default, or will the distrust in banks fuel a rise in P2P lending? Only time will tell.

        

fowlerjk business blogs, lending, money, p2p

I often find myself suggesting that clients use less words, adding that “one can say so much more without using so many words.” Although I tend to ramble when talking, I try to keep my writing pithy. It’s much more efficient and refrains from diluting the point.

One Sentence might be a terribly oversimplified example of this, but the site is nonetheless a wonderful showcase of just what can be contained in just a few short words. One Sentence also ties my editing advice to a quote from Roland Barthes’ The Pleasure of the Text: “Is not the most erotic portion of a body where the garment gapes?”

There’s much to be said for not spelling everything out. Think of these sentences as the glimpse you might catch of a bare calf or shoulder.

        

fowlerjk writing blogs, theory, writing