MANAGING MONEY PROBLEMS DOESN’T START WITH EARNING MORE. How many of you are in a state of financial trouble? I don’t want to know because that is a question for you to tackle possibly signaling time for a financial stress test. If you really want to fix your financial stress it takes more than just earning more money. Let me explain. If you answered yes to my question you might want to take a bow, raise the curtain on your debt show and start a new chapter. If you can’t make ends meet don’t sit around waiting for collapse get ahead of the game because if you suffer from financial stress now it will only get worse. Unfortunately not everyone may be able to get ahead especially if living on a fixed income. For those who are and can manage the bills with what they get financial stress looms over them just as much as the next person. If you believe you can’t get ahead because your income doesn’t cover the bills and you’re debt free then something must change. We can all say no to credit and creating debt we don’t need but we can’t all rush out […]
Poverty Stories: Growing Up Poor Made Me Rich But Not Happy
SOMETIMES WE KEEP LOCKED UP THINGS THAT HURT US THE MOST. Fan Submission to Poverty Stories My parents married when they were 17 years old back in the early 70’s and lived in a town just outside of Toronto. Shortly after I was born into what was a loving family environment that did what normal families do. This was the happiest and scariest moments for my parents because financially they were just getting started. Luckily both of their parents lived in the same city and they were able to get help from them with babysitting and anything else they needed. Both my parents are the youngest of many siblings who watched their brothers and sisters grow up to become successful in their careers. Walk down the aisle Back in the early 60’s and 70’s it wasn’t uncommon to get married before the age of 20 years old so naturally having a baby was the next step. My mother was an accomplished musician among her peers and my father followed his passion as a plumber in the trades. By the time they were in their mid-twenties they were both working steady jobs and life was getting busy. My […]
How financial management led this man to pay off $20,000 of debt : June Net Worth Update 2015 (+0.22%)
YOU ALWAYS HAVE A CHOICE When it comes to financial management of your money there is no excuse about not knowing why you are in debt, besides the obvious. Calculating personal net worth is a controversial topic in the personal finance world only because everyone calculates their worth a little different. Some people may add liquid assets such as “stuff” they have acquired over the years as well vehicles and their primary residence. Others may not. Financial management starts now Whether you hire someone to manage your finances or you do all the leg work and management yourself you know that this task never ends. Money will always be a mission on the monthly “To-Do List” no matter how rich or poor you are. It’s been years now that my wife and I have been calculating our estimated personal net worth but we never quite gave much thought to the motivational aspects of knowing “What am I worth?”. What I mean is how taking charge of our finances have influenced our mindset. Financial management of our assets and liabilities didn’t come into play until we bought our first house together after we were married BUT we could […]
Ambitious Teen helps mom with family budget
LET ME HELP YOU WITH THAT MOM There was a time in my life when I was a teenager and all I cared about was working, saving money and hanging out with my friends. I didn’t have to worry about what my parents did with our family budget nor did I care. Growing up in our household my parents were frugal to the point that if we wanted something we worked for it. They didn’t scour the weekly flyers because we didn’t have them but they would buy products reduced if mum was able to do something with them right away. My mums favourite was making pies with fruits that were ripe or ready to go off. That’s probably why I’m the way that I am in the kitchen. Being that it was Mother’s Day (Mothering Sunday) March 15 in the UK yesterday this email made me remember growing up and what life was really all about in our house. My mother was and still is our rock and I can understand how this young lady is so determined to help someone so special and close to her heart. Help with the family budget I received an […]
Do you know a credit card debt victim? : The Saturday Weekend Review #111
WILL ANYONE LISTEN? We all know someone who constantly whines about money and plays the credit card debt victim role yet does nothing about it. Having credit card debt and struggling to pay it off is a stressful place to be for anyone especially if you are already on a tight budget. I certainly wouldn’t want to be that person but I would give up whatever it takes to get out of it, no excuses. One of the main reasons people stay in debt is because they spend more time trying to justify why they can’t get out of debt rather than doing something about it. I know one woman who started cleaning houses on the weekends when the kids were with their father just to get rid of credit card debt she says she created when they split up. Some people might think that I don’t know what it’s like to have limited income or debt so how could I possibly share my thoughts on the topic, but think again. I may not have had credit card debt before but I have had debts in the form of a mortgage, education, vehicle, etc. I even owed my parents […]
