Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Why do Some People Rake in the Dough while Others Spin Their Wheels to No Avail?
Here's the truth: I have read hundreds and hundreds of books about personal finances, from the conventional world of financial planning, to the trendy how-to-get-rich programs to the New Age gurus of money.
But here's what's missing from nearly all of them: VERY FEW of them even mention about our relationship with money.
Whether you're aware of it now or not, you have a personal relationship with money: a complex combination of your beliefs, attitudes, energy, history and fears about money AND the healthier your relationship with money is, the more money, success and financial freedom you enjoy.
Successful people have healed and transformed their relationship with money and so can you!
For most people, money has become an enormously high-pressure area of their lives, fraught with negativity, fear and self-defeating beliefs. It's not unlike the way we proceed and react in any relationship - with a cumulative body of attitudes and experiences that totally shape the way we behave and think. From the time we're very small, the subject of money takes on more and more of this emotional and energetic "baggage" and that becomes the very roadblock that prevents us from creating the financial life we want and deserve.
You see, most of what we learn about money only serves to create more and more pressure around it. In fact, the typical approaches you may have tried before actually drive money away from you by worsening your negative beliefs and attitudes about money.
But right now, today, you can reverse that trend and aim positive cash flow in your own direction.
The thing is, a pure new approach to your relationship with money changes everything. You CAN clear the frustration and limiting energy from your past, and start anew with a bright, unblemished and welcoming field around your money center. Much more than just "positive thinking," the techniques you're about to learn will create a fundamental change in your field of possibility.
YOU Can Transform YOUR Relationship with Money by:
Becoming aware of the power of YOUR beliefs and clear your negative beliefs around money. Make healing your personal relationship with money one of your top priorities in life.
Knowing where you stand financially at all times: Know what your net worth and cash flow is and where your money goes each month.
Identifying what your skills and talents and interests are and find a job or career where you can use them. Explore the possibility of creating a sideline business for one of your hobbies.
Becoming a savvy consumer and develop a plan to reduce your debt. Reduce your expenses so that you generate the cash flow you need to invest in yourself and your dreams.
Creating a game plan for what you want to accomplish financially, set goals, make action plans and go for it. Begin to tap into, harness and apply the power of your mind to make your dreams come true.
A good place to begin is to examine what your parents beliefs were about money and how did those beliefs impact their money. Then look at your own beliefs around money and what you have created in your personal finances. We often hold on to our family's beliefs around money even if they do not serve us.
These ideas are explored in more depth in a book I wrote on Transform YOUR Relationship with Money: A Step-by-Step Guide for Financial Empowerment. For more information, please check out my web site located at TransformYourRelationshipWithMoney.com
Bill Austin is a spiritual healer and teacher based in St Petersburg FL. He has assisted hundreds of people around the world in gaining the clarity they need to realize more of their full potential. To find out more about his healing practice, please check out his web site at HealingHolograms.com
But here's what's missing from nearly all of them: VERY FEW of them even mention about our relationship with money.
Whether you're aware of it now or not, you have a personal relationship with money: a complex combination of your beliefs, attitudes, energy, history and fears about money AND the healthier your relationship with money is, the more money, success and financial freedom you enjoy.
Successful people have healed and transformed their relationship with money and so can you!
For most people, money has become an enormously high-pressure area of their lives, fraught with negativity, fear and self-defeating beliefs. It's not unlike the way we proceed and react in any relationship - with a cumulative body of attitudes and experiences that totally shape the way we behave and think. From the time we're very small, the subject of money takes on more and more of this emotional and energetic "baggage" and that becomes the very roadblock that prevents us from creating the financial life we want and deserve.
You see, most of what we learn about money only serves to create more and more pressure around it. In fact, the typical approaches you may have tried before actually drive money away from you by worsening your negative beliefs and attitudes about money.
But right now, today, you can reverse that trend and aim positive cash flow in your own direction.
The thing is, a pure new approach to your relationship with money changes everything. You CAN clear the frustration and limiting energy from your past, and start anew with a bright, unblemished and welcoming field around your money center. Much more than just "positive thinking," the techniques you're about to learn will create a fundamental change in your field of possibility.
YOU Can Transform YOUR Relationship with Money by:
Becoming aware of the power of YOUR beliefs and clear your negative beliefs around money. Make healing your personal relationship with money one of your top priorities in life.
Knowing where you stand financially at all times: Know what your net worth and cash flow is and where your money goes each month.
Identifying what your skills and talents and interests are and find a job or career where you can use them. Explore the possibility of creating a sideline business for one of your hobbies.
Becoming a savvy consumer and develop a plan to reduce your debt. Reduce your expenses so that you generate the cash flow you need to invest in yourself and your dreams.
Creating a game plan for what you want to accomplish financially, set goals, make action plans and go for it. Begin to tap into, harness and apply the power of your mind to make your dreams come true.
A good place to begin is to examine what your parents beliefs were about money and how did those beliefs impact their money. Then look at your own beliefs around money and what you have created in your personal finances. We often hold on to our family's beliefs around money even if they do not serve us.
These ideas are explored in more depth in a book I wrote on Transform YOUR Relationship with Money: A Step-by-Step Guide for Financial Empowerment. For more information, please check out my web site located at TransformYourRelationshipWithMoney.com
Bill Austin is a spiritual healer and teacher based in St Petersburg FL. He has assisted hundreds of people around the world in gaining the clarity they need to realize more of their full potential. To find out more about his healing practice, please check out his web site at HealingHolograms.com
Monday, March 21, 2005
Get your motor runnin'...
Spring is in the air and a person's thoughts turn to... motorcycles!
But don't get caught in an upside-down loan propostion.
Learn more here.
But don't get caught in an upside-down loan propostion.
Learn more here.
Eliminate all debt (including a mortgage) in 7.5 years w/current income.
"You can eliminate all debt in the fastest possible time by starting an avalanche! I recognize that starting or getting caught in an avalanche probably would not be your idea of an enjoyable time. But what if I told you that the principles of an avalanche are very similar to the principles used to eliminate all debt in the fastest possible. "
Here's how...
Here's how...
The Wealthy Blogger
Mike Hillyer and Jeremy C. Wright started this site in order to make money.
Well, and to teach people how to get out of debt, plan their futures and eventually become millionaires.
Check out WealthyBlogger.com
Well, and to teach people how to get out of debt, plan their futures and eventually become millionaires.
Check out WealthyBlogger.com
Trackback is enabled
Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.
Sunday, March 20, 2005
How Do I Know a Good Credit Card Debt Reduction Strategy When I See It?
Credit card debt reduction is an important part of the debt reduction process. The way credit card debt reduction works is if you have five credit cards, you need to keep track of and pay 5 bills every month.
Once you enter a debt consolidation program all your accounts will be consolidated into one account. So now, you'll need to pay only one bill each month.
Sometimes it can even help to see a credit card debt reduction counselor to help you with understanding why you continue to use credit cards. A good credit card debt reduction strategy will include both of the above strategies along with a professional debt reduction plan.
A debt reduction plan is a process that allows you to combine all of your monthly bills into one monthly payment, sometimes up to 50% lower than what you're currently paying.
A good debt reduction plan will work with your creditors to reduce and/or eliminate high interest charges, waive late fees and other penalties, and update your past due accounts to show the current status.
Sometimes a company will prepare a debt reduction plan and get paid on a performance basis with their fee being a flat percentage of the amount saved. This fee can be just 25% of the amount of money eliminated as your debts are settled.
If you're looking this subject up then it's pretty important that you take serious action to get help. With an increase in the debt problems across the country, there's a high-end growth of debt consolidation firms nationwide. Be careful to choose the debt reduction services of the right firm to become debt free.
A good Debt reduction services company will offer a confidential program individually designed to provide you with a unique solution for your financial situation.
Their professional, certified counselors will assess your financial situation, assist in creating a spending plan, and negotiate the terms of your debts with creditors.
By negotiating terms such as lower interest rates and waived late fees, they can often provide you with more affordable payments and a shorter payoff period. A debt reduction services company will consolidate all of your unsecured debts into one convenient monthly deposit that will disburse directly to your creditors.
Matt Clarkson is a self made millionaire with years of experience in reducing debt, borrowing money, including bad credit debt! No sales pitch, no hype just sound advice. Check it out at...
freeinformationonline.com
Once you enter a debt consolidation program all your accounts will be consolidated into one account. So now, you'll need to pay only one bill each month.
Sometimes it can even help to see a credit card debt reduction counselor to help you with understanding why you continue to use credit cards. A good credit card debt reduction strategy will include both of the above strategies along with a professional debt reduction plan.
A debt reduction plan is a process that allows you to combine all of your monthly bills into one monthly payment, sometimes up to 50% lower than what you're currently paying.
A good debt reduction plan will work with your creditors to reduce and/or eliminate high interest charges, waive late fees and other penalties, and update your past due accounts to show the current status.
Sometimes a company will prepare a debt reduction plan and get paid on a performance basis with their fee being a flat percentage of the amount saved. This fee can be just 25% of the amount of money eliminated as your debts are settled.
If you're looking this subject up then it's pretty important that you take serious action to get help. With an increase in the debt problems across the country, there's a high-end growth of debt consolidation firms nationwide. Be careful to choose the debt reduction services of the right firm to become debt free.
A good Debt reduction services company will offer a confidential program individually designed to provide you with a unique solution for your financial situation.
Their professional, certified counselors will assess your financial situation, assist in creating a spending plan, and negotiate the terms of your debts with creditors.
By negotiating terms such as lower interest rates and waived late fees, they can often provide you with more affordable payments and a shorter payoff period. A debt reduction services company will consolidate all of your unsecured debts into one convenient monthly deposit that will disburse directly to your creditors.
Matt Clarkson is a self made millionaire with years of experience in reducing debt, borrowing money, including bad credit debt! No sales pitch, no hype just sound advice. Check it out at...
freeinformationonline.com
Saturday, March 12, 2005
The Midas touch to Debt Problems
According to American Consumer Credit Counseling, the total U.S. credit card debt in the first quarter of 2002 was approximately $60 billion. Credit card debt carried by the average American: $8,562 (Approx.). From 82 million in 1990 to 144 million in 2003 - the amount they charged during that period grew by a much larger percentage: approximately 350 percent, from $338 billion to $1.5 trillion.
With the major options a debtor has today clearing your debts is become a lot easier.According to American Consumer Credit Counseling, the total U.S. credit card debt in the first quarter of 2002 was approximately $60 billion.
Credit card debt carried by the average American: $8,562 (Approx.). From 82 million in 1990 to 144 million in 2003 - the amount they charged during that period grew by a much larger percentage: approximately 350 percent, from $338 billion to $1.5 trillion.
With the major options a debtor has today clearing your debts is become a lot easier.
Read the rest of the article here or visit the author's site.
With the major options a debtor has today clearing your debts is become a lot easier.According to American Consumer Credit Counseling, the total U.S. credit card debt in the first quarter of 2002 was approximately $60 billion.
Credit card debt carried by the average American: $8,562 (Approx.). From 82 million in 1990 to 144 million in 2003 - the amount they charged during that period grew by a much larger percentage: approximately 350 percent, from $338 billion to $1.5 trillion.
With the major options a debtor has today clearing your debts is become a lot easier.
Read the rest of the article here or visit the author's site.
Thursday, March 10, 2005
You And Your Debt Against The World
Posted at the ReliefLoans.com site.
Anyone who embarks on a debt reduction program should know the rules for success. There are two. You need to stop adding to your debt. You need to find extra money to pay it off quickly.
More...
Anyone who embarks on a debt reduction program should know the rules for success. There are two. You need to stop adding to your debt. You need to find extra money to pay it off quickly.
More...
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
The Top 5 Secrets to Managing Your Credit Cards So They Won't Manage You
You've probably never heard of Frank X. McNamara, but he revolutionized the way you shop on a daily basis.
One evening in 1949, McNamara - head of the Hamilton Credit Corporation in New York City - was dining out with two business associates. Their topic of discussion: one of McNamara's clients, who was defaulting on a loan because he had shared his gasoline and department-store credit cards with some friends in need. Unfortunately, the friends didn't have the money to pay back what they had borrowed, so the good samaritan was now facing his own financial demise.
As the meal ended, McNamara reached for his wallet so he could pick up the check. To his horror, he realized he had left it at home - and was forced to call his wife so she could bring him the cash he needed to settle the tab.
This fateful meal led to an invention that has transformed how the world handles money to this very day: the credit card. While previously available gasoline and department-store credit cards allowed users to make purchases at a single location, McNamara's personal plight - and that of his well-meaning client - prompted him to create a credit card that could be used in multiple venues. The Diners Club card was born. In its first year, 200,000 consumers signed up for one.
The rest is history. After carefully observing Diners Club's success, American Express and Bank Americard (soon to be renamed VISA) followed suit. Thank McNamara the next time you pay with plastic.
But has McNamara's novel concept become more of a curse than a blessing in your life? Are your credit cards managing you - and is your debt spiraling out of control?
Here are 5 ways to tame the credit card beast.
1. Know Your Limits
If you have a tendency to overspend, limit your extravagances by relying on paper currency instead of plastic. Set spending limits before you leave the house, whether you're shopping for groceries or heading to the mall to buy a new pair of shoes. If you find yourself reaching for your credit cards, freeze - and don't move an inch until you can answer the following questions:
- Why am I breaking my own rule?
- Am I being self-destructive with my financial health?
- Do I really need this item, or is my ability to say "charge it!" clouding my good judgment?
2. Learn from McNamara's Client
As McNamara's client learned the hard way, loaning your credit cards to even those closest to you is a surefire way to accrue debt. You are giving your spouse, children, other relatives and/or friends carte blanche to spend up a storm - and you are the one who is legally obligated to pay the bills that will find their way into your mailbox at the end of the month. Be extremely selective when passing the plastic to anyone who can run up a bill - and fail to pay you back.
3. Show Interest in Interest
Surveys consistently show that most people make only the required minimum payment on their credit card bills each month, leaving them with an outstanding balance that continues to climb. Not only do additional purchases add up, but you are continually paying interest on your existing and new balances - a sometimes considerable fee that has catapulted many consumers into life-altering debt.
Today, the average American family, for example, owes approximately $8,000 on its credit cards - and the credit card companies could not be more pleased. If 115 million families owed you money - on which you earn finance charges and late fees every month - you would be positively giddy, too.
Let's say you have an outstanding balance of $2,000 on a single credit card. Your annual interest rate is 9%, and your credit card company requires you to make a minimum $30 payment each month. Assuming you do not miss any payments (which would cause your interest rate to rise, as well as add late fees as high as $40 per month), it would take you 204 months to pay off this balance if you make only the minimum $30 payment each month - and by then, you will have paid an extra $1,028.43 in interest. This is how debt begins: A $2,000 charge winds up costing you $3,028.43.
4. Switch Cards
If you are still paying an annual fee on your credit card, it's time to make the switch to a card that is not only free, but rewards you for using it.
Assuming you have good credit and can secure a new card, explore your options. Banks offer cards that award cash-back bonuses, airline miles, gasoline rebates and other perks each time you use them. If you can manage your credit appropriately, keep pace with payments and pay your bills on time, you may as well reap the benefits of your spending habits.
5. Read Your Statements - Carefully
Some consumers pay their credit card bills without carefully reviewing their statements. This is one of the most serious mistakes you can make - especially in an age of identity theft, when someone can use your card to make purchases in your name.
Always keep your credit card receipts, and check them against the bill when it arrives each month. Make sure every charge is accurate, and notify your credit card company immediately if there are any charges you did not make. The company can reverse the charge if it is a simple error - or if someone has used your card without authorization. In the latter case, ask the company to cancel the card, review any additional purchases made since that date and issue a new card with enhanced security features, such as a personal identification number (PIN), to be entered each time the card is used.
In addition, check due dates on credit card bills. You may be used to paying your bill by the 20th of each month, but credit card companies have been shortening the length of time consumers have to pay their balances. Very often, there is no notification of a policy change - or the fine print is buried somewhere on your statement. Note the payment due date each month, and try to pay the full amount to avoid accruing interest or late fees.
Australian Debt Reduction offers all Australian consumers free debt consultations to assist them in getting back on top of their debt. They explain debt consolidation in simple terms and if you have over $4,000 in debt there are methods available to the Australian public you may not have heard of to help limit the amount of interest paid and rapidly reduce your debt. Visit Australian Debt Reduction at http://www.australian-debt-reduction.com.au or contact them directly on 1300 306 272
Article reprinted from SimplySearch4it! Articles Directory
One evening in 1949, McNamara - head of the Hamilton Credit Corporation in New York City - was dining out with two business associates. Their topic of discussion: one of McNamara's clients, who was defaulting on a loan because he had shared his gasoline and department-store credit cards with some friends in need. Unfortunately, the friends didn't have the money to pay back what they had borrowed, so the good samaritan was now facing his own financial demise.
As the meal ended, McNamara reached for his wallet so he could pick up the check. To his horror, he realized he had left it at home - and was forced to call his wife so she could bring him the cash he needed to settle the tab.
This fateful meal led to an invention that has transformed how the world handles money to this very day: the credit card. While previously available gasoline and department-store credit cards allowed users to make purchases at a single location, McNamara's personal plight - and that of his well-meaning client - prompted him to create a credit card that could be used in multiple venues. The Diners Club card was born. In its first year, 200,000 consumers signed up for one.
The rest is history. After carefully observing Diners Club's success, American Express and Bank Americard (soon to be renamed VISA) followed suit. Thank McNamara the next time you pay with plastic.
But has McNamara's novel concept become more of a curse than a blessing in your life? Are your credit cards managing you - and is your debt spiraling out of control?
Here are 5 ways to tame the credit card beast.
1. Know Your Limits
If you have a tendency to overspend, limit your extravagances by relying on paper currency instead of plastic. Set spending limits before you leave the house, whether you're shopping for groceries or heading to the mall to buy a new pair of shoes. If you find yourself reaching for your credit cards, freeze - and don't move an inch until you can answer the following questions:
- Why am I breaking my own rule?
- Am I being self-destructive with my financial health?
- Do I really need this item, or is my ability to say "charge it!" clouding my good judgment?
2. Learn from McNamara's Client
As McNamara's client learned the hard way, loaning your credit cards to even those closest to you is a surefire way to accrue debt. You are giving your spouse, children, other relatives and/or friends carte blanche to spend up a storm - and you are the one who is legally obligated to pay the bills that will find their way into your mailbox at the end of the month. Be extremely selective when passing the plastic to anyone who can run up a bill - and fail to pay you back.
3. Show Interest in Interest
Surveys consistently show that most people make only the required minimum payment on their credit card bills each month, leaving them with an outstanding balance that continues to climb. Not only do additional purchases add up, but you are continually paying interest on your existing and new balances - a sometimes considerable fee that has catapulted many consumers into life-altering debt.
Today, the average American family, for example, owes approximately $8,000 on its credit cards - and the credit card companies could not be more pleased. If 115 million families owed you money - on which you earn finance charges and late fees every month - you would be positively giddy, too.
Let's say you have an outstanding balance of $2,000 on a single credit card. Your annual interest rate is 9%, and your credit card company requires you to make a minimum $30 payment each month. Assuming you do not miss any payments (which would cause your interest rate to rise, as well as add late fees as high as $40 per month), it would take you 204 months to pay off this balance if you make only the minimum $30 payment each month - and by then, you will have paid an extra $1,028.43 in interest. This is how debt begins: A $2,000 charge winds up costing you $3,028.43.
4. Switch Cards
If you are still paying an annual fee on your credit card, it's time to make the switch to a card that is not only free, but rewards you for using it.
Assuming you have good credit and can secure a new card, explore your options. Banks offer cards that award cash-back bonuses, airline miles, gasoline rebates and other perks each time you use them. If you can manage your credit appropriately, keep pace with payments and pay your bills on time, you may as well reap the benefits of your spending habits.
5. Read Your Statements - Carefully
Some consumers pay their credit card bills without carefully reviewing their statements. This is one of the most serious mistakes you can make - especially in an age of identity theft, when someone can use your card to make purchases in your name.
Always keep your credit card receipts, and check them against the bill when it arrives each month. Make sure every charge is accurate, and notify your credit card company immediately if there are any charges you did not make. The company can reverse the charge if it is a simple error - or if someone has used your card without authorization. In the latter case, ask the company to cancel the card, review any additional purchases made since that date and issue a new card with enhanced security features, such as a personal identification number (PIN), to be entered each time the card is used.
In addition, check due dates on credit card bills. You may be used to paying your bill by the 20th of each month, but credit card companies have been shortening the length of time consumers have to pay their balances. Very often, there is no notification of a policy change - or the fine print is buried somewhere on your statement. Note the payment due date each month, and try to pay the full amount to avoid accruing interest or late fees.
Australian Debt Reduction offers all Australian consumers free debt consultations to assist them in getting back on top of their debt. They explain debt consolidation in simple terms and if you have over $4,000 in debt there are methods available to the Australian public you may not have heard of to help limit the amount of interest paid and rapidly reduce your debt. Visit Australian Debt Reduction at http://www.australian-debt-reduction.com.au or contact them directly on 1300 306 272
Article reprinted from SimplySearch4it! Articles Directory
Refinance your way out of debt
Sometimes it makes good financial sense to use the equity in your home to consolidate debt. Depending on your financial goals, it may be just the thing to do if you want to:
Refinance to Pay Off Credit Cards And Other Debt
The difference between credit card debt and a mortgage can, financially speaking, mean thousands of dollars. Why? Credit card debt is compounded where the interest on a mortgage is simple, and often tax deductible. Using the equity in your home rather than credit cards to finance expensive purchases can save you money paid in interest in the long run.
Refinance to Lower your rate, lower your monthly payment
If interest rates are lower than the rate you currently have on your loan, this could be the perfect opportunity to eliminate the higher rate.
Refinance Home Improvements If you choose cash-out refinance, you can use the money you receive to fund renovation and remodeling projects to add value to your home.
Refinance to Access Cash
Think of the equity in your home as a savings account that you could access through cash-out refinance. You may want to finance an important home improvement that will increase the value of your home, pay for college or pay off high interest credit card debt. Whatever your reason, this may be the right option for you.
Refinance can make your debt tax deductible
* Be sure to consult your tax advisor.
Danny Doane Teaches Mortgage Origination at Cal State Fullerton Extension.
Senior Loan Officer Since 1980
Article reprinted from SimplySearch4it! Articles Directory
Refinance to Pay Off Credit Cards And Other Debt
The difference between credit card debt and a mortgage can, financially speaking, mean thousands of dollars. Why? Credit card debt is compounded where the interest on a mortgage is simple, and often tax deductible. Using the equity in your home rather than credit cards to finance expensive purchases can save you money paid in interest in the long run.
Refinance to Lower your rate, lower your monthly payment
If interest rates are lower than the rate you currently have on your loan, this could be the perfect opportunity to eliminate the higher rate.
Refinance Home Improvements If you choose cash-out refinance, you can use the money you receive to fund renovation and remodeling projects to add value to your home.
Refinance to Access Cash
Think of the equity in your home as a savings account that you could access through cash-out refinance. You may want to finance an important home improvement that will increase the value of your home, pay for college or pay off high interest credit card debt. Whatever your reason, this may be the right option for you.
Refinance can make your debt tax deductible
* Be sure to consult your tax advisor.
Danny Doane Teaches Mortgage Origination at Cal State Fullerton Extension.
Senior Loan Officer Since 1980
Article reprinted from SimplySearch4it! Articles Directory
Sunday, March 06, 2005
10 Ways To Find The Money Hiding In Your Paycheck
No matter how tight things are financially for you; no matter how bleak you think that 2005 might be, if you are earning a paycheck then there's extra money hiding in it. You just need to know where to look. Here are 10 ways to bring that money out into the open.
More.
More.