Until the ages of 7 or 8, children are literally being
programmed by their environment, what they see, touch, hear and
most importantly feel, shapes the ‘rules’ they create in their
subconscious minds. These rules then dictate their values,
beliefs and actions and can be difficult to reshape as they
become adults.

With financial education absent from the curriculum in most
schools, it’s increasingly important for parents to play a key
role in teaching their children about money.

When it comes to finances, think of the rules that you, yourself,
created during these impressionable years. Was it scarcity and
lack, was it jealousy and envy, or was it a confidence and
certainty?

Here are 7 ways to help you teach your child about money:

1. Set an example

Think about the example you are setting your children. Do you
change the subject when they walk in the room? Do you argue and
fight over money or display stress over late bills? Children are
more influenced by what you do than what you say.

Try and cultivate a more open approach to discussing money. If
planning a trip or holiday, for example, why not share the costs
of different options and involve the kids in the decision
process?

2. Reward them for saving

In the ‘real world,’ we are rewarded for saving or investing
either by interest, dividends, rent, etc. Encourage your child to
save by topping up their savings with interest of your own.

Adding a simple interest or by giving 1 coin when they have
saved 9 is an easy way to begin.

3. Encourage routines

Think of habits such as brushing your teeth or buckling up in
the car. It becomes so automatic that we don’t have to think
about it. Yet as a child it was sometimes an effort or something
that we needed to be encouraged to do.

What if every time your child received some money they divided it
into 3 and allocated to spend, share and save. The chances are
that if repeated often enough this habit may also become
automatic.

4. Use real money as play money

If your child wants some coins to play with, do you worry that
they will lose them or that coins are dirty and full of germs?
What are the subconscious messages here? How are children ever
going to be happy and comfortable with cash if they think it’s
either dirty or so scarce that they fear ever spending it?

5. Demonstrate paying bills

This can be a great way of explaining the consequences in a cash
free society. When the credit card bills come in, sit down with
your child and look at each of the items. Then you can explain
what each purchase relates to. Then when you write a cheque,
it’s another chance to explain the system and that money is
not just notes and coins.

6. A field trip

A trip to the bank, post office or supermarket can be a rich
learning experience. Explain what you are doing and why. Focus
on where the money goes and how it circulates in the economy.

Encourage numeracy skills by asking your child to hand over the
money and calculate the change.

7. A Gratitude List

One of the best ways to manifest more of something is to be
grateful for what you already have. Encourage your kids to make
a list of the things they are most grateful for. Perhaps tie
this in with the spend share save activity and donate some money
to something important to the child.

If they have lots of toys why not give some to a hospital or
charity shop?

In conclusion, remember that money is an idea as much as
anything. So create an atmosphere where it’s ok to discuss
money and for them to explore and learn.

About the author:

Author:  DJ Britton

DJ Britton is an author, inspirational speaker and financial education specialist. For more great ideas for teaching kids about money take advantage of our free video training series at http://www.thefinancialfairytales.com/video

Teaching Kids About Money is designed to help you teach your kids how to earn, save and give. These stories and tips will give you useful tools to help teach your kids the value of money.

Teaching Kids About Money shows you how to:

“I just wanted to thank you so very much for your helpful articles. The one that I just read about teaching kids about money was a mind blower!! I have practiced many of the things you suggested for years and was criticized. It is refreshing to know that what I am doing is the right thing to others besides me. My family is in the “crisis mode” at this time and every little bit feels like a fortune. Thank you for your insight!!!” -Shaunna M.

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There are so many good ideas about saving money out there, it is
a bit difficult to understand why so many Canadians are still
facing bankruptcy (about 100,000 this year will declare
themselves bankrupt), and why, as a nation, we’re still so badly
in debt (to the tune of about $96,000 per household). Still,
it’s not all bad news. A recent study found that Canadians are
now setting aside about 5% of their incomes towards personal
savings, up from 2% only a few years ago. But what’s up with our
record personal debt levels?

First, we might be fooling ourselves. If we are not buying $5
lattes any more, but are just spending that $1000+ yearly
savings somewhere else on something else, we are not really
saving anything. (Right?)

If you have started buying your ketchup by the barrel at Costco,
but now seem to have every electronic gadget in the book, you
might be better off switching back to the grocery store and
buying smaller quantities, even if it costs more. Bulk buying
only works when you buy the products you need, and you keep your
eyes (and hands) off the ones you want.

The point is, if you’re still spending the savings, then you’re
not saving anything at all.

The key to getting out of debt, and increasing your wealth, is
to pay off those debts, and then use that money to invest in
yourself-by depositing it into a savings account, RRSP, TFSA, or
other investment. Bottom line is, it means you have to change
your spending habits into savings habits. And never go back.

That can seem tough when it appears that no one around seems to
be doing anything differently. But if you are using a credit
line or credit card to meet your monthly utilities bill, or
opening cards in the name of your children to help make ends
meet, it is definitely time to stop spending, pay off those
debts, and set aside a few gold nuggets for when you really need
them.

That can be hard to do when we are encouraged to spend, not
save. So the little tips and tricks that keep you on the savings
track-using cash, getting rid of the credit cards or at least
reducing them to one-are essential to establishing new
no-spending habits.

Canadians are now about $1.4 trillion (yup, that’s with a “T”)
in debt. That kind of cash should have all of us thinking twice
about our spending.

About the author:

Molly Wider

If you are heading down a bad financial path, a bad credit debt consolidation loan may help get you back on track. Visit our Bad Credit Loans website today, and breathe easier tomorrow! Visit our blog for more articles about Bad Credit and Debt.

A personal note from Jordan Nicckels…

Over a year ago, I made a point of transferring $275 from every pay cheque I received into a savings account.  It was very surprising for me to see that I was actually able to afford to do this yet I had never made such a devoted effort to save so much money in prior years.  You really do not realize where a lot of your money is spent each month without keeping a monthly budget – even a simple one.  Learn to save your money not spend it frivolously.

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Planning and goal setting are critical to your success if you
want to become wealthy. The two key traits of people who do not
become wealthy are, firstly, they tend to spend all of the money
they have and, secondly, they do not know what they spend their
money on. The lack of goals is the main culprit. Ric Edelman,
author of The Truth About Money and Ordinary People,
Extraordinary Wealth, calls this “spending unconsciously”. He
says the reason why people spend without giving it much thought
is they have no goals. Without goals, we live unconsciously from
moment to moment, we never plan for the future, we spend all of
our money, and as a result, we are unlikely to ever become
wealthy.

* Ordinary People, Extraordinary Wealth, by Ric Edelman *

“Unconscious spending” is more prevalent in our society than we
realize. I would estimate approximately 80% to 90% of the
population do it. With the exception of one or two people, the
vast majority of my clients had no idea what they spent their
money on until I asked them to prepare a list of their total
expenditure and outgoings before our first session. In fact,
many were too frightened to do the initial exercise and waited
until they arrived at my office, so I could help them through
the ordeal. Money matters simply scare people. They are
terrified to know how out of control their finances are. Yet,
this is precisely what needs to be done before we can start
working on a solution.

Whilst it is important to become relaxed and carefree with our
financial matters, this does not mean careless. We become
carefree with money when we know that it is not a scarce
resource, we work on increasing our income, we invest a little
time on a regular basis to plan and review our finances, and we
systemically set aside part of our earnings regularly to build
our savings and investments for the future. We are careless with
money when we don’t keep track of what we are spending and
squander money on things that are wasteful, extravagant and not
needed.

I often compare money to water, another important commodity in
our lives. Both are essential and critical to our survival;
however, we rarely worry about water in the same way we do about
money. We systematically set aside water when it rains in dams
and reservoirs to provide us with water ‘on tap’ when we need
it. We are careful not to waste water; however, at the same time
we can relax and not have to worry about it on a day-to-day
basis. When we apply the same reasoning to managing money we are
well on the way to becoming wealthy.

The first step is to put aside a little time to set goals and do
some planning. Planning does not have to be an arduous affair.
It takes approximately one to two hours up front to prepare your
plan and, thereafter, an hour a month to review or revise it.

The first part of your plan is to set some goals. For example,
accumulating $500,000 in income-producing assets in 15 years is
not a difficult goal to achieve. If you save $170 a week into
investments returning an average of 15% per annum for 15 years,
you will have your half a million dollars. Goals will help you
focus on the future and increase your willpower to prevent over
spending. The more concrete you make your goals, the more
committed you will be to achieving them. Set time frames and
break them down into manageable steps, as in the example above,
to make your goals more realistic and attainable.

Along the way, however, we also need to manage our day-to-day
spending to ensure that we set aside the required savings to
achieve our goals. In designing the Money Program, I used a
simple, effective formula that everyone can apply to easily
manage their finances. I call this the 40%-30%-20%-10% rule.
This formula is used to measure your expenditure and cash
outflows. You divide your expenditure into four categories and
calculate the total of each category as a percentage of your net
(after tax) income. The four categories are Fixed Costs,
Variable Costs, Discretionary Costs and Savings.

Fixed Costs are your essential costs that are known and have to
be paid on a regular basis. For example, mortgage or rental
payments, personal loans and credit card repayments, insurance,
council rates, and school fees. These costs are usually
determined by your lifestyle choices, the size and cost of your
house, cars and major possessions, and therefore difficult to
change without making major adjustments to the way you live.

However, because fixed costs are comprised of debt and committed
payments, they are critical in determining your ability to
create wealth, as well as your capacity to lead a stable
financial lifestyle. If your fixed costs are too high, you will
probably be living from payday to payday worrying about the next
large bill that arrives. If your fixed costs take up too much of
your weekly pay packet, there will be less to spend on other
essential costs, and often little for luxuries – unless you go
further into debt.

Variable Costs include our essential living expenses, which can
vary from week to week, yet you have some control over what you
spend. These will include food, clothing, groceries, mobile
phone expenses, medical and motor vehicle running costs, such as
petrol and repairs.

The previous two categories relate to essential costs that we
cannot live without. Some are controllable (variable costs) and
some are set (fixed costs). Discretionary costs are expenses
that are non-essential and highly variable. These costs are very
much in your control and where most choice is possible about how
much is saved each month. For example, entertainment,
dining-out, presents, holidays and all luxury items that we love
but can live without. I affectionately call this part of our
budget, our ‘play money’. The problem with most budgets is they
often exclude this significant element and this is why most
people fail. We all need a little play money and a few luxuries
in life.

Whilst working with this formula with my clients, I found that
people who live within their means tend to spend their money
roughly within the 40%-30%-20% rule. That is, their fixed costs
are roughly 40%, their variable costs 30% and discretionary 20%
of their net income. The more I worked with this formula the
more I realized it was an excellent way to achieve two things.
First, it provides you with a simple effective method for
planning and allocating your finances, and secondly, it is the
perfect method for getting you out of debt and into wealth.

The most critical category is fixed costs. The fixed costs of
people who are living comfortably within their means are
generally around 40% of their income. People with fixed costs
above this percentage, tend to lead lifestyles that cost them
more than they can afford. The size and quality of their homes,
cars, furniture and other items that they have borrowed for,
have forced them into excessive debt. Because fixed costs are
comprised of debt and committed payments, they are crucial in
determining your ability to create wealth. If you want to be
wealthy, you have to be committed to dropping these costs below
40%.

When clients first come to me, their fixed costs are often 50%,
60% or even 70% of their net income. The aim is to reduce that
percentage to 40% or less, over time. Creating wealth is about
building strong financial foundations that cannot be shattered
regardless of what we may be faced with in the future.
Regrettable, strong foundations take a little time to build.

People in severe financial hardship usually have fixed costs
that are greater than 65% or 70% of their net income. This is
usually due to excessive debt or insufficient income. People who
are in financial crisis, where they tend to live from payday to
payday and seem to be going from one financial problem to the
next, tend to have fixed costs between 45% to 60% of their
income. If their fixed costs are approximately 40% of their
income, they are living comfortably within their means, and if
their fixed costs are below 40%, they usually have excess money
that could easily be channeled into additional savings and
investments. So the key to good financial management is managing
and controlling your fixed costs.

Remember, it is all done by measuring your fixed costs: if your
fixed costs are 40%, you are living within your means, if your
fixed costs are above 40% you will be putting yourself under
financial strain, and if they are below 40% you will be in a
surplus position. Therefore, if you want to accelerate your
wealth, keep your fixed costs well below the 40% mark and invest
the surplus.

If excessive debt is keeping your fixed costs high, formulate a
debt free plan and do not go deeper into debt. Learn to live
with cash. It is far more finite and when the cash runs out, you
know you definitely cannot afford to buy those extra purchases.
If low income is your problem, consider all alternatives to
increasing your income. These may include: part-time work,
turning hobbies or crafts into cash or investing in additional
training to further your career prospects.

Also, to decrease your fixed costs you may have to make some
difficult decisions about the way you live. Is the house you are
living in far too costly for you? Are you running two cars when
one could suffice? Can you down size anything now, which is
costing you far too much money? Are you trying to live well
above your present means buying clothing, accessories or
electronic gadgets that you cannot afford? Are you a
shopoholic, and can never resist a bargain – regardless of
whether you need it or not? Are your credit cards always to the
maximum limit and you cannot afford to pay the balance? These
are often difficult choices to make, but well worth it in the
long run.

Remind yourself that you can have the bigger house, cars, toys,
etc. – later, when you can better afford them. If you get a
bigger mortgage to upgrade your house or borrow for a better
car, you will increase your fixed costs. By keeping your fixed
costs as low as possible, you will accelerate your progress to
becoming wealthy. Your plan should always aim at decreasing your
fixed costs below 40% by either increasing your income or
decreasing your debt, or both. Once you have achieved this, use
the extra money to add to your savings and investments. This is
the guaranteed way to accelerate your path to wealth.

About the author:

Author: Leslie Koch

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It is always better to set aside a portion of the earnings
towards wealth building for future. Keep at least a small
portion of your savings aside for yourself first. Even the
smallest denomination of the dollar that you are spending on
grocery, rent and buying shoes is being benefited by someone
else. To help your investments grow exponentially you must try
to save a portion of your earnings and also a financial plan for
investments.

Know what you’re saving for. It is a popular misnomer that
people have taken care of their future by putting all their
money in the savings account. Try to keep a tab on your urge to
remove even the one or two dollars you have saved for some weeks
now? Saving for the future requires you knowing what you are
really saving for. How much yeild can you get from a single
dollar deposited in your account? Is the interest rate big
enough for my retirement? It is a must for you to appraise
yourself of the various choices available for your investment
and the ones that can help you to reach your financial goal.

Be trained daily. You can get all the guidelines for saving
money from the finance related articles. An incessant search for
financial markets improves your chances of opting for the best
outlay for your savings. Be extremely aware of the causes
affecting your savings. You need to be aware of all the
investment and commerce news available in the newspaper. Learn
and use the word in the finance vocabulary; converse with it and
live with.

Create a budget. Many people try to do two jobs when the salary from one is not sufficient. Not many of them have a budget in place thinking that they are earning so much less than the others in spite of earning a twofold income.

Budgeting is something that everyone should do, regardless of
their situation. Keep a check of the earnings you are having
even if it is just a cent in a dollar. Get to know the areas
where you are spending your earnings. Have a financial plan in
place. Though it is necessary to have a budget do not make it
too boring that you will fret from doing it again. Your action
must be well contended one. The financial planning should be
imbibed in your everyday living. You should make it a enjoyable
activity.

You need keep some amount aside for any disaster. Nobody can predict the future and plan for the same. So make sure that you are prepared for whatever will come your way. When you lose your job you will feel happy that you had saved for this situation well in advance. When you are in a crisis the last thing you should make use of is your credit card. Set aside a little money every month; no matter how small it is, as long as you keep on saving, it will definitely grow into something useful and helpful.

About the author:

Rayner Chandler is an expert in finance and investment topics like personal finance articles, tips to save money and budget planning

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Divorce and its financial challenges are an issue almost no
woman wants to face. After all, during divorce proceedings, not
only is a woman considering the financial future of herself and
her family, but she’s also dealing with the emotional aftermath
of the dissolution of a marriage. It can be a difficult time for
everyone involved, and a messy financial situation will only
make things worse.

Unfortunately, no matter how mutual or cut-and-dry the legal
proceedings of a divorce are, there are complications when it
comes to short-term and long-term finances. The best thing women
can do to prepare themselves is to take financial issues one
step at a time, working with an advisor they trust to help them
start looking ahead to a brighter future.

After Divorce: The First Steps

Once everything has been divided up, it is necessary to re-title
or transfer all of the “big ticket” items, including property,
houses, cars, wills, insurance, credit cards, and bank accounts.
It’s important to get these things out of the way first since
you don’t want to be held liable for any delinquent payments or
unaccounted spending on behalf of your ex-spouse. The same is
true for any issues related to bankruptcy; if there is a chance
of either partner filing, it’s important to do it either before
the divorce occurs or very soon thereafter. That’s because it is
possible for one ex-spouse’s bankruptcy to affect the other’s
financial situation, since he or she may be held liable for
defaulted loans.

Along these same lines, it’s important to amend existing
retirement plans, including IRAs and 401(k) accounts. When
possible, these should be a part of the divorce settlement,
since they incorporate a very large portion (if not all) of your
financial future as far as retirement goes.

After Divorce: Looking Ahead

Getting your finances settled after a divorce can take years.
Not only are most women adjusting to a new home and new income,
but many of them are also figuring out how to balance work and
child care as well. This means that you may not consider
yourself ready to start planning a savings and retirement plan
until five or ten years have gone by and you are on your feet,
so to speak.

This is a mistake. Although you might not have the funds ready
to start investing right away, it’s always best to at least meet
with a financial advisor who can help you determine your goals
and next steps. Whether you want to set a retirement plan into
action or find a way to build a savings account that will give
you – and your newly emerged family – some freedom from
financial worries, it’s always best to start right away.

Although there are rarely very many silver linings to a divorce,
it does give many women a chance to start taking proactive
control over their future. Sure, it may take a few years before
you start to feel settled enough to really tackle stocks, bonds,
risk assessments, and portfolio diversification, but divorced
women are among those best suited for smart financial decisions
- if only because they’re being forced to ask the hard questions
and take a good look at what they want out of their lives.

About the author:

Author: Wesley Watkis
Questions? Email – wesley@thewandwgroup.com and visit our website at http://www.thewandwgroup.com – New Money Talk is a weekly article focusing on retirement, personal finance, and estate planning. Comments and questions are welcome, but because of the volume of email, personal responses are not always possible.

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The current financial turmoil is impacting the financial future
of everyone. It has become very apparent that a solid understanding
of the principles of personal financial planning is an indispensable
life skill:

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* Budgeting & Investing – Take Charge of Your Money
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It is easy to make a poor financial decision. Thousands of those
who enroll in credit repair programs are familiar with the
aftermath of the occasional financial lapse in judgment. In many
cases the indiscretion is simply the result of a lack of good
information. The most common example that we see among credit
repair customers involves the purchase of an automobile. The
difference between a budget friendly option and one that
encroaches on our food allowance may seem small, especially at
the point of purchase. The auto salesman explains to us that for
mere dollars more each month we can upgrade to a nice leather
interior, and it all seems so affordable. And then the monthly
payments come due and we discover we have to juggle our money to make ends meet.

Making Reserves Reality

Credit repair involves far more than cleaning up your credit
report. Real, long term credit repair success necessitates a
fundamental change in the way we operate. We must establish a
way of living within our means. Furthermore, our monthly budget
must allow for some money to be set aside for the proverbial
rainy day. Things happen. Unexpected expenses arise, and unless
we have a reserve fund we will find ourselves short of the money
we need to meet our obligations. We must plan in advance for
these inevitabilities. Without a reserve fund our credit repair
efforts are almost certainly destined to meet a sad demise as
new late payments find their way onto our credit reports.

Learn to Think Ahead

Overspending on an automobile is just one of the most obvious
examples. In fact, opportunities to over-commit occur daily. If
you want long term credit repair success you need to adopt a new
mindset about spending money. You need to begin to appreciate
the benefit of savings, of conserving funds, and of getting the
best value for your money. Every time you reach for your credit
card you are adding to your future obligation. Every dollar you
spend on credit today will encroach on the funds you have
available tomorrow.

Finding Real Value

Every person who has graduated successfully from a credit repair
program has made this fundamental shift in their lifestyle. Once
upon a time they might have upgraded their stereo or television
with each advance in technology, now they get every bit of value
out of the model that they already own. The change in attitude
is important to acknowledge. The credit repair aspirants that
truly make these changes find that forgoing such purchases is
not a hardship. Quite the contrary; they begin to feel an inner
joy that arises from a new found solid financial foundation. A
quiet inner confidence begins to permeate their life. Everything
changes. It is not hard. Try it one time and you will see.

Credit Repair and Your Potential

It does not take long to see the benefits of this kind of
lifestyle change. Your credit repair program will become easy.
You will feel the comfort of watching old late payments fall
farther and farther behind with no risk of new ones appearing to
replace them and hurt your scores anew. Stress will fall away as
your saving account begins to grow. You will discover the inner
peace of those who manage to find this equilibrium. You may even
find that other parts of your life start to change. You may find
that relationships strengthen and job prospects improve. Credit
repair is a small part of the picture. Your potential is
unlimited. And it all starts with you. It all starts today.

Copyright © 2009 Ian Webber. All Content. All Rights Reserved.

About the author:

Ian Webber is an expert in consumer law and credit repair. Ian is a graduate of the London School of Economics and The University of Chicago where he earned his LLM. Ian consults with one of the leading online credit repair services and is currently based in Florida.

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Whether we are talking about financial budgeting and planning
for you personally or as a business, it is important,
particularly in times of recession. There’s no point in waiting
until the recession hits you before you make a budget & plan,
because by then it will be more stressful to implement it.

So what is a recession? Basically it’s the slowing of economic
activity over a continuous period of time. In a recession, job
losses are a major concern and this is one of many reasons why
you should prepare yourself with a financial budget and plan.
For a business it’s important to know where they stand in the
current market and what expenses they need to prepare themselves
for. With economic activity slowing and people not purchasing as
much in a recession, it is likely to affect business
incomes.

With it being so easy to get loans, credit cards and store cards
these days it is also very easy to find ourselves in more debt
than we anticipate. Many people simply use one credit card to
pay another credit card or other bills; therefore, the debt cycle
is forever revolving. The word ’savings’ has become something
which many see unattainable.

An important step in financial budgeting and planning is to work
out what your debts are compared to your income. This is where
good budgeting and planning comes into its own by providing an
accurate structure with which to work things out. No awful
surprises if you do it well. In simple terms, if you have more
cash outflows than what you are earning, you are living beyond
your means. If this is the case then you need to know about it
straight away and with good planning, you have a chance to do
something about it. It’s important to reduce as much of the debt
as possible, in order to have some money left for your general
living expenses:  food, gas, utilities and the likes. From
here you should get yourself into a routine of saving the so
called ‘left over’ money, even if that means a mere ten dollars
a week as that can add up over the year.

By having some money saved (that you can’t readily access) you
are creating some financial security for yourself. Imagine if
your vehicle broke down and you didn’t have savings:  Would that
mean that you have to get finance to get a new vehicle or repair
the one you have? If so, then you would be putting yourself in
more debt, whereas if you have some savings behind you, you are
prepared for unexpected expenses such as this and the
possibility of losing your job. You should make savings goals.
For example, your first goal might be to save one hundred
dollars and if you do so then you will treat yourself to a meal
out or doing something you enjoy (that doesn’t cost a fortune!).
Start with small goals that will be achievable – otherwise you
will find it too hard to save and most likely give up within the
first few weeks.

Financial budgeting and planning also includes looking at your
expenses; consider things that you can do without. It doesn’t
necessarily need to be something you have to do without for the
rest of your life, just something that you can do without for
the time being so that you can save some of your hard earned
cash rather than spend it on materialistic things. For
instance, do you really need that second mobile phone? Or that
daily store bought coffee every day? Small things like this can
make a difference. Add up how much you are spending on things
like bought work lunches, mobile phone bills, petrol/gas costs, etc.,
and you will soon be surprised!

Another thing which many people overlook are insurances. Whilst
this might seem like an unnecessary step in your financial
budgeting and planning process and just ‘another expense’
consider this: When times get tough, things like getting sick
can break the bank! Health / Medical insurance can be extremely
useful and save you a lot of money in health costs. The likes of
income protection insurance can help if you lose your job. The
more you can do to protect yourself from unexpected costs in
recession times, the better!

The sooner you get onto financial budgeting and planning the
better – prepare yourself today for the future. Don’t just wait
and hope.

About the author:

John Lay

iAgri Ltd is a market leader in farm and small business management software, to assist with financial budgeting and plannning. I.Agri export to many countries around the world. http://www.iagri.com/

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Dealing with finances can be a tedious task especially if you
have no idea of how to manage them. You also may not be in a
position to trust another person to handle your finances. Here
are ways to help you manage your money if you have the
discipline and determination. You will need an accurate
financial plan that will guide you in achieving your financial
goals. One way that has worked for many people over and over
again is the use of a realistic budget.

A budget is a plan or summary of how you intend to spend your
income. When creating one, it is essential to write down your
expenses in order of priority. You should also take both short
and long term goals into account. A budget helps you allocate
the necessary funds to a particular need or want. When you have
deducted the most important expenses that have to be paid for
like food, rent, utilities, etc., then if you have some money
left, you can save for a rainy day. At this point you will be
aware of what you can do without.

So reduce spending on things like entertainment or eating out.
You may be surprised how much you will have saved. Another way
to manage your finances is if you are in the habit of using
credit cards, you have to be able to use them only when necessary
and not for everyday use like for groceries. You need to
discipline yourself to pay your credit card bills promptly.

When applying for a card, it is also important to look for one
that has favorable rates. If this is too tedious for you, you
can go for debit cards that operate just like cash. You will not
be in a position to overspend more than what is in your account.
When you spend what is necessary, when necessary and within your
budget you are successfully managing your finances.

About the author:

Author: Mercy Maranga

Mercy Maranga writes content on Finance and Finance Management. Visit her site here for more information on Finance. Finance Information

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Are you frustrated that:

* No matter what you earn you NEVER have enough?
* Every paycheck you receive goes on paying off bills?
* You get a shock every time your card gets declined?
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1. Use common sense when you give out your confidential information.

2. Do Not give out your credit information over the telephone.
Very few legitimate companies call and ask you for your information
over the phone.  It is best to call the company back yourself and
speak with an authorized person from the company in question.

3. When shopping online, be sure you are on a secure site.  One of
the most common ways to know you are on a secure site is by viewing
the web address at the top of the page.  It will start with https://.
The “s” indicates the site is secure.  Using Paypal also allows for
online shopping without having to disclose your financial information.

4.  Always shred credit card applications that you are not interested
in applying for.  Do not just throw away credit card receipts if you
do not wish to keep them with your personal records – shred them.
All it takes is for an unauthorized person to retrieve your credit
information from the trash in order to make online transactions in your
name using your credit card number.

5. If you do lose a credit card or suspect one has been stolen from
you, quickly take action.  Call the toll-free number for the credit
card company right away and report it.  You will not be responsible
or held liable for any charges made on the card after you have made
the report.

Avoid becoming the next victim of credit card fraud.

About the author:

Author: Jordan Nicckels

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Living On A Dime – Financial Independence Through Better Life Choices

Budgeting isn’t something that is set in stone
so before you settle on a final budget, do some
groundwork, and make sure that you’re comfortable
with what you’ve planned.

The KEY aspect to budgeting is not looking at
‘how do I afford to do or pay for X’. Instead,
look at what your budget allows you to do. It’s
important to look at your income and allow it to
lead your budgeting because it is one way to
dictate your natural affordability borders, but
remember that you can save in one area to afford
better in another area of your life.

Before you create a budget

1. Check your incomings and outgoings ” as you
would with the basics of a budget, but make sure
you account for *all* bills ” include any costs
you have yearly for things such as your car or bike
(insurance, repairs, maintenance). Remember too, to
use your ‘random’ income, like ebay sales, towards
your important bills, or save them. Don’t just
spend them when they arrive, and instead use them
in the next month’s budget.

2. Be honest about your spending. No one is judging
you and it’s possible that you’re spending more
money than you should because you’re making impulse
buys. You can stick to your budget and avoid these
‘impulse’ buys by examining what you’re spending
money on, and deciding *why* you spend it. Impulse
buys are the main reason budgets don’t work, so
keep track carefully.

3. See if there’s any way you can comfortably cut
down instead of eating out, consider buying a
‘bundled’ meal from a supermarket and cooking
yourself. Swap a night at the cinema for a bundle
of movie rentals, and your trip to the local theme
park to a local park or outdoor area set aside for
recreation. You could also look at whether you can
save money by commuting with friends in a car pool
(saving on parking and petrol, even if you take it
in turns) or cycling, bussing, or even walking to
work. You should also investigate loan consolidation
essentially rolling several high interest debts into
a single lower interest one. Sounds like a good idea
in theory, but if you don’t do it right you’re likely
to wind up in even more trouble.

4. It takes around a month of careful tracking to
check your budget fully. There are plenty of tools
online for varying tastes, and you’ll only find the
right one for you by doing some research. You can
also find desktop based budgeting tools, or those on
smart phones or PDA’s. iPhones and similar have
different apps.

Once you have a budget

Once you have a plan, remember, you can change it.
Making your budget with a small amount of flexibility
will give you a degree of freedom that will make it
easier to stick to and give you a small buffer zone,
if anything happens to go wrong.

5. Try to make your savings a part of your budget.
Pay essential bills; pay yourself (SAVE) and then
pay for the non-essentials such as recreational
activities beyond basics.

You need to remember to build some fun into your plan,
but if you go beyond that, you’re possibly spiralling
back into one of the behaviours that caused you to
need to budget in the first place. While you’re fixing
your budget, consider too, looking at savings accounts
and comparing them. Use one of the many online
comparison sites to make sure you’re getting the best
from any credit cards and savings you’re using.

6. Create accountability if you’re keeping a budget
with family or friends; you’re more likely to stick to
it, so share your budget. If you’re a household with
multiple income streams, then you should share the
burden of the budget in an equitable way.

7. Remember that emergencies happen! The top reason
budgets stop working is because people don’t budget
for emergencies and their careful plan doesn’t work
if things go wrong.

Budgeting when money is tight The main reason people
budget is because they’ve discovered their income
isn’t matching their outgoings or discover that they
are sliding further and further into debt with credit
card bills and no money at the end of the month.

8. If you find that you’re in more debt than you can
handle, create an ‘outgoings’ only budget, for essentials,
and then try to negotiate with your debtors. It will
impact your credit file in most cases, but not as badly
as letting the bills lapse. If you’ve been made unemployed
or find that your income suddenly changes, let all of
your debtors know as soon as you can. They may be able
to help, or at least freeze the interest on your debts.

9. If you really have no choice and start missing
monthly payments on your bills remember that there is
help out there, but your budget may fall partially out
of your control, because using debt management companies
or similar advice groups might create a budget that you
may not have chosen. It’s important then to create a
budget that allows you to regain control, as soon as
possible.

Remember, the main way to deal with a budget is to
change your perspective. Don’t ask ‘how can I afford X’
instead look at what you can afford and find ways to
change the brackets up, or down to make allowances for
the things you really want.

10. At the other end of the scale, if you’re changing
your budget to save for something such as a wedding
or a new child, you’ll find that budgeting is easier
because saving isn’t as difficult as living under bills.
These budgets are slightly different because sticking
to those have a positive outcome instead of a neutral
one, but the principles behind them are the same.
Remember to check you’re getting the best rates for your
savings.

11. BONUS TIP: Don’t include any interest you’re
making on your savings or pay in with your calculations.
At the end, you’ll be able to use that extra money,
no matter how small, for whatever you like. Once your
budget is under control, consider making sure you’ve
always got a savings buffer, for the harder times,
or for those things that you really want later.

Remember that ultimately your budget is always in your
control, and if it isn’t take steps to get it there
so you can move on with your life without the worry of
watching your money constantly.

Remember too that your budgets are temporary, unless
you find a pattern of living that you enjoy, and that
harder budgets in the short term can lead to easier
budgets in the long term, and you can find a comfortable
lifestyle that you can live with, which is the most
important way to make sure you stick to whatever
budget you create.

About the author:

Author: Gen Wright

I hope you liked this article!  Debt Loans, Australia’s premier Personal Finance Blog!

We cover all sorts of finance related topics, from choosing a savings account,

to getting the most out of a consolidation loan.

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