Answer these questions truthfully:
1.) Does your spouse or partner complain that you spend too much money?
2.) Are you surprised each month when your credit card bill arrives at how much more you charged than you thought you had?
3.) Do you have more shoes and clothes in your closet than you could ever possibly wear?
4.) Do you own every new gadget before it has time to collect dust on a retailer's shelf?
5.) Do you buy things you didn't know you wanted until you saw them on display in a store?
If you answered "yes!" to any two of the above questions, you are an impulse spender and indulge yourself in retail therapy.
This is not a good thing. It will prevent you from saving for the important things like a house, a new car, a vacation or retirement. You must set some financial goals and resist spending money on items that really don't matter in the long run.
Impulse spending will not only put a strain on your finances but your relationships, as well. To overcome the problem, the first thing to do is learn to separate your needs from your wants.
Advertisers blitz us hawking their products at us 24/7. The trick is to give yourself a cooling-off period before you buy anything that you have not planned for.
When you go shopping, make a list and take only enough cash to pay for what you have planned to buy. Leave your credit cards at home.
If you see something you think you really need, give yourself two weeks to decide if it is really something you need or something you can easily do without. By following this simple solution, you will mend your financial fences and your relationships.
In the coming weeks I will spend some time focusing on Investing and Investments in General and in specifics. Tune in to find out more.
Take Care and Best Regards,
Jonathan
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Showing posts with label Credit Cards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Credit Cards. Show all posts
Monday, March 26, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Reducing Personal Debt - Start with the Credit Cards
Hi there,
Today we are going to talk about debt. Yes, the dreaded word and that silence before everything comes crashing down. But debt and what it stands for, is very different to debt in reality. Most importance is awareness of debt in our lives and the coping strategies we can use to drive it down!
In most people's lives, we end up buying a house, might not be our dream house but well something over our heads so we don't get wet at night. Not everyone can afford to buy a house and pay it off in full, therefore I would assume the biggest debt a person could have personally, as in personal debt, is a mortgage. So if we had say a list of bills to pay and we didn't know where to start, I'd start with the mortgage. And then we'll move on to the utilities bills and so on. But coming back to debt, we can't avoid it. Somehow, we will realize that we need to borrow some money from the bank. In other times, we WANT to borrow money from the bank. That is sometimes used as gearing to either positively or negatively direct an investment. Today we will not look at that but look at the inevitable situations of debt we find ourselves in.
Sometimes, I like to reflect on how much we spend and how much of what we spend is really ours. Credit Cards, Car Loans, 500 day no interest finance, Home Loans, even 24hr overdrafts for a "emergency before the weekly cheque from work arrives". If only I had managed my money better! That's what we all say when it is too late..
Reducing debt starts BEFORE debt builds up. And like a clogged hose, we don't know how much pressure is accumulated. But we definitely know when it bursts. Look at your spendings on shopping, are you really buying all you need? Or just what you want. A credit card is a wonderful and horrible tool both in one. I personally enjoy my credit cards, yes cardS with a capital "S", but I can tell you and you probably could as well, that the temptation and ease of spending of a credit card can be addictive. The problem we all face is that the bills are paid at the end of the month, and when I look at the bills, I am sometimes shocked at the total amount of my "small spendings". They can really add up to be A LOT.
Challenge yourself and keep your cards home when you go out. Refuse to earn the points you were so promised by the companies. And if you were short on cash, you might just realized you had them all along, but were spending them before they even got into your bank account.
"People who always seem to have money, also know how to save money" unless you are that lucky and blessed. There is some truth to this statement and it really makes cents (sense).
All the best in achieving your financial dreams and keep going, keep saving to be prepared for a better opportunity may come your way tomorrow.
Jonathan
Get Paid To Read Emails. Click Here To Find Out More
Today we are going to talk about debt. Yes, the dreaded word and that silence before everything comes crashing down. But debt and what it stands for, is very different to debt in reality. Most importance is awareness of debt in our lives and the coping strategies we can use to drive it down!
In most people's lives, we end up buying a house, might not be our dream house but well something over our heads so we don't get wet at night. Not everyone can afford to buy a house and pay it off in full, therefore I would assume the biggest debt a person could have personally, as in personal debt, is a mortgage. So if we had say a list of bills to pay and we didn't know where to start, I'd start with the mortgage. And then we'll move on to the utilities bills and so on. But coming back to debt, we can't avoid it. Somehow, we will realize that we need to borrow some money from the bank. In other times, we WANT to borrow money from the bank. That is sometimes used as gearing to either positively or negatively direct an investment. Today we will not look at that but look at the inevitable situations of debt we find ourselves in.
Sometimes, I like to reflect on how much we spend and how much of what we spend is really ours. Credit Cards, Car Loans, 500 day no interest finance, Home Loans, even 24hr overdrafts for a "emergency before the weekly cheque from work arrives". If only I had managed my money better! That's what we all say when it is too late..
Reducing debt starts BEFORE debt builds up. And like a clogged hose, we don't know how much pressure is accumulated. But we definitely know when it bursts. Look at your spendings on shopping, are you really buying all you need? Or just what you want. A credit card is a wonderful and horrible tool both in one. I personally enjoy my credit cards, yes cardS with a capital "S", but I can tell you and you probably could as well, that the temptation and ease of spending of a credit card can be addictive. The problem we all face is that the bills are paid at the end of the month, and when I look at the bills, I am sometimes shocked at the total amount of my "small spendings". They can really add up to be A LOT.
Challenge yourself and keep your cards home when you go out. Refuse to earn the points you were so promised by the companies. And if you were short on cash, you might just realized you had them all along, but were spending them before they even got into your bank account.
"People who always seem to have money, also know how to save money" unless you are that lucky and blessed. There is some truth to this statement and it really makes cents (sense).
All the best in achieving your financial dreams and keep going, keep saving to be prepared for a better opportunity may come your way tomorrow.
Jonathan
Get Paid To Read Emails. Click Here To Find Out More
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