Do you have a budget? Everyone says it is the best way to take control of your spending. Once you have spent your allotted amount for food, or gas, you’re done. Unfortunately it doesn’t always work like that. I read a study recently that said that people who have a budget can spend as much as 50% more than they were planning. This is said to be because budgeting starts in your mind. You are thinking constantly about what you can and cannot spend and that is what causes you to spend more. Many people who say they have a … Continue reading →

If you feel as though you have made a few financial mistakes, you are not alone. Most people goof up in ways both big and small when it comes to managing their money. Today, I thought that I would share with you some money gaffes that have been made by people that the “rest of us” look to for financial advice. Rather than discrediting the financial advice espoused by the individuals that made the goofs, I feel that the fact that they are able to fess up to having messed up makes these people real. It gives their advice even … Continue reading →

There are things that you buy that you love, and you use them until they are all used up (if they are consumables) or all worn out if they are things like clothes or shoes. Then there are those things that you may not want to talk about. Things that you have bought that you do not use, or that you never wear. Things that cost you money, things that are just sort of in your home (or a storage unit) taking up space. This is not a topic that people enjoy discussing because no one wants to admit to … Continue reading →

There are times when what seems like a good thing is really not so good at all if you look at it more carefully. We are confronted with financial choices every day, from little decisions such as which brand of coffee to buy at the store to huge decisions like whether to refinance our mortgage. Sometimes if you are in a tight spot financially, options can appear that seem like they are tailor made for people just like you. It is often these very options that can end up doing you more harm than good. Here are a two common … Continue reading →

Nothing can come between friends faster than money except, perhaps romantic issues but that’s a different topic for another forum. There are many ways that money can create tension between friends, and sometimes the issues are so serious that friendships end because of them. Of course you value your friendships, but there are many good reasons that you and your friends should keep your finances mostly to yourselves. I am not suggesting that you never talk to your friends about money, because friends can often be great not only for listening but for helping you find new solutions or different … Continue reading →

We all dream of building up a larger clientele and watching our business expand. Expansion is the only way to increase your income—if you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll always have what you’ve got right now. We hand out business cards, we invite potential clients to visit our offices, we reward referrals—we do what we can to spread the word about our goods or services. But if we aren’t consistently checking our emails, we are shooting ourselves in the foot. I have a hard time keeping my jaw from falling to the floor when I hear someone say that … Continue reading →

Celebrities. Love them or hate them, there’s just something irresistible about them. I think that one of the major things that is so appealing about celebrities is that the details of their daily lives are often made available to the public. When we read stories about celebrities, we realize that even though they may seem larger than life when they are on-screen at the movies or on stage at a rock concert, they are only human just like we are. Having fame and the fortune that often accompanies it is not a one-way ticket to financial bliss. In fact, sometimes … Continue reading →

I have a love-hate relationship with my checkbook register. Okay, let’s be really honest – I have a hate-hate relationship with it. I dislike writing everything down on those tiny little lines, and then not being able to read my own handwriting, and then wondering if that is a 7 or a 1, because if it’s a 7, then it’s a different purchase than the one I made which ended in a 1, and the whole thing won’t reconcile anyway, so what’s the point? In a fit of pique this morning, I said to my husband, “Why do we even … Continue reading →

I was in a car accident back in March and sustained a concussion in the left quadrant of my brain. That’s right … the left side. The side that controls logic, reasoning, ability to do math, and consequently, how you handle money. I’ve always been the bill-payer in our family. I have a handy-dandy chart, I know when everything is due, and on payday, I sit down and pay all the bills. This has been my routine since I got married. Come rain, come shine … the bills are paid on payday. And yet, for some reason, two months ago … Continue reading →