The High Cost Of My Bad Habits
I got to thinking the other day about the lifetime cost of my bad habits, both those habits past and those present.
And I don?t just mean the simple cost of, say, those Marlboro cigarettes, the morning Starbucks, or the weekend case of beer. I mean the full opportunity cost when you also include things like the interest you or I could have earned by saving money. And some years the employer matching you or I could have gotten by taking advantage of company-sponsored 401(k) plans.
Maximize Your Cash Flow
You?ve heard it a million times ? cash flow can make or break a business. The same can be said of your personal finances. Without adequate cash flow, you may not be able to pay your bills, do the things that bring you the most joy and satisfaction, or reach important financial goals you?ve set.
So? what is cash flow planning? Cash flow planning is tracking and projecting your cash inflows from wages, self employment income, investments and other income, and comparing to your cash outflows (bills, loan payments, taxes, etc.). The difference between the two is your net cash flow.
Financial Planning 101 For Retirement Life
After fifty years of working, chances are we crave the day when we can retire. We no longer have to wake up at 5 a.m., sit in rush hour traffic, or stress over unrealistic deadlines. These very factors are just the reason why we count down the days to relaxation. While most of us fantasize, the majority of the baby boomers don?t realize that financial planning doesn?t stop at 65. Retirement planning is crucial, regardless of what stage you are in.
Working In Retirement
Most experts on the subject believe that the Social Security system will be bankrupt in about 15 years. However, some new studies have offered a ray of hope. They seem to indicate that the assumption that the boomer generation will retire at 65 or 67 and sit back to collect their social security checks is incorrect.
They believe a sufficient percentage ? some estimates are as high as 80% - will continue to work in some capacity or another, relieving much of the pressure on the system.
Personal Money Management Style Can Make Or Break Your Marriage
Personal money management is an issue that will affect your life positively or negatively… for the rest of your life. Your style of personal money management predicates where you end up in the financial pecking order of life. Do you want to be at the bottom, or the top? Develop a system that works for you early in life and reap the benefit forever.
Do you feel like you have an impossible financial dream? Money is such an emotional issue it becomes the breaking point for many a marriage. If you don’t have anything else to fight about, you can always fight about money. How will you reach your financial goals? Personal money management styles are a good thing to discuss before the marriage.
4 Steps To Control Your Money
Everyone I have ever spoken with claims to have the desire to be in control of their money. Most of these people will admit that they don?t feel like they have very much control over where their money is spent and a surprisingly large number tell that their money is in control of them. The people who feel like their money is out of control are not the same people who don?t know how to stop spending when they are out of cash, or when their checking account is perpetually overdrawn.
Do It Yourself Or Not? Why Hire An Advisor
It?s a common misconception that it?s always less expensive to do it yourself. If fact entire industries have cropped up around the ?do it yourself? Myth! If you don?t believe me just drive around any area and look for the Home Depot or Lowes store. These stores exist and thrive because we have been told that we can save the expense of hiring contractors, carpenters, plumbers and electricians by applying a little elbow grease and doing the job yourself. But when you consider the price of the materials, and the price of the tools you need to buy to do it right, and the time invested not only in the project but often in redoing the project when you realized you did it wrong the first time, is it really worth it?
Want More Money? Here’s A No Gimmick Idea Guaranteed To Work If You Work It!
You will often hear me recommend that you use cash for purchases whenever you can. There are many reasons for this.
The most common argument I hear against using cash is: ?I spend it too fast?, followed closely with ?then I wouldn?t get the points on my credit card?. The credit card issue is a separate one, and is easily answered as well, but the first issue needs to be addressed before you can benefit from the credit card points anyway.
‘Budget’ Is A FourLetter Word Create A Spending Plan You Can Live With
‘Budget’ is a four-letter word when it comes to your personal finances, but face it–if you don’t decide ahead of time what’s most important to you, it’s easier than pie to slip into that nearly-impossible-to-break habit of living bigger than your paycheck. Use these tips to get started on creating a roadmap toward your financial success!
Financial Planning Getting Yourself Started
There is no easy way of tackling the job of financial planning but it is possible to make financial planning easy. The reason it is not an easy thing to tackle is because there are so many facets to planning your finances that it can be a full time job in itself; this is why there are so many business set up to help us. The reason it is easy is because, though it is a lot of work, it doesn?t have to be something that is hard to understand.