-
Good Financial Planning Includes Protecting Your Valuables
It’s stressful enough when fire, theft, or severe weather takes away a family’s belongings. But that scenario gets considerably worse if the family was under-insured or their lost items included critical family documents and records. That’s why it’s important to take steps now to protect your valuables and cushion yourselves from some of the financial repercussions that come with life’s disasters. Want to make sure that your... -
Cash VS Credit: The Pros and Cons
Cash VS Credit: The Pros and Cons It’s hard to talk about personal finance without talking about credit cards – specifically, the problems that can accompany credit card debt. In fact, read enough personal finance blogs and you might start to wonder if it’s best to ditch your credit cards entirely in favor of a “cash-only” lifestyle. If you’ve read my blog for a while, you probably know that... -
Keep Tabs on Your Credit Card: 7 Tips For Preventing Fraud
By now, most people are familiar with the risks of their credit card information falling into the wrong hands: Not only could someone max out your card with their expenses, but there’s also the possibility that someone could use your card’s information to steal your entire identity! While it’s impossible to eliminate these dangers completely, there are some fairly simple steps you can take to reduce the chances someone... -
Three Essential Steps for a Secure Financial Future
This may sound like something your father would tell you, but there’s truth in the saying, financial security doesn’t happen by accident. Like most things in life, getting to a good place financially takes some planning. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Start by listing your financial goals, and then map out a strategy for achieving them, one at a time. Ultimately, you’ll have to define your own goals,... -
Why it Pays to Track Your Spending
You may have read here once or twice how important it is to create and maintain a budget. In fact, budgeting your money is one of the most important steps you can take toward achieving financial stability. But any attempt you make to set a budget will be a waste of time unless you go into it with a realistic picture of your spending habits. You simply can’t... -
“Money Challenges” Make Saving Fun
Think of them as a form of positive peer pressure. Money challenges are becoming an increasingly common sight online. They dare us to get out of our financial comfort zone, so to speak, to develop a healthy money habit or drop a harmful one. They’re fun, and they even offer built-in support: When you tackle a money challenge, you often have the comfort of knowing there are others out... -
Relationship-Saving Money Talks that Every Couple Should Have
Money: It’s not the easiest or most pleasant topic of discussion — but if you’re in a serious, committed relationship, it’s something you have to talk about. If you and your partner share assets and expenses, it’s important that you’re also working together to protect your financial future and well-being. And talking about money can do more than protect your assets: Maintaining an open dialogue about money... -
“Real-World” Money Tips for New Grads
Graduation is an exhilarating time – and a frightening one. So much lies ahead after graduation, and it can be a little overwhelming to think about all of the choices ahead of you. Some of the most important decisions you’ll be making as a new graduate involve your personal finances. What you do — and what you don’t do — in this area can affect your quality of life... -
Debt and Your Emotions: How to Cope
If you’ve been in debt – or tried to battle your way out of it – you probably are all too familiar with the feelings of guilt, fear and depression that can come with it. This situation is so common in the United States that medical professionals have given it a name: “debt-stress syndrome.” When stress about debt becomes overwhelming, it can affect your heart rate, blood pressure, breathing... -
Power of the Mind: Five Ways Our Spending Decisions Don’t Always Make ‘Cents’
Too often, even when think we’re making smart money decisions, we can be thrown off course by faulty thinking. The old saying about the mind playing tricks on us is very true. In fact, our minds can easily sabotage our efforts to save, minimize debt, and spend wisely. Here are five ways your mind can point you in the wrong direction when it comes to your finances – and...