33 Basic Smart Shopping Tips

by Sandy Shields

Here are thirty-three basic smart shopping tips that can be used anywhere you shop. Use them to save money, and as a guide to strengthen your purchasing power.

1. Plan your spending. Avoid impulse buys.

2. Advertised items are not necessarily the cheapest.

3. Watch for unadvertised specials.

4. Remember to ask for a "raincheck" if an item is sold out.

5. To avoid crowds, do not shop after work, on paydays, or just before holidays.

6. Buy items before you run out of them. Buy at clearance, or sale price, instead of regular price when you must have the item.

7. Know the sales cycle in your area.

8. Just because an item is on sale, doesn't necessarily mean it is a good deal for your family. If you won't use it, don't buy it.

9. Due to volume discounts, larger stores are generally cheaper than smaller ones.

10. Your emotions affect your shopping. Be careful of the "I deserve it" mentality.

11. Buy at the end of the season.

12. Stock up when prices are low.

13. Try alternative shopping: Shop salvage stores, thrift stores, consignment shops, warehouse clubs, yard sales, and garage sales.

14. Remember that no particular store has the lowest price on all items.

15. Create a "shopping pool". Agree with family and friends to shop sales for each other.

16. Shop alone. Other individuals will only help fill your shopping cart.

17. Check the entire store for specials and alternatives.

18. Get to know your favorite store's employees. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

19. Know your prices, keep a price book.

20. About Prices: Compare, Compare, Compare. This is how your price book helps you.

21. Larger is not always cheaper. Smaller is not always cheaper.

22. Look at unit prices.

23. You pay more for fancy packaging. Beware.

24. Remember the "Rule of Three": If an item has three different ways it can be used, you will not be wasting your money.

25. Never pay full price.

26. Shop defensively.

27. Try store and generic brands.

28. Watch as the clerk rings up your purchases. Check your receipt.

29. Shop for gifts year round.

30. Return purchases that do not meet your expectations.

31. Complain if it is genuinely warranted.

32. Call before you go to confirm item is available.

33. If you must, leave the checkbook and credit cards at home or in the car.

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Sandy is a freelance writer and webmaster of TheFrugalShopper.com. She enjoys living the frugal life, saving money, and helping others to do the same. Subscribe to her newsletter to receive more money-saving ideas and frugal tips. Reprint permission granted with this footer included. Copyright © TheFrugalShopper.com 1999-2003.

How Easy is Planning Financially?

Financial Planning starts with identifying your financial aspirations, then building up a personalized detailed plan to achieve them. It’s like drawing up a ‘map’ specific to your goals and needs, and based on what you want out of life, your attitudes and goals whether personal, professional or financial. That map shows you how to get there and if necessary it should be kept secret….!

Some of the areas that will be covered include:

•  Your goals — a new house, children’s education, travel, a secure retirement, etc.
• Your investments and assets — your house, car, fixed interest, shares, etc. 
• Your income and commitments — mortgages, cost of living, etc. 
• An action plan and investment strategy — to achieve your goals.

 There are three basic money problems that a person will face during the course of his or her life. 

• Accumulation problem. This is the problem most of us actually have, how to accumulate money.  
• Investment problem or what to do with money when you have some.  
• How to create money and provide for the availability of money in the time of need or crisis.

 Putting hard-earned dollars back to work is the cornerstone of accumulating capital and building wealth. Choosing the optimum mix of savings and investments from the many options is the secret to achieving financial success.

Everyone has different goals...Think about your own for a minute. They may include buying a house, planning for your retirement or getting into a new business. In other words, the financial security to help you enjoy what you want out of life. This is why financial planning covers such a wide area. Once you've determined what you want out of life, you start the planning. This planning puts financial strategies such as investments, shares, fixed interest, unit trusts, superannuation, insurance and cash management into a written plan or map designed to work just for you.

Sick and Tired of Being Broke?

I'm about to reveal something super powerful to you. It will open up a whole new world for and it will probably change your life (for the better). I have discovered a very big secret when I was just 17 years old. I was just a kid when I discovered the secret to financial freedom.

I know...not many people are so lucky, but now you have the opportunity to learn my exact secrets for making more money than you can imagine.

Before I get into the what it is, I need to warm you up a bit. How sick and tired are you about your current financial status? How sick and tired are you of not having enough money to buy luxury items you desire? How sick and tired are you?

Pretty much fed up right? I was in the same position you know. Yup, I was in the same exact position as you.
- Completely broke.
- No parents to run to.
- Horrible Job.
- A future to take care of.

You see, I had some family problems (divorce of parents) that led me to basically take care of myself. At the age of 17 you don't really know what to make of a responsibility like that. I mean...it was my life... the biggest responsibility of all.

I had to work to save money for college. I never had enough money for anything else, not even a social life! How horrible is that? I'm sure you can relate to the financial situation in some sort of way right?

Well...I'm here to tell you that you can finally stop worrying. I'm going to share with you my secret to success.

So what is this secret?
It all came to me in the post one day. I remember taking the mail out of the mail box one Tuesday. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that FOUR WORDS were going to change my ENTIRE LIFE.

I opened the mail and I got a direct sales letter. The headline read, "Start An Online Business".

The lights went on. The fireworks went off. The shovel hit the dirt.

Those 4 little words paved my entire life ahead of me. A life full of happiness and money.

I realised that I DON'T need a fancy degree or even a lot of money to start my own online business. I realised that I can make REAL money in a virtual world!

So my question goes to you again. Are you sick and tired of not having ENOUGH money?

Well then start an online business! I cannot emphasize this more. Start your very own digital online business asap. You don't even need a product in order to start an online business. There are several websites that are selling OTHER peoples stuff. It's known as affiliate marketing and with the right training, you can seriously cash in with that method.

TAKE ACTION ASAP!

The very first thing you need to do is WANT to succeed. You need to want it really bad.

Here are some benefits of making money on the internet:

1. You are your own boss (beat that!)
2. You'll have more time for yourself
3. You'll have more time for your friends and/or family!
4. You'll have LOADS of money to burn!
5. Live the life of your dreams.

Ok so how do you successfully start an online business?

Here are some steps to follow:

1. Get an idea!
It's vital that you have an idea to start a website about, otherwise what's the point right? Use sources like Webmd to find out whats the general "hot" topics.

2. Start the website
Before you can start a website you'll need a domain name and hosting. The best place to grab a domain name is at Namecheap and the best place to get hosting is Hostgator. Hostgator is probably the best hosting solution currently available.

3. Use Blogging As Your Tool
The website doesn't have to be built with a website editor. You can start a blog which will act as a website! Wordpress is currently the number 1 blog platform and it's FREE. Along with your hosting you will be able to set up a free wordpress blog which will act as your site.

4. Provide valuable content.
Provide valuable content no matter what you do. Add new articles to your blog/website on a daily basis. Try to make your website stand out from the rest by providing good interesting articles that can HELP people.

5. Make money!
It's super easy to make money from your blog. You can sign up to Amazon or Ebay's affiliate program or any other affiliate program for that matter. This will allow you to promote other companies' products online and in return you'll receive commissions for each sale you refer!

There you have it...start an online business asap!

About the Author:
I have found the secret to financial freedom. I want to you show you how I make money EVERY SINGLE DAY and how you can do the same starting TODAY. Are you interested? Then please visit AffiliateTeachings.com for the instructions. Regards, Reinhardt Gallowitz

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How to Teach Money Management to Your Child

Financial responsibility is one vital attribute of a successfully managed life. It is a lifelong effort that should start at an earlier age up to the twilight years and even beyond. Learning financial responsibility while you are young prepares you for proper money management later in life. Training your child to manage his money is not just a gift, but a responsibility as well for the parents. When a child learns how to responsibly manage his finances, he gets a foretaste of financial stability when he grows up.

Teaching a child financial responsibility should start early. This can be as simple as telling a 3 year old "no" when they want you to buy something. Or even saying, "We don't have money for that today". These statements are helpful for a child to hear as they are based on reality. It will also allow the opportunity to open a discussion about money. This may not happen at 3 years of age, however, it will allow a child to be more comfortable when he/she is developmentally prepared.

Next, teach children the actual value of money. Teach them the meaning of a penny, dime, quarter, dollar etc. Teach them how to count money. Although this is taught in school, it is vital to financial responsibility to grasp this concept early. There are many books or workbooks that are helpful.

Next, teach a child the meaning of money by teaching them how to earn money. Discussions often happen early about why a parent must go to work or pay bills, etc. Discuss ways an adult earns money by discussing various jobs or careers. You can then discuss how they can earn money. Common jobs for children are chores, lemonade stands, paper routes, mowing lawns, and babysitting.

After a parent has taught a child how to earn money, it is time to teach a child how to spend and save money. 1 way to teach spending and savings is to have 2 piggy banks. Mark 1 as spending and the other as savings. Have a standard plan of how much goes into each piggy bank. For example, if a child earns $5.00 per week by completing chores, maybe $3 goes into savings and $2 goes into spending bank. It takes quite an effort to teach your child how to spend and how to buy something. This is also a delicate task to handle as a parent because it should be modelled and appreciated.

After there is enough money saved to open a savings account, take the child to the bank. Explain why people use banks. Next explain their new account by discussing their savings statement. This is very helpful for young children, as it is a hard concept that you have money being cared for by someone/something else. Banks are often initially frightening for children. Continual friendly explanation is often helpful.

As a child grows, you can have them place their checks for birthdays or holidays in their respective piggy banks. As he becomes ready for work until he finds a job, try to keep them on the same system. This helps encourage proper appropriation of funds for wise spending and saving.

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The Real Story Behind Credit Cards

by Carmin Olivier

A credit card can be an asset to your lifestyle, but if not handled carefully it can become a liability, especially if you find it so convenient and easy to use that you lose control of your spending. This short guide will help you understand how you can use your credit card so it works to your advantage, not against you.

A credit card can:

1. Offer free use of funds, provided you always pay your balance in full, on time.
2. Be more convenient to carry than cash.
3. Help you establish a good credit history.
4. Provide a convenient payment method for purchases made on the Internet and over the telephone.
5. Give you incentives, such as reward points, that you can redeem.

On the other hand, credit cards can:

1. Cost much more than other forms of credit, such as a line of credit or a personal loan, if you don't pay on time.
2. Damage your credit rating if your payments are late;
3. Allow you to build up more debt than you can handle;
4. Have complicated terms and conditions;

A credit card is first and foremost a flexible payment tool accepted at 30 million locations worldwide, and if the card balance is paid off every month, then no interest is charged on purchases made so, essentially, short-term credit is granted without the consumer paying any interest. Among its many features it provides:

1. Access to unsecured credit (no collateral required against amounts charged)
2. Interest-free payment from time of purchase to the end of the billing period
3. Instant payment of purchases, allowing for instant receipt of goods and services
4. 24/7 access
5. Fraud protection

However before you decide to use your credit card, carefully consider all of the factors and weigh them against your personal needs and values. Handling money and credit cards wisely is a talent few of us are born with. But it is a skill that can easily be learned. The place to start is with budgeting. It's simply an organized way of managing your finances, basically, it gives you an overall picture of where your money is coming from, when it's coming in and how it's being spent. A budget should be flexible, changing according to your circumstances.

Budgeting helps us achieve short-term goals like paying the monthly bills on time; it's also for longer-term financial goals like buying a home, a car, paying for an education, a wedding or a holiday. When you take control of your financial affairs, you're more confident about the future.
A budget is key to financial control. It gives you a "Polaroid picture" of where you stand financially and where you're heading.

Credit card control tips

1. Use a low or no-fee credit card and save on the annual fee that some companies charge.
2. Only charge to your credit cards what you can pay off in full when the bill comes.
3. You might not use your credit card as much if you start believing that you have to pay off your entire balance at the end of each month.
4. A good way to help to reduce what you pay on your credit card is to search for a card with a lower interest rate. Many financial institutions now offer at least one of these types of cards.
5. Remember that when you take a cash advance on your credit card, the interest starts accumulating immediately and not on the due date of your credit card bill.
6. Also keep in mind that if you make only the minimum monthly repayment you may never get out of debt.

The main advantage of having a credit card is convenience but if you're not good at budgeting and managing your finances, the over-use of credit cards can leave you with a debt that's very difficult to pay back. Take this friendly advice...

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Earn Money in Unusual Ways

Money has a character that is so persistent and domineering for people. That is why you must endeavor to discern and deal carefully with that character and become its master. Earning money requires that character on your sleeve as you apply common sense in every sphere of your life. Unfortunately, in the game of money-making, common sense has become uncommon. There are lots of ways by which you can make money if you will only use a little common sense and that strong character that money carries. And these are unusually available. Here are some unusual ways to earn money that some of us may not have considered and may now consider or ignore. The choice is yours.

Personal shopping for other people
Did you know that some people with more money than time will pay you to do their shopping for them? And if you have a flexible schedule this could be a much more interesting way for you to earn money than working at the local pizza joint or student cafeteria. Some independent personal shoppers anywhere from $25 to $250 an hour! And depending on the situation may reasonably ask to be reimbursed for transportation costs.

Blogging
Of course you'll also need decent writing skills in order to get paid to blog and you'll need to learn how to set up a blog and drive traffic to your blog or blogs. This is more on product reviews/marketing and pay-per-click advertising.

Become a Tutor
If you're knowledgeable in a particular topic area, you might consider becoming a tutor. In fact there are tutoring services that will help bring students to you and you may also be able to work directly with your school to obtain tutoring clients.

Selling old books and Items
Selling books yourself on sites like Amazon and Half.com will allow you to make a lot more money. Most college students and even your friends have a lot of stuff that they spent a lot of money on and don't need any more: Video games, books, and even used shopping bags from Abercrombie & Fitch or Gucci can have value on eBay. Curious about how much your stuff is worth? Just look it up on eBay and see what it's selling for.

Babysitting
This can also be a way to earn great money -- especially if you live in an area with a lot of wealthy families! How profitable can babysitting be? Just ask Kevin Federline. Britney Spears agreed to pay him $20,000 per month in child support.

Selling sperm
Look around your house, and you'll probably find plenty of ways to raise cash for textbooks and old unused items. And if that isn't enough, look within and you just might find something very valuable- your sperm! Here, you need to be in good health with a strong family history of good genes, and your sperm have to have high motility. But if you meet the criteria and aren't terrified by the notion of having children all over the world whom you don't know, this can be a fantastic way to make money. Whew…

Selling your hair
With the economy squeezing the budgets of more people around the world, some people are looking for creative ways to pay their monthly bills. Selling hair on the Internet is just one of those unusual methods. The longer the hair, the more it is worth. Untreated hair is also likely to fetch a higher price.

eBay arbitrage
A lot of people like buying stuff on eBay, because it’s cheap. And some people never buy on eBay, because they are afraid of being ripped off. Here is your solution to making easy money on eBay. Go to Craigslist.Com and see what items people buy and sell most often. Look at prices. Then go to eBay and see, if you can get it cheaper. Once you find your niche, you can buy things on eBay (or better yet, act as a representative for an eBay powerseller) and sell them for a profit using local classifieds and Craigslist. You can do this online as well. Set up a proxy store, and when you get an order, simply buy the same item on eBay for less, substituting shipping address from your own to that of your buyer.

Finding out things
A lot of people are busy nowadays and can’t find out things which would support their lives. We are in the information age and it’s only those with the latest information survive the tide of time. Spend quality time finding out things and make money from it. For instance, so many people are seeking for the right mechanic. You can actually print find out the right mechanics, make directories and print handbills. You might paste them on organizations and you will be surprised of how much people will call on you. The mechanic will pay you for every referral and this is just something you do in your leisure. This is just but a tip of the iceberg. There are still so many things to find out. So you still have a chance to make money just by finding out things. Consider your neighborhood, what does the inhabitants needs desperately? In your school environment, what can you do to make money legally from the students? You might be laughed at, but never worry because you are making money and that is the most important issue.

Hobbies
Hobbies are what we love doing in our leisure times. But do you believe you could actually make money from those scrap hobbies. Some of us love singing, dancing, crafts, writing, reading etc. what you have to do is this: find out how to harness the power of creativity and make that hobby pay you. Today, I earn from my hobby. I enjoy writing on different topics and that is why I wrote this for you. Just give it a little time and watch how money comes into your pocket.

Real estate
This is absolutely wonderful. Save some money, buy a house and sell it out after renovation. You would be surprised how much profit you would make from it. However, it’s on the long-term basis.

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3 Steps To Increasing Your Income

Most accountants, financial planners, wealth-building experts and real friends agree that there are really only three ways to increase your income. You can either:

1. Increase your revenue (make more money),or
2. Decrease your expenses (spend less money), or
3. Do both 1 and 2

However, what is not so obvious are the words that should always follow these income-increasing statements. Accountants, financial planners and wealth-building experts are often so close to these principles that they assume we all know them to be true. They also tend to believe that everyone , not particularly a woman, has the necessary discipline and patience to automatically make them happen. Here are the reality-based revised versions of the statements that, although might not be as easy to relate to, really make more sense and, if you follow them to the letter, will help keep you on track. If you want to increase your income you must either:

1. Increase your revenue (and at the same time keep your expenses the same or less than before) , or
2. Decrease your expenses (and at the same time maintain or increase your revenue), or
3. 3. Do both 1 and 2

One version of Parkinson’s Law is that “expenses rise to meet income.” Put another way: “The more you make, the more you spend.” If you truly want to increase your income, it is important to maintain the same, or even a scaled-down, style of living for a period of time.

For example, if you make $45,000.00 per year and receive an annual raise of 10%, you gain an additional $4500.00 per year ($375.00 per month) for a new total of $49,500.00. It is awfully tempting to spend this extra $4500.00, rather than invest or save it. In addition, it is easy to talk yourself into upgrading your lifestyle by trading up for a more expensive car, taking an unplanned vacation, shop online for that much talked about gadget or some other deserved reward. After all, you just increased your income by $375.00 per month. Right? Wrong if you spend it!

If you spend the extra money, you have not really increased your income at all. In fact, if you spend it and then take added taxes and other liabilities into account, you may actually have less income than you had before the raise! Weird, huh?

The point here is that it’s not just about making more money. It’s about what you do with the extra money that determines whether or not you have truly increased your income. The reverse is also true. Let’s say that instead of the 10% raise, you get no raise at all. But, you decide to raise your income by cutting expenses. If you find a way to cut your expenses by 10%, you actually are gaining over $375.00 per month. If you are able to cut your expenses by $4500.00 per year, in reality, you just increased your annual income by 10%. Weird again, but true.

Your desire, ability and willingness to both cut expenses and increase revenue will determine how fast and how much your income will jump. It’s a powerful combination, and this is the secret that most wealthy people use all the time. The usual color of money is green, so refresh your financial gain by following these eco-friendly(economically friendly) steps.

10 Guide Questions for a Better Financial Life

"You answer my questions with questions..." The lyrics of the song "Question" strike me often.

What does it really mean? So, each of us has the ability to find the answer to any question. They key is to ask the right questions. If you're frequently asking yourself, "Why was I so dim-witted to get into debt?", your mind will provide an answer like, "Because you're a loser."

You should remember that your brain will keep working on your question subconsciously until you obtain an answer. We've all had the experience of waking up in the middle of the night with the answer to something you were thinking about earlier in the day. The quality of the answer is directly related to the quality of the question. A better question is "What action can I take today to start reducing my debt?" Your brain will ponder this until it returns an answer. like a concerned friend. That may be something like, "Get financially organized. Look through all my credit card statements and see if I can determine if any one card is better than another."

According to Scott Bilker, the founder of DebtSmart.com, here are 10 questions whose answers will guide you to a better financial life:

1. What action(s) can I take today to start reducing my debt?
2. How can I start making more money within the next 5 days?
3. What can I do to start saving money?
4. What did I learn about finances today?
5. What day, this week, can I commit to going to the library and researching my financial options?
6. How can I use my computer to improve my life financially?
7. How can I double my income within one year?
8. What dreams did I have when I was younger that I should revisit today that would improve my life?
9. Do I have the right amount of insurance?
10. How can I enjoy the process of working to reduce my debt?

Now find the answers...


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How to Save Money When Buying Groceries

The money that you spend on buying groceries each month is not fixed like it is in maintaining your car or everyday traveling. In order to control your spending on groceries, you will need to understand how you end up spending extra money on groceries. These are things that you probably never noticed or realized before. Let me therefore share some friendly advice by attempting to show you some strategies of the shopkeepers that make you spend more than needed.

For you, a grocery shop must be a simple place where you can shop for food and some other household goods but the fact is that it is an example of how the shopkeepers sell more to the consumers than required. It is necessary for you to understand the tactics of the shopkeepers and purchase only those items that you want to shop and avoid all the other things. This will help you to save money by not buying things that the shopkeeper wants you to buy.

Here are some steps for you to understand how a shopkeeper tries to sell you those items that he wants to sell you.

- As soon as you enter the shop, the first thing you will notice is the smell. The reason for this mouth-watering smell is the placement of the bakery near the entrance of the store. The smell is of those freshly baked products. This smell makes you feel hungry because the deserts give out an enticing smell and therefore you feel like buying them. This will make you spend more than you desire. The shopkeeper knows this and hence the placement.

To tackle this kind of a situation what you can do is, go for shopping only after you have had your meals. When you are full, it becomes easy to resist the smell of the bakery deserts and bread.

- The location of the grocery store in the shopping mall is another reason. You will notice that you have to travel a lot to reach the grocery store. On the way to the grocery store, you come across so many other stores that you can’t resist stopping there. That is why it is said that the longer you stay in the store the more will you spend. That is why you are made to walk so much to get that basic staple food which is bought by everyone. Or perhaps, the beautiful lady or the nice-looking guy you met in fashionable attire has already bought some and you want to follow suit.

To avoid this situation, you can make a list of all the items you need to buy and stick to them till you leave the store.

- Packaging of a product is another factor that attracts you. The colors they use for packing are really bright. This doesn’t mean that you have to end up buying them. You might end up buying the wrong item. If you buy them in bulk from some another place, you will save.

Use the above tips and be careful that you don’t spend more than required when you go out grocery shopping.

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Being the family reserve fund…

If you've saved well and others in your family or clan haven't, should you feel duty-bound to spend on their behalf? Well, here are some situations you could be falling into:

• Your mom just called again. It seems that because you and your husband live a lifestyle that is careful, frugal and paid-off, you 'owe' your brothers' kids gifts; you 'owe' it to other family members to go and visit, and when you 'fail,' your brothers call her and complain. They all seem to think that you should spend because you can.

• Or, no one on your side of the family talks to you anymore because you finally said 'No more' -- to thousands of bucks streaming from your bank account to theirs. The blood connection seems weakened and even the friendship goes low.
  

• Your mother-in-law expected you to let a struggling relative and his wife live in a property you own, for less than market rent. But you are planning to rent it to augment the expenses for your daughter's education.
  

• And, you know what it's like, too, when a family member is in financial crisis. You’re helping a relative now, with some amount here and there, when you can. It's intended on your part; You were asked directly only once, for help with a car problem. It may not be wise but you continue out of . . . guilt . . . sympathy . . . fear of them suffering if you don't help.

You begin to ask yourself if you have to bust your butt for someone else's gain especially when that someone feels like they only need to work 25 hours a week! You are fed up with being treated like the local ATM by family members who either expect gifts (the biggest gripe) or who need the occasional bailout.

What's outrageous is when the request is a demand, an expectation. "You have more money, so you should share it!" And it could be worse when that expectation threatens your own financial stability. What happens if you get consumed?

Whose fault is it when relatives expect a handout? Is it your responsibility to communicate what you are and aren't ready to do. Should you be forced to wear a "Reserve Fund" label?

How to Handle Your Debts

In this time of global recession, there’s such a mounting hitch when it comes to debt. Many men and women nowadays are burying their heads in the sand rather than facing up to the situation that is escalating. There are various things that can be done to rally round your situation. It is vital to face up to your debt. By working out your monthly expenses you can make a plan.

Write down how much your monthly outgoings are. Start with utility bills, rent/mortgage, shopping and any other outgoings you have. Once you have calculated how much you need for all your expenses you can work out what you have left to spend or save for rest of the month. This is a good way of making sure you do not exceed your monthly income.

There are many options out there for people who are getting deeper into debt. Regrettably, people are not aware of the options that are available; There are a lot of options available and a debt consolidation loan is one. However, there is a lot of advice available so it would be wise to look into it. A bad debt consolidation loan can be very helpful to some, however if you are looking at getting one, it would be useful to look at more than one loan company and see what deals are being offered.

If you have a poor credit rating it is usual for people to think that it would be a lot harder for them to get help for a loan. This is not always the case and although not all companies can help a few can, making it possible. The interest rates are normally higher if you have a bad credit rating, nevertheless it is still obtainable. In fact some companies use people facing bankruptcy as an example.

Debt consolidation loan means merging your bills into one monthly payment; this is what makes a consolidation loan appealing to many as it takes away the pressure. The monthly amount can be considerably reduced although you will be paying it back over a longer period of time. It should be researched carefully before any decisions are made on consolidating your loans.

Improving your debt will take hard work and dedication this is why a debt consolidation loan shouldn't be taken lightly, much consideration should be taken to make sure monthly payments can be met.

Read Also

• The Benefits of Debt Consolidation (indebt.singlesceneuk.net)
• The Problem of Debt (indebt.singlesceneuk.net)
• Baring the Essentials (filipinastudes.blogspot.com)
  

Get on the Right Financial Track by Tracking Your Expenses

We keep track of our expenses because things add up, sometimes in surprising ways. To make significant changes in your spending habits, you need to know your outflow or expenditure score. Record-keeping enables you to spot that all-important “big picture”: exactly how much you spend, and on what, as well as how it swings over time. If you can’t trace your expenses, making changes in your habits will be fairly jumbled. You might strike on something that will save you a lot of money, or you might not. You might cut down expenses a lot in one area, only to spend more in another area without realizing it. On the other hand, if you do know where your money goes, you can target those areas that need work the most, and you can make good decisions about how to spend your money. Often, your assumptions will be wrong.

Whether you earn much or just enough, the same principle applies. We frequently commit the error of considering each expense in isolation, deeming it worthy, and moving on… only to find that somehow there seem to be more worthy expenses than there’s money to pay for them. The technique is to look at the big picture and the real one…

How to track your expenses

Let’s fire up with the traditional method of record-keeping, and suppose that if you’re a computer geek, you’ll settle toward software later on. For the time being, keep it straightforward!

I suggest purchasing a small, cute or manly notebook. Why so? Because this is a constructive venture; strengthen it by using an nice-looking notebook, one that says “I’m doing a good thing for my life!” when you look at it.

For daily expenses, you can either write everything down in your notebook right away, in which case you need to carry your notebook with you, or you can save the receipts from your purchases and then use those receipts in the next step. But if you do the receipts-saving method, make sure you actually get a receipt for everything, and that you actually do save them.
Once you have gathered enough information to start looking at the big picture – and this could be after as little as a week or two, if you’re eager to get started – then start categorizing the expenses and adding up the totals. To do this, you’ll need not only your daily record of purchases, but also any credit card bills, utility bills, checkbook register and any other bills that you have paid.

Keep in mind, be honest, be detailed, and be prepared to be surprised.

Hidden Expenses

Jotting down even the little bitty expenses is significant, because if you’re not sure where your money is going, it’s often going to what I call hidden expenses: ones that are small enough that ignore them.

The hidden purchases usually fall into one of three types:

• impulse buys
• Low-cost purchases
• part of a routine or habit

Impulse buys often don’t get noticed because we don’t tend to plan for them: the CD on sale, the chocolate bar at the drug store. Even when they’re expensive, the fact that they seem spontaneous somehow tends to sabotage our rational spending: we justify the purchase as being exceptional. Even impulse buying often falls into some sort of pattern overall, though.

Low-cost items are another type of purchase that tends to fall under the radar. Something that only costs a dollar or two, like a cup of coffee or a little knick-knack, seem almost too small to be worth tracking. Except that little items add up to bigger totals. If you let a $1 purchase slip by every day without thinking about it, by the end of the year you would have let $365 drift away without knowing where it went. I bet you’d be interested in keeping track of the $365 if it were given to you all at once!

Purchases that are part of a routine are often the hardest to track, but in many ways the most important. These are purchases that we don’t even think about, but they can account for a lot of money: buying sodas from the soda machine at work, popcorn at the movie theater, coffee and a magazine on the way to work in the morning. Each purchase individually may not be expensive, but they add up, particularly since you may make these purchases frequently. The fortunate thing about this kind of spending is that it’s possible to change your routine slightly and eliminate a lot of these expenses: bringing a snack from home to work instead of plugging money into the vending machine, for instance.
In the long run

Once you’ve gotten a clear picture of your finances over the course of a year or so, you may or may not want to stick with the “record every penny” method, depending on your personal style, I still recommend that you keep a reasonably exhaustive record, so that you can keep track of changes in your spending… are expenses in one category starting to creep up again? Recordkeeping also ties in well with budgeting, so it’s a win-win situation to keep track of your expenses. Good record keeping is essential to your financial survival.

7 Biggest Money-Making Strategies

Nearly everyone desires to have more funds and retain more of the riches they have for their future or for some pursuits. However, a good number of us live paycheck-to-paycheck, deep in arrears and unsure on how to break out of the snare.

Here are the 7 biggest Money-Making Strategies you should learn:

1. INVEST. Whether you're 20 or 60, you are never behind schedule to begin. You'll be no better off in three years than you are right now if you don't start investing right now. Even a dollar a day in a mutual fund can make a big difference in a short amount of time.
2. MAKE YOURSELF IMPORTANT. You deserve to have some money set aside for you and to make as much money as you'd like. No one can stop you unless you let them.
3. GET A GOOD RATE OF RETURN ON YOUR MONEY. If most of your money is in a checking account paying 4 1/2 %t, you're losing money! Inflation will make your money worth less tomorrow unless you're getting at least 5-10 % interest on your account.
4. THINK THAT NO ONE ELSE WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU FINANCIALLY. Whether you're depending on the government or meeting Mr. or Ms. Right, you're banking on something very unpredictable. It's time for you to take control.
5. ASK FOR HELP. There are lots of money advisors, books, seminars -- you name it -- on making your money work for you. Only people who want to succeed ask for help.
6. PLAN FOR THE FUTURE. Retail therapy can be fun. But how long does the thrill of a new outfit or gadget last? Will you regret what you spent later when you are barely scraping by? How good will that purchase make you feel if you can't pay your bills?
7. TAKE TIME TO MANAGE YOUR MONEY. Good for you -- you've read this far so you have invested in yourself already. Spend at least five minutes each day managing your accounts, learning more about money and investments, and tracking your expenditures.

The time you spend will yield wonderful outcomes and facilitate your having your richest life!

Read Also

• How To Save Money In A Depression (savingcashtips.com)
• Financial overhaul misses easy fund fixes (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Play it safe with life-cycle investing (financialpost.com)
• Investing Advice for the Small-Business Owner (nytimes.com)

The Frugal Connection

I received just last week an email from a friend who now stays in Japan for good. He got married there and excitedly broke the news on his first born. Unwittingly, I replied by telling him that he’s got to have another one soon for he’s growing older, now at 43. He got back at me with all the pick holes on how hard life is, financial woes, high cost of living, difficulties in raising children, etc. Then I remember how tightfisted he was with us. Being single for 40 years, I could not remember any generous initiative he’s made in terms of spending. Maybe we were wrong or maybe he had a different view of life – stoic like the Japanese. But other people find him miserable and stingy, and worse, selfish. He said to me once that he’s just being frugal – a defensive mechanism huh! So I thought of discussing frugality for a while. I’ll hold tight my chance to understand him next time…

Frugal living doesn’t mean being miserable, or giving up what you want. It doesn’t call penny-pinching attitude that holds down your sharing capability. It doesn’t say ignore others and suppress your needs. Frugality is basically the system of finding less expensive alternatives. Being frugal simply means to spend wisely. Don’t waste money on things that you don’t need but don’t be cheap and skimp on the things that you do need. Being frugal means that when you do have to go out and buy things, you don’t really need the best of the best most expensive things. Buy things for less, and what do you get? More money left over to buy more of what you want! Frugality doesn't have to mean living without comfort.

On the other hand, maybe you don't buy the idea of clipping discount coupons and buying clothes at rummage sales. That's okay because that never was and never will be the important part of truly frugal living. For it to be the most advantageous, frugality has to launch with the big things, and if it never gets down to the small items, you'll still be further ahead financially than most people. Here are some suggestions for you to consider.

Ways to Cut Spending

1. Consider dropping your home telephone line. Your cell phone is probably all you really need, and most likely it has free long distance. You could save $30 or more per month by dropping your "land line".
2. Cut back on trips to Starbucks or other premium coffee shops. Often called the "latte factor", spending several dollars per day on luxuries like premium coffee can really add up. For example, if you spend $4 for a cappuccino five times a week for 50 weeks out of the year (you're on vacation the other two weeks), you would spend $1,000 in a year. Try treating your trip to Starbucks as a treat instead of a habit. You'll save money and probably lose weight too!
3. Pay your mortgage payment bi-weekly instead of monthly. You'll pay less interest and pay off your mortgage faster.
4. Carry cash instead of credit cards. Psychologically it's harder to spend cash than it is to use the credit card. You'll spend less and save on interest charges.
5. Use the "envelope system" for groceries, dining out, entertainment, and other discretionary spending categories. This will help you track how much you spend in these categories as well as prioritizing your spending.
6. Raise the deductible on your homeowners and auto insurance policies. It's not wise to file claims for small losses anyway (insurance companies love to raise rates after you file a claim), so a higher deductible will save you money now and in the future.
7. Buy regular gas instead of premium. Most cars don't need premium gasoline. Also, take public transportation if it's available in your area. Take advantage of "park and ride" and carpooling options.
8. Plan your purchases to avoid impulse buying. Take a list with you to the grocery store and stick with it. Studies show that impulse buying can add $10-50 to your grocery bill ouch!
9. Go to the library instead of the bookstore. If you're an avid reader, give yourself a book budget for books that you will want to keep, and go to the library for everything else.
10. Take a vacation at home. Check out all the local sites and happenings. You'll rediscover your hometown and save on travel and hotel costs.

These are just a handful of ways you can cut spending and stretch your dollars, but if you follow these tips you'll discover you have more money at the end of each month to apply to other financial goals, such as saving for college, retirement or just for a rainy day.

Frugal Living Examples

1. Search the Sunday paper for coupons and clip them out. Make a list of things on sale that you can stock up on in order to get your average cost down. Plan and run a route of four stores in order to get everything where it is the cheapest. Total extra time spent: three hours.
2. Sit with a pen and paper and determine what you really need in your new house to be happy. List the cheapest homes that meet your criteria. Make several extra phone calls and check out several bank websites to get the interest rate down to 6.25% from the 6.75% you were expecting to pay. Total extra time spent: three hours.
3. Let's assume you save $30 on your groceries for your effort. Your frugality made you about $10 per hour. In the second example, suppose you found a suitable home for $20,000 less. Let's say you only have to borrow $120,000 at 6.25% instead of $140,000 at 6.75%. Your payment would be $169 less per month, for a total savings of $60,900 over the thirty years of the mortgage. In this case, your frugality made you about $20,000 per hour.
4. I think you can see that it is the big stuff that makes a difference in frugal living. On the other hand, sometimes the small stuff is the big stuff, especially when it is repeated over and over. This is why it makes sense to save money on groceries. They are something you buy every week. How you do it makes a difference though.
5. Suppose you don't want to clip coupons or spend time looking at sales flyers. Let's face it; if it only saves you $10 per hour of effort, you might be better off staying a few hours extra at work and skip the hassle. On the other hand, why not invest just an hour or two to figure out which store is cheapest for the things you buy? Then shop only there, and buy more of the things you use and like when they are on sale. You might still save $20 per week, with no additional investment of time. That's a $1,000 per year!
6. Have you read newsletters and magazines about saving money? They often have tips on things like how to re-use plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Is it worth the time to wash out and dry your ziplock bags? Maybe, if you like that sort of thing and you are making minimum wage. For most of us, it is better to spend the time analyzing the big and the recurring expenditures. That is the key to frugal living.

The Best or the Safest Way to Invest Money

The finest way to invest money is to engage in something that you really know and that makes you feel self-assured. It is understanding if your investment capital is your family nest egg or extra risk capital. So, make out your plan and have a good idea of your goals. There are so many ways to invest money and they differ so greatly in risk and return. If your investment goal is to provide retirement income, this suggests one type of investment. If your investment goal is to make a large profit on some extra cash that you have managed to accumulate, this would suggest a completely different investment. Once you have an idea of your investment goals, the next step is to educate yourself about the investment opportunities that are suggested. You might be interested in the stock market, or in Forex trading. You might be considering commodity trading. Many people are drawn to mutual funds or bonds. If you are interested in any type of investment, you need to learn as much about it as possible. Many investments use their own terminology and it can be as confusing as a foreign language without a little research. Even if you plan to discuss your investments with a financial advisor, it is a good idea to have a handle on the terminology first.

One of the ways to categorize investments is by looking at their possibilities. All investments carry risk, but it is obvious that the risk of Certificates of Deposit at your local bank are very low. The risk of the stock market is quite a bit more of a concern and using your funds as venture capital is even more uncertain. When you have made a plan, and chosen an investment based on your goals and considered the risk to return ratio that makes you comfortable, you are ready to make your investment. One mistake made by new investors is to be prone to panic and not see things in the long term. If you invest in a stock, for example, and it suffers a drop in price, you need to consider holding on to it and giving it a chance to recover rather than selling in panic and taking a loss. The best investment strategy is a long term one.

But is the best way the safest way or what’s the risk level? The rule seems to be that the more risk involved in an investment, the more chance for a good return. Some investors like to refer to this as the “no guts, no glory” theory. You can invest in safe and secure investments, but you will not make big profits or grow rich. You also will not be likely to lose your investment and go broke either. When you understand this principle, the answer to the question becomes dependent on the rate of return you are expecting. It would be better to go ahead and phrase it this way: What is the safest way to invest money to realize the return on my investment that I desire?

It does not really matter what type of investment you chose. There are still some ways to make the investment safer. The most important is to study the investment carefully. When you are armed with knowledge, you have a much better chance of negotiating the rocky waters of investment. You can develop an investment strategy that further reduces risks. What you can not do is find a sure thing in investing. Certainly not in an investment that offers the chance of a large return. If you are not willing to take some risks, the savings account at your bank might be the best course for you.