fitness to finance

Strategies To Payoff Debt

There are lots of ways to payoff debt, but they all include pretty much the same steps:

1. Earn more than you spend. Or, put another way, spend less than you make.  That’s pretty simple to understand and easy to say, but it’s a lot harder to actually do it.  If you really want to get out of debt, which you should, it’s really important to do this.  Cut back on extra stuff and you’ll be surprised how much money you can save each month.
2. Pay extra towards your bills. This is where the different systems have different ideas.  Some say it’s best to pay the bill with the highest interest rate.  Others say it’s best to pay the one with the biggest payment first.  To really make the biggest difference, there are a lot of things to consider and if you have very many bills, you will need a software program to figure this out for you.  The money you save will usually more than pay for the software.
3. After you pay the first bill off, use the money from that bill to pay the next bill. This way, your spending stays the same, but you keep using more and more money to payoff debt.  Just make sure you don’t buy something else with the money.  It’s tempting, but it’s dangerous.  If you keep buying more stuff with the money you’re saving, the years to payoff debt will be longer and longer.  Using a software program can help you to keep track of your bills and make it easier to stay on track.

While these steps sound simple, they are really pretty hard.  Lots of people try to do this all the time.  They have a tough time sticking to their plans.  Many times they just give up and live with the debt.

Since we spend more when we’re depressed, it’s important to deal with the sadness that comes when we’re out of money.  We have the power to do something and it’s better to do something than to do nothing.  Any small step will be better than nothing at all.

So, next time you’re wondering, “How do I get out of debt?”  you’ll be able to remember these steps and make some changes to how you’re living.

One of the biggest challenges in life is not succeeding, but succeeding at something that really matters! Don’t get sucked into setting goals for accomplishment in areas that are not your heart’s desire. You only have one life, God built you for a specific purpose, figure out that purpose and pursue it with all you’ve got! THEN set goals in that area! Remember, only do what only you were built to do. Leave everyone else’s agenda to them!

6. Goals should stand alone: What I mean by this is that some people set too many goals. They set goals in different areas, at different levels, and before very long at all, they are confused by them all. This is not the way to set goals. The secret of success is to focus. One dominant, overriding goal will produce creativity and action. So keep it simple and singular. Author Chris Brady

7. Goals should be short-term enough to put pressure on you today: A “someday” goal will not work, and is nothing more than a fantasy. A goal must put you in positive tension today, or it is not functioning properly. If you have set your goal out there far enough that you think, “Well, I can get started on that tomorrow and still have time to accomplish it,” then you’ve set it too far out on the calendar.

8. Goals should have a specific date of accomplishment: This goes with number 7 above. Make sure you have a finish line marked on your calendar.

There is much more to goal setting, but for me, these are the high points. Follow these, and you’ll be on your way to achievement and significance. Neglect this technique, and you’ll waste days, if not years, that you’ll never get back.

What is your overriding goal right now? If you don’t have one, set it quickly and get after it. The clock is ticking!

I’m not the biggest current affairs expert on the planet. I’m not the guy reading five newspapers and watching CNN and C-Span constantly. I don’t yell at my opponents and I don’t interrupt.

I do, however, think our current financial crisis is serious. Individual people are being hurt by what’s happening. ARM mortgages matched with declining property values have left folks upside down and scared. In most parts of North America the job market is not that great. The value of the dollar is pathetic compared to international currency. Competition from abroad is stiffer than ever. Oil is getting more and more pricey, and the proceeds go to fund our terrorist enemies. And to top it all off, Tom Brady is injured and will have to sit out the whole NFL season.

Smarter economic minds than mine have argued both sides of the Bail Out idea. Congress and the President are staying up late arguing about it. From what I can gather, it kind of goes like this: If these financial institutions (which is a fancy name for companies that make money off off people by playing with their money and/or loaning them money at a higher cost than they could have earned it for themselves in the first place) fall, they will take down a lot of us little people with them. That’s because if these financial institutions fall, they will take our money down with them. If they take our money down with them, we won’t be able to get it back from them. And if we can’t get it back from them, we won’t have it. But we need it. Badly. Problem is, these companies are in trouble because they’ve already lost our money. It’s gone amissin’. That’s why a Bail Out is needed. So the government Bail Out is basically the idea that the government will rush in and give the financial institutions money to replace the missing money that we gave to them in the first place. Then they will have it and they won’t fall. Since they won’t fall, they won’t take our money with them. If they don’t take our money with them, then we won’t lose it. Therefore we won’t fall. Everybody lives happily ever after.

Only question is: Where did the money go in the first place?

Maybe the “financial institutions” left it in their Armani suits or corporate jets and just forgot where they put it.

And the only other only question is: where is the government going to get the money to give to the financial institutions?

If the government doesn’t actually “earn” money, that means that they will be coming to us to get it (the technical term, I believe, is called “taxes.”)

But we don’t have it. The financial institutions took it and lost it someplace.

So the government is going to come to us to get more money to give to the people who lost our money so we won’t lose our money.

Whew. I feel safe.

I know, I’m probably being too simple-minded. This whole thing probably involves some pretty complicated economics somebody needs to explain to me, which can probably only be done by a politician. Chris Brady

Success Magazine will feature United First Financial in January.  Be ready for your success.

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My girlfriend was watching Oprah the other day. On her show was Suze Orman and various guests who had questions about finances. What was interesting to me is the fact that people  are NOW  just starting to wake up and understand their finances and the choices that they make. In this type of economy if we work hard and focus in certain areas, it will set you up for life, financially.

Nearly all the noteworthy leaders throughout history have been big readers.  Reading is the shortcut to successful thinking, the route to accurrate perspective, and the doorway to knowledge.  Reading can be fun and entertaining, enlightening and inspiring, and should always lead to a better understanding of our lives and the world we live in.

It is tragic that in our entertainment society we are losing our literary bent.  From what I can tell, although every airport has a book store, and although Barnes and Noble and Amazon seem to be doing fine on-line, there is a decline in the habit of reading.  With video games, movies, television, Internet, sports, traffic, hobbies, organizations, kid’s sports and activities, longer working hours, and that endless list of errands that need to be run, we seem to have very little time for simply reading.  I suggest, however, that it is important for us to make time to read.  As busy as people get, it seems that they always find a way to do the things they want to do.  Reading should be a priority that is worthy of a spot in our busy schedule.

Think about how much of our daily living is just thrashing against the current.  It doesn’t carry us forward toward our goals and dreams, nor does it even hit on our priorities.  In fact, a major percentage of our lives is spent and not invested.  But reading is an investment.  It is important.  It should be a priority in itself.  It jump-starts our brain and reminds us that we were created for more than just the daily grind.

Have you read the classics?  Do you have at least a working knowledge of some of the writings from the greatest minds of history?  Do you read from several different genre?  Have you had a book that has touched you deeply or awakened you to something grand?

Let me suggest that you make it a priority to increase the quantity and quality of reading in your life.  Make it part of your daily schedule; something that becomes habitual.  The more you do it, the more you’ll like it, until you find yourself yearning for the next break in your schedule where you can enthrall your mind once more.  There is a whole world in the pages of great books.  Go discover it for yourself!