Financially Poor

Do Not Be Scared About Debt, Do This Instead

Kevin — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:39:47 +0000

Hello my fellow Financial Freedom Guerrillas.

I know being in debt can seem overwhelming but you can win if you don’t curl up and die. The last thing you want to do is freeze up, because then the debt will have won. You are stronger than that and I know you can overcome it.

There are a lot of things in life to be scared of, but debt isn’t one of them. The boogie man, Loch Ness monster, Bigfoot, those are things to be scared of. Debt is just an over indulgence of life.

Instead of being scared become resourceful. Think to yourself “what can I do to get out of this situation?”, “What can I do to kill this debt?”

Do you need to get rid of some things? Do you need to cut back on your monthly expenses? Do you need to make more money?

Think about it this way, If you were stuck behind enemy lines and you only have the clothes on your back, would you just lay down and die? I would hope not. I would hope that you would find a way to make it home alive.

Do that with debt!

Use all the resources available to you. Do you have somebody you can stay with? Do you have somebody that can help you come up with a plan? Do you have somebody that can help you learn to fish, instead of giving you the fish?

We are lucky to be at a day in age where we have a huge resource available to us for free. The Internet! Use it to help you find answers to what you’re scared about. Write down all the reasons why you are scared and Google them.

I promise you are not the only one who is scared. Look around and you’ll find other people that have become resourceful and didn’t let being scared stop them from overcoming debt.

Just don’t let that paralyze you, don’t give it power over you, don’t let it eat you alive. Become Rambo and do what it takes to defeat your debt.

Your dreams are waiting for you, so start heading towards them. I’m knocking down all of the barriers in between. Don’t let debt conquer you and kill your dreams, conquer it and make your dreams a reality.

Are you ready to defeat your debt?

How are you/have you become resourceful?

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Should I Buy This Book? Review: Creating Your Own Destiny

Kevin — Mon, 14 May 2012 06:32:30 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lgDAI6V5_k

I am just going to give you a quick review of Creating Your Own Destiny. I really enjoyed this book. It teaches you how to control your life and not let others control it for you. It also talks about creating your own wealth by starting businesses and starting different streams of income which is the key to becoming financially free.

This book also has a great section about overcoming fears and adversity. Just start. Go after what you want in life. A great example is starting your own business; the hardest part is just starting. This book does a good job of providing motivation that you need to start a business. It also goes into setting up goals to accomplish becoming financially free . I really, really, really enjoyed this book. I think that everyone should own a copy. It is very motivational. This book is a short book, only about 150 pages. It isn’t a long read but is packed full of a lot of information.

Buy This Book

Creating Your Own Destiny New

Creating Your Own Destiny Used

3 Tips For Couples To Make A Budget

Kevin — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:23:05 +0000

Having a budget as a couple is not an easy thing. Me and my girlfriend have one and I’ll be the first to tell you it takes a lot of adjustments. I have definitely learned a lot going through that. Here’s some tips to get you through it.

Be Open

Talk about how you feel about a budget. If you’re both not ready for one then it’s not going to work. Go over the whole budget together and talk about each category. Make sure that you agree on how much you are going to spend on the categories. The important thing is to talk about it and make sure that you let your feelings out. If you have a problem let it be known. If you don’t let the other person know about it, then they won’t know why you can’t stay in budget.

Compromise

Doing a budget with two people can end horribly if there is no compromise. The process of give and take in a relationship applies to a budget as well. With me and my girlfriend (Beth), she’s more of a spender. In order to accommodate that I have to save a little less but her spending gets put under control with the budget. So it’s give and take.

Know Each Other

This goes somewhat with compromise but know if each other are spenders or savers. I’m a saver but she’s a spender. I know she likes to buy things, so there’s a place in the budget to spend. I like to stay in but she likes to go out, so there’s a little more in the entertainment category. It’s easy for me as a saver to say “Why don’t we just save our money instead of going out”. But It’s just as easy for her to say “Why don’t we just go out and enjoy life instead of stay cooped up all night”. So we adjusted the budget to be able to go out a little and save a little.

I used to get upset when we would spend more than we budgeted for but after talking it over with her I decided to increase the amount we could spend on certain categories. Just having that extra breathing room decreased my stress level and we actually ended up not spending as much as we budgeted for and saved more money than I planned.

In the end, the important thing is that you are both happy. Life is too short to be upset at every little thing and be stubborn. If you can create a budget together, you have a great future ahead of yourselves.

Have you had any issues making a budget with your significant other? What did you do to get through it?

How To Get Your Partner On Board With Finances – 3 Ways

Kevin — Thu, 10 May 2012 06:15:30 +0000

I receive emails from people explaining the problems they are facing in personal finance. The main issue I receive is about working out finances with a significant other that doesn’t really want to get on board. What can I tell these people?

I don’t believe there is really an answer that can be given because everyone is different and has different motivations. Everyone has a different breaking point. You’ve reached it and that’s why you want to take control of your finances, They have obviously not gotten to that point yet. Some people never make it there, especially if you end up turning things around yourself. If you do everything then they have no reason to get on board because they don’t see anything bad and are living just fine. The way i see it, you have three choices.

Common Goals

You both need to come up with a goal that you both can enjoy. I don’t mean one that benefits you both. I mean one that’s actually going to get you both motivated. This is where you can get what you want by giving them what they want.

For example, say you want to pay down the credit cards. In order to do that you need to get more income or cut your expenses. To get them on board, find out something they really want that maybe a few hundred to a thousand dollars. This really has to be something they are willing to work for.

What you do is say that when half the debt or all of the debt (you have to make a milestone) gets paid off, then they can purchase that prize. OF course the price is Variable according to the debt load. If you have $2000 in debt don’t offer something that’s a thousand dollars if they reach the goal. But if your debt is $40,000, then it would be worthwhile to both of you to pay off that debt and get the $1000 prize.

No this isn’t the best option because it doesn’t get rid of the root cause of why they don’t want to get on board. For that you need to see a counselor. This is a workaround to get things done for you, which is the goal.

Ultimatum

Forcing the other person to make a choice isn’t necessarily the best way to get them on board 100% but it will put the ball in their court. This gives you the power. Make sure you mean it though otherwise they won’t ever believe it’s for real again.

In order for this work, again it has to be something that motivates them, It has to be something they cherish. The ultimate thing would be you, but that’s really hammering them. But sometimes that’s what people need, A good whack on the head. So give it to them if you think they need it.

Live with it

The last option isn’t for everyone. If it really, really doesn’t bother you, then you’re probably not reading this since it’s a non issue. However, just incase, I’ll go over it. Living with someone that doesn’t want to be a team player isn’t a good environment. If it’s time to talk about finances together then it’s time to become a team. If one of you fails, then you both fail. You have to have that mentality and if they don’t, then you need to make them realize that or live with it.

Just remember, if you decide to live with it, don’t ask for change later because they are going to bring up that you’ve lived with it this long, or that you never complained before. If you live with it, it’s going to get worse I promise. If they don’t get on board with finances, which is a very important part of life, what will they get on board with? Probably nothing you want.

Non of these options are great. But if your spouse isn’t on board I would recommend marriage counseling first and then try these if you’re not satisfied. If they don’t try to compromise with you or jump on board then it’s not a team and you need to start looking out for yourself.

Relationships are a give and take. If all you do is give then you’re getting the short end of the stick. If all you do is take, then you’re a dick. Excuse my language but it’s true. Finances are a big thing in life and it needs to be worked out one way or another. Sometimes it’s hard but not taking care of your finances can lead to a lot more than a broken heart. Take care of yourself.

Do you think you could live without your significant other being on board with your finances? If so, let me know why in the comments or through the contact page. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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