No matter how financially responsible you may try to be, financial slip-ups can happen. A common one is when you blow your budget. Unfortunately, once you blow your budget, it gets easier to lose focus. It’s like being on a diet and having a piece of cake. Many people will think, “Heck, I’ve already blown my diet. I may as well have two pieces of cake.” It’s a reason why many people don’t even bother … Read More
Do you have anxiety or fear when you start thinking about holiday spending? Too many families go into debt each holiday. It adds unnecessary and unwanted stress to what should be a joyous season. It’s certainly no way to spend the holidays — no pun intended. So what’s the solution? Actually, if you start preparing for the holidays now you can enjoy a financially lower-stress season. Here’s how: 1. Become the Ghost of Christmas Past Take … Read More
Do you often wonder where all your money went at the end of a pay period? No matter how much you earn, are you living from paycheck to paycheck? Do you feel like your spending is out of control? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, a financial detox might be just what you need to improve your financial health. Stick with me while I explain why. My green-smoothie-detox story In the … Read More
Whenever I’m helping clients get clear about their spending we start by breaking their expenses down into two core categories: needs and wants. It seems pretty simple. Needs are things we must have to survive, such as food, water, shelter. Wants are things that we would like to have, but could live without. In theory, it’s an easy concept to understand. But in practice, it’s not so straightforward because people categorize spending based on … Read More
I’m sure you’ve heard the financial advice, “Pay yourself first.” Many experts consider this to be one of the most important financial tips around. But let’s consider what this financial advice really means. It refers to the practice of saving some of your income before you pay any of your lifestyle bills. Ideally, the money would be taken out of your paycheck before you ever see it and deposited into either a savings or … Read More