Aah, money. It's a wonderful thing. Money can make your life easy, and the lack of money can make your life incredibly difficult, so it's essential that we all find the money we want to live our lives. Are you with me?? haha! Of course you are! Who wouldn't be?? (Socialists, maybe, but I used to be a little Socialist, and look at me, I've changed... and for the better! Now I'm a little Capitalist, but a really nice one...lol!)
Don't worry that you'll get soo much money that you'll change. You won't change your basic personality, you'll just have a much easier time paying the bills, whatever they may be. And you can choose any lifestyle that suits you, too. If you love champagne (uh, clearly I do, since I've put that picture up of me doing a Champagne Cheers with you -- that's a Cheers to Your Success! Do you love it?? The champagne, I mean? Also, your future success?? haha!) But you would be surprised at how many people fear money, and there's no reason for this, at all. Hoping for, and working toward, a higher salary, better wages, higher profits from your own business.... these are wonderful things, and they're very good for you. And very good for your family, too.
It's very comforting to always have a little nest egg to fall back on. When I first left my marriage (okay, second marriage! lol!), I thought of that 'nest egg' money as my 'F U account. Yep. I said it. An F U account. So if things went terribly wrong, or I'd had it with the new job, or the new people, or anything at all that made me want to quit or change my location, move away from it all, there as the money, safely tucked away in my FU account. I don't think they call it an FU account at the bank... I think they prefer the term 'Money Market Account'! They used to call it a CD Account, but God Knows, CD Accounts make next to nothing in Interest, these past couple of years (boooo! I used to looove making money on the money in the bank... those days are long gone, or at least, they will be until the economy turns around, so I just keep my nest egg safe in a Money Market Account, since it's easy to remove the money without a penalty, when I am finally able to move, when my house sells...)
Which brings me to Real Estate. I love Real Estate, and firmly believe in buying property whenever you can, but right now, I am in the middle of a Real Estate deal where I am losing money hand over fist. Not good. Terrible. Devastating, in fact. I am in the middle of selling my condo here in Los Angeles, and the market is a mess. I've thought about just renting out my property, wait until the housing market gets better, but I think, at this juncture in my life, I'm better off to cut my losses (they are insane losses), and move back home to Canada.
For you, though, if you are a renter, and thinking about buying a house, this is an incredible time to buy. It's a terrible time for Sellers, but that's what makes it a great time for Buyers. And it's not just because of the Foreclosures, either. The cold hard reality of the housing market with all these Foreclosures, is that the people who are selling their homes for the regular reasons (move for work, like it better in another city, whatever the case may be.... ), they are now in the same housing market as the Foreclosures. The Foreclosure properties have prices that are far, far below the normal price of the homes in the area, so that drags ALL of the housing prices down. So the bottom line is, if you are thinking about purchaing a property, now it the time to do it. and if you are thinking about selling your property, but you don't absolutely have to, hold on for a little while longer. These Foreclosure properties will eventually sell off, and prices will stabilize (I think...), but it might be a while, yet, before that happens. And Mortgage Rates are pretty low, right now, so this is the time to get in on the action of the housing market.
Speaking of Mortgages, and how low the Mortgage Rates can be, these days, it's a good time to mention your Credit Rating, or your Credit Score. When I moved down to California from Canada, I had an excellent Credit Rating in Canada. Little did I know that when you cross the border (probably any border!), you lose your entire Credit Rating. So when I first arrived in America, I had a Credit Score of 0. That's right. ZERO. So that wasn't very good! lol! I was very fortunate to ahve a really, really good Bank Manager, and she set me up with an American Credit Card, from my Credit Union, and she told me how to build my Credit Score, so I could develop an excellent Credit Score in the US, too.
The first thing she told me to do was to use the credit card (which I was not in the habit of doing... I prefer to use my debit card, or cash), but in America, it's all about your Credit Card. No wonder there's a national debt crisis, when having and regularly using a credit card is a major source of information for you to develop a higher Credit Score (or FICO Score). Anyway, the first thing she told me to do was to use my new American Credit Card every month, and then pay it off at the end of every month. Easy to do. I set up the account on Autopay, so I would never forget a payment, and started to use the credit card for small payments. Since I got the card with a 1% Cash Back deal, I began to use this credit card for basic monthly payments, like the Cable Bill adn my Phone Bill... all worked out very nicely.
Next, I was advised to open a Department Store Credit Card. I opened a Kohl's Card, because I really like Kohl's. They're nice in there. And I could pay online, which is easy, and there is no charge for paying your bill. I was very surprised (and pretty annoyed), when I first discovered that some compaies actually charge you to pay over the phone, and many won't allow you to pay in person. Those are terrible company policies, and I hope the consumer helps to put a stop to this....
The next biggest thing is to make sure you pay all your regular monthly bills on time. You know, the water, the electricity, Cable, phone.. whatever you use, be sure to pay each month.
Organize your Paperwork... all your bills, any important papers related to money, anything you might need for your taxes.... (oh, and there is some current advice to take extra deductions on your taxes, so you can have a higher paycheck throughout the year, instead of getting a tax refund check back at the end of the fiscal year... no, no, no. Don't do it. It's more fun to get a big check at the end of the year -- really, this is mostly in America... I don't ever remember getting a Tax Rebate in Canada! hahaha! All the Canadians will be laughing, or sobbing! hahaha!).
Get one of those accordian-looking folders -- you can find them in the Stationary Department of most stores, like Target, or Walmart, and you will definitely find them at Staples or Office Depot. VERY handy to have, and just file the paperwork according to the month, as the paperwork comes in. You never know when you might want to check on something, and then it'll be much easier if the paperwork is right at your fingertips. For real! This one little tip really changed my life. You wouldn't think it would be such a big deal, but it is, and you should be able to use the same accordial file folder for years... just empty out the previous year, and save it at the very back of the file folder. Voila! Now you're organized!! Yippee! Let the money roll in!
My Bank Manager had also suggested that I get a car loan, and make sure to pay that off each month, too, but I owned my car outright, because I would never, ever, buy a brand new car, straight off the Lot.... I like to buy a car that's at least a year old, low mileage, great condition... I really like to buy the vehicles that someone has traded in, a person who feels a real need to have a brand new car every year... yippee for them, becuase they always have great taste, and you'll score a great deal on a beautiful car! Anyway, so I skipped this step. But there are great deals out there at Car Dealerships, right now, many with a 0% Down, and very low interest rates... it pays to shop around, but some of these deals would even make someone like me think twice about buying new off a car lot... the bottom line in buying a car, is buy what you like, make sure you can afford the monthly payments, and make sure you shop around for Cara Insurance, too, since those rates can really vary, too. And then find a good gas station with low prices! lol!
Okay, well, that was a long way for a short cut! lol! The whole reason you need an excellent Credit Score, is because the higher your Credit Score, the lower your Interest will be for everything. so if you ahve a low credit score, your Mortgage Rate can be right up there, at 6% and much higher, but right now, they have some excellent mortgage rates in the 3.5% if you have a high credit score. So it pays to pay on time! haha! That's the irony... when you have enough money to pay all your bills on time, month after month, year aftrer year, your credit score will go up, so of course you need to make sure you find a way to make enough money to cover all your bills, every single month. Easier said than done?? lol!
The biggest keys to managing your money carefully, is to always make sure you Live Within Your Means. This isn't a bad thing -- far from it. You might think you'll be sooo happy in a giant dee-luxe apartment, in the sky, but, if it makes you feel broke every month, you'll hate it. Much better to live in a nice apartment, closer to the street, or in a different neighborhood, pay a reasonable amount you can easily ad readily afford every month, and you're much happier. You can get the fancy place when you've made your giant pile o' money that's out there waiting for you, with your name right on it.
Now, what do I do to bring more money into my life? Well, you might laugh, but I'm very superstitious, so I firmly believe in luck and all sorts of lucky charms. No kidding. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one! lol! Today I not only 'rubbed the Money Frog twice (because every time I rub the Money Frog, a check comes my way, so who cares if there's any scientific proof behind rubbing the Money Frog, I just want to keep getting checks, and the more the merrier... also, the bigger, the better! haha!). Also, I wear my 'lucky jewelry'.... a four leaf clover necklace, sometimes a jade necklace... whatever item I feel brings me more luck! I can't help it... these little things really do make me feel lucky, and then more money comes into my life. It might just be a matter of 'think and it's yours', or 'believe you're rich and you will be showered in money'.... these are great thoughts, so why not try them?
I also pray a lot. And I mean, a lot! These days, I have been praying to St. Joseph, because they say that St. Joseph can help you with the sale of your home. (Fingers Crossed!) But did you know that St. Joseph can help you with yoru finances, too? Yep. Pray to St. Joseph for your spiritual and temporal welfare. He will come through for ou, and you will feel better instantly, knowing you have St. Joseph on your side. Really, it doesn't amtter to me what anyone might think of these things... I say, if they work for you, go ahead and do them Wear your lucky medallion, carry your four-leaf clovers, light a candle to St. Joseph, and say your prayers, share your thoughts with the Universe. Do whatever it takes to have a positive attitude toward money, and think of money flowing into your life.
Always respect your money. Take care of it. Keep it neatly in your wallet, in the correct order. Respect your money, take care of it, watch it grow.
Getting a great job is always a good way to make money, but going to College or University isn't the only path to success. Of course, a good education is always wonderful, but it's not for everyone. I have a serious pet peeve with the school system in America, these days, where they say, 'every child has to go to college'. Well, no the don't. What an elitist thing to say. Not everyone has the MONEY to go to college. To me, this new 'patform', where all children have to go to college, reeks of in inside position, where the colleges need the students, because they make a ton of money for the colleges. Education is Big Business, make no mistake about it. But whatever happened to having Industrial Arts Classes for any student who wanted to learn the Trades? I am a House Builder, as well as a Teacher, and it infuriates me that this new elitist group says all jobs must be 'professiona;', or they're not worthy enough. What a load of BS. Students used to leave high school with enough of a background in a chosen Trade (machine shop, wood shop, welding, cooking, beauty classes, etc., etc.), so they could actually graduate from high school and go straight into the working world. That shoudl be an option for everyone. I think this new focus on Algebra, as if that's going to cahnge the fute, magically, has taken over for some true, practical education. And Math can be practical, too. I'd love to see a study of what math classes were offered, and what math was actually covered, throughout the decades, and see how much it has changed over the years. Why d we have so many students in Middle School and High School, particularly here in Los Angeles, with phenomenally low math scores? How is that possible? How much has the math curriculum changed, I'd love to know. and not a stuy by the school district, either... God Knows they can't be trusted.... they'll put whatever spin on it they want to, to further their own purposes... but I digress.... the important thing is that Basic Money Management, and How to Make Money, should be classes offered in every High School. That would go much further in the education of our children, in terms of helping them with their real lives when they leave school. To know How to Get a Job, How to Keep a Job, How to Get Another Job, How to Manage Your Money, and How to Not Go Into Debt.... these are the critical things kids need to know.
Is there a way for you to earn extra money at your current job? Maybe pick up extra hours, or do special projects? Can you take any classes that would increase your income? sk around at work, especially people who have been in your workplace for a long time.. they often have an inside track, and that can be very helpful to you. Plus, you can learn a lot from people who know their way around your company. :) If you cannot think of a way where you can make more money at your current job, it's time to start looking further afield. Sometimes, look in another city, State, or even another country. Be an immigrant like me!! haha! The only downside is being booted out the country, just when you're really starting to put down rooots (but, really, that's more my story!! lol! sob, sob!) Make sure you have the qualifications for whatever job it is that your heart desires, or whatever job it is that you would like to have, for whatever fancy reasons you have for wanting that job! Did you know Backhoe Operators make a fortune? Well, they do, so look at ALL the jobs, see what might look good to you :)
So, to start bringing more money into your life, watch what goes out.... start really keeping an eye on what you spend your money on. Is it coffee? Soda? Cigarettes? Lottery Tickets? Gambling? (Okay, well, that's a little bit, me, but only wne I go to Vegas! lol!) Food? Think of ways you can cut back, little things you can change to keep more of your money for yourself, less going out the door.... it's often the little things that add up. (Except for me, right now, when I'm losing a giant amount on this preperty, but I believe I will make that money up when I start me New Life...!).
Starting your own business is a great way to make money. Can you sell something people want to buy? Think of all the things you buy on a regular basis, and stuff you buy for yourself or for the people you love, every so often.... could you sell anythign that people regularly buy? Think about this a lot. Always keep your mind moving with ideas of how you could make money, and gueanantee you, the ideas will come into your mind. The key is to make good on your ideas. Think about it. Write it down. Visualize it. Figure out a way to start small. No need to race ahead into anything, in a big hurry. Just plant a seed, watch it grow...you'll be wealthy in no time! Good Luck!! Let's All Share the Wealth! Get a little slice of that Internet Pie! Go find that pile o' cash that's out there waiting for you, and lay your claim to it! Then do something ood for someone to Pay It Forward... that's always a nice thing to do! Get your rake out, start rakin' in all that dough!! To More Money in Your Life! Cheers! Ailsa
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