Tagged With "financial"
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Re: Financial Accomplishments (SHARE YOURS)
We have taken better control of our budget. I think I got the idea of "sinking funds" from a Penny Hoarder post. We figured out all our bills that are not monthly (car insurance, garbage bill, etc) and figured out a monthly payment for them. We have a separate account for that money. It broke us of the habit of raiding the savings account when we had a bill like that. So now savings grows without interference and we have money set aside when these bills come up!
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What is the worst financial advice you've ever received?
I'm feeling playful today--what is the worst financial advice you've ever received? Mine was so bad it was epic and funny, at least to me. I am a professional author of a trade paperback and two e-books, one of which is self-published. This "make a six figure income and travel the world" guru wrote that you could get a six figure income by hiring a ghostwriter (I've done that, too) to write 100 books and sell them on Kindle. This is funny to me because of what all goes in to writing a book.
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Who taught you your most important money lesson and what was it?
Growing up, I didn't necessarily have one specific person I leaned on for financial advice. But I spent a lot of time watching how my own parents struggled, which taught me that I didn't want to do the same. Now, I actively pay attention to what I can and can't afford and how to set myself (and my future family) up for more financial success. What's one money lesson you've taken with you?
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How did you get started working towards your financial goals?
Learning about how to manage your finances is hard! Today, we are inundated with tons of personal finance content - do this, don't spend that - but what's the right advice? Where do we start? For me -- it's the whole "pay yourself first method," which is exactly what I've started doing to start building a savings (and travel fund!) Each paycheck, I'm intentionally depositing a portion of each check into my savings account - that I'm not allowed to touch. Instead of going out to eat numerous...
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How I Live On 50% Of My Net Income
When I saw the light New Year’s Eve, 2017. Uninspired, broke, living paycheck to paycheck. While trying to celebrate the coming of the new year, in my very first tuxedo, and at a very nice winery, I found myself miserable. Most noteworthy, my amazing mother, who was visiting and I hadn’t seen in years due to living a few thousand miles from one another, is a VERY upbeat and positive ray of sunshine. As a result, she, AND my realization I was failing at ‘adulting’, were my catalyst for...
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How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Having troubling keeping up with everything in your financial life? A budget binder can help. Here's how to make one! Have you tried this approach to budgeting? I would love to hear more about your budget binders.
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Life Insurance, Disability Insurance, Wills, etc
Part of financial well-being is also being prepared to protect you & your family should something terrible happen. Do you have Life Insurance, Disability Insurance, Critical Care Insurance, a Will? If you do, how often to you make sure it still suits you & your lifestyle? (eg will only lists 2 children & now you have 3, life insurance would pay off your mortgage but now your mortgage is paid off)
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Financial Accomplishments (SHARE YOURS)
Every small step in the right direction is one step closer to the goal! When it comes to financial fitness, every accomplishment (no matter how small) is important, as it helps you create a better financial future. Even something as small as not buying a coffee and instead putting that money you would have spent into savings is a financial accomplishment worth celebrating. The more times you do these small things, you begin to create good financial habits that you will carry with you the...
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Reading Goals
I have so many books in my library that I have purchased (mostly financial topics) that I have been telling myself I need to read but just haven't gotten to yet. Because of this, and also because I believe the saying "Readers are Leaders", I have made it a goal this year to read at least 2 books a month. I completed this goal in January by reading " How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnige & " Sell or Be Sold" by Grant Cardone For February, I have already read "The...
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Stop the Paycheck to Paycheck Cycle by Being Mindful of Your Financial Habits
How’s this for a truth bomb – the life you are currently living is mostly the sum of all your habits. Read the following article to find out 10 financial habits that may be getting in the way of achieving your long-term goals: Stop the Paycheck to Paycheck Cycle What are some habits that you've discovered that get in the way? I'd love to hear your own experiences.
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A beginner's guide to investing
Hey Penny Hoarders, For the longest time, I thought that investing was reserved for the financial elite. I didn't really understand the terminology and it just sounded too complicated to be worth my time. A year after starting investing, I now know so much more and I'm happier (and wealthier) because of it. Investing is the best (and most effortless) way to create wealth. I've written down some thoughts for people who are also only starting out on their investment journey. You can find it...
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Can Budgeting Come with Baggage?
Similar to how we enter into new relationships with some of our own baggage, we tend to do the same with our relationship with money. One area that often carries the most is budgeting. If I can draw parallels with emotional baggage, our mindset about budgeting may simply be caused by our unwillingness to address unresolved issues and fears. Is the stress of creating a budget caused by the fear of having to face the amount of debt you owe? What if it’s too overwhelming? Are you delaying your...
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Excellent idea! I haven't seen anything that compares with it. It's easy to use and tracks everything one needs to track. I'd recommend it to my friends and family if they were looking for a way to track expenses.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
That is very similar to The Budget Mom's Budget by Paycheck Method/Workbook. Great ideas, and it has been working for me and a friend who has been doing it with me. The binder is good to personalize it- I use the pictures that track savings for specific expenses, but they are not part of the workbook. The binder is great- you can start right away and its a small investment to make it work for you.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Our budget book is a life saver. The great side benefit is it keeps communication open between my husband and I. We always know what we have in each category and can make decisions accordingly. If we don't have it, we don't spend it. Once we decide on what to put into each category, the budget is the "bad cop" and keeps us in line.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
I love that you use the budget as the "bad cop" for accountability @Olivia . Such a great idea to prevent finger pointing when things aren't going well in a certain category. My family currently just uses an excel spreadsheet, but I may have to incorporate pictures like you do @KellyFromKeene and start a binder. Having something you can flip through/hold in your hands with great visuals makes budgeting sound more fun!
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
After reading some of The Budget Mom's posts, I was looking into making something like this for my home. I was so happy to see this article from The Penny Hoarder shortly after, it was uncanny! I like to combine this idea with bullet journaling a little, making my own mash-up version. I love it.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
@MountainFan , I'm a big fan of TBM. So glad I found her method!
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
It is really helpful! Considering I have had a stressful year! Hopefully my 2019 resolution would be to organize with a budget binder.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
This is really helpful information. Budgets have been the hardest thing for me to keep when it comes to financial fitness. 2020 is going to be the year my wife and I change that! My wife and I have been good about tracking all our expenses on paper but having a budget binder that tracks multiple different aspects of your finances in an organized manner will be really helpful for us!
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
I am starting a new budget program on the 1st of the year. I have tried everything I believe just going back to paper and pen may be a good option for me as well. Thanks for the info.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Love using the Budget Binder. it really spells everything out for you to see it on paper and how much you are spending in a certain area.
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
I like this Budget Binder idea and it's similar to what I've used in the past (not a book, but spiral college notebooks) and would have continued to use ...if I hadn't gotten used to and spoiled with Mint and my Excel spreadsheet. The outcome/effect is the same, but now I don't have to worry about amassing more paper to the heaps I already have. My brother uses a Budget Binder similar to this. I think I'll send him the link and see if he wants to try this one out. Thanks for posting this...
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
I used this method from 1978 to 1998, when I got my first PC and Excel. I watched my Parents and Grandparents use the Budget Binder for both their home and business budgets. I still have them and think back on the amounts. My Grandparents mortgage was $16/month and they worried all through the Great Depression. My Parents mortgage was $121/month and their Parents thought they were crazy in 1959 to go into debt for a $7000 home! I look back at my budgets and saw I only earned $525/month in...
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
The first few months of living on a budget or spending plan is difficult. Because you see money in the accounts and you see something you’d like to buy. But remember, the money left in the accounts IS money already spent (earmarked) for a bill that will arrive in the future. If you can stick to the budget for the first few months, I PROMISE financial life will get so much easier! When the bills are all paid, you will sleep sounder and you won’t fret over an upcoming event. Birthdays and...
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Hello Jobelle! Thanks for your notes. We never made much, so it's taken a while. We found the first couple years of budget keeping to be a bit hairy as we tried to figure out how to handle unplanned expenses. Like the car dying, or having a preemie with medical issues. Since then, setting up an emergency fund really helped. It's taken years of incrementally paying these unexpected expenses off and careful spending to finally have one. We plan for what we can, (the next car), and finally have...
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Re: How to Organize Your Financial Life With a Budget Binder
Olivia, I hope your baby is growing up and thriving! My granddaughter was born with complications and ten days in NICU made a bill close to $800,000! Thankfully, all members of our family chipped in and paid that bill in full. It’s only because we are budget nerds for generations that allowed us to pay that bill. I’m glad your family has an emergency fund in place for those times when “Murphy” moves into the spare bedroom. I hope you and I can spread the benefits of having a budget in place.
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Re: Life Insurance, Disability Insurance, Wills, etc
Universal Life is a ripoff! Buy Term and shop for long term care separately. You'll save money.
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Re: How did you get started working towards your financial goals?
And a very effective way of saving @Briana . I do the same with regards to savings and emergency funds. But that is placed aside and cannot be accessed easily. I have saved up for many things this way, because I don't like accounts. Apart from mortgage, insurances and the really necessary stuff. But I never buy appliances, linen, clothes etc through accounts. You save quite a bit on interest costs this way.
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Re: Financial Accomplishments (SHARE YOURS)
My life mantra:a drop turns into a puddle, a puddle to a pond, a pond to a lake and a lake to an ocean! Make every dollar work for you...Citibank 2% cash back cc. Charge everything and pay bill in full every month. Over 6 yrs we have earned over $7000 in cash back points. Pay as many bills as possible with the cc. We’re very frugal...shop at 2nd hand stores, order ice water when we eat out, etc...it’s the little things that add up. We’re super savers putting away over 30% of our earned...
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Re: Financial Accomplishments (SHARE YOURS)
MARY G sounds like you have a really good plan there.
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Re: Financial Accomplishments (SHARE YOURS)
@Mary G Sounds like you are putting to practice some great financial principles. I am still learning and just starting to put into practice good financial principles for a better financial future.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
My main issue is not keeping strict records of where our monthly income goes too. Like after the bills/mortgage are paid what the remaining funds are spent on.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I cannot afford to have bad habits with money. My worst habit might be paying too much for rent.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I could cut back on a few of the items.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I make a grocery list. Go to Walmart and just grab because I see it.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I really enjoyed this short survey.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Mine would be lowering our electric bill. One thing we need to do is not run the A/C so much. I guess we have to much stuff plugged in. Our electric company keeps sending us mailers saying we use more electric in our area than 100 neighbors in your area. I wonder if that is true or not. I don't know my neighbors enough to ask.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
We are retired and save for trips and cruises.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Aware of what you buy after considering what you need
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I score five out of six of these habits. I would like to squash them all.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Leaving above my means
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Impulse buying. I definitely need to start working on that.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Although I had a good paying career disability just doesn't cover it. And because of the disability I am unable to work. Even from home and I've found your links are pretty much just advertisements once I read the reviews.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Not needing to use credit cards like they are loans.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
Although I am not the worst when it comes to impulse buying, a lot of times I go to the store without a clear plan and end up with things I don't need or did not plan to purchase so for me, eliminating that would be awesome!
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
I dip into savings to pay bills like car repair and household needs. I wish I could budget better so I could have a savings that I could live off of for a year.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
My other is gambling. I've been working on it but it's still enough of a problem.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
since i live alone, with 2 cats, going out to eat is socializing for me. I usually go to the same place.
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Re: If you could squash one of your bad financial habits today — without having to work hard at it — which one would you choose?
My impulse buying is so hard for me to control. I often buy for my grandkids. If I have extra money sitting there or I find a great deal I have a hard time just putting the money in my savings. I used to have a really good paying career, achieved all my goals then tragedy struck and I lost everything and went on disability unable to work. I lost everything. So for a number of years, I went without now that I make extra money on the side hustles I feel so driven to have things I want or may...