Financial Reform has finally made it down to our level.

One piece of reform legislation was related to your education of the use of credit. I am referring specifically to a requirement for the credit card industry to fully disclose how long it will take for you to pay your credit balance using minimum payments. It also requires some standardization for the format of our credit card bills themselves.
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Avoiding Surprises

Avoiding surprises. First, let me make it clear surprises cannot be totally avoided. Otherwise there would not be any surprises.

But every so often we have terrible situations occur that are absolutely avoidable.
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Dumbest things to do with your money.

The internet is a wonderful source of information and the following is a compilation of thoughts from a variety of sources. I say a compilation because I do not concur with some of the thoughts from a base article I encountered and have supplemented based on experience.

Falling in love—with your investments. You must continually assess if your invested dollars are still solid and meeting your goals. This includes all types of assets, not just stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. I counsel too many folks who are emotionally tied to their assets and unwilling to part with them when the value can be better used elsewhere.
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Being an ostrich is not smart

Once upon a time I was told that an ostrich will stick its’ head in the sand when afraid. Supposedly to avoid an unpleasantness it was expecting to face.
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What is fun and how much does it cost?

Everyone is interested in having a fun life. We find all sorts of ways to entertain ourselves in our free time. And if studies on work habits are accurate, we will take opportunities to have fun while working and clocked in.

You must also consider life is a series of tradeoffs. Tradeoffs are made based on our personal goals. Goals related to fun commonly involve money.
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Dollars & Sense! - March 2010

Watch out, scams are increasing.

Since September 08 it has been amazing the number of scams that have been identified.
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Love is an interesting concept.

Several love related concepts have emerged as I have done financial counseling for over 20 years. Some express their love for their children and will do anything for their happiness. Other love their possessions and acquiring them. And some love the goal of long term happiness while on earth.
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Dollars & Sense! January 2010

Ready, set, go. The starting line is here and another New Year is upon us. So how did you do financially for 2009? And what are your goals for 2010?

Asset building for the future is the name of the game we are all part of. You choose how much you want to participate. Twenty-plus years of financial counseling have taught me one thing. The most successful people I know have always had goals they wish to achieve. Incentive, focus and discipline yield results.
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Dollars & Sense! - December 2009

Line up here for free government money and free tax filing help.

How many of the headlines these days are about the recession, recovery and all the government stimulus programs?? Yes, we are in the most difficult financial times as a country since the 1930s. And our leaders are throwing a lot of money into the economy to get things back to “normal”.
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Setting a good example.

As a parent, grandparent, mentor or whatever you are, you have an obligation to teach those around you about managing finances. The school systems do not see this as their obligation. However I applaud those teachers who try to include it within their curriculum restrictions.

So what should our children be taught? And when? Read more

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