Long commutes, longer hours at work, larger workloads, and higher debts are becoming the norm, not the exception in today's world. That is why many people need help with their debts.
However, do not feel hopeless if you are in debt. That is the worst thing you can do. And, do not keep living as if there is no problem. There is help. It is easy, personal, and easy. It rarely involves eating from a can for a year to pay down debts. Instead, financial advisers can help you organize, optimize, and use some of the new financial tools, such as a bad credit card to gain control of your debt.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Debt is One Of The Main Causes of Anxiety
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Reduce Stress - Reduce Debt
I do a lot of writing about debt, mainly because I've had some of the largest financial websites as my clients for the last three years. I've written hundreds of articles on the problems caused by debt. It is alarming how many people face bankruptcy, divorce, legal action, heart attacks, and social or behavioral problems that is 100% attributed to Stress caused by debt.
The sad thing is, it doesn't have to be that way. What is the difference between people who build wealth and those who are in debt? Simple - knowledge. Most people can free up 20% of their income, just by learning how to budget. This often includes a year or two of 'tightening' your belt until you have 'expendable cash.' It may also include consolidating their credit cards through Secured Loans.
However, don't do it yourself. Many people think that a second mortgage is the same, but it costs more in interest. Others are looking to transfer credit cards to another zero interest - but they don't pay attention to the 'fees' - even fees for not making more purchases on the loan.
The people who are 'doing it themselves' and doing what 'looks good' will not get out of debt, but just defer it and later end up paying more in interest.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
5 Tips to Win Over Stress
Stress can be caused by almost anything around us, traffic, job, lack of money, family and the list goes on. Some can handle stress well and remain calm while others need to release it to start functioning well again. For both cases, it is important to face that you are undergoing a stressful situation and come up with an immediate plan to resolve it. Simply ignoring it will not make it go away, rather it can haunt you in the future. There are medical studies that proves that psychological stress can add up to the immune-related disease that can make you very sick.
1. Know your problem. The first step is knowing your enemy and acknowledge that you are undergoing a
fight over stress. Then you need to determine the type of stress that you are dealing with. There are two basic types, long term and acute stress. A long term stress is the stress that you endure daily, everything that you encounter in your life can add up to this. On the otherhand, acute stress is caused by more specific events like a recent fight with your mother or an accident. Both type of stress can affect your health in the long run so you need to determine the root of this worries and find specific means to eliminate it.
2. Find ways to eliminate the root of your stress. After accepting that you have a problem you should further evaluate yourself and what causes these stress. Is it family related? Is it about your Job? A debt problem perhaps. After determining the root of your stress, think of ways how you can eliminate this to change the situation. Fix that family problem, get a new job or hold a garage sale. There’s always a solution to any problem, the key is to not give up until you find that solution
3. Take time to smell the roses. Living in a fast paced routine can build up stress that is more than you can handle. It wouldnt hurt to take things slow and take control of your life as well as the situations that you’re getting into. There’s no need to rush so take your time and live a little. Learn to be carefree once in a while so that you can appreciate what you have right now instead of always running for what you want.
4. Set aside a “me” time. Add a “me” time in your daily routine wherein for few minutes you forget everything that you worry about. Reflect on how have you changed throughout the years, what goals have
you accomplished so far and what will you do today, next month or this year to further achieve your other
goals.
5. Satisfy your adventurous bone. Do different things once in a while since a daily routine can make you
feel bored. move out of your circle and try new things that can spice up your live.
People will always encounter stressful situation that can make life harder but in a way spice up your daily routine. You should not ignore it rather face it and come up with a solution to eliminate the root of your stress because there’s so many things to do in life than be stressed.
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Managing Your Debt
My first husband went bankrupt. I was lucky, his lawyer would not let him declair bankruptcy without including me. This was the best decision, because I was clear and building wealth within a few years. He married a woman with her own house, and now they are sinking in debt.
One of the first things I did was take Debt Management courses. I took one on budgeting, and one on building wealth/debt management. Until that course I did not know that the two went hand-in-hand.
Most people don’t know that if they get out of debt, they can build wealth. In fact, the average American pays more than $5000 in interest a year on personal loans and credit card debt. That is $50 000 plus interest every 10 years. Or, to put it another way, it cuts more than a decade off the length of your mortgage, which reduces the mortgage interest, and builds more wealth.
There are some ways to stay out of debt. First, is to cut up the credit cards. Second is to pay down debts before saving. The interest on a credit card is higher than the interest on most safe savings and investments. This means that you are actually losing money by trying to save while you owe money on credit cards.
Take the time to learn how to pay down your debts, and build wealth. You’ll be glad you did.
Become Debt Free as Quickly as you Can!
To become debt free as quickly as possible you need to make it a top priority in your life. Debt can cause a great deal of problems that go beyond financial and therefore investing in some form of debt relief and finding an effective way of managing your money is crucial. Sometimes one of the best ways to learn proper money management skills is to visit a professional who is qualified to teach you everything from how to manage household expenses to how to pay off your mortgage without going broke. A money manager is a person who can help get you on a mortgage program and teach you many of the ins and outs of debt free living.
Too much debt can result in the loss of a job, a house, and can even ruin marriages and families. The stress of "getting in too deep" with debt can bring with it health problems such as high blood pressure and the fear of a heart attack or stroke. If the stress of money worries is starting to affect other areas of your life, then it is time to seek out help to become debt free.
What you need to do is to formulate a plan. Think of it as your own unique debt program. You need to control your debt and not let it control you. To do this you need to devise a budget that you can live with and one that is within your reach. If you can do this on your own then great, if not then you will need to seek out a money manager. Talk to family members and friends and get referrals.
Sit down and carefully review all of your options in regards to budgeting and then be strict with yourself when you draw up a weekly or monthly budget. Show flexibility while still making it possible to pay your mortgage in a timely fashion. Figure out what your monthly bills are as well as what your monthly expenses are and then take it from there.
Once you have managed to find effective methods of cutting back your expenses in your daily life, then you will need to find ways to decrease your bigger debts, such as your mortgage. This puts you on the debt free path. Resolve in your own mind not to create any new debts for yourself. If you want to buy something such as a new television or a new coat, set aside money each pay day for the purchase instead of being hasty and charging it on your credit card. Remember that credit cards are meant to be paid in full every month. They are supposed to be used in place of cash at the moment. Never charge an item that you know it will take months to pay off. The high interest rates will put a dent in your quest to be debt free with no mortgage. You must work every day to lower the amount of debts you have. Work diligently to stay within the budget you have devised for yourself. Progress does not come in leaps and bounds but often in small steps.
Learn to be thrifty. Learn money saving tips and put them to work in your life. Find ways to cut expenses wherever you can. All of these things will pay off in the end if it is your goal to become debt free. Don't be too harsh with yourself but do exercise discipline and self control. You can become the power behind your finances. Believe in yourself, work towards your goal and make it happen for yourself!
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Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Debt Can Ruin Your Health
The adverse effects of debt on both health and relationships are well documented. The newspapers are filled with horror stories. People who do not know their spouse has borrowed tens-of-thousands of dollars, in secret. The one spouse rarely knows of the debt until the debt collectors start to call. Then, it is too late.
Or, the woman finds their husband ran up unmanageable debts when her divorce lawyer tells her that she won’t be splitting the family debts, instead they will be sharing thousands of dollars in debts. In some cases, the only option appears to be bankruptcy.
Even if your household is not sinking in debt, the stress of carrying the debt can cause serious health problems, especially heart problems.
We had this happen in our house. My husband had 2 hidden credit cards and built up $5000 of debt without telling me. This wasn’t bad, except that he had dipped into the business overdraft for another $10 000. What upset me was the ‘total lack’ of remorse or even ‘ownership’ of the debt or the problem. His attitude was ‘well – so, fix it.’ This led to a few arguments in our house.
I looked into different methods of debt repayment. First, I considered a second mortgage. This would have only increased my mortgage payments a few dollars a month, but in the long run, would have turned the debt into $42 000. Then, I considered a 5 year personal loan. This was more cost affordable, but I did a budget and realized I can pay the debt off in 2 years, saving money, and getting the ‘debt load’ from over our heads much sooner.
We chose a credit card consolidation loan, for 2 years, and a promise that my husband will never get a credit card again.
How To Deal With The Stress Of Debt
In all the technical discussion you hear about credit card debt, the best ways to manage it and pay it off and all the rest, one thing goes largely ignored. Credit card debt is extremely stressful, and can have a very negative effect on your life, if you let it. It's as bad as an addiction, always hanging over you, bringing you down, making it hard to life your life the way you want to. In this article, we'll take a look at how you can recognize debt stress, and what you can do about it.
The Symptoms of Debt Stress.
There are an awful lot of symptoms that can be caused by stress. Some of the most common ones are: headaches, not being able to sleep, feeling depressed and irritable, and being forgetful and unable to concentrate on what you're doing. If you're not sure whether your symptoms are related to stress or something else, you should go and see a doctor.
Who Gets It?
Almost everyone who has debts is stressed about them. Debt is blamed for millions of days off work every year, and is one of the leading causes of suicide - it seems like most times you read about someone who has committed suicide, their name is followed by "who owed [a very large amount] in debts". Students and graduates are especially vulnerable, as debt is growing amongst them faster than in any other group.
The average adult owes many thousands in debts - and since that's the average, it means that many people must owe much more. Never forget that you're not alone, and there's always someone worse off than you.
How to Deal With It.
Stress caused by debts is often considered to be embarrassing, or shameful. People with lots of debts don't want to talk about it, even with their family, for fear of upsetting people or looking like a failure. It is very important, though, that you do talk about your problems, as keeping it all inside yourself will make you much, much more stressed. It is especially important that you talk to your partner - they are the number one person who can support you.
The best thing to do then is to find two people: one who can advise you, and one who can be a counselor. That means a professional who knows what they're doing in financial matters, as well as a psychologist or psychiatrist, or some other kind of counselor. Don't let stigmas put you off - this is about your health.
The next thing to do is to have a good think about how you got that debt to begin with. See if you can find old credit card statements. What did you spend the money on? You need to sit down, work out a budget, cut unnecessary expenses and try to free up as much money as you can to pay back debts. Even if it'll be a long time before you get everything paid off, knowing that your debt is gradually going downwards can be an excellent cure for debt stress.
Gregg Hall is a business consultant and author for many online and offline businesses and lives in Navarre Florida. Get advice and counseling on http://www.monsterdebtrelief.com
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Dealing with The Stress of Debt!
As the Christmas period comes to an end and the New Year begins many people suddenly find themselves faced with the Credit card bill from hell! It seemed so easy to "spend, spend, spend" when out buying all the wonderful presents for your loved ones. Nowadays we are bombarded on every side by advertising for yet another Credit Card and it can be so easy to sign the pre-filled application forms that come through our letter boxes!
It seems at times as if the whole world is getting ever deeper into debt and the statistics make frightening reading don't they. However, In all the technical discussion you hear about credit card debt, the best ways to manage it; how to pay it off and all the rest there seems to be one thing which goes largely ignored. Namely, how to cope with the stress that Credit Card Debt can cause!
Credit card debt can be extremely stressful, and it can have an extremely negative effect on your life, if you allow it to. We have all read in the press how people can become addicted to shopping. Alongside that Credit Card usage and the consequent debt can become as bad as an addiction, always hanging over you, bringing you down, making it hard to life your life the way you want to. In this article, we'll take a look at how you can recognise debt stress, and what you can do about it. Did you notice the key phrase I used about how it can have a negative effect "if you allow it to" and that is something that we need to recognise straight away. If it has a negative effect it is because we allow it to.
There are many symptoms which are caused by stress. These can include: headaches, not being able to sleep, feeling depressed and irritable, being forgetful and being unable to concentrate on what you are doing. If are uncertain whether your symptoms are related to stress or to something else, then you should go and see a doctor.
Almost without exception everyone who has mounting debts becomes stressed about them. Debt said to be responsible for millions of days of lost work every year and is one of the leading causes of suicide. Often when we read about someone who has felt driven to commit suicide, their name is followed by "who owed [a very large amount] in debts".
In today's world there is no escaping the fact that the average adult in the western world owes many thousands in debts. When you think that the average person owes thousands then it follows that there are many people who must owe much more. It's an old saying and one that my Grandmother was very fond of! There's always someone worse off than you. It is certainly true and in effect means that you are not alone in how you are feeling if you find yourself with what you perceive as a mountain of debt.
So how should you deal with the stress caused by debts?
Stress caused by debts is often considered to be embarrassing, or shameful to some extent almost more so than the debts themselves. People with lots of debts don't want to talk about it, even with their family, for fear of upsetting people or being perceived to be a failure.
However, the truth is that it is very important that you do talk about your problems Keeping it all inside you will make you feel much, much more stressed. It is especially important that you talk to your partner. As much as you may want to protect them from your problems they are the number one person who can support you. Experience has shown that partners are more devastated by having the truth withheld from them than by being told the extent of the problem.
The best thing to do then is to find two people: one of them who can advise you, and one who can be a counsellor. That means a professional who knows what they're doing in financial matters, as well as a psychologist or psychiatrist, or some other kind of counsellor. Don't let stigmas put you off because this is about your health and your sanity.
The next thing to do is to think about how you got that debt to begin with. See if you can find old credit card statements. What did you spend the money on? What do you not need? You need to sit down, work out a budget, cut unnecessary expenses and try to free up as much money as you can to pay back debts. Even if it'll be a long time before you get everything paid off, knowing that your debt is gradually going downwards can be an excellent cure for debt stress.
Paul Duxbury a successful online entrepreneur and a former Banker addresses the problems of Credit Card debts at his new site http://www.sort-your-finances.com
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Completing What You HAVEN'T Started
If your life's not quite the way you want it, there might be a surprising hidden factor that's inhibiting your efforts. The problem may not be what you're doing, but the things you leave alone.
You see, your inner mind knows all you do - and DON'T do. The picture that it gives you of who you are and what you can achieve - your self-image - is made up of lots of influences, but two of the most important are the things it sees you doing, and the things you know you SHOULD do... but you don't.
These things are sometimes known as incompletes. They can include all sorts of things, from projects you've begun and never finished and bills you've not yet paid to cluttered desks or bedrooms and all the things you look for good excuses not to start.
Some of them are big, important things and some of them are trivial. Even if they're all very minor, they can snowball into a whole lot of inner criticism.
You can suppress it so your conscious mind won't think about it, but that won't impress your inner mind one bit.
In fact, because your inner mind is so determined that it's going to help you get the things you want, and knows that this is something that you need to do before that's going to happen, blocking the subject from your conscious mind can make your inner mind try all the harder to bring it back to your attention.
What kind of incompletes might cause you difficulties? The list is just as individual as you are. Basically, it comprises anything at all that makes you feel, at any level whatsoever, uncomfortable that you haven't done it yet.
From filing your taxes to washing the car, from changing your career to finding just the right gift for your mother's birthday, every single task you don't control's controlling YOU.
The good news is, to put this right is EASY. Incompletes stop being incomplete as soon as you start taking action on them. The moment you take charge of them you turn them into projects that you're working on.
For example, that neglected patch of ground outside your window is now a garden you're re-shaping, and a debt becomes a managed loan as soon as you start paying by instalments.
As long as you keep taking action that's appropriate, your inner mind will send you signals of approval that transform your self-esteem. The feeling of relief and fresh creative energy this brings you has to be experienced to be believed.
To control all your new projects it's a good idea to use an organizer. It can be paper-based or electronic - even an A4 file with some dividers will do fine.
The important thing's to keep the information in one place where you can review it every week to check your progress. If you don't, your new projects will just drift back to being incompletes again.
For each one, plan the steps you need to take to finish it. You can find lots of no-cost brainstorming and mindmap software through an online search that makes this easy (and a lot of fun!).
Give each step a deadline that you can achieve. For many people, choosing deadlines is the hardest part - you can't always tell how long a step is going to take until you take it.
It helps to break each step down into the very smallest action you can take on it, like making a phone call, getting some more organizer stationery, etc. If you can put a realistic time-scale on your smallest actions, you'll find your target dates have largely set themselves.
You can always change a deadline if you need to, just as long as you're making a real effort to complete the task. If not, it doesn't matter what excuses that you give your conscious mind - your inner mind's not fooled.
Once a week, review your progress. If you need more steps, or see new ways, to get a project finished, or you become aware of new things turning into incompletes, you can adjust your planning to make room for them.
When you've finished you
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Thursday, January 10, 2008
Changing Debt World
Today's debt management culture is so different than ours. Our mortgage is just about paid off. We do not owe on a car. But we do have credit cards. My son is in high school, and he is already being inundated with a 'have it now' attitude. I am just glad that we are not in the UK where the banks give credit cards to students free, without seeing if they have a job, because 'legally' it will be the parent's responsibility to repay the loan even if they didn't know about it.
You can even get advances on life insurance premiums, release equity from your home, and receive cash advances. I worked one place where everyone was issued their check 2 days before payday so there was no 'rush' on Friday night. Of course, everyone ran out and got a Cash Advance.
There is a cost, as much as 20% of the check, depending on the service used. I think that a cash advance is an excellent idea. There are times when I have run out of money - and face it - you will lose the same amount of money if you use a credit card.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Stress and Debt: Is Credit Too Easy?
I found a website that offered 'on line' applications for payday loans from $100 - $1500. It let the user pick payment terms, amount, and even interest rates. It started me on the topic of credit.
Our parents dreamed of being out of debt by the time they retired. Most of our generation will be looking for ways to lower their monthly payments and interest rates. The stress of carrying debt is taking its toll on our health and our mental well being.
Faxless Payday Loans may not be the answer for everyone. But, we are so use to free and easy to obtain credit that it makes me wonder if we should fight the system - or learn how to benefit from it. Last year the USA had 70 banks close because of high debt loads. However, the UK is thriving under their debt mountain. They obviously learned something we haven't about carrying debt.
I am not sure if we will be out of debt when we retire, but I do hope that we will be able to manage the debt we do have without missing payments and struggling to make ends meet.
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Labels: Debt, Natural Remedies, Skin Care, Stress