For over 40 years, Bob Proctor has focused his work and teachings on helping people use the power of their mind to achieve lives of prosperity, rewarding relationships and spiritual awareness. In his new program “6 Minutes To Success“, he provides a daily dose of inspiration and positive affirmations to help you achieve your financial goals. Here are a few useful snippets from his teachings on achieving your financial goals:
Planning for retirement can seem a bit complicated with 401Ks, allocations, investments, taxes and other confusing terms and concepts. Saving money, though, is a concept that anyone can understand, and that is the bedrock for retirement planning. The good news is that it is never to late (or too early) to start planning. Read on for some tips on how to start.
To reduce credit card debt completely avoid eating out for three months and apply the extra cash to your debt. This includes fast food and morning coffee runs. You will be surprised at how much money you can save by taking a packed lunch to work with you everyday.
Spend less than you make. This may sound over-simplified, but the sad truth is that many families struggle with spending at or below their means. It’s usually easier to cut your spending than it is to get a raise or new higher-paying job. Try shaving off a little bit in a variety of areas, so you and your family will not feel any pain with your new spending plan.
Take a second look at dealer financing with a very low APR. While it may seem like a good idea to save on interest charges, the term of these loans is often a very short 36 months. This means the payment will be very high. If you lose your job or encounter financial difficulties, this increases the chance that the car will be repossessed.
If you are engaged to be married, consider protecting your finances and your credit with a prenup. Prenuptial agreements settle property disputes in advance, should your happily-ever-after not go so well. If you have older children from a previous marriage, a prenuptial agreement can also help confirm their right to your assets.
Don’t throw out all of your old tissue boxes – turn them into something useful again. For example, you can keep your old tissue boxes and keep your grocery bags inside. The box makes a useful dispenser, while keeping your grocery bag clutter at bay. Place your grocery bag filled tissue box under the kitchen sink for ease of use.
When you are preparing your budget, categorize your expenses by their priorities. For example, necessities would include housing, food, utilities, and childcare needs. The lesser priority would go to entertainment, vacation, and non-urgent home improvements. This will give you a clearer picture to see what bills you need to pay first and how much is left for the other items.
When thinking about how to make the most out of your personal finances, consider carefully the pros and cons of taking out stocks. This is because, while it’s well known that, in the long run, stocks have historically beaten all other investments, they are risky in the short term as they fluctuate a lot. If you’re likely to be in a situation where you need to get access to money fast, stocks may not be your best option.
Set up an automatic overdraft payment to your checking account from a savings account or line of credit. Many credit unions and banks do not charge for this service, but even if it costs a little it still beats bouncing a check or having an electronic payment returned if you lose track of your balance.
Thrift shopping and consignment shopping have become more popular in the current economy. Try buying your clothes, home decor, and kitchen items second hand. You can save a lot of money on the things you have to buy anyway that you can then put towards your savings or retirement accounts.
If someone wants to buy something but it is too expensive for them to get right away they may be able to involve their whole family. If it is something that everyone could use and benefit from such as a third television one can convince their whole family to pool their money to purchase the item.
You should never risk more money on a trade than you can safely afford to lose. This means that if you lose any money it should not have the potential to destroy you financially. You have to make sure to protect any equity that you might have.
Keep up with highly important documents like birth and death certificates, previous tax records, insurance policies, and wills by using a scanner to scan them to your computer system. Next, burn the images onto a single CD-R disc that can be easily accessed for your reference. This makes it more convenient to track down critical information in a snap.
Never co-sign on a loan for someone unless you are prepared to ungrudgingly pay for that loan yourself. Agreements like this don’t end well sometimes, and should the other person default on the loan, you will be responsible for its entirety. It could damage a relationship with a friend or family member too.
If a person is always ending up with single dollar bills left in their pants pockets from getting change they can use them in a fun way to possibly increase ones personal finances. If one uses the left over dollar bills for scratch off lottery tickets they stand a chance to win much more than they spent.
Make sure to keep track of every single expense when you write a check or use a debit card. Keeping track of what’s in your bank account can help, as sometimes a payment can be taken out and it won’t be reflected in your bank account until much later. Keep track of your finances and avoid those pesky overdraft fees!
Before you sign any loan, always talk to someone that knows about loans and lending. You can check with a lawyer or someone else you trust so they can look over all of the paperwork. It is best to know what you are signing so you can avoid surprises.
To keep your personal finances solid, budget for all your necessities and savings, pay to them first, and only use what is left over for wants or perks. This should be done every week to ensure that you stay on top of your bills and build up your savings instead of spending everything that is left over and having nothing in case of an emergency.
Use these tips as guidelines for keeping your finances running smoothly. Once you have your finances worked out, you can breathe more easily and begin to truly enjoy life. Make sure that your financial life is worked out and you can make the most of the days yet to come.