Archive for category How to Discover Your Dreams

Student Loans: Just Don’t Do It

Photograph of front facade, Austin Hall, Harva...
Image via Wikipedia

I was listening to Dave Ramsey the other day talking about student loans. In the last year I have personally had my eyes opened about student loans and I’ll tell you why.

I used to think the IRS were tough, mean, not my friend… until I started learning about the people behind the student loan programs.

The IRS might take your money but the student loan officials suck out your soul.

There’s really no negotiating with them. Your spouse could be dying, you could be going blind, and your dog could have lost three legs and they would still demand their money. Even if you qualify for a forbearance it can take three years. Yeah, send the notice to my cardboard box under the viaduct by that time.

Remember, you cannot Read the rest of this entry »

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Budgeting For Success: Getting Out of Debt, Building Your Dream

Budgeting is an evil word for most of us.

337/365: The Big Money
Image by DavidDMuir via Flickr

It renders images of deprivation, of telling ourselves we “can’t have that,” “we can’t do this,” “we can’t afford that.”

Listen to the inner messages those statements are making: “we’re poor, we’re a loser, we’re broke, we failed, life is filled with doom and gloom, do not pass go, do not collect $200…”

How long will it be before we’re back at the mall or going out to eat to rub healing salve on these

harmful statements?

I recently read a favorite blog of mine and the readers were talking about setting a strict budget and sticking to it. I was afraid I was going to get my knuckles rapped.

We all know that for most of us that just won’t work.

So, what do we do? Read the rest of this entry »

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How One Guy Made It Big Doing What He Loves

This is the beginning of another series. It is all about real people who have, for one reason or another, changed their lives by doing what they love. And come out doing okay. Some doing very, very okay.

Meet Glen Halliday of Kids Crooked House (You may have seen some of his great work on Jon & Kate Plus Eight)

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How long have you been doing this?

If the question refers to being an entrepreneur, I’d say my entire life. Raking leaves, shoveling a walkway for $1.00 were all jobs I started when I was 9 years old. I was always my dream to be my own boss. Later in life, after getting a degree in visual communications (a fancy name for a graphic designer), I would freelance for various companies under the name “Glen Halliday Design” designing logos, collateral, websites, and so on. My current company, Kids Crooked House,  is a great mix of everything I love. I get to be very creative, work with my hands and build, but also surround myself with people I enjoy working with.

How did you get the idea to do it?

Like most success stories, Kids Crooked House happened Read the rest of this entry »

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Don’t Let Money Problems Destroy Your Relationship

A couple in the dark
Image by Carlo Nicora via Flickr

The number one cause of divorce in the US is financial stress. If you’re fighting constantly about money and debt try some of these activities to calm the waters.

1. Identify the problems. State what you need. Constantly screaming at each other the same thing over and over will not help. Use “I” statements to tell your partner the BARE MINIMUM that you need from them just for the next week.

  • I need us to stay in this week, not eat out, not go partying, and not go to the mall.
  • I need us to sit down together and balance the checkbook and pay bills.
  • I need us to cut up all credit cards but one, leave one to freeze in a metal can (can’t be microwaved).
  • I need both of us to take our lunches, not just me.

Agree that you will compromise JUST FOR Read the rest of this entry »

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What Can This Couple Do? They’re in Quicksand and Sinking Fast

I was reading GetOutofDebt.org when I came across this couple’s sad situation:

I hope you can help me decide. My husband and I both work for a consturction company that has no work. They have not laid us off yet, but have cut our hours to 32 per week.

I have not been able to get a nights sleep for worring how we are going to keep up with the credit card payments.

Steve went through their options with them, the most logical being bankruptcy. Steve is a smart guy and I would tend to agree with him. These people need a break.

(As a side note, if you are thinking about debt consolidation or settlement this is a good section to read.)

Now I want to talk about another aspect that is going on with this family.

door to heavenOne door is closing on them and you know what they say, one door closes and another opensThis couple has a fantastic opportunity to re-engineer their lives and create a life they really, really want.

When we’re in the midst of a major stressor we rarely Read the rest of this entry »

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