by tomasz on July 2, 2009
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
You go to church and have a great faith and that is perfectly fine for you, it may not work for everyone. I am simply going to state my own view here from what I experienced in my life.
So when you go to church each Sunday, and you donate money to them. Isn’t that essentially payment for a service which would be a place in heaven? I mean you are not doing it to make yourself feel good? If you were then from a financial standpoint, that is a lousy financial decision. If you are doing it to not look bad, that is even worse.
So really why do we do it?
Does religion make you better with money?
The price of faith
by tomasz on July 1, 2009
Ever since I started budgeting in March, my main struggle has been seeing a clear view of my finances. That is I was never accurate because I did account for the extra money I brought over from the previous month. So this month I am developing a new system to better manage that along with see where my money goes so I can be more in control and save 50% of my income.
Before I start, my budget is divided bi weekly which works for my pay structure from work. On top of that I have two columns, one for projections, so I know how much I can or can’t spend. The next column is for actual numbers which are actualy expenses I incurred, and from that I can compare the two.
Here is the basic structure:
Add: Cash (from previous month)
This would be any money left over in your account or in your wallet.
Income sources
Add up all your income sources
Expenses
I divided my expenses into Variable and Fixed
Variable expenses
All expenses that fluctuate each month such as gas, eating out and any other personal things.
Fixed expenses
Any expenses that are the same each month such as rent, insurance, internet and groceries.
Totals
I have separate totals for both categories plus a grand total.
At the end I get a figure of how much I have left over.
Savings
Ideally, I would have used savings right after Income but since this is a new system I am trying out, I am leaving savings until the end. This way it will allow me to focus more on where my money is going and cutting back where needed.
Do you use anything similar to this? Got any tips?
Could you live without debt
Why do I need credit at all?
First 3 steps to financial freedom
Breaking bad financial habits
by tomasz on June 30, 2009
This post has been inspired by Studenomics and his article about short sighed financial decisions.
I wrote before how cutting up your credit cards just doesn’t work and does not solve the problem. Credit cards are great tools if used properly. Same with how most of us use Internet as a distraction and become addicted to it.
Credit history
Anyways, by cutting up your credit card not only are you affecting your credit score by not using it. What this means is that by using the card, you build your credit history which may be good or bad but if you don’t use it at all, you have no history.
You do need a credit history when you want a loan for a car, rent an apartment or get a mortgage.
The truth
Well simply put that you are struggling with debt most likely because of some personal issues you have.
- Filling a void by buying stuff
- Living a luxurious lifestyle with credit because theres no other way to achieve it
- Buying stuff thinking that you will strike it rich
Who is more evil?
We all are evil one way or another because we want to skip some steps and get right into the good times without going through the hard times. But when we do hit the hard times most of us just fall deeper and deeper into it.
Is it perhaps that we have no discipline and drive? Maybe. How about our mentality, maybe we think things will come easy because of all the hype going around about financial independence that we live up in the clouds. Then one day, when reality hits, we are struck down to the ground.
Credit cards are not evil, they are like a two edged sword. Sure you can say that they were designed to get people in debt and become slaves but no one forced you to sign up for one. In the end it is business so they will obviously use various techniques to convince you it is the right product to have.
In the end we should all be responsible instead of pointing fingers. As one wise friend told me:
When something goes wrong, stand in front of the mirror and ask yourself “what did I do wrong, what could I have done different?”
Verdict
Who is more evil? I would say we are all more evil than the credit card. What is your view?
Powerful ways to improve your life
How to get unstuck
39 ways to live
The 10-10-10 rule of spending
Loading ...