Auteur/autrice : HasenChat Musique France

Working From Home Opportunity

Working from home is a great way to make a lot of money and attain the financial freedom you desire. No longer will you have to worry about debt collectors. No longer will you have to worry about going paycheck to paycheck, or being unable to pay your bills. All you need is an internet marketing site to get all the money you could want.

However as nice as that all sounds, it will not just happen overnight. Starting an online business means you are starting a business, it will require a lot of time and work to get it up and off the ground. Getting it running is the hard part, once it is going it is fairly easy to maintain.

So to get to that point, there are several tips to help you in building up your internet business.

1. Set up a schedule. While we like to think that an internet business will provide us freedom to work whenever we want, we really shouldn’t. Some people have the discipline to work whenever they feel like it. However most of us do not, so setting up a schedule and deciding when we will work is important. By deciding when we will work we can plan our day around that and more easily get into it. As well it will help build a habit.

2. Find a work area. When working on your internet marketing site it is important to have the right atmosphere and mindset. Finding a nice quiet place in your home where you can get to work allows you to filter out distractions and concentrate on the tasks at hand. As well, by having a specific area for working it can help get you in the right mood, knowing that when you are there it is work time.

3. Necessary tools. There are a lot of software out there to help you in building up and managing your business. Downloading these and making use of them is a great way to help you out and make your job a little easier. Automating wherever possible is a good idea, so if you can do it, then do it and save yourself the hassle of doing it yourself.

4. Connect with others. With the vastness of the internet, you are not alone in your niche. There are others out there who are getting their own businesses off the ground, and those who have already succeeded. Connecting with these people allows you to bounce ideas off your peers, ask for help from those who have already succeeded, and to give help when you can.

5. Maintain your health. This may seem out of place when dealing with your internet marketing site but you have to remember that unlike a conventional business, you have nobody else to rely on. Taking a sick day from work does not hurt anything because there are others there to pick up the slack, but with your internet business you are alone, so if you become sick or injured it can greatly effect your business.

Realistically Gain Financial Freedom

Working on the internet is a way for people to realistically gain the financial freedom they have sought after. The ability to use your computer to access the ever expanding internet community and offer your product to potentially millions of people allows for you to get the most out of your work.

As well, when working with internet marketing servics you can set up your business with virtually no cost and can get it moving with only minor effort. That being said, there are some tips to help maximize your time working on the internet.

1. Set work hours. One of the perks of working from home is that you can set your own hours, however some people take this a bit too far, working on a whim. And while that can work for some people, most require a little more rigid structure to help them stay focused. As such setting up a specific time for when you will work each day is important. That way you know when you will be working and can plan your day accordingly.

2. A designated work or office space. Having a set location where you can sit down and do your work is important for your productivity. Depending on your situation at home, such as having a family, it can be easy to get distracted if you try working in a high traffic area of the house. But even without that, it is a mind game. You want a set location where you can work on your internet marketing servics. That way when you enter that area, you know it is time to work.

3. Necessary tools. Working on the internet can mitigate most of the actual physical tools needed, most of the time only being the actual computer itself. However there are a lot of software programs out there that are designed to help you with your work, and using these can be a great way to boost your productivity and in some circumstances may be required, ensuring you have these tools before you get to work is important.

4. Do not hesitate to ask for help. The internet is a big place and regardless of your niche, there are others out there working on the same thing. Do not hesitate to make contact with these people, ask questions, get help. It is advised that you join a forum for your niche where people share ideas and help one another out when needed.

5. Maintain your health. The most important part of internet marketing servics is making sure you remain in tip top shape. You are the driving force behind your business so if something happens to you, your business suffers. This coupled with the fact that you will be spending a lot of time stuck in a chair in front of your computer means it is easy to lose track of yourself.

Make sure to take breaks as needed and do not overwork yourself. Sitting in front of your monitor all day ever day does not do you any good, so try to get some exercise and do not let your work interfere with your health.

Be One Who Makes The Money

So many people are turning towards the internet when looking for alternative means of making money. When it comes to make a substantial amount of cash and really changing up just how much money you get each month, the only real choice is online. Starting your own online business is probably the best bet when it comes to making a lot of money.

However, even though it is a great method for making money only a few people actually do it. Why do you think this is? It is not because there is a lack of internet marketing guide and other information. Nor because it does not make money. The reason so few people succeed is because most people give up.

The sad reality is, the internet will not just print out money for you. Nor will it make you money overnight. It requires a lot of time and effort to be put in and you will likely not see a penny for months. This discourages most people and causes them to give up. The few that actually make money online are those who stuck with it.

If you want to stick with it as well and make money, then there are several tips you should keep in mind when working on your business.

1. Have specified work hours. The first thing you will see in an internet marketing guide is that you need to have structure. Very few people are able to work totally free, we all procrastinate and put things off. So relying on only yourself to get to work can be a bit problematic.

If you are able to do it then power to you, but personally I need a little more structure in my work. So setting up a specific time each day that you will work will help you form a habit and actually do the work.

2. Find a work area. Somewhere in your house, find a nice quiet spot that can be your designated work space. Whether a full fledged office or merely a corner in a quiet room. You need an area where you can go « it’s time for work » and buckle down without distractions getting in your way.

3. Have the necessary tools. There are a lot of tools out there in the form of software programs that can help you when building and promoting your business. These programs come in a wide variety and perform a variety of functions, so making use of them can help take some of the burden off you.

4. Talk with people. This is another thing you will find in most internet marketing guide. Go to social networking sites and forums that revolve around your niche. Talk with those who work in your niche and ask for help when needed. By communicating with others you not only get help, but you can also get new ideas for things to try, as well you might even be able to help others. After all, just because you are in the same niche does not mean you all learned the same things.

Can Out Way The Benefits

Money is a very important aspect of modern society. Without it you can suffer a lot of stress from being unable to pay your bills or provide for your family. They say money can’t buy happiness and that is true. But in a way it is also wrong. Money can not buy you love or friendship, sure, but it can buy you peace of mind. It can give you security for your future and even allow you to live a healthier life as you can afford medical expenses and health care.

As well it can allow you to do the things you want to do in life. Buy the things you want to buy, go to the places you want to go. So while it can not buy happiness, it sure doesn’t hurt. This is why people are turning to the internet to find ways of making even more money.

Starting your own online business is rather simple and inexpensive. The internet marketing cost involved is virtually nothing, which makes it accessible to basically anyone with a computer. To succeed in building your business, there are several tips that can help you out.

1. Make a schedule. Having set hours when you will work is important. Few people are capable of working on a whim and actually working, most of the time we will procrastinate. So to prevent this set yourself a structured schedule for when you will work. This will also allow you to get into the habit of working at those times, which will make it even easier to actually buckle down and get going.

2. Find a work area. Find someplace in your home that you can turn into your work space. It can be a full office or just some small nook in a quiet room. When working on your website and dealing with the internet marketing cost you do not want to get distracted. By having a specified location for your work it can help you filter out distractions. As well it can help get you in the right mindset as you associate that area with work, so when you sit down at your desk you know it is time to get moving.

3. Use the necessary tools. The internet is full of software programs designed to help you with your business. They come in a wide variety of functions. They can help you build up your business and, once it is up and running, can help you maintain it and keep it going with minimal effort.

4. Make contact with your peers. Even though you are working your business and dealing with the internet marketing cost alone, you are not quite as alone as you might thing. There are plenty of other people out there who are working their businesses the same as you, and there are those who have already succeeded. Connecting with these people can allow you to bounce ideas back and forth, as well as ask for help if you need it. You can even give help if you happen to know the answer to someones question.

If you want to include a squeeze page to your website or blog to help you build a big list of active subscribers, you may be in the market for a free squeeze page. If so, keep reading so you know what you should be looking for.

There are many places where you can get a free squeeze page template. Usually these will require some simple to do editing to make them unique to your niche and your offer.

In order to edit some of these templates you may want to download a free HTML editor. These are easy to use, they are basically like a word processor and you can quickly and easily make whatever changes you want with an easy to use « What You See Is What You Get » format.

That is the easy part, the slightly more challenging part will be to design a squeeze page that helps your visitors do what you want them to do which is sign up to your list.

The design of your squeeze page is not the only thing that will encourage your visitors to sign up. You will also need a quality freebie to offer them.

I know, the words « quality » and « freebie » don’t seem to go together, but they can. You see as an enticement to get them to sign up one tried and true method is to offer your visitor a report or ebook.

What should this report or ebook be about? That is easy; find some sort of common challenge or problem associated with your niche and write a report that offers an easy solution to that problem.

Provide some real, helpful information and people will be much more likely to sign up because they will really want that help.

Once you have your freebie put together, you can start building your squeeze page.

There are some elements you will want to include:

1. A strong headline that underscores the benefits of your freebie.

2. Some bullet points that go into a little more detail about the benefits of your freebie without giving too much away. After all, if you give them all the information, they won’t need to sign up to receive the free report.

3. An optin box (this can easily be gotten directly from your auto responder service) with a strong call to action and a strong anti spam warning.

A call to action is the part of your optin form that tells them what to do: sign up now to get your free report.

Make your call to action strong. Don’t assume people will know what they are supposed to do. For the most part, people don’t like to have to make decisions so you want to design your squeeze page so that you guide your visitor to the desired action.

Finding a free squeeze page online is not the problem. Editing the squeeze page is not the problem. The real challenge comes when creating your freebie and knowing just what elements to include in your squeeze page. Though, that isn’t a challenge anymore now since you’ve read this article!

Setting up a website can be a great way of attaining the financial freedom you want in life. However even once it is set up you need to drive traffic to it and make it known. To do this you need to have a good link building campaign.

Contextual link building is where you get back links to your website. Back links are links from one site to yours. These back links work together with Search Engine Optimization to figure out what page rank your website will have.

There are a lot of things that go into link building, and a lot of newbies tend to dive straight into it and make mistakes. To avoid this outcome, there are some simple tips to help you get started.

1. Quantity. Make sure you get a lot of back links. The more back links you have out there, the more people will see it and the more traffic your website will get. Since there are a lot of competitors out there doing the same thing, you need to out muscle them by getting the most back links you can.

2. Quality. While having a lot of back links is important, making sure those back links are actually worth it is equally as important. All the back links in the world will do you no good if they are bad quality. So making sure the contextual link building you do is worth it is an important step.

3. Get links from high ranked websites. These websites are worth more then a site that is at a lower rank. This is because google’s SEO looks at their success and the fact that they are linking to your website, and determines that your website must have quality content as well, as such it increases your page rank.

4. Avoid no follow links. A lot of links now days have the « no follow » tag to help keep spammers at bay. However these tags also mean that the link is not counted as a back link, so it does not go towards increasing your page rank and is ultimately worthless to you.

5. Focus on relevant links. Even if you have a lot of high quality back links, if they have nothing to do with your niche, they will not count towards your page rank. So you have to ensure you only use back links from websites in a similar niche to yours.

6. Use anchor text. Anchor text is where you include the link in a phrase or word within your post. You can do this with your keywords to further add a little kick to them. This will hold a lot of weight with SEO.

7. Use contextual link building. Contextual back links are similar to anchor text in that you put them within your post. However it also fits in within the context of your post. Google loves unique methods such as this and they will be worth a lot for your page rank. They can be a little hard to fit in properly but are well worth it.

Sometimes life takes unexpected turns. Some of the time these turns are wonderful and sometimes they are painful but the thing to remember is that you can always rebuild and move on after a painful turn in your life. If you’ve experienced such a turn in regards to your home and you’ve lost it, you may be wondering what your next step should be. When it comes to where you will live, will you own again or rent?

This may sound like an easy question to answer, but trying to determine will you own again or rent has to be carefully considered. There are many variables that will make up your decision.

For most people they will probably do both. Most people still want to own their own home. This is probably still the case even if they have had some bad luck and have lost a home to foreclosure.

But the road back to home ownership will take some time, so in the meantime renting is probably the best option.

Unless you have come into a windfall you will need to get a mortgage if you want to buy another home and in most cases so you will need to take some time to work on improving your credit score and saving a down payment.

After the mortgage meltdown that has affected so many people, banks are more strict than ever in terms of what they want to see for a minimum credit rating and a down payment.

During the height of the housing boom you could buy a home with a marginal credit score and no down payment, I seriously doubt that will happen again any time in the near future… if at all.

So, you will need to take the time necessary to prepare yourself for home ownership again. The positive side to all this is that with so many homes in foreclosure and home sales at an all time low, you may be able to find a home where you can rent to own.

Sometimes you will find a home owner that doesn’t need all the money right away. They can hold out and get the monthly payment over a period of several years.

These people will still probably want a credit report and may shy away if your credit is bad, but they may also be more open to listening to your circumstances.

For example, they may cut you some slack if you were one of the people who bought your home with a minimal down payment and you didn’t have any savings to fall back on then lost your job. They may be open to this arrangement especially if you can prove that now you have savings to fall back on in the event of a job loss and you come to the table with a big down payment.

In other words, a private party will still be cautious but they have more flexibility in what they will allow than a bank does. Banks have their rules and guidelines and very little flexibility to stop and consider your exact circumstances. If you don’t fit into their pigeon hole you don’t get a loan.

So, if you have had to deal with the financial set back of losing your home the question of will you own again or rent is one that you must carefully consider. And for many people, doing both will be the best solution.

Some people may think that todays younger generation and their retirement will be difficult.

Today, we have seen the end of most pensions and there is even talk that social security may not even be around when our kids are old enough to retire.

The good news is that todays younger generation and their retirement are more aware that they will need to be responsible for their own retirement.

That means that with a little planning and discipline not only can they be prepared themselves, they won’t be susceptible to the nasty surprises many of the baby boomers have faced such as a loss in pensions and dwindling social security benefits.

Our kids will know that they have to be proactive and an active participant in their own retirement.

If they take that responsibility seriously, they won’t have to worry about their financial future.

It will also make them more likely to be more responsible with their money all during their lives.

In our parents and grandparents generations having debt was unheard of except possibly for a house and maybe a car.

Today, we have gotten away from that dislike of debt. Today, many in our society are routinely over spending and depending on credit just to handle their monthly expenses.

Not only that, but we aren’t saving nearly enough just to help us out of any issues we may encounter.

For many people something as fairly insignificant as a broken appliance can have a devastating impact on their finances.

Hopefully, with our children’s generation, the pendulum will swing back more to the way of our parents and grandparents.

Our kids will be less likely to overspend and expect the government to support them in their old age, and more likely to live within their means and become financially educated.

If you want to help your children get off to a fast financial start, you can start right now by encouraging them to educate themselves financially.

Today, as in most times, there is a great deal of mis information around. Some so called experts will tell you to do things that really aren’t in your best financial interests.

Encouraging your kids to learn basic financial information is one of the best things you can do for them and to help protect them against bad advice.

This information is readily available in books and courses. It is not difficult and a very smart thing to do. And, you and your kids can do it together… you may even learn something too!

Do yourself, and your kids, a favor, don’t let the talking heads and the « experts » scare you or your kids.

It is very possible for your kids to have a great retirement, and a great life for that matter, and you can help them by providing them with an education.

Todays younger generation and their retirement are going to be just fine. They will learn what to do and take control of their present and future financial situation.

Figure It Out Now

There is no question that more people are concerned about their finances than ever before. Perhaps they are in that, and are struggling. Or, maybe they are a part of this segment of the population that is getting older; the baby boomers. Either way, they know the importance of having enough money on hand to have a more sound financial future. What they need to know is the first step to investing.

Investing your money is a smart way to make your money work for you. What you may not know is that you don’t need a lot of money to start investing. You don’t need thousands and thousands of dollars to get your foot in the door. In fact, even a small amount of money say $1000 or less is enough to get started with. What’s important is that you actually get started.

The first step to investing is to determine where you are financially and where you want to be. The best way to do this is to write everything down on paper; that way you have it in front of you in black-and-white. This makes it more factual and there is no second guessing as to where you stand.

You have a few main options when it comes to investing:

1. Do it yourself online. There are a lot of places that will allow you to invest online, with very little money. You will be able to choose exactly what you want to invest in, but the downside is that you will have to manage your portfolio by yourself. This is fine if you have some financial know-how, and understand that investing is for the long-term. You should also check to see what tools they have available to help you with your investments.

2. Do it yourself off-line. This often scares a lot of people, but it’s really not as difficult as it is made out to be. Something as simple as a 401(k) or a Roth IRA are in reality investments. You should still take some time to learn about the basics of investing, and educate yourself on the various options available to you.

3. Hire a professional. This is the traditional way of investing. However, as part of the first step to investing with a professional, you need to check out their qualifications. Don’t just assume that because they are willing to handle your investments that they are qualified to do so. Assuming they checked out, your main decision is whether to pay them up front for their services, as a percentage of what they make for you, or whenever you withdraw your money. A professional can help guide you based on their knowledge.

Regardless of which method of investing you choose, it’s important to get your financial affairs in order; this includes making smart investments. If you think you can handle yourself, then by all means do so; however, if you would be more comfortable using the services of a professional, then that’s the best way to go.

Since it is an election year, we hear a lot about « saving » the middle class. In this article I’m going to present some ideas that may seem a little off base (and they may even make you a little upset) but to survive todays economy in the middle class, we all need a wake up call.

The truth is that no matter how much we want to blame government, rich people, poor people, banks, or whomever for our current problems we should not make the mistake of not accepting our own responsibility in what has happened.

Our parents generation didn’t believe in credit except maybe for bigger ticket items like cars and homes. But today we use credit to buy a cup of coffee for crying out loud (and just so we’re clear, I’m not picking on anyone. All the mistakes I talk about in this article I have made myself… sometimes more than once).

So to survive todays economy in the middle class maybe going back in time a little bit is a good idea. Many of us have gotten caught up in the consumerism of our society. It happens, don’t beat yourself up over it, just learn your lesson and move on.

Sure, consumerism is powered by slick advertising by big companies so they can continue to sell products. But again, we are doing ourselves a huge disservice if we don’t at least own up to our own culpability.

We didn’t have to buy things we couldn’t afford. No one made us do it. Whether we like it or not or want to admit it or not… we did it to ourselves!

I know, the first time I realized that it was hard to swallow. But after I got my head around it I realized that it is actually a good thing (in a way). If I did this to myself it means I can undo it too. I don’t have to rely on anyone else. I don’t need a bailout from a government that can’t afford to bail me out.

I can make changes, it will take time, and get myself and my family on firm financial ground all on my own! That realization is equal parts liberating and terrifying!

So, how do we as individuals dig ourselves out from the mess we helped create? Well, the steps are simple but it won’t be easy. It will take time and discipline and those are things that are current society is not big on.

Here are some simple steps you can take to get a solid financial future:

1. The first thing you must do is get out of debt. Free up as much money as you can in a month even if it’s just $20 or so. Apply that « extra » money to your smallest credit card debt along with your regular payment for that debt.

Eventually, you will get that debt paid off and then you can take everything you were paying on that debt and apply it to your next smallest debt.

If you keep doing that you will eventually be debt free.

2. Once you are debt free you need to establish a savings account. We need to stop thinking of credit cards as our « backup plan ». We should just forget we have them and try not to use them.

For me I had no choice. After a business failure and divorce I filed for bankruptcy. I didn’t have any credit cards so I had to learn how to make my sparse income work for me.

3. When you do eventually have some free money to invest make sure you know what you are doing, take the time to become financially educated. There are tons of books and home study courses that you can use to gain some basic investment knowledge.

Don’t ever just turn your money over to a « professional » and hope for the best.

I truly hope that you have benefited from the information in this article. I meant it with all due respect and I know from personal experience that oftentimes the things we really don’t want to hear are the things we need to hear the most.

Good luck and we can all survive todays economy in the middle class if we are willing to take control of our own financial

Steps To Recover Your Identity

If you have a lost or stolen social security card the process of replacing it is fairly simple: just call your local social security office and they will be glad to tell you what steps you need to take in order to get another card.

But, if you have a stolen social security card the process of undoing all the damage that may have been done by identity thieves is decidedly more difficult and time consuming.

This is the main reason that you should never carry your social security card in your wallet. The truth is, you simply don’t need it for very many things. In most cases, just knowing the number is all you need.

If you do have to take care of something where you will need to actually show your card, put it in your wallet for that one thing and then write yourself a note and leave it where you will see it, that reminds you to take the card back out and put it back in a safe place.

But what is a safe place? Simple, a safe. It can be a safe deposit box or it can be a fireproof, waterproof safe you keep in your home. If you do get one of these kinds, try to bolt it to the floor, if possible, for maximum safety. These types of safes are available at office supply stores and big retailers like Wal-Mart.

I just bought one myself and it was around $20 so it isn’t expensive.

So, now that we’ve covered your social security card, what do you do to protect other documents that may have your social security number on them but that you do need to carry around? What about things like Medicare cards or prescription drug cards that have your number right on them, how do you protect them?

Well, the good news is that more and more companies and even the government are becoming aware that using your social security number as an identifying number for other documents is a dangerous practice and they are starting to do away with it. But, still sometimes some documents do have your social security number on it, so what do you do with them?
One of the things I heard someone do is to make a copy of their identification cards for medicare or insurance. They will make a copy of both sides of the card and then they will either cut out or black out the last 4 digits of their social security number. Then, they will paste the two sides of the card together, or just put both the front and back side of the card on one sheet of paper and carry that with them.

This is an easy, yet effective, solution for protecting your social security number even on documents that you need to carry (as opposed to your social security card which you don’t need to carry).

Until all government agencies and companies totally phase out the use of social security numbers as identification numbers, we need to get creative to protect ourselves from a lost or stolen social security card.

Tips To Help Keep Money In Your Pocket

I know it’s tough going today. Many of us have seen some sort of financial set back due to job loss or job downgrade. Having your income go down when everything else is going up can be frustrating and stressful. One thing you can do is to find ways to save on gas money.

There are many things you can do to save on gas money and in this article I will give you some very basic tips. Things that you can do either on your own or for very little money.

Here are some things you can do to save money on your gas bill:

1. Make sure your car is running properly. Such a simple thing can help you eeek out more miles per gallon and in the end, that will save you money.

Things like replacing dirty filters, keeping the oil changed and clean and making sure your timing is set correctly can help with your overall fuel economy.

2. When you get gas for your car, take a few minutes and check the tire pressure. Having your tires properly inflated is a simple, free thing you can do to save gas.

Not only will you save gas you can also extend the wear of your tires which will save you a lot of money in the long run too.

3. Make lists and plan out all your shopping and errands.

Forgetting something and having to go out multiple times will end up using more gas and costing you more money. Some simple planning can help you cut back.

4. Do you have the type of job that can be done at home? More and more employers are willing to let their employees work from home.

Your employer might not want you to do it all the time, but even one or two days a week spent working from home can save you a lot of excess gas usage.

Don’t be afraid to ask, you will be surprised at how receptive many companies are to this idea now days.

3. Use your computer as much as possible. Today more and more things can be done right online.

If possible, use your computer to order tickets, buy things or pay bills.

The more you can do online, the less you have to drive.

4. Not everyone is in a financial position to buy a new, more energy efficient car, but if you can you may want to consider that as an option.

There are many makes and models that offer better fuel economy. And, if you choose, you can even consider an electric or electric/ gas combination.

These hybrids can get more miles per gallon of gas.

There are many ways you can save on gas money. You know your lifestyle and overall situation better than anyone, why not try to come up with even more ideas of how to cut down on the amount you drive and how much you spend on gas every month?

Could Be The Answer To Your Prayers

There are many rent to own options today, probably because of the bad economy. This is a way to get pretty much anything you would want or need for use around your house. But is it a smart financial move?

I actually had to use one of these rent to own options myself a few years ago. I had just gotten divorced and literally didn’t have any living room furniture – no couch, chairs or tables.

I also didn’t have any credit or cash. So, I decided to give it a try and I got a living room set and a new t.v. But, I knew at the time it wasn’t a good deal, I just didn’t have any choice.

If you aren’t totally familiar with what this is here is a brief explanation about the process:
There are several stores that will allow you to get furniture, appliances and electronics on a payment plan.

It is kind of like a layaway (you pay monthly on your items until they are paid off) but the difference is that instead of the items staying at the store while you pay on them, you get to take them home and use them while you are paying them off.

The pay off time is usually one to two years. Many of these places will give you a lot of latitude in the payment plan and if you have an occasional (I do mean « occasional » and not « monthly ») problem making a payment on time, they are usually pretty good about working with you.

Many of these options will allow you to cancel your contract at any time so if your financial situation changes you can usually get out of your contract. Just notify them and they will come and pick the items up.

It doesn’t matter what your credit rating is either, almost everyone will be approved.

Of course, each store may have slightly different policies so you have to carefully read over all the terms of service and the fine print on the back of the contract before you sign.

All in all, this type of service can be a good way to get new items for your home if you don’t have a good enough credit rating to buy things on credit.

It may sound like a dream come true and you may be wondering, what’s the catch? Well, the catch is that you will overpay for every item you get, that is how the company makes it’s money.

Take Control Of Your Finances

The good news about the current economic meltdown is that it seems people are taking more control over their financial futures. One sign of that is the increased due diligence when looking for someone to invest your money. Finding professionals in retirement planning is the first, and most important, step in your financial planning.

Professionals in retirement planning are everywhere so it can be difficult to decide which one is the best fit for you.

In this article I will provide you with some basic guidelines you can use to determine which professional you should be working with.

Here are some questions you need to have answered before you settle on the person to help guide your financial future:

1. Find out how a professional adviser actually makes their money. There are 3 compensation methods:

Fee only compensation – this is the model that best ensures there is no conflict of interest since your adviser gets paid a set fee rather than a commission, they are being paid for their advise.

Since they don’t rely on commissions for their pay, they won’t feel the pressure to encourage you to buy or sell financial products so they can make more money.

Fee Based: This is kind of a hybrid between fee only and commission. The planner will get a set fee but may also receive some of their compensation through commissions.

They aren’t legally required to tell you how they receive their compensation either.

Commissions: this type of planner is really more of a broker and they only make money when you buy or sell a financial product at their recommendation.

While many of these planners are capable and honest, this type of compensation is open to possible abuses and conflicts of interest.

2. Finding a planner with a fiduciary responsibility. That means that the person you hire is required, by law, to only work in your best interest.

This can help ensure that you are being provided with the best advice for you, rather than the best advice for the individual planner or their company.

Not all financial planners are fiduciaries. Only financial planners that are Registered Financial Advisors (RIA) are held to a fiduciary standard by federal and state law.

Most financial planners are really just brokers/dealers and are not held to the same standard when it comes to looking out for their clients best interest.

As a matter of fact, if you carefully look over any contract you sign, you may just find a few paragraphs that say something to the effect that: « Your account is a brokerage account and not an advisory account. Our interests may not always be the same as yours… »

You may want to think long and hard before you sign on the dotted line for that type of contract.

Your adviser is more likely to advise you based on their needs or the needs of their company than on what is in your best interest.

So, you shouldn’t just find a planner based on the first listing in your local phone book.

Be willing to spend some time and ask some questions so you know the person you are working with truly is concerned with you and not just their own compensation.

There are many well trained and ethical professionals in retirement planning, but they are not all as interested in you and your goals as you may want them to be. Do your due diligence first.

The American dream of owning your own home is still alive and well. Today, many people got burnt for many reasons, but if you want to own your first house and finances that come with it you can avoid the same fate with some planning.

Own your first house and finances that come with it is a phrase you rarely hear and it explains part of the reason people get into trouble with their house payments.

You see people rarely stop to think if they can afford to get a certain home. All they think about is the house payment which will usually include the principle of the loan, the interest of the loan, the homeowners insurance premiums and the property taxes.

But, there are other expenses associated with owning your own home. If you don’t have a budget that can accommodate these other expenses you can find yourself in over your head very quickly.

Most of these extra expenses seem like common sense, and they are, but if you have never had your own home they are things you may overlook when you are putting together your budget to determine how much home you can afford.

Here are just a few of the things you need to take into consideration. Of course, these things must be factored in in addition to your mortgage payment:

1. Maintenance is one of the biggest things people forget about when buying a home. If you are used to living in an apartment you are used to picking up the phone and having someone fix an issue.
You aren’t used to having to pick up the phone and hiring someone to fix the issue. With apartment living you don’t have to pay for these repairs, when you own your own home you do have to pay for them.

Simple, but often overlooked.

2. Another mistake is forgetting that maintenance can be about more than just fixing something when it breaks. It means painting the walls, inside and possibly outside, it means keeping the grass cut and fertilized.

It means keeping the sidewalks and driveway shoveled. In addition to that ongoing maintenance there are also times when things will get old and stop working.

Many of us have had some financial problems at one point or another in our lives. Unfortunately, it takes much more time to fix these issues than it does to create them. If you are one of the millions of people who are having mortgage problems from the past haunt today, there still may be hope.

Our homes are usually the single biggest investment we make and the mortgage loan is usually the hardest type of loan to get for the average consumer.

For that reason, your credit score will be even more important than normal. To overcome mortgage problems from the past haunt today you do have some options but I’ll warn you, you may not like some of them.

The most obvious thing to do is to take the time (it could be several years) to get your credit score back where it needs to be. If you do, you won’t really have to worry about the past.

Most lenders are going to get a current credit report and that is the number they will base their decisions on.

Even if you had some rough times in the past, it shouldn’t be an issue as long as they aren’t evident on your current credit rating.

Another option that may work is to find a mortgage broker. These professionals have multiple lenders that they work with.

That flexibility may make it possible for them to find someone who is willing to loan you the money even if your credit report has some dings on it.

A word of warning though, even if you are able to get a mortgage with so – so credit, it will cost you a lot more. You will pay more in interest on that loan.

Having to pay more in interest can translate into more than just a higher payment. You may find that your monthly payment is higher yet you are getting less house for that payment.

Mortgage brokers will also charge you a premium for their services. Just make sure you take these things into account before you start the process.

It will probably make more financial sense for you to wait until you can improve your credit score but if you simply can’t wait, you may still be able to get a mortgage.

Another thing that can help a lot is having a big down payment. Putting more money down means that the lender is on the hook for a lot less.

That means they are taking on less risk and that makes it more likely that they will lend you the money in the first place.

So even if your credit isn’t that good, having a big down payment may be enough to help you get a loan and possibly even a little bit better rate.

No one is perfect and we all have had situations that we have had to deal with, if those situations have had a negative impact on your credit rating, don’t give up.

With a little time, effort and planning you may be able to work past mortgage problems from the past haunt today.

Even Small Changes Can Add Up

I think one of the biggest money saving tips people overlook is that even small changes can add up quickly. I know I didn’t pay much attention to a few cents savings here or a dollar there. For the most part, unless I could save ten, twenty or more dollars I didn’t bother too much. What a mistake.

For anyone who is living on a really tight budget there probably aren’t many « big things » they can save on. If you aren’t using credit cards to buy new clothes or go out to a movie or take a vacation, you don’t have that much to cut back on in the first place so you have to start small.

In this article I will provide you with some simple money saving tips you can start using today. Not all of them will be appropriate for you and your situation but some may be.

Plus, it may be enough to get you thinking in a more frugal type of mindset. You will probably come up with your own tips!

1. First of all you really need to have an accurate picture of your finances. It sounds weird but many times we don’t. Many times we are living beyond our means and not even fully aware of it.

Another benefit is that when you see your income and expenses all written down in black and white it can be easier to identify patterns and possible changes you can make.

When doing this step just make sure you are accurate. Go back over a few months of bank statements so you include everything – even those things that only get paid every other month or every few months.

Just make a list with two columns, include all of your income in one column and all of your expenses in another. Than subtract your expenses from your income. If you have a positive balance good for you, if you have a negative balance, you have your work cut out for you.

2. Now that you know exactly where you stand financially you can set up your plan of attack. The first place to start is right with your monthly household bills.

If you can find something to cut here, you will likely save quite a bit of money each month. These types of cuts usually generate the biggest savings.

Just go down the list of bills, one by one. Take a look at each one. Can you cut it? Is the bill for a service you can get rid of entirely or at least get a lower monthly payment?

Bills such as cable or satellite may be good places to start. You may have added a few things over the years. A few years ago I wanted to watch a particular show that was on one of those premium networks so I added that network to my cable plan.

The problem was that after the show ended I forgot to cancel that addon even though I didn’t watch that channel at all. Make sure you don’t have any unused « addon’s » on your bills.

Can you save some money on your car insurance? Can you refinance your car loan? Consider changing your grocery shopping habits, maybe you can buy some store brands instead of name brand items.

I did that and found that most of the store brands were just as good but a lot cheaper. There were a few things that I didn’t like so you may have to do some trial and error but you can save a bundle this way.

If you really give it some thought, you should be able to come up with your own money saving tips. After a while, it gets kind of fun to see that extra money start to grow!

If you find yourself asking « Is it possible to have a retirement in todays economy? » the good news is yes, it is. The ability to retire or not, or retire the way you really want to retire is less about the current condition of the economy and more about the state of your personal economy.

You see, many people who have taken care of their finances by saving plenty, keeping a close eye on their investments and living within their means, aren’t being harmed at all by the current state of the economy.

Is it possible to have a retirement in todays economy? Only if you are willing to do your part to make it happen. Of course, the earlier you start your retirement planning the easier it will be.

Not only will you have more time to save you will also have more time to rebound if your plans go astray.

A job loss or an illness can be all it takes to make it necessary for you to have to dig into your retirement savings just to keep afloat. So, the earlier you start the more time you will have to potentially regain this money you have been forced to use for your day to day expenses.

Obviously, I don’t know you or your personal situation so I can’t offer you exact advice in this short article. What I can do, however, is to offer you some broad guidelines that will usually apply to most people.

Also, this article may provide you with a good starting point on getting your financial affairs in order. Here are a few points to keep in mind:

1. If you choose to find a planner to help you get your finances, and your retirement planning, on track, make sure you choose carefully.

Not all planners are created equal. If you want to ensure you get the best possible advice for you (and who wouldn’t) you may want to stick with a RIA planner. These planners are part of a group that ensures that they have a fiduciary standard they have to live up to.

In other words, they are legally bound to only do the things that will help you, by law they must do everything in their power to provide you with the best possible advice.

Now, some of you may be thinking « but don’t all advisers work in my best interest? », well, no, unfortunately that is not the way it works.

You see many so called financial advisers make their money on commissions. These commissions are only generated when you buy or sell a financial product. So, if you don’t buy or sell anything they don’t make any money.

What happens if the market is overheated and there really aren’t any stocks that you should be buying because buying at this time will mean you will overpay? Do you really think a commissioned sales person will tell you to hold off buying if they know that they won’t make any money? Unlikely.

2. Make sure you have at least some basic education on fiances. You have to be a partner in your investment and you can’t do that if you have no idea how it all works.

If you follow these steps you won’t ever have to wonder: « Is it possible to have a retirement in todays economy ». You will be set no matter what the economy does… and won’t that feel amazing!

Increasing your stock market vocabulary can help to increase the profits you make in your stock market dealings. How I hear you ask. Well the simple fact is that any investor with a good stock market vocabulary is someone who has a good grasp of all the various options open to him or her in the market.

Simply by being able to understand the jargon of stock and shares you will feel more knowledgeable. And by having greater knowledge of the marketplace you, like any other investor, will have greater confidence in your investment decision making. Having increased confidence in any activity naturally leads to a better overall performance.

Let us look at an example of how an increased stock market vocabulary can help you gain that greater confidence. Say for example you didn’t understand the language of traded options do you think you would feel safe and confident investing in them? It’s not very likely that you would is it? If you couldn’t understand the difference between a put and a call you would be foolhardy if you placed your hard earned money into an investment using them.

So how can you do increase your investment vocabulary? In exactly the same way you would increase your vocabulary in any other field, by studying it. It just takes patience and commitment. You could get started by buying yourself a specialist stock market dictionary and looking up any word or phrase that you come across which doesn’t make sense to you.

Nowadays there is a new style of stock market dictionary that instead of listing words alphabetically lists entries in related groups. This makes understanding the jargon that much easier. For example if you are new to using technical analysis in your decision making process you could turn to that section to discover the meaning of any phrases you don’t recognize. And with such gems as long legged doji, « rickshaw man », hammers and gravestones just in candlestick charts alone you could probably do with all the help you can get!

A quick word of caution here, if you decide to increase your vocabulary by reading up on different terms online make certain to cross reference your sources. That way you can ensure that the definition you find is correct.

Whichever way you choose to do it you will definitely benefit from increasing your stock market vocabulary.

We all know that identity theft is a big, and growing bigger by the day, problem. It can be a nightmare trying to get everything sorted out and back to the way it was prior to the theft.

To make sure that you never have to go through that particular nightmare, there are many simple things you can do to prevent identity theft. These things are so simple that there is no excuse to not take the few minutes of time to do them on a daily basis.

Why would anyone want to make it easy to be victimized?

Here are some (simple) things to keep in mind:

1. Never carry things in your wallet that shouldn’t be in your wallet. I have a friend who continues to carry her social security card in her wallet. I have told her repeatedly that if her wallet was ever stolen crooks would have one of the most helpful pieces of information they need to steal her identity; her social security number.

So, why does she continue to carry it? I don’t know. Think about it, how often do you even need your social security card? Never, or pretty close to it. You memorize your number and that’s that.

From that point on you put your card in a safe deposit box or a small, lockable lock box at home (preferably one that is permanently mounted to the floor so it is hard to steal) and you leave it there safe and sound.

2. Never carry all your credit cards with you. Unless you are going on one heck of a shopping trip, you don’t need to carry all your cards. Again, if your wallet was lost or stolen the crooks would have a field day with all those cards.

Sure, you may be financially protected but there are two things you may not be taking into consideration: one, it will take time to sort it out and get those bogus charges removed from your card and you have to prove they are bogus (just how are you going to do that?), and two, even if you don’t have to pay for them the credit card company will and don’t be naive, they will pass those costs on to all of us.

Just be more careful – it protects you and all the rest of us. Only carry one card at a time and keep the others locked up safe and sound with your social security card.

3. Shredders can be purchased for around $30 (maybe less). Keep one in your home and shred everything that comes into your house. Unfortunately, crooks aren’t stupid. They can take the most seemingly innocent of information and use it against you. Why not be proactive and keep everything away from them by using a quality cross cut shredder for every piece of mail you throw away?

4. If possible, take your trash out the day of trash pickup. Many crooks will go around on the night before a trash pickup and steal your trash. They will then sort through it looking for any information that will allow them to steal your identity.

Of course, if you use a shredder this will be impossible so you may be able to leave your trash at the curb overnight.

5. And one last point, don’t forget to keep yourself safe online too. This is also an easy target for thieves. Always keep your anti spyware and anti virus software turned on and up to date (don’t think you can rely on the software that came with your computer three years ago either, things change you want to make sure it is updated frequently).

Use strong passwords, stay away from birthdays and other obvious passwords and write the password down someplace safe like that safe where you keep your social security and credit cards.

Never click on a link in an email and then enter personal information into the site that link takes you to. Always contact your bank, utility company or credit card company directly if you get any type of email that says you need to enter personal information.

No company does that, if you get an email like that it is a scammer.

Look, today we know a lot about identity theft, we’ve been hearing these warnings for years. The fact of the matter is that it really is not that easy to be scammed today unless you are a wiling participant and following these tips will ensure that you’re not.

Scammers Are Everywhere

Does identity theft fraud only occur, or mostly occur, online? Will you be protected as long as you don’t shop online? Nope, sorry, not even close.

But that’s ok, even though would be scammers are pretty much everywhere, online and off, you can still protect yourself from identity theft fraud. And, it won’t even be that hard!

You see, in order for you to get taken thieves will need some information from you. They have many ways that they can get this information but you have many ways to ensure that they never get the information they need.

In this article I’m going to provide you with some cold hard truths about how you can avoid becoming a victim. Just to warn you, I’m not big on sugarcoating. The information I will provide you can be helpful but it also may cause you to face some hard truths.

OK, let’s get started:

1. First of all, to restrict the amount of access a scammer would have to your information there are several simple things you can do. One of the easiest is to invest in, and use regularly, a simple and inexpensive shredder.

These don’t cost more than about $20 -$30 and you can get one at your local department store, discount store or office supply store. The new models will not just cut your documents up into long pieces that may be able to be reassembled, they will cut them up into such tiny pieces that it will be virtually impossible for someone to put them back together.

One of the most common ways for someone to get your information is to pick through your trash. So, if you are shredding everything you throw out you are cutting them off.

Next, never carry everything right in your wallet. That is a big risk. If your wallet is lost or stolen and you have a bunch of credit cards or a social security card a thief can not only easily steal your identity and rack up a ton of debt in your name, they can also use your cards and rake up thousands of dollars of charges before you even know what hit you.

Now, you may be thinking that that wouldn’t be such a big deal since you wouldn’t legally be on the hook for those charges, but have you ever stopped to wonder who will be paying for them? They aren’t just going to go away. Instead the companies will pass those costs on to all of us in the form of fess.

2. Don’t ever click a link in an email or hand out personal information just because someone calls or sends you an email and they claim to be from your bank or credit card company.

These are scams. No credit card company or bank is going to send you an email or call you to ask for your account information or social security number… that is just dumb. They would already have access to all of that. These are scams and they are dead simple to avoid.

If you’re just not sure, get off the phone, or the computer, look up the number yourself (don’t ever call a number that someone has given you on the phone it will likely be bogus) and call to ask if there are any issues you need to know about.

See, I told you it would be painless to avoid becoming a victim. These two simple steps can go so far in protecting your identity and your financial future that I don’t even understand how people do get ripped off.

Identity theft fraud can easily be avoided. Criminals are smart, but they aren’t that smart. They usually just rely on the apathy and greed of their victims. So don’t be a willing participant in your own scam. Just say no!

Unless you have been living in a cave, you know that identity theft credit card fraud are on the rise. It’s too bad that the crooks aren’t as dumb as you would have thought, but they’re not. For that reason we can’t afford to let our guard down for even one minute.

In this article we will discuss some easy things you can do to help protect your identity. It’s really not that hard to avoid identity theft credit card fraud, much of the things that happen can be easily avoided if you just take some simple precautions and use some common sense.

Follow these tips and continue to be diligent and protect yourself:

1. Always shred any documents that have any personal information on it. Like I said above, most crooks aren’t dumb, they can actually be pretty clever. It’s hard to know just what they can use to steal your identity so it is a good idea to not let them get any of your information, even things that seem like they couldn’t do any harm.

Just buy a shredder and get in the habit of using it every day on every piece of paper you will be throwing in the trash.

2. Don’t carry your social security card or credit cards with you. If your wallet is lost or stolen you can really find yourself in a lot of trouble. And, you don’t need to carry every credit card with you and you sure don’t need your social security card. Keep them safe in a home safe (that is bolted to the floor preferably).

3. Keep track of all the expiration dates on your credit cards (and debit cards). Your financial institution will send out new cards before your old cards expire so if you don’t receive on in a timely manner it could mean that someone grabbed it out of your mailbox before you got it.

If you have cards that are getting ready to expire but you haven’t received the new ones yet call your financial institution and ask where they are. If they have sent it and you have had sufficient time to receive it but there is no sign of it, the bank may want to cancel the new card and reissue one and send it to you.

4. Never click on any link in an email and then enter personal information on the site that link takes you too. Believe it or not, it’s actually pretty easy and inexpensive for crooks to set up websites that look exactly like the website for your bank or credit card company.

Once they have those sites set up, all they have to do is send an email out and scare people to into clicking on a link in that email and going to the phony website and enter some personal information.

They will try to scare you by saying that there « is a problem » with your account or that your « account may have been compromised ». These are common scams, don’t fall for them.

If you ever get an email do not click on the link in the email, instead call your financial institution yourself and never call the number that is provided in the email, that too will be phony.

Instead look in the yellow pages for the number for your bank or credit card company or just check your bank statements and call the bank yourself to ask if there is a problem (I can almost guarantee you there isn’t).

These tips can help you stay safe from identity theft credit card fraud. It’s really not that easy to get ripped off, you have to be a willing participant in most cases… don’t be!

High interest rates can be a massive drain on your finances. If you are stuck with loans or credit cards at high rates, it can seem as though practically every cent goes to pay the interest and that the principal balance never seems to shrink. That means you may think it might be a wise move to consolidate credit card debt and reduce your annual interest rates to a figure that is more manageable. On the surface, it may seem prudent to transfer a credit card with a annual percentage rate of 16 percent to another card carrying a lower rate, such as 13 percent. But before you make the balance transfer, be sure you investigate the fine print of your contract with the lower-rate card, as you may find that there are « hidden » fees that could come back to bite you when you actually do consolidate credit card debt.

So what should you look out for?

Some credit card companies charge a « balance transfer fee » that you will have to pay when moving the balance from your higher-rate card to the new credit card. In many cases this fee is a flat rate, one time charge of $35 or $45. However, some consumers report that they’ve been shocked to learn that the balance transfer fee is actually a percentage of the amount transferred, some as high as four or five percent. On a $2,000 balance transfer, a five percent transfer fee will set you back $100. And don’t forget when you consolidate credit card debt, these balance transfer fees are added to the new outstanding balance on the lower-rate card. That means if you don’t make a payment that covers the transfer fee immediately, you’ll be paying interest on top of the fee itself.

In addition, check other « hidden » fees when you consolidate credit card debt onto a lower-rate card. For instance, if you prefer to make your payments via telephone, some card companies charge a telephone payment fee. You may be shocked to find that your old card didn’t require a phone payment fee, while your new card does require a fee, sometimes as high as $10.00 per transaction. That means you’ll have to adjust your preferred payment method to avoid getting stung by such a charge. Your credit card company should inform you of any convenience or payment fees that will be required before you actually complete the payment. If they don’t, then make sure you ask.

While we often refer to these fees as hidden, that’s only because these fees may not be top of mind for the consumer when making a decision to consolidate credit card debt. You should know that the credit card companies are required to disclose fees to you before you avail yourself of their offers, so carefully consider the details and fine print before you sign on the dotted line.

Smart Investing Not Only For The Rich

The richest people in the world make their money in a variety of ways; however, one of the primary things they all have in common is making smart investments. Now, you don’t have to have a lot of money to invest, but you do need to be willing to put some of your money to work for you. First time investing tends to make people somewhat nervous, but that doesn’t have to be the case.

Relax and take your time to decide what type of investing you want to do. To do this you have to know exactly what your financial goals are. After all, if you don’t know where you want to end up, then you won’t have any idea of where to start. So don’t rush into making an investment just for the sake of making one, but rather as a means to reaching a goal.

Once you have an idea of where you want to end up, first time investing simply requires that you make an overall plan. This isn’t as hard as it sounds. You already know your starting point that, and have some idea of where you want to end up, and making a plan is simply filling in the gap between those two points.

Consider how much you have to invest right now, and how much you will be able to contribute to your investments on an ongoing basis. The more you put in earlier, the better because of the power of compound interest. This will give your money more time to work for you. Consistently adding to your investment total is a good habit and will give you a much bigger payoff when all is said and done.

Another thing you have to consider before investing is how much time you have before you need to start collecting on your investments. If you are only in your 20s, then you have plenty of time (though you should get started as soon as possible) to allow your portfolio to mature. However, if you are in your 50s or older and approaching retirement, then your investment strategy as a first time investor will be much different.

Time is not the only thing you have to think about though. You also need to have an idea of how much risk you can tolerate. No matter what anybody tells you, all investments come with some risk. Of course, some are more risky than others, but those are also the ones that have the potential of a higher payout. Regardless, you need to have investments that you’re comfortable with and make sense for you and your situation.

There is no doubt that first time investing can make people nervous. But there are professionals out there that can help you along the way. However, you should be well-prepared before you talk to them. Remember, it’s your money and your future, so it may as well be a prosperous one.

When financial conditions begin to get tough and you find yourself facing difficulty making your payments, you may need to turn to a debt consolidation arrangement in order to ensure that you don’t drown in a sea of late payments and bad debt. Such loans are available, and you may have to decide between an unsecured debt consolidation loan and a loan that is secured by equity in a major asset you own, such as your home or a late model vehicle. Whichever you choose, you should take care to ensure that you have a complete understanding of your agreements and responsibilities.

« We’re seeing more and more people looking at an unsecured debt consolidation loan as a way to help them find a solution to their financial difficulties, » says business writer and financial analyst Carl Walins. « A restructuring of your debt using a loan may be a good choice, but consider the differences between an unsecured debt consolidation loan and one that is secured with something of value, such as the equity in your home. You may find that the loan parameters vary widely, even from the same lender, depending on whether or not you choose a secured or an unsecured debt consolidation loan ».

Walins warns consumers to read their loan agreements carefully before signing off on a debt consolidation loan. While stress over making your monthly payments may make you eager to close your loan and to ease the burden of your debts, it is imperative that you have a complete understanding of all of the terms surrounding your secured or unsecured debt consolidation loan. There may be conditions that affect your interest rate or fees that could be incurred if you should not comply with the precise requirements of the agreement. For instance, you may be subject to fees for pre-payment or early payoff of your loan balance. In such cases, it would be imprudent for you to pay off your secured or unsecured debt consolidation loan early and incur a penalty that could be greater than the amount of interest accrued on a monthly basis.

« Whenever you enter into a financial agreement you should always take care to read and understand the details of your contract before you sign it, » Walins reminds us. « If you have access to a financial advisor or an attorney, you may want to ask them to review the documents before you sign in order to make sure there are no hidden ‘gotchas’ that could come back to haunt you later ».

Whether you choose a secured or unsecured debt consolidation loan as a vehicle to help you reduce your monthly financial burden, you should take great care to make certain you have a complete understanding of the terms of your loan before you sign the documents.

These days, financial burdens can mount in a hurry. One day it appears you’re on very solid financial ground, and the next you’re facing some tough economic problems either due to changes in the marketplace or changes in your own personal finances. All of the sudden you can go from feeling confident and secure about your financial position to being unsure and worried about exactly where you stand. When it appears that you’re running into trouble and you find your credit score is starting to slide as payments fall behind, you may consider a debt consolidation loan. In some cases, if your financial condition has become particularly difficult, you may determine that a bad credit debt consolidation loan is necessary to help get your head above water again.

Let’s face it, the old adage you often hear is that « the only people who can get credit are those who don’t really need it ». And in a sense, that has some truth to it. Those who once were riding high with excellent credit can find that they’ve fallen on hard times, and their credit score is affected by the late payments or inability to re-pay a loan obligation. That’s when people start to realize they face a problem with the credit, and begin to consider a bad credit debt consolidation loan as an alternative. In many cases, such loans can be a lifesaver.

When payments to creditor begin to fall behind, you may find your credit rating falling right along with them. You may feel that it’s time to turn to a debt consolidation loan as a way to climb out of your financial hole, but because your credit score has taken a dip, you may find yourself facing the prospect of a bad credit debt consolidation loan as your first choice. If you venture into the financial market, you’ll quickly find that there are many loan options available, depending your current credit rating situation. If you have equity available in a large asset, such as a home or a vehicle that has been paid off, you may find that you’ll be able to secure a consolidation at a lower rate because you will be able to provide something tangible as a way to secure the loan.

In cases where you are unable to provide equity to secure financing, you may face the prospect of seeking out a bad credit debt consolidation loan that doesn’t require any security. In most cases, these loans will be at a higher rate, and may include a number of fees that a secured consolidation does not. Even so, if entered into with care and caution, a bad credit debt consolidation loan can provide you a method to avoid serious financial consequence.

These days, credit problems can affect anyone. With economic issues becoming a problem for more and more consumers, effectively managing your debt can be a challenge. If you are having difficulties in handling your monthly payments, you may consider a debt consolidation arrangement one good way to help you get back on track. Through a debt consolidation arrangement, you can lower your total monthly payment and, in some cases, reduce the total amount that you owe. If you’re looking for a debt consolidation, there are quite a wide variety of options available to you, and among those are both for-profit companies and non profit debt consolidation agencies.

It is important that you understand that this type of debt consolidation is completely different from a debt consolidation loan. Whether it be a for-profit or a non profit debt consolidation agency, you should not expect these sorts of consolidators to provide you with a loan to pay off existing balances. In some cases, a debt consolidation loan can actually put you in a worse financial situation, because rather than reduce your obligation and lower your interest rates, some of these loans actually have a higher rate but can reduce your payments by extending the payment period for many months or years. Instead of a loan, these sorts of companies will represent you to the creditors and work out an arrangement through which they will agree to lower your interest rate and your payments, while possibly reducing the total amount that you owe and, if all goes well, keeping your credit score from being negatively affected.

Many consumers prefer to use a non profit debt consolidation agency to manage their debt consolidation. Whether you choose a for-profit or a non profit debt consolidation firm to help you get your financial affairs in order, you should make sure you understand how the agency will be handling your debts and payments. In virtually every case, a debt management company will collect a fee for handling your payments and for dealing with your creditors. In some cases, the fee is collected from the lenders themselves, in other cases the consumer pays the fee directly to the debt consolidation company. Because non profit debt consolidation agencies aren’t in business to provide dividends to stockholders, their services are sometimes less costly than those of agencies who operate for profit.

Once you’ve decided on a debt consolidation company to handle your debts, whether it be a for-profit or a non profit debt consolidation group, you should expect to receive a debt reduction plan that explains how your debts and payments will be structured and over what period of time you can expect your accounts to be paid off. In this way, you can see exactly how your debts are becoming more manageable each and every month.

Raising Children Single

Raising children can be challenging, period. Raising children on your own will be even more of a challenge. Much of that challenge comes from the fact that single parents are often women who are unemployed or underemployed. Here are some budget tips for the single parent.

No matter what your financial situation is having a budget is a good idea, but when you are very limited on income a budget is a necessity.

These budget tips for the single parent can help you get started:

1. Take full advantage of all the resources that are out there. Many states offer a lot of help to single mothers and their children.

Just ask around at your local social services office for recommendations on what services you qualify for.

And don’t feel uncomfortable asking either, that’s what these services are there for.

Someday you can be the one who helps out a single parent!

2. Save as much money as you can when you go shopping; make lists, cut coupons, etc.

If you can, find stores that sell off brand items at lower prices.

I recently read an article about people who go to stores that sell outdated merchandise for a fraction of what they sold for originally.

Even though these items had gone past their « use by » date they were still good to eat.

And, if you’re really in a bind try your local food pantry.

3. If possible, join a warehouse type store that allows you to buy in bulk and stock up. I do that myself.

I try to go once a month and stock up on toilet paper, meat, frozen foods, etc.

I do spend more on that one trip but throughout the course of the month I save a lot.

Plus, I only have to go out and buy groceries once or twice a month to get fresh fruits, vegetables and milk.

4. Be honest with yourself and find what things you can cut down on or cut out of your monthly budget altogether.

Many of us waste more money during the course of the month then we like to admit.

Write down all your monthly bills and then take a long honest look at things you can cut back on.

For example, do you eat out or get a coffee everyday? If so, that may be something you can cut back on.

I don’t think you should cut it out completely since we all need those little perks every now and then, but you may be able to cut way back and save a lot of money without too much « hardship ».

If you have a car you can shop around for car insurance. And don’t skimp out on maintenance, even if you have to do it yourself.

I had a friend who thought she couldn’t « afford » to have her oil changed.

The problem was that it went bad and it ruined her whole engine. Her car basically had to be totaled.

5. You can, and should, learn to do more things on your own.

Before you pick up the phone to call someone try to find the information yourself.

There are many common household and automotive repairs that are very easy to do and it will cost you a fraction of the money you would pay if you hired someone since the labor is almost always the highest part of the cost.

I hope these budget tips for the single parent have helped.

Take An Honest Look At Your Finances

If you want to know the best way to save money my advice is to be honest with yourself.

I know, that sounds weird, but please let me explain.

Years ago I was married and quite well off financially.

Then after 15 years of marriage the marriage ended and my kids and I were mostly on our own.

My ex did pay child support but it was still a fraction of what our household income was. I had been a stay at home mom and had no job.

For years I struggled financially, unfortunately I spent so many years struggling that even after I was making more money and in a much better financial situation I still had the mindset of being financially limited.

Once I took stock of my situation and realized that I was in better shape than I thought, things began to change.

Many of us fall into the same trap. We get into the mindset that we are not doing well financially and that can in itself be limiting.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me, I’m not saying that you are a millionaire and just don’t realize it.

I’m simply saying that sometimes we don’t really stop to take an objective look at our own situation.

Sometimes we get one idea about the way things are and we stick with that idea from that point on, even if that situation has changed.

So, the best way to save money is to take an honest look at your financial picture and the best way to do that is to write it all down.

Make a detailed list of all of your monthly income in one column and all of your monthly expenses in another.

Make sure you don’t forget anything. Even include things that you don’t do all the time such as have your clothes dry cleaned.

To make sure you don’t forget anything, look back over the past several months of bank statements.

Once you’ve got it all down in black and white you can really see just where you are at financially.

Once you’ve gotten everything written down all you have to do is deduct the expenses from the income.

Ideally, after this step, you will find that you either break even every month or even have a few dollars left over every month.

But, if you find that you are in the negative you really need to make some changes.

The first step is to look at your bills as objectively as possible. Where can you cut?

At this point most people would say they can’t cut anything but that is almost always not the case.

There are many easy things you can do to start saving some money:

Make a grocery list before you head off to the store. Only allow yourself to get what is on the list.

Have you ever stopped to figure out how much money you spend in a month on those impulse buys? It can really add up.

Cut coupons and buy in bulk when possible. Invest the time to compare rates for your auto insurance and cable or satellite bills.

Many companies will be happy to work with you if it means they can keep your business.

What subscriptions do you have that you don’t really use and can cancel? Rent movies from the library rather than a video rental store.

Maybe you and a friend can go in together to get a membership at a warehouse club.

You may be able to go together and buy in bulk and then split the bill, and the items, when you go shopping.

Be more hands on with your maintenance for your home and car. Most of the cost of pretty much any type of repair is the labor cost.

If you can do it yourself you can save a bundle on labor.

Most of us can save something, even if it is just a little.

We all need to occasionally reevaluate our situations so we don’t get stuck feeling like we are more limited than we really are.

To me, that is the best way to save money.

Banks or mortgage brokers is the home loan question, which should you choose? What is the difference? Which one will provide you with the best deal?

When our parents and grand parents had to get a home loan they were far more restricted on the options they had.

They would just head on down to their local bank, at which all of the employees probably knew them by name, and get a home loan.

Today, whether it’s better or not, we have a lot more choices. So banks or mortgage brokers is the home loan question and it is a reasonable question to ask.

In this article I will go over some of the differences between each type of mortgage loan process. I will also give you tips that will help streamline your home loan process no matter which type of lender you choose to go through.

Here is a little back ground on what a mortgage broker does:

1. They don’t work for just one bank. They have relationships with many different types of lenders. They are the « middlemen » in the loan process.

This enables them the broadest range of services for all their clients. Even if someone has some credit challenges a broker will usually be able to find someone who will be willing to work with that borrower.

Think of them like a big box store for mortgages. They have a lot more options of loans available and that will make it more likely to find the right type of loan for you.

2. A broker generally has a far broader range in their fee structure than a bank will have so you will most likely pay more for their services.

A broker can, and often does, charge a lot more in the way of fees and closing costs.

Sure, they may be more convenient with their one stop shopping approach, but that convenience will cost you.

Make sure you compare fees before you make your final decision so you don’t end up overpaying.

A bank is much more limited in the types of mortgages and the rates they can charge but if you don’t have any special circumstances or credit issues, you may be able to get the best deal.

Before you start searching for a mortgage do yourself a favor and take the time to clear up any credit issues you may have.

Even if you can’t get them all cleared up completely, making some changes and getting your financial house in order will help you in the end.

The better your credit score the lower your interest rate and the easier it will be for you to get a loan in the first place no matter who you are using to get financing.

Also, don’t get too carried away with the type of house you want to buy. Set your budget first and make sure you leave yourself some wiggle room for any unforeseen circumstances.

I hope this information will make the debate over banks or mortgage brokers is the home loan question a little easier to figure out. Each has their pros and cons and the right answer is really just about what works best for you.

You walk out to your mailbox and open it up, hoping to receive some good news, but instead you pull out bill after bill after bill. But among those bills is an envelope with an offer of loans for debt consolidation. Facing a problem in paying your monthly payments, you might consider debt consolidation one way to help get your finances into a situation that’s more manageable. But should you really consider loans for debt consolidation or should you think about other alternatives to help restore your secure financial footing? A debt consolidation loan can be a lifesaver, but before you sign off on those loan papers, make sure you carefully consider the terms of your lending agreement.

Certainly, if you have decent credit, loans for debt consolidation should be available to you. But be very careful, there may be a number of lenders out there who will offer you loans that look good on the surface, but in the long run turn out to be even more costly to you than paying off the existing debts you already have. Let’s take a look at an example:

Let’s say you have an outstanding debt of $11,000 on a number of loans, and the overall interest rate works out to 14 percent, and you have five years (60 months) left to pay. Your monthly payment would be about $260 per month. But suppose several companies come along and offer you loans for debt consolidation in the full amount that you owe ($11,000) but instead of $260 per month, they offer you a monthly payment of just over $190. Hey, you can save $70 a month, so that may sound like a good deal to you. However, as it turns out, this new loan is actually at a higher interest rate (17 percent) for a longer term — ten years instead of five.

So how much would saving $70 per month cost you in the long run by accepting one of these loans for debt consolidation?

If you stuck with your original loans and managed to keep making your $260 per month payments, you would end up paying back a total of about $15,400 on that $11,000 in loans. If you take the new loan and pay off the $11,000 in debt, your new payments over the ten year period would amount to about $22,900 — or $11,900 in interest!

So you see, upping your interest rate and extending the number of years to pay on your debts may save you some money in the short term, but jumping headfirst into one of these types of loans for debt consolidation will end up costing you a whole lot more in the end. If you’re considering taking out a debt consolidation loan, make sure you look carefully at exactly what you’re getting yourself into before you sign the paperwork. Otherwise, you may find yourself with a bad case of borrower’s remorse.

A lot of people have been talking about the Wu Yi Diet, but there is also some disagreement as to whether or not it’s effective. So, what is ‘Wu Yi’? What is the controversy all about? Does the diet really work? You will soon have the answers to all of these questions so you can decide if the diet is right for you.

The Wu Yi Diet gets its name from Wu Yi tea. Wu Yi is actually a form of oolong, or black tea. The tea leaves are fermented, and this is what causes them to turn black. Wu Yi tea is grown in the Wu Yi Mountains of China, and that’s where it gets its name. Wu Yi is higher in certain polyphenols, and it is believed that they may help people lose weight.

The diet itself isn’t really all that structured; in fact, if you make no other dietary changes, but drink several cups of Wu Yi tea each day, then you could say you are on the Wu Yi diet. Granted, there are several variations that claim to be the « official diet », but all of them rely on drinking lots of tea. And that brings us to the next point.

Does the Wu Yi Diet really work? It’s a fair question, but it’s more accurate to ask if drinking tea can help you to lose weight. Based on the results of several studies, it would appear that tea is one of the best weight loss beverages you can drink. The polyphenols in tea help to break down fat and that leads to weight loss.

That alone would make Wu Yi a smart addition to any weight loss plan, but there’s more. Tea also contains caffeine, and that is known to boost the metabolism. One more thing, tea can make you feel more full so you end up eating less overall. It can burn fat, boost metabolism and makes you full; that’s pretty amazing when you think about it.

Unfortunately, there is some controversy surrounding the Wu Yi Diet. While many people swear by its effectiveness, there are others who claim something as simple as drinking tea won’t make you lose weight. The truth is that they may be right. It’s hard to believe that something so simple could have that kind of effect. But remember that tea has three distinct properties that help people shed extra pounds. While you may not be able to gorge on double cheeseburgers and doughnuts all day, and then hope to lose weight by drinking tea, a modest diet combined with tea does appear to help.

There are some basic precautions anyone should take before trying the Wu Yi Diet (or any diet). Always talk to your personal doctor first, as they may be aware of any problems you have that could prevent you from doing the diet. Also, because tea contains caffeine, those who are sensitive to caffeine or have high blood pressure should avoid it.

That being said, there enough people that have found success with the Wu Yi Diet. It’s easy; it’s effective; and it’s good for you, too!

More and more people today are becoming interested in learning more about a whole body cleanse. There are many health benefits associated with cleansing your entire body. You can clear out the buildup of toxins in your body as well as possibly alleviate some health issues by doing a cleanse.

It is disconcerting to realize that we take in a lot of toxins in our day to day lives. Virtually everything we eat, everything we drink and even the air we breathe can have contaminants in it.

When those contaminants are allowed to build up it can cause a myriad of health problems. In most cases the toxins will build up in the colon, but they can also spread to areas of the body like the muscles and even the lymph nodes.

Some of the most popular methods for doing a whole body cleanse are drinking certain cleansing « cocktails », using colon cleanses, dieting and even using certain supplements.

One of the most common methods of cleansing is to go on a liquid only fast for several days. Before you do this or any type of cleansing, make sure you talk to your doctor first. This is really important if you have any existing health issues and / or take any type of prescription medications.

Only your doctor can adequately advise you whether or not a juicing cleanse will be safe for you to undertake.

The basic idea is a simple one; you don’t eat any solid food for a few days while consuming a juice drink to provide you with the nourishment your body needs.

The right combination of fruit and vegetables in your drink will help encourage your body to flush the toxins and unwanted bacteria out of your body and also provide needed nutrients to keep you healthy.

There are many cleansing recipes available online. It’s really just a matter of finding one that you like the taste of so it will be easier to stick with. Some common juicing recipes include an odd sounding combination of garlic, cayenne pepper, lemon and possibly even garlic.

If you prefer something a little more « extreme » you can go to a spa that specializes in doing cleanses. One of the more common type of cleanse is a colon cleanse. This method uses purified water which is literally pumped into your colon and will rinse out any impurities and excess toxins.

The water temperature will be hot enough to kill off any parasites that you may have living in your colon and it can also clear out any impacted fecal matter that is in your colon as well.

No matter how much you exercise or how careful you are about the foods and drinks you put in your body, you will come into contact with some toxins in your day to day life. Toxins that can lead to many types of illnesses and disease.

Doing a periodic whole body cleanse can be a great way to eliminate these toxins and prevent them from building up to well… toxic levels. Find the best form of cleanse for you and your desired results then talk to your doctor to make sure she is on board with the idea.

Can Be Dangerous

There are many types of cleanses that you can quickly and easily preform in your own home. One of these options is a Water Cleanse. One thing that you must be aware of is this: this type of cleanse can be very dangerous! Always consult your doctor for the best way to go about doing it before you start!

Many people don’t think that there is such a thing as drinking too much water, but they are wrong. It is possible to drink too much water and it can even result in death if you do drink too much. For that reason you have to talk to your doctor for their recommendation as to how much is too much for you.

Also, remember that the amounts of water listed in this article are only general amounts, they may not be right for you. Again, discuss the specifics with your doctor first!

A Water Cleanse is a pretty straight forward and easy cleanse to do, there aren’t really a lot of steps. Here is a breakdown of the basics:

1. First of all, most people will drink about 4 to 6 liters daily. For most people, this would be about two times more water than they would take in daily, and obviously, this intake does not take into consideration the water that you get in your foods, for example.

By drinking so much water you are making it easier for your body to filter out unwanted toxins and flush them out.

2. During this type of cleanse you do not stop eating solid food (this is one marked difference between this type of cleanse and other types of cleanses). You may not eat as much as you would normally, in part because you will feel full after drinking all that water.

It’s usually best to eat a lot of green vegetables and fiber. This will help your body remove unwanted toxins more effectively.

3. Most people should perform this cleanse for no more than 4 days. Most people find a time of 3 to 4 days is ideal. If you want to repeat the cleanse don’t do it more than twice a month.

Remember, though, that drinking this much water can present it’s own set of challenges and can potentially even be dangerous. I can’t stress enough the importance of seeing your doctor and discussing this course of action with her before you actually start!

No matter how « clean » you live and eat you will still come into contact with toxins in your life. These toxins will continue to build up in your system if you don’t purge them.

Toxic buildup can lead to a myriad of health problems over time. Better to keep your body free and clear of toxins.

Using a Water Cleanse might be a great way to rid your body of excess toxins. Though not without it’s own challenges and risks, this type of cleanse can be one of the easiest you will find online. It’s inexpensive too!

Recently, I started a new eating plan. It was really cool too because the foods I ate were healthy and filling (I actually had to eat more food). It was so effective that after just one week I lost six pounds! That is my tips to lose weight fast, eat right!

I know, not only do we live in a society where we want things fast, we have also been conditioned to think if something is not terribly difficult or time consuming or requires a lot of sacrifice it can’t possibly work.

The truth is, that is a load of garbage in many cases. In reality, simple changes can make a big difference. When you consider that your body is like an engine and it needs certain things to keep it running smoothly, it may make more sense.

So, if you want your body to work the way it’s supposed to work you need to give it what it needs. That, my friend, is the top tips to lose weight fast I can give you.

Here are a few more specific ideas to follow:

1. Make sure you talk to your doctor before you start any type of diet or exercise plan. Only she can know your specific needs and limitations (if you have any). You want to stay healthy so your doctors office is the first place to start.

2. Find a solid, nutritious weight loss plan. Possibly ask your doctor for a recommendation. Find a plan that is sensible and good for your body for the long term. Unless your doctor tells you otherwise, I would personally stay away from « extreme » diets.

Any plan that has you eating a lot of only one type of foods, for example. I’m not a doctor and I can’t say for sure, but this sounds like a dumb idea to me. Like a car engine your body needs many types of foods to keep it running strong.

No one would just put gas in their car but not add oil. The same principle applies to your body. Why would you only eat one type of food, say protein, and ignore the other things your body needs like fats and carbohydrates?

3. Your mom was right, eat your vegetables (and fruit). Part of a balanced diet means more fresh fruits and vegetables every day. Don’t say « I don’t like vegetables ». Everything you « like » or « don’t like » has been learned over time.

We are not born with certain food or drink preferences. We are taught them. You can « un-teach » yourself what foods you like and what foods you don’t like.

It will take some time, but you can do it. You may never like all vegetables, and no one is saying that you should, but you can definitely train yourself to like some vegetables (the same rule applies to all types of food and drink).

4. Make sure you drink plenty of water everyday. Much of our population is dehydrated. Too many people drink only soda, coffee, sugary sports drinks, etc. You need water. Crisp, clean, cool water. Start drinking more.

Hey, don’t make it harder than it needs to be. You don’t need a supplement or the latest ab gadget, all you need is a sensible diet and exercise plan and these other tips to lose weight fast.

It’s common knowledge that fruits and vegetables are healthy, wholesome foods and are especially good choices for losing weight. The best part is that anybody interested in summer weight loss will have access to an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables during this time of the year.

Let’s face it, a lot of us have cravings for sweets, and they have to be satisfied. We could pretend that we have enough willpower to give up sweets forever, but willpower will only carry you so far. The truth is that willpower always carries you to the same place…the next binge. So, it’s much smarter to find healthy sweets that are low in calories and high in complex carbohydrates. Fruit fits the bill perfectly.

One of the best ways to enjoy fruit for summer weight loss is in an ice-cold drink. You can use fruit as a garnish or make it the foundation for a cool beverage (such as juices and smoothies).

Of course you can also find fresh fruit in abundance during the summer months and it can always be enjoyed as is. You may also want to chop up several varieties of fresh fruit and make a delicious salad. Fruit is still high in sugar, but it’s better than cramming a candy bar into your mouth. Besides, fruit has some fiber as well as essential vitamins, allowing you to eat them without feeling guilty about it.

Fruit isn’t the only thing that can help with summer weight loss. Vegetables are also a low-calorie, satisfying way to shed pounds during the warmer months of the year.

Eating fresh vegetables is a great way to enjoy them, but watch out for fatty dips and other sauces that can negate any calorie savings. The same goes for dressings on vegetable salads. For example, a salad made with greens and topped with a splash of vinaigrette is a better choice than a potato salad that is covered with mayonnaise.

If you’re looking for a real treat, then it’s hard to beat grilled vegetables. Just brush them with a bit of olive oil and then roast them on the grill. They will be bursting with flavor and you will definitely want to go back for more.

You can easily find a lot of really good recipes for both fruits and vegetables. Find a few that you like and try them. Once you have tried a few, then try a few more; you will soon find yourself enjoying fruits and vegetables even more than you do now.

Fruits and vegetables are ideal for summer weight loss. They are loaded with the nutrients your body needs, are low in calories, taste good, and are readily available in the summer. You can enjoy them in any number of ways. To put it another way, fruits and vegetables are a smart addition to any meal, especially if you are trying to shed a few extra pounds.

Human beings have not always had the comforts and conveniences that we have today. Our bodies became good at storing excess calories in the form of fat. There were also certain times of the year where we would be programmed to eat more, and perhaps get even more efficient at storing calories. Summer weight loss is a problem because of how our bodies work. We pack on pounds over the winter, and then need to lose them so we don’t have to feel self-conscious.

Some people think the answer is to starve themselves as bathing suit season approaches, but our bodies are also programmed to store even more calories if we don’t eat enough. In other words, reducing calories too much won’t help you achieve summer weight loss.

The good news is that there are some things that do work. For one thing, while our bodies are programmed to pack on more pounds in the winter, Mother Nature also provides part of the solution. The produce that’s available in the summer months is some of the best you can eat. Fresh fruits and vegetable are plentiful, and choosing the right ones will help you to lose weight.

Another benefit of summer is that we are likely to be more active. In the winter, it’s quite common for people to stay inside, and that leads to getting less exercise. But once the weather starts getting nicer, you can get out and engage in more physical activity.

When you combine the right food with exercise, you will naturally start to lose weight. Summer weight loss is much easier than a lot of people think, and a lot of it is natural. However, you may wish to lose more weight than what you would lose naturally during the warmer months. It will take more effort, but it can be done.

Food plays a major role in losing weight; that’s a given. Good choices include berries, melons, and fresh greens. The best part is that all of these are at their peak of freshness in the summer. But, it’s not only the foods you eat that will help you to lose weight, it’s also the foods you avoid. Just as there are opportunities to eat healthy during the summer, there are also opportunities to eat foods that aren’t so healthy. Cookouts, picnics and other get-togethers are all potential traps for anybody trying to lose weight.

It all comes down to making better choices. For example, choosing a grilled chicken breast over a rack of ribs, or opting for a garden salad (watch the dressing) over macaroni salads that are loaded with fatty mayonnaise.

The main thing to remember is that summer weight loss is entirely possible. The key is to use your body’s internal mechanisms to your benefit; that includes eating healthy foods that are low in calories (and happen to be at their peak in the summer) and being more active. Doing both of those things will help you to lose the most weight in the shortest amount of time.

How Important Is It

Weight loss and keeping it off has been one of the most difficult things I have done in my life. And chances are, since you are reading this article, you have also found it has been a constant struggle for you. One of the reasons for this is we have have not been able to find the right weight loss plan that will work the most efficiently and effectively for us. Not all weight loss plans will work for every one.

In the next few paragraphs you are going to find some of the things I have found, which have helped me win my battle against excess weight and made my life so much better.

You and I both know in order for the right weight loss plan to work for us, it’s not only going to include dieting and exercise, but it means we are going to have to be sure to pick the most healthy food available. Now not only do you have to pick the right food, but you must prepare it properly.

For instance two of the best meats for you are chicken and fish. These 2 foods, as well as any meat, should be grilled or baked to help you effectively lose weight and keep it off. Remember you have your spices that can take away the blandness of the meat when you bake it. Chicken and fish or even beef and pork (in small portions), can be prepared in a healthy manner and combined with other healthy food groups, turn your body into weight losing machine.

This not news to you, but one of the healthiest foods you can give to your body are the food groups which have whole grains in them. We are talking about foods such as brown rice, whole grain breads and even those that are not 100% whole grain or healthier than white bread and rice. In addition you have many cereals, which can contribute to weight loss as well being healthy for your heart and other organs. Furthermore you have pastas, which are a very quick energy fix; when needed. Yes! Even a pasta salad will have the carbohydrates your body needs and a low calorie count as long as you are careful with choice of spices or a low caloric salad dressing.

When trying to find just the right weight loss plan for you; be on the lookout for those which exclude sugar completely from the diet plan.
Your body must have small amounts of sugar to keep your energy levels up. And those that exclude it, can lead to health problems down the road, as well as cause you mental, emotional and the inability to carry out normal task during your daily routine.

Perhaps one of the most effective food groups you can use in a diet for losing weight are fruits and veggies. These types of foods are nutritious and can fill the need for the necessary vitamins that we would not otherwise get while dieting. In addition many of the fruits can help satisfy our craving for the sweet deserts our body cries out for while trying to lose weight.

Lets face it for some of us it takes more than exercise and a healthy diet for us to lose weight and keep it off. In addition we may need some sort of supplement to help us subdue our appetite successfully. However, prior to taking a supplement, it is important to check with your doctor or dietitian to be sure it is safe for you to include this addition to your weight loss plan.

You must face the fact that not every weight loss plan out there will be effective for you. Once you have the right weight loss plan, which works for you, it is vitally important for you to stick with it. Without consistency and determination, your chances of losing weight and keeping it off, are almost next to nothing. Stick to your plan and you will accomplish your goal.

Many women are pear shape, they carry a majority of their weight in their lower body; hips, butt and thighs. Also, many women don’t want to be pear shape, they want to lose weight thighs and they want to do it as quickly as possible.

If this describes you, this article may be able to help. I will give you some proven strategies to lose weight thighs and the best ways to keep that weight off permanently, what could be better than that?

OK, now it’s time for a reality check (don’t worry, it won’t hurt…much) there is no such thing as just losing weight in one area of your body. When you do certain things to lose weight you will lose weight all over your body.

Of course, the areas of your body that have the most fat will lose the most fat.

You can use certain exercises to target certain areas of your body, which is what you should do while you are also losing the excess fat.

The best method is to use the old stand by: diet and exercise. I know, boring, but it is effective and if you really want that hot body and you want to keep it from here on out, you will need to make some changes to your habits.

If you don’t make these changes any weight loss you do get will either be mostly just water weight that will be easily regained once you get back to your normal way of eating, or you will lose some weight but you won’t keep it off permanently because you won’t continue to stay in that routine from here on out.

So, what should you do? Well, this, of course:

1. Step one is to head on down to your doctors office. It’s important you make sure you don’t overdo it and only your doctor can tell you what limitations you have, if any. Your doctor can also recommend a proper eating plan.

2. Find a proper eating plan, and stick to it. You will need to make some changes to your daily habits and that may take a little time. Don’t forget, that the way you eat now was learned at some point in your life. If you have bad eating habits you can « un-learn » them and relearn new, better habits.

Make sure you never skip a meal and make sure you always eat lean protein and the right kind and the right amount of fats and carbs everyday.

It doesn’t have to be difficult. As a matter of fact I recently started eating better, and you know what, I actually had to eat more food during the day! At first it was a challenge but when I saw that in just one week I had lost six pounds, I was sold.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t eat just any type of food, I ate good food and the right portion sizes.

3. Get more exercise. You need to keep your body moving if you want to keep your body moving. I’m sure you have heard the expression « use it or lose it ».

Well, nothing could be more accurate when it comes to your body, especially as you age. The more sedentary you are, the more your body will give you a hard time when you try to move.

There are probably hundreds, maybe even thousands, of ways you can keep your body moving. It doesn’t have to be difficult or boring. Find things you enjoy doing and then do them, daily.

To lose weight thighs, do the steps above and when you get to the exercise side of things, focus on your thighs and do things like walk, or bike, etc.

Hey, it’s no secret. We live in a time and in a society where we want what we want and we want it now. No where is this trend more prevalent than with weight loss. I can’t count the number of products I’ve seen that promise you can lose weight fast. But, I wonder, do they actually work as quickly as they claim to?

Well, to a large degree, I suppose it depends on what your definition of « fast » is. For some people, losing a pound or two a week would be considered fast.

Others may have a big event coming up in a week and they want to lose 10 lbs. before the big day. Now, that would definitely be what I would call fast.

The reality of weight loss is this: to lose weight you have to do some simple math. You need to take in fewer calories than you burn. It really is that simple.

How you go about burning the calories and cutting back on the calories can be where things get interesting though.

For example, if you want to take in fewer calories (but still make sure that you are feeding your body enough nutrients so it keeps working properly and your metabolism doesn’t shut down) than you can change your day to day diet habits, you can invest in some sort of diet meal replacement drink, etc.

In other words, if you want to lose weight fast you have a few ways you can « attack » the problem.

Ideally, you should use a « two pronged » attack. You should focus not just on what you eat or not just on what you do, but a combination of diet and exercise.

That may not sound easy or sexy, but it is the best way to ensure that you lose weight in a healthy way. Also, by making long term lifestyle changes, rather than short term changes, you can ensure that you will be in shape and fit for the rest of your life and not just until your big day is over.

Which would you rather have? Would you rather work at losing weight with some diet plan that isn’t really nutritious and / or is so restrictive that deep inside you know you won’t be able to stay with it and you will eventually gain the weight back?

Or, would you rather make some simple changes over a period of a few weeks or months to your day to day food and exercise habits knowing that your weight loss will be healthy and permanent?

Of course, the choice is yours but personally, if I’m going to put in the time I want my results to be permanent. And I would want to be able to keep the weight off as easily as possible.

That will only happen if you change your lifestyle habits permanently.

Make your mind up to make some simple changes in the way you eat and the amount of exercise you get. Plan on making these changes permanent and you will lose weight more quickly and more easily than you would have thought possible. It can also be permanent then too.

Lose weight fast or lose weight permanently? You can have a little bit of both if you do it right. Talk to your doctor about the best diet and exercise plan for you and then make some much needed lifestyle changes.