Many people often pay their bills while grumbling about how much they have to pay. It’s true that many services are very overpriced, but what most people don’t realize is that some of these services can easily be lowered. Sometimes all you have to do is make a phone call to the customer service department [...]
Christmas is a time for giving, and it’s easy to get caught up in the spirit. Giving feels so good that it can easily result in overspending and sometimes stretching your credit to the limit. That means you might spend several months after the Holidays just taking care of debts you built up while the [...]
Long before the financial gurus with their TV shows and persona finance books to sell were around, Benjamin Franklin was giving down-to-earth, sound money advice to anyone who would listen. The advice was so sound that it’s still relevant and applicable to this day. Here are ten money lessons from Ben Franklin that you would [...]
While I’m all for being frugal, there are some things that you just don’t want to skimp on. Some things are so important to your health or safety that it simply isn’t wise or cost-effective to look for the cheapest options, or to skip the item altogether in the name of “saving money.” While everyone [...]
By Dr. Charles Richards Why is it that just when everything seems to be going well financially and you feel like you’re getting ahead, something seems to crop up that alters your plans? In my practice as a psychotherapist, I’ve seen this pattern play out in clients and others many times. If this has become [...]
In the interest of protecting the innocent (and the guilty) in this piece, I’m calling the couple in this story Jake and Joan. They are people I know in real life, but I’m not going to say whether they’re friends, family, or acquaintances. All I’ll say is that I was closer to Jake than Joan [...]
Financial writers (myself included) often talk about the “emergency fund.” This is money you set aside so that you can pay for things like medical expenses, car repairs, home repairs, or some other sudden, necessary expense. Having extra money set aside means (ideally) that you don’t have to pull out the credit card to pay [...]
Nothing is quite as exciting to a child as a birthday party. We may lose the desire to celebrate as we get older, but to a child, a birthday is a magical thing. As parents, we want to make those occasions special and sometimes that wish can lead to a big dent in our finances. [...]
When times are tough financially, it’s tempting to look only at the negatives. It’s easy to focus on what you can’t have and what you can’t do. But there are positives to financial hardship, if you choose to look for them. Having a positive outlook on your financial situation can make it easier to deal [...]
In today’s electronically-oriented society, a surprising number of people never learn to create a budget, balance a checkbook or handle other everyday tasks to keep track of finances. Many of us are simply too busy with our fast-paced lives and believe we can’t afford to take the time. The fact is, though, it’s more important [...]
