Commit. Plan. Take action.
You’re ready for a change.
You have committed to getting out of debt, but you don’t know where to start, right?
You’re tired of living paycheck to paycheck and seeing your hard-earned money go toward interest to the bank or credit card company.
You bring home a decent income, but before you can actually enjoy what you’ve worked so hard for, you have to pay all of the bills. And what’s left over for you? Not much.
Well, I am here to help!
If you’ve been following Our Debt Free Family, you know that we like to encourage our readers to also contribute to our blog. The ODFF team is excited to announce that we are looking for a new volunteer blogger(s) to regularly write for the site.
If you think you may be interested in writing, we are looking for someone who will be able to write one or two posts each week. Researching and writing for blogs can take a good bit of effort so you will want to make sure that you will be able to devote time to it. Here are a few other things we are looking for in a blogger:
Those who are interested in writing for ODFF should email James, at [email protected]. He will get back to you with more information and chat about a writing sample. If you have any questions feel free to leave it in the comments below or call James at 202.468.6043.
Toy R Us and Babies R Us both announced they will be closing their doors, kicking off some seemingly great going-out-of-business sales. For growing families, these sales may be tempting. However, most people are better off just staying home.
Our Debt Free Family’s sister site, Saving Advice, had a colorful description of zombie toys in the back of liquidated stores. What you should really be scared of is the impact wasting money on a going-out-of-business sale might have on your wallet.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, many of these businesses have ways of making you spend more when all is said and done. If it is a large retail chain, like Toys R Us, the sale is most likely being handled by a liquidator. This also means there will be huge discounts advertised, but you may not be getting that great of a deal. In many cases, liquidation sales are marked down from seriously inflated prices. Here are a few questions to ask yourself before heading to any liquidation sales.
No matter what kind of sale you’re headed to, price comparison is the best way to protect yourself from false discounts. Know what you are purchasing and what the average price is before going crazy at a sale.
Readers, have you been tempted — or even tricked — into buying items at a going-out-of-business sale?
Today, I have something a little different to share with you.
Instead of sharing more about my family’s debt free journey, I have a special guest who has agreed to share his debt free story.
Ron Noble tells how he and his wife Thu paid off $167,500.00 in seven years! They are a true debt free family because they have paid off all of their debt including their house!
Continue reading to find out how they did it and what they have been able to do since becoming debt free.
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If you’re needing some motivation on your own journey, this interview is sure to deliver.
Alicia and Ralston Vaz have cut their debt by $255,000 in five years!
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From a 30 day squat challenge to a 365 day money challenge, these online competitions are pushing people to better themselves. But, outside of saving pennies a day, how can these online challenges help you financially?
If you’ve been looking for financial challenges, you’ve probably already come across the 52 week money challenge and 365 day money challenge (and all the savings challenges in between). You may have also seen things like the “Debt Snowball Challenge” and other debt payoff challenges.
What I’ve found, however, is that there are very few internet challenges that challenge you to look at all of your finances at once. Why not challenge yourself to become involved in your finances?
As you know from previous posts, I just recovered from a financial crisis within the past few months. I’m finally in a place where I can start saving, paying off more debt, investing and simply bettering my life all around. So, I decided to challenge myself to become immersed in finance. Here’s the plan:
All of that to ask you, what would you like to better about your life financially? Are you willing to both share and face your challenge with me? Take the plunge and challenge yourself to become financially fit.
Want to chat about your financial challenge? I’d love to hear from you!
Last week we started getting ready for your debt free journey. We discussed the importance of getting your spouse on board (if you have one) and promising yourself that you are done with debt.
Now we are ready to jump in to assessing your current financial picture. You need to know where you are starting from in order to begin your journey.
Spending plan, cash flow plan, budget.
I don’t care what you call it.
You need to have a plan for your money.
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Check out the success I’ve had meal planning!
Meal planning is exactly what it sounds like. You sit down and plan out your meals for the week (or however long you wait between store trips) and then stick to the plan. As stated above, many people do this for weight-loss purposes. By planning out your meals you can have better control over your calorie intake and other nutritional factors. The same goes for meal planning and your budget, which is exactly why you should be doing it.
Planning out your meals can help you stick to a food budget. You’ll want to pick similar main ingredients for dishes throughout the week to save money. For example, you may pick up a pack of chicken breast for $15, which is a lot if you’re shopping on a $50/week budget. However, you will be able to make almost a week’s worth of dinner from that pack of chicken with proper meal planning. You may also want to be sure you have a list of all of your regular kitchen staples (which varies for everyone). Having a plan and lists prepared can seriously help you stick to your budget.
If you’re new to meal planning, don’t worry! I’d never even put thought into planning out my meals for the week until I started working out more. Once I started planning meals for the week and I started to see the positive affect it was having on me physically and financially I knew I’d stick with it.
To create a meal plan you first have to break down your meals of the day: breakfast, lunch and dinner (and sometimes snacks). Then write down some of your favorite meals for each (you’ll want to incorporate those into your meal plan from time-t0-time. Once you’ve got your favorite meals listed, also include some cheaper low-energy meals like spaghetti or PB&J.
After you’ve got a list of meals you’ll want to break down your meal plan on a calendar (check out this how-to on MyFitnessPal) and stick to it. Sticking to a meal plan saved me $20/week ($80/month) simply because I had a plan and wasn’t eating out anymore or grabbing last-minute food at the store’s deli. You could be saving just as much if you start meal planning now!
Do you meal plan? Have you seen any financial benefits?
Photo: Fix.com
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Making your way in the world when it comes to your career is a tricky road. Learning how to navigate it can take an entire lifetime. You’re faced with twists and turns that you didn’t even imagine existed. So what happens if you’re not satisfied just following a basic path; what if you want to make your own way and be the one in control of your career? This is exactly why so many people choose to start their own company.
One field that is extremely popular with those looking to head up their own business is project management. As a project manager, you’ll be the one in charge of the planning and execution of various projects that you take on. It’s something new and exciting each and every day, which adds to the allure. Here’s a look at the steps you can take that will allow you to start your own project management company.
Before you can even think about starting up your own project management company, it’s necessary to get the proper educational foundation. What this means is enrolling in a masters in project and program management program. You can even enroll in an online MSMPP program, which will allow you to obtain the degree while working on the side.
By earning your degree you will be arming yourself with the most-up-to date tools, knowledge, and skills that are required to successfully manage projects.
Another tip is to become an expert in one particular industry. This will help you to gain the upper-hand in that industry, which will set you apart from the competition. You’ll want to start specializing as early as possible so it’s clear from the start where your focus is.
It’s pretty hard to build a company and make it successful if people don’t know about you and don’t know how to find you. This means you need a marketing plan. How do you plan to reach potential customers, where will you do this, how often, and how will you follow up with potential clients.
In today’s landscape, social networks tend to be an excellent place to market your services. What this means is that you need to be active on social networks such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You’ll also need a website that is SEO optimized, is user-friendly, and provides people with a reason to visit it. Adding a blog to your website can definitely help.
When it comes to starting your own business, no matter what industry it is in, networking is an absolute necessity. Attend industry events, seminars, conferences, and look into cross-promoting with other companies. The larger your network, the more opportunities will be open to you.
No-one has ever said that starting your own business is an easy process. It takes time, energy, motivation, and perseverance. All of this work just helps to make it more rewarding when your business does become a success.