Category: Contributed Posts

The Signs You’re Carrying Far Too Much Debt

Two of the main focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy and Money. The following contributed post was written by Emma Morgan. It discusses The Signs You’re Carrying Far Too Much Debt.

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We live in a time of consumerism and most of us have a mindset of ‘I need it now’, which makes us impulsive when it comes to credit. The problem with credit, though, is that we can have whatever we want, and the consequences come later. While credit seems like a great idea in the moment, when you’ve got too much month at the end of your money and you can’t make your repayments, it becomes a big problem.

Debt is, for most people, a very unfortunate part of life. Buying a house, a car and even getting an education can put you into debt. While these are the debts you’d want to have, rather than because you couldn’t put the Manolo’s back at the store, it’s still not nice to have to deal with debt in that way. Having a house is a good thing, until you can’t make the mortgage repayments and you’re getting help from DoveBankruptcyLaw.com/chapter-13-bankruptcy to get you back on track. There are some signs, though, that can tell you whether you are carrying too much debt. It’s time to get your head out of the sand and start sorting out your finances, because they’re not going to sort themselves.

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1. The first sign you’re carrying too much debt is that this is where your money goes. You should have enough money to cover your mortgage, your bills and your savings before having a portion for disposable income. If your disposable income is covering the minimums on your loans and cards, there’s an issue. Working to pay debt is not living, and you need to start making some adjustments so that this is no longer the case for you.
2. The next sign is that you won’t ever pay off your debts early, because the money that you have can only cover the minimum payments. Get onto the creditors that you have and ask them to lower the repayment amounts for you. Creditors are not easy to deal with – in your head. In reality, if you have a good history, they’re usually more than happy to help you out. As long as they are getting paid, they will work with you and not against you.
3. Your health is important, but if the stress of debt is starting to manifest physically, you’re going to suffer. Your sleep, your happiness, the jumpy feeling you get when the doorbell goes? All of these things are not healthy, and they can be affected by debt.
4. Trying to get a consolidation loan to cover your debts is the move that most people make so that they can pay things off quickly. However, if you’re being turned down even for this, then you’ve got too much on your plate. The more debt you have, the harder it is to get credit.

It’s important to recognize when you are carrying too much debt as much as it is to know where to ask for help. Don’t suffer alone – get the debt help you need now to lessen the burden on your shoulders.

Seven Times You’ll Be Glad You Have An Emergency Fund

Two of the main focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy and Money. The following contributed post was written by Faye McDonald. It discusses the Seven Times You’ll Be Glad You Have An Emergency Fund.

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You can’t always predict what’s going to happen in life, but you can make your finances disaster-proof. The best way that you can do this is by having an emergency fund to back you up every step of the way. Ideally, you should already be managing your money each month and budgeting for savings, but you should also be paying into a separate savings account for emergency reasons. Obviously, you won’t be putting in the same amount each month because you need to be able to keep living the way that you want to live. However, there will be times you will be exceedingly grateful that you had an emergency fund to fall back on and below, you can find seven times in life you’ll be whispering thanks to yourself for your own forward thinking!


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Job Loss. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been in your job, no one is safe from being made redundant or losing their job. Companies fold all the time due to tough economic times and you have to be prepared for this. Losing your job means that you will be behind financially, and your emergency fund can save you from that.

Divorce. There’s something horribly stressful about a broken marriage. Divorce is costly, and your emergency fund can back you up while you’re paying for lawyers.

Accident. Being in financial difficulty when you’ve had an accident is stress on top of stress. You can speak to Tenge Law Firm, LLC when you need to figure out if you are due compensation from your accident. There’s no need to get behind on bills if you don’t have to!

You Quit. Sometimes, you don’t lose your job due to the recession or the fact your company is folding. Personality clashes mean that you could find yourself out of work off your own volition and you decide to quit.

Disaster. You can’t control mother nature and she is a fearsome beast. An emergency fund can be there for you if you lose your home or are dealing with a flooded house after a disaster. You can incur costs when you go through a natural disaster, and your emergency fund can absorb those.

Supporting Spouses. If your other half is out of work suddenly, or takes ill, you are the main breadwinner. Your savings could keep you above water if your money isn’t enough to support the pair of you.

Widowed. If you find yourself in a situation where you are suddenly without a partner at all, and they have passed away, you will need to have your emergency fund supporting you through a funeral and the expenses incurred there.

You see, an emergency fund isn’t something that is an inconvenience. On the contrary, it will be there for you for when life becomes an inconvenience instead. Most of these situations happen to us in life, it’s important that you manage your own money and keep yourself safe at all times.

5 Secrets For “Cute Store” Success

Two of the focuses of my blog are Business and Entrepreneurship. The following contributed post was written by Becky Meredith. It discusses 5 Secrets For “Cute Store” Success.

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If you’ve been around any upmarket town or tourist destination, you’ll have seen those “cute stores,” the ones that sell carefully selected items related to clothing, home, or paper products. They’re nice to be in, and it’s rare that you don’t walk away without one purchase that lifts your spirits a little bit. If you’ve got an ambition to own your own type of “cute store,” then the first thing to know is that its hard work! But it’s not impossible. Below, we take a look at five ideas for helping you make your store a success.

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Get Inspired

The look of the store is one of the strongest features of this type of business. It is not your typically “rows and rows of shelves” business; the items are scattered around in a more general way, as if they’re not really for sale at all, but rather been left there by a forgetful owner. You should set the tone with your entranceway. This should tell your visitors that they’re not walking into any old and ordinary type of business, but that they’re entering a more luxurious world. Work with a designer to get the look of your store just right, or, if you don’t have the budget, take a look at Pinterest instead.

A Calming Environment

The look is important, but it’s absolutely essential that you have a calming environment. You’re trying to show your customer that this is no ordinary business. When you walk into most shops, the stress levels begin to spike. In your store, they’ll drop; it’ll be more like walking into a spa! But how do you do this? You can engage in a little scent marketing by installing a cold air diffuser from www.aromatechsystems.com. You can set atmospheric mood lighting, the opposite of the “high and bright” lighting of other stores. You can play soft music. Essentially, think about all the things you do to help you relax in your living room, and add them to your store.

We’re All Equal

Your store is going to be the well-dressed, good-looking store on the street. Your customers might not be the same. But remember, in business – and actually, in life – there’s no room for a sense of superiority. Whoever comes through your door must be given the full experience of your shop. This means that you can’t get away with setting your prices too high just because you’ve done things a little differently.

Original Goods

Aside from the look and feel of your store, your main selling point will be your products, which will be different from what you normally find in shops. So take the time to think carefully about the products you’re selling. The shopping experience in your store is to feel “exclusive,” and that won’t happen if you’re stocking the same items as everyone else. When it comes to picking your items, remember that it’s better to have fewer items that are high-quality rather than stacking the shelves high!