Said it Once...I'm Saying It Again...

Money Sense: Avoid Holiday Debt
Make a list and check it twice

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October 18, 2007--Each year, too many of us spend the first 11 months of the year boosting our savings, eliminating debt, and improving our credit scores—only to blow it all in an orgy of mindless holiday spending at the end of the year—leaving us in a deeper financial hole each year, and depressed and discouraged about our ability to ever break the cycle and get ahead.

There's no getting around it—holiday overspending is a major poverty trap, one that ensnares millions of Americans each year. And despite a national credit crunch and housing recession, the financially destructive holiday "tradition" looks like it will continue in 2007, according to the Wealth in America Report, CNBC's quarterly survey of Americans about their spending habits and plans. According to their survey of more than 800 people, Americans plan to spend an average of $839 on Christmas gifts—17% more than spending planned for last year's holiday season.

That's why, every October, I recommend strategies designed to keep the BLACK ENTERPRISE and Doug Banks Morning Show families from overspending and undermining their progress toward wealth building goals. If you don’t want to suffer from a holiday debt hangover in 2008, take the following steps now:

* Make a list and check it twice (at least). If you shop with a written list you will spend less money and make fewer impulse purchases. This is true for regular grocery shopping and goes triple for holiday shopping, which is fraught with impulsive and emotional spending. Make a list of everybody you plan to buy a gift for, along with a dollar amount for how much you plan to spend on each person, and add up the total. When you get up off of the floor, you will cut some people off of your gift list (a holiday card will do), budget for fewer and/or less expensive gifts, or all of the above. Either way, you’ll make your spending decisions long before you set foot into a mall and get caught up in the emotional chaos of holiday shopping. Refuse to do any shopping without referring to your list—and do not leave the list at home. Even if you don’t follow it to the letter, you will still spend far less than you would if you hadn’t prepared a written budget for your shopping in advance.

* Lock up the credit cards. Resolve to use only cash to pay for holiday gifts, and you will be forced to stick to a budget and think twice about every purchase. Best of all, even if you overspend and are forced to eat holiday leftovers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the month of January, at least you won't face a mountain of high-interest credit card debt.


For more ideas on how to avoid overspending during the holidays, as well as on how to get your finances back on track if you lose control, read Holiday Debt Hangover.

Also read, Avoiding Holiday Debt, which includes downloadable holiday budgeting worksheets.

$$$ Freedom Friday $$$

Avoid falling into the same holiday spending trap:

Money Sense: Avoid Holiday Debt
Make a list and check it twice
source

October 18, 2007--Each year, too many of us spend the first 11 months of the year boosting our savings, eliminating debt, and improving our credit scores—only to blow it all in an orgy of mindless holiday spending at the end of the year—leaving us in a deeper financial hole each year, and depressed and discouraged about our ability to ever break the cycle and get ahead.

There's no getting around it—holiday overspending is a major poverty trap, one that ensnares millions of Americans each year. And despite a national credit crunch and housing recession, the financially destructive holiday "tradition" looks like it will continue in 2007, according to the Wealth in America Report, CNBC's quarterly survey of Americans about their spending habits and plans. According to their survey of more than 800 people, Americans plan to spend an average of $839 on Christmas gifts—17% more than spending planned for last year's holiday season.

That's why, every October, I recommend strategies designed to keep the BLACK ENTERPRISE and Doug Banks Morning Show families from overspending and undermining their progress toward wealth building goals. If you don’t want to suffer from a holiday debt hangover in 2008, take the following steps now:


Make a list and check it twice (at least). If you shop with a written list you will spend less money and make fewer impulse purchases. This is true for regular grocery shopping and goes triple for holiday shopping, which is fraught with impulsive and emotional spending. Make a list of everybody you plan to buy a gift for, along with a dollar amount for how much you plan to spend on each person, and add up the total. When you get up off of the floor, you will cut some people off of your gift list (a holiday card will do), budget for fewer and/or less expensive gifts, or all of the above. Either way, you’ll make your spending decisions long before you set foot into a mall and get caught up in the emotional chaos of holiday shopping. Refuse to do any shopping without referring to your list—and do not leave the list at home. Even if you don’t follow it to the letter, you will still spend far less than you would if you hadn’t prepared a written budget for your shopping in advance.


Lock up the credit cards. Resolve to use only cash to pay for holiday gifts, and you will be forced to stick to a budget and think twice about every purchase. Best of all, even if you overspend and are forced to eat holiday leftovers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the month of January, at least you won't face a mountain of high-interest credit card debt.

For more ideas on how to avoid overspending during the holidays, as well as on how to get your finances back on track if you lose control, read Holiday Debt Hangover.

$$$ Financial Freedom Friday $$$

Money Sense: Got Debt?
Tips to finding a sound counselor
source

October 10, 2007--Managing credit and keeping debt to a minimum is a key element of our ability to transition from a struggling consumer to a successful wealth-builder. That's why I often recommend that people who are struggling with debt seek credit counseling before they do something out of desperation—such as file for bankruptcy—unnecessarily or prematurely. In fact, one of the major components of the recent changes in the bankruptcy law is that credit counseling is now required before a bankruptcy can be filed.

However, it is often difficult to tell the difference between legitimate, not-for-profit counseling agencies and those focused on taking advantage of your desperation. Some may want to simply separate you from your money without solving your debt problem at all. When looking for a credit counselor, you'll do well to watch out for the following red flags:


Educational materials are unavailable or only available for purchase.
The organization pushes debt management plans as your only option, without offering such services as budget counseling or debt management classes.
The agency's employees are paid based on how many people they get to buy or sign-up for services.
The counselors are not accredited or trained by an independent, outside organization.
The credit counselor refuses to help you because you can't afford to pay.

Go to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling Website to find a NFCC member agency in your area. You may also want to check out the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's Website. This site will help you find reputable credit counselors and debt management programs, as well as offers you more tips to avoid the scammers.

$$$ Financial Freedom Friday II $$$

*This goes under the "tell us something we didn't know file!"

Fighting Depression on the Job
Illness affects black women more

--Mental health advocates are calling on the business community to confront depression among employees; not just in a bid to improve employees' lives but as a way to improve the business' bottom line. Unfortunately, depression disproportionately affects black women.

According to DepressionIsReal.org, depression among black women is almost 50% higher than it is among white women. And of black women suffering from depression, only 7% receive treatment. This is compared to 20% of white women. These statistics have community leaders urging African Americans who think they are depressed to seek help by contacting a mental health professional.

Last month, a panel discussion sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus and the Depression is Real Coalition, an alliance of mental health advocates, highlighted the impact of depression on African American women. Signs of depression include a significant change in one's mood over an extended period of time, typically for more than two weeks, says Altha J. Stewart, M.D., president of the American Psychiatric Foundation. Other signs are lack of energy, changes in appetite, withdrawal from social events, and changes in sleeping patterns.

Depression is a business problem because “employees that are depressed have a higher rate of absenteeism, and they have low productivity, so it indirectly costs corporations,” says Angie Burks, a lecturer with Indiana University-Bloomington’s Kelley School of Business who has done extensive research on the topic.Burks cites a 2006 study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry that found that a depressed worker costs employers $4,426 in indirect costs annually. "Companies encourage employees to get mammograms and get blood pressure tests but they don't encourage mental health screening," she says. "If they did it would save [businesses] a lot of money."
Another study, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, looked at the effect of depression treatment. After screening workers for depression, researchers found that those who received enhanced therapy and medication to treat the depression were more likely to still be employed after 12 months and worked on average two more hours a week than those who did not receive more pronounced care for depression. "Depression is not just an emotional or personal health problem," says Philip Wang, M.D., one of the study researchers. "It also impacts people's productivity at work." While there's no shortage of statistics on depression's impact, many people don't seek treatment because of the stigma associated with it, says Stewart.

Though depression is a medical problem, it "is commonly seen as a weakness or character flaw and for some people for whom religion plays a major part in their lives, it's even attributed to a lack of faith or a lack of enough faith," says Stewart.

Employers are also recognizing depression's costs. According to a survey conducted by the Partnership for Workplace Mental Health and the human resources professional trade publication Employee Benefit News, employers rated mental illness as the health issue with the biggest effect on indirect company costs.The American Psychiatric Foundation regularly points out examples of companies that are proactive in helping employees deal with mental health issues in its newsletter Mental HealthWorks, co-published with the American Psychiatric Association. One such company, San Ramon, California-based Chevron Corp., includes in its benefits package a mental health/substance abuse plan that covers 90% of outpatient costs and offers access to therapists for such personal needs as relationship counseling.

Business leaders can play a major role in removing the stigma attached to depression and motivating depressed employees to seek help, Stewart says. "Given that most change of significance starts at the top, management has to be very clear with human resources and with supervisors that we must be proactive in both recognizing the signs of depression and ensuring that those who are suffering with depression have access to appropriate treatment."

*****

Ladies (and gentlemen), depression is real and it hurts.

In our community-it is a sign of weakness to admit or acknowledge depression.

It's the Pink Elephant in our living rooms.

TALK ABOUT IT, before it's too late.

My son, lost his friend Jamal earlier this year.

Jamal, HUNG HIMSELF at the age of 14 years of age.

Depression, if left untreated, can take you there, ok?

If you have a physical pain that doesn't go away, you seek treatment.

Emotional pain needs treatment as well.

This is literally your life...seek help.

And live.

Ivent