Financial War

In the aftermath of the 2009 recession, the financial landscape is pretty decimated.  Jobs are hard to find.  Big business is still trying to find ways to make money and grow.  Housing foreclosures doesn't seem to stop.  Services are tacking more fees on things and reducing service.  Education sector is trying to save money.  States are faced with cutting budgets and services and raising taxes.  Its nothing short of a Financial War.  The enemy is economic fragility.  In such a frail state another financial catastrophe could be sparked.  We have to work in virtual unison to get ourselves financially stable.  I have a few ideas how.


Reduce your costs.  This not only includes shopping costs but also avoiding fees by paying on time or early.  Make a list of shopping needs and another for shopping wants.  Research your shopping wants and make a plan to save money for them one at a time.  This will give you goals to work for and keep you encouraged as time goes on.  Take a calculator to the grocery store and tally up your items as you go.  You may consider what you need versus impulse purchases.  Consider TV via the internet versus Cable or Satellite TV.  Services such as Netflix, HuluPlus, and Amazon On Demand are paid services but much less than the traditional paid TV.  There are also free video stuff online.  Now we have devices that puts the internet streaming video on your television.  So the experience comes as good or better than traditional paid TV.  Look into new technology that you may be able to use.  Recently I found a LED light bulb for under ten dollars.  I bought it because I figured I could use it in a desk lamp I have.  That bulb take the place of a 40 Watt bulb and it only uses 1 Watt.  Take advantage of free services such as the public library and public parks.  These and other ideas you can implement and reduce your cost.  Regardless of how little you can save it pays off in the end because of the frugal habits you gain.

Reduce your debt.  Stop using the credit cards except for emergencies.  Pay the debt on time or off.  If you cannot find a way to pay more than minimum, then you may consider bankruptcy.  Bankruptcy protection is a legal action that at the end leaves you with no debt.  In the process you have to give up your assets as well.  For personal stuff you get to keep a lot.  Avoid credit card debt reduction scams.  If your not sure about an offer don't do it.  If you calculate all you own and take away all your debt, then that's what your basically worth.  For a lot of people that number will be a minus number.  That's when you know that you can benefit from bankruptcy protection.  This is not a popular view because its so emotional to go through it.  The reason is because there is an amount of social shame that comes with it as well as letting go of assets and old habits.  Reducing your debt will strengthen your buying power and your financial situation.

Increase your income.  Finding a job is hard now.  Hopefully, jobs will become more available.  There are a lot of people who have lost their jobs.  To make yourself more competitive, get some education.  If you don't have a High School Diploma, get into a GED program and be serious about it.  For some taking courses at their local Community College could give them some more skills.  Certificates may or may not help you in your field, research it.  You may consider changing fields.  If so, think of what you really want to do.  Then you can look for a job that resembles what you want.  The reason for this is that if you love what you are doing, then you will feel better about it.  Get a part time job.  Part time jobs may add to your full time job income but also may lead you in a different field that you enjoy better.  To find a job try going around your area and see who is hiring.  Talk to people and have some face time networking.  Small business constantly look for people to hire.  Do your research and see where you can fit.   You may be able to increase your income in a small way on the internet.  There is Amazon's Mturk which allows you to do tasks for money.  There is adding Google's adsense to your blog.  There are others opportunities to make some small income.  I look at these as a way to give you income for stuff you are already doing or love to do online.  You can start a business.  This will take a lot of personal work.  Often its better to start a business with a partner.  You will also need investors.  So knowing how to make a business plan is essential.  Above all you have to network to get the business up and running.  Who knows, you may be able to hire people who need to strengthen their financial situation.  Increasing your income even a little may yield good rewards in the future.

Strengthening you financial situation is essential to your future and society's future.  Taking steps in each area of reducing your costs, reducing your debt, and increase your income is a good tactic.  For many it will take courage to take the steps the fear to take but are necessary to take.  I say the sooner you take the steps the sooner you can rebuild, and the better you will be.  Taking care of your finances may enable you to help others in time.  The more people have financial responsibility the better the economy will get.