Just like many of us fight the seemingly uphill battle to remain physically fit, we must fight to remain financially fit. I have spoken on this subject before and I will speak on it in the future not only because part of the title of my blog is 'finance', but because financial fitness is important.
Financial fitness does not mean we have to be filthy rich or even strive to be filthy rich. If it happens though, so much the better. Financial fitness means that we have something saved for a rainy day. It means we at least have something saved for an emergency. Many of us have heard that we should have three to six months of reserve in case we lose our jobs. I believe we should work towards this goal, but the reality is many people are still suffering from job loss, lost homes, ruined credit, and the feeling that they will never make it back from financial ruin.
The fact is though, many people have come back from financial ruin. Many of the wealthy, well-to-do people we hear about or watch on television or read about in the news, have lost everything and made it back. Want some names? Walt Disney, Henry Ford, Michael Jackson, to name a few.
What will be your legacy? Will you start over? Will you try again? These people did.
Financial fitness is not rocket science, just like exercise is not rocket science. In exercise you have choices: join a gym, pay monthly or annual fees, and work out before or after work. Hey, you can even work out during your lunch time. You may choose not to join a gym and do your own thing. I walk 30 minutes, three times per week. Oh I'm not talking about leisurely walks in the park, I'm talking sweat drenched, fancy sneaker-wearing, bug spray from head to toe because I live in Florida types of walks. Whatever it takes to keep the weight off.
Just so in financial fitness. You should save a portion of your paycheck, whether its $5.00 or 5%. There really are no excuses. You do not need to worry about financial charts, quantitative easing, or portfolio diversification. Don't use that as an excuse. You can save whether you work at a burger joint or whether you manage a Fortune 500 company. That's the great thing about America: it's really up to you, no excuses. I know, some people are born in the negative, products of a bad start because of where they live or the circumstances under which they were born. It doesn't matter, choose. Choose to be financially fit. Just like exercise, it will pay off in the long run.
http://www.thesunsfinancialdiary.com/personal-finance/5-famous-people-beat-bankruptcy/
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Warning Signs
I don't know about you, but many of the problems and issues I have faced in my life were preceded by warning signs. It did not matter how major or minor the problem was, when I look back, I saw the warning signs. In some, well most cases, I ignored the signs or just missed them all together. In fact, I can tell you in which problems I missed the signs and in which problems I ignored the signs.
You may see yourself in some of the following examples, either way, take this as a warning sign. I have visited the country of Belize many times. I love it there and look forward to another trip some time in the future. On my last trip I lost a watch that I liked very much. The issue? I was warned that I could lose the watch. How? The clasp had been loose for quite some time. I 'kept meaning to fix it' but never got around to it. I can even tell you where I believe it fell off of my hand. It was in the airport, the day of my arrival. I reached back to grab my luggage and as I sat in the taxi driving away from the airport I realized my watch was gone. I had that watch for about eight years before I lost it due to ignoring the signs. I have since purchased another watch, same brand, prettier; but I often think not so much of the watch, but about the warning signs.
If you are anything like me, you probably have similar stories. The watch story was about ignoring the signs, let me give you an example of missing the signs. Missing signs typically happen due to naivete or ignorance. Sometimes missing the signs happen when you just want something so badly. You know what I mean. That person you really had no business dating--or marrying or that loan or business decision you just had a bad feeling about.
The warning signs are all around us. Some people call them 'that first mind', that 'gut feeling', or for those of us who are Christians, The Holy Spirit speaking to us. Well, God does speak to His children. He does warn us in our spirit against certain decisions, situations, or people; but he leaves the final decision to us.
The next time you see a warning sign, don't ignore or miss it. Listen and take heed, or pay the price. Yes, there is always a price to pay whether the warning sign was missed or ignored. "And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." II Samuel 15:22. Please read the entire chapter, it really gives you the opportunity to see how important it is not to ignore or miss signs. In fact, this story shows us how detrimental missing or ignoring signs can be--even unto death. Its just not worth it to ignore or miss warning signs. Keep your heart and your eyes open and listen.
Life is short, pay attention to the warning signs!
You may see yourself in some of the following examples, either way, take this as a warning sign. I have visited the country of Belize many times. I love it there and look forward to another trip some time in the future. On my last trip I lost a watch that I liked very much. The issue? I was warned that I could lose the watch. How? The clasp had been loose for quite some time. I 'kept meaning to fix it' but never got around to it. I can even tell you where I believe it fell off of my hand. It was in the airport, the day of my arrival. I reached back to grab my luggage and as I sat in the taxi driving away from the airport I realized my watch was gone. I had that watch for about eight years before I lost it due to ignoring the signs. I have since purchased another watch, same brand, prettier; but I often think not so much of the watch, but about the warning signs.
If you are anything like me, you probably have similar stories. The watch story was about ignoring the signs, let me give you an example of missing the signs. Missing signs typically happen due to naivete or ignorance. Sometimes missing the signs happen when you just want something so badly. You know what I mean. That person you really had no business dating--or marrying or that loan or business decision you just had a bad feeling about.
The warning signs are all around us. Some people call them 'that first mind', that 'gut feeling', or for those of us who are Christians, The Holy Spirit speaking to us. Well, God does speak to His children. He does warn us in our spirit against certain decisions, situations, or people; but he leaves the final decision to us.
The next time you see a warning sign, don't ignore or miss it. Listen and take heed, or pay the price. Yes, there is always a price to pay whether the warning sign was missed or ignored. "And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." II Samuel 15:22. Please read the entire chapter, it really gives you the opportunity to see how important it is not to ignore or miss signs. In fact, this story shows us how detrimental missing or ignoring signs can be--even unto death. Its just not worth it to ignore or miss warning signs. Keep your heart and your eyes open and listen.
Life is short, pay attention to the warning signs!
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Do not idle
When I was a kid growing up in Dorchester, Mass., just outside of Boston; my Mom used to send me to the grocery store. Sometimes I went by myself and sometimes she made me take my little sister which of course annoyed me. But without fail, every time she sent me to the store she said 'do not idle.' One day I asked her what 'idle' meant, and she said that it meant I was not to stop at my friends house or even stop on the side walk to chit chat. I was not to stop at the corner store to buy candy or chips. I was not allowed to let anyone stop me from my errand: going to the store, or coming back from the store.
Well, I wasn't a perfect kid, but I wasn't an idler. I think it had something to do with being the oldest of five. I was given more responsibilities and more was expected of me. I was blamed if the house wasn't clean when my parents got home from work for instance. So of course I was what my siblings called 'bossy'! The nerve of those people!
Alas, I digress!
Idle. Do you know that as adults we can and do idle? Another word for idle could be procrastinate, putting things off until another time, after time, after time. Then before you know it a year has gone by, two years, five years, 10 year, then 20! By which time you have compiled a wish list of things you believe are now too late to start or finish.
I have good news for you! As long as you are alive you have a chance. Stop making excuses. I took classes online: one of the most difficult ways to attend school, with people who were doing the same thing while taking care of small children and working full time. In fact, when you obtain or achieve a goal later in life, it means more to you. You cherish it more.
Stop waiting for some day, tomorrow, Monday, January; when your kids are older...there will never be a perfect time. Sit down, count the costs: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?"
Luke 14:28. In other words, use common sense; which you probably have more of as you experience life, but do not use 'circumstances' as an excuse.
Step out, or as the hymn says, launch out into the deep. Because any fisherman will tell you, the fish are out in the deep, all you get in the shallows is mud and muck.
Do not idle.
Well, I wasn't a perfect kid, but I wasn't an idler. I think it had something to do with being the oldest of five. I was given more responsibilities and more was expected of me. I was blamed if the house wasn't clean when my parents got home from work for instance. So of course I was what my siblings called 'bossy'! The nerve of those people!
Alas, I digress!
Idle. Do you know that as adults we can and do idle? Another word for idle could be procrastinate, putting things off until another time, after time, after time. Then before you know it a year has gone by, two years, five years, 10 year, then 20! By which time you have compiled a wish list of things you believe are now too late to start or finish.
I have good news for you! As long as you are alive you have a chance. Stop making excuses. I took classes online: one of the most difficult ways to attend school, with people who were doing the same thing while taking care of small children and working full time. In fact, when you obtain or achieve a goal later in life, it means more to you. You cherish it more.
Stop waiting for some day, tomorrow, Monday, January; when your kids are older...there will never be a perfect time. Sit down, count the costs: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?"
Luke 14:28. In other words, use common sense; which you probably have more of as you experience life, but do not use 'circumstances' as an excuse.
Step out, or as the hymn says, launch out into the deep. Because any fisherman will tell you, the fish are out in the deep, all you get in the shallows is mud and muck.
Do not idle.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Make your way through
There's a saying that 'you're either coming out of a problem, in the middle of a problem, or just heading into a problem.' I don't know who said it, but I find it to be true. I've also heard that the way you handle a problem will determine how long you stay in the problem. If you dwell in negativity and a bad attitude, the problem will hang around longer than if you decide that this issue will not get the best of you. No matter how bad things seem, if you push through and tell yourself that 'this too shall pass', that attitude will bring you through faster. If you allow bitterness, fear, or hatred, to get even a toehold into your situation, your situation can become exponentially worse.
Please realize that the troubles I am talking about are not problems such as a minor fender bender on the way to work, being a few dollars short and being days from pay day, or co-workers that get on your nerves. These are things that you can deal with, or make work, even to God's glory. No, I'm talking about issues so serious that it seems your entire life has or will change because of this issue. Most of us had a general plan for our lives, plans so general that we all assumed, and took for granted that these plans would come to pass. But what happens when we realize our lives will not happen the way we expected or hoped? How will we handle these realizations, and how will we live the life we have been given? How will we play the hand we have been dealt?
We all have the ability to make choices. We all have the opportunity to choose positively or negatively what we will do when life does not work out in the way we expected. We can allow ourselves to become and remain stuck in a place of bitterness or hatred, or we can decide to live a blessed and positive life even if it is not the life we wanted. Decide. Decision. Most of us know what the word decision means. We know how to spell it without much difficulty, it is a word that is used by most of the general population; but I took the liberty of looking up the definition on Bing.com. Decision=process of choosing: the process of coming to a conclusion or determination about something. So there were three definitions on Bing.com. This is the third definition and I preferred it to the other two definitions because it seemed more definite to me. After all, once you come to a decision on most things in life, it is difficult to change your mind without some level of difficulty, otherwise it wasn't much of an issue to begin with. My opinion.
When you come to a conclusion or determination that you will not allow bitterness or any other negative emotion to become the norm in your life, you have made a decision. And it was a good decision. I do not like to use the word ugly to describe anyone because we are all made in the image of God. I do not believe there are any physically ugly people. I do believe however, that negative emotions can make people ugly. If you decide to allow bitterness, hatred, envy, backbiting, backstabbing, or any negative emotion or act to take up residence in you, you will become that emotion. Those emotions are ugly.
If you decide to push through whatever issues brought you to these emotions, even if you must live with those issues or problems your entire life, you do not have to live with those emotions. Don't stay there, don't dwell there, make your way through. If you do this, all of the negative emotions must go. They can't hang around where they are not used.
Hang in there and allow God to make all your crooked ways straight.
Please realize that the troubles I am talking about are not problems such as a minor fender bender on the way to work, being a few dollars short and being days from pay day, or co-workers that get on your nerves. These are things that you can deal with, or make work, even to God's glory. No, I'm talking about issues so serious that it seems your entire life has or will change because of this issue. Most of us had a general plan for our lives, plans so general that we all assumed, and took for granted that these plans would come to pass. But what happens when we realize our lives will not happen the way we expected or hoped? How will we handle these realizations, and how will we live the life we have been given? How will we play the hand we have been dealt?
We all have the ability to make choices. We all have the opportunity to choose positively or negatively what we will do when life does not work out in the way we expected. We can allow ourselves to become and remain stuck in a place of bitterness or hatred, or we can decide to live a blessed and positive life even if it is not the life we wanted. Decide. Decision. Most of us know what the word decision means. We know how to spell it without much difficulty, it is a word that is used by most of the general population; but I took the liberty of looking up the definition on Bing.com. Decision=process of choosing: the process of coming to a conclusion or determination about something. So there were three definitions on Bing.com. This is the third definition and I preferred it to the other two definitions because it seemed more definite to me. After all, once you come to a decision on most things in life, it is difficult to change your mind without some level of difficulty, otherwise it wasn't much of an issue to begin with. My opinion.
When you come to a conclusion or determination that you will not allow bitterness or any other negative emotion to become the norm in your life, you have made a decision. And it was a good decision. I do not like to use the word ugly to describe anyone because we are all made in the image of God. I do not believe there are any physically ugly people. I do believe however, that negative emotions can make people ugly. If you decide to allow bitterness, hatred, envy, backbiting, backstabbing, or any negative emotion or act to take up residence in you, you will become that emotion. Those emotions are ugly.
If you decide to push through whatever issues brought you to these emotions, even if you must live with those issues or problems your entire life, you do not have to live with those emotions. Don't stay there, don't dwell there, make your way through. If you do this, all of the negative emotions must go. They can't hang around where they are not used.
Hang in there and allow God to make all your crooked ways straight.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
How do you make decisions?
How do you make decisions? Sometimes the decision-making process is as important as the decision itself. I'm not referring to the daily decisions we make such as which route to take to work, what to have for breakfast, or even if we should have regular or decaf. Now you know whether you should be drinking decaf or no coffee at all for that matter, but even the wrong decision is a decison.
Then there are decisions that you should make with extra care. You should take time, not because of indecision, but because the result of your decision will be with you for the rest of your life. When it is time to make an important decision and you find yourself in the process, there are several things that will help you make that correct decision.
You may view the decision from many vantage points such as where you are in life, where you have been, and where you would like to be. You may also seek assistance through books, articles, and even websites devoted to the decision making process. With all of these resources at your disposal, how important do you think it is to make the right decision? Oh, there is one other thing on the list. Prayer. I believe prayer is the most important of these decision-making resources.
The thing with prayer though, is that you must listen for the answer. Scary thought huh? Scary because the answer may not be what you want to hear. So if you pray, which I suggest you do, be prepared to comply. Even in the 'no', God has a reason that you may or may not ever know. Either way, make the right decision because you have to live with it for the rest of your life.
Life/Religion
Then there are decisions that you should make with extra care. You should take time, not because of indecision, but because the result of your decision will be with you for the rest of your life. When it is time to make an important decision and you find yourself in the process, there are several things that will help you make that correct decision.
You may view the decision from many vantage points such as where you are in life, where you have been, and where you would like to be. You may also seek assistance through books, articles, and even websites devoted to the decision making process. With all of these resources at your disposal, how important do you think it is to make the right decision? Oh, there is one other thing on the list. Prayer. I believe prayer is the most important of these decision-making resources.
The thing with prayer though, is that you must listen for the answer. Scary thought huh? Scary because the answer may not be what you want to hear. So if you pray, which I suggest you do, be prepared to comply. Even in the 'no', God has a reason that you may or may not ever know. Either way, make the right decision because you have to live with it for the rest of your life.
Life/Religion
Sunday, August 19, 2012
What are you doing?
I am often asked if I have more books coming and the fact is, I have several book projects in the pipeline but they are on hold, except one. Funny though, the one I have brought to the forefront is proving to be difficult to write. Granted I am trying to write it while working full time and heading back to school to obtain a graduate degree. My first book took just under a year to write and it was written under much easier circumstances. I kept a schedule of writing four hours per day until the book was written, and then I put it down for a few years. The manuscript sat gathering dust because I was not ready to publish. "Down Again" was finally published and is available on Amazon.com or via my website at www.civillamorgan.com.
The book I'm writing now is all over the place, or as I like to say, discombobulated. I am working on several chapters at a time, there are peices of chapters here and there, I can't seem to get it together. However, it's a book I need to write because it will help a portion of society that goes largely ignored and misunderstood. As we all know, most people tend to ignore what they do not understand, hoping if they look in the opposite direction the issue or problem would just go away. Some of us however, are not afraid to walk down the road less taken. We are not afraid to stand up for people who cannot stand up for themselves, or defend the people who are too broken to defend themselves. We defend even when we are made fun of, ridiculed, and cursed. I would even dare to say people like us are fearless. Hey, there's only one life to live, why live it on the fence? I've heard that 'if you don't stand for something you will fall for anything'--Unknown. I don't plan on falling for anything.
So yes, I am at this moment working on a book. Even when I am not working on it, I'm working on it. It's always on my mind: morning, noon, and night. I believe it will be until it's finished. That's ok, I am up to the task.
What are you working on? What should you be working on? Life is short, no one should have to prompt you to do what you know you should be doing.
Life
The book I'm writing now is all over the place, or as I like to say, discombobulated. I am working on several chapters at a time, there are peices of chapters here and there, I can't seem to get it together. However, it's a book I need to write because it will help a portion of society that goes largely ignored and misunderstood. As we all know, most people tend to ignore what they do not understand, hoping if they look in the opposite direction the issue or problem would just go away. Some of us however, are not afraid to walk down the road less taken. We are not afraid to stand up for people who cannot stand up for themselves, or defend the people who are too broken to defend themselves. We defend even when we are made fun of, ridiculed, and cursed. I would even dare to say people like us are fearless. Hey, there's only one life to live, why live it on the fence? I've heard that 'if you don't stand for something you will fall for anything'--Unknown. I don't plan on falling for anything.
So yes, I am at this moment working on a book. Even when I am not working on it, I'm working on it. It's always on my mind: morning, noon, and night. I believe it will be until it's finished. That's ok, I am up to the task.
What are you working on? What should you be working on? Life is short, no one should have to prompt you to do what you know you should be doing.
Life
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Money makes the world go round
We all know how the current financial conditions have affected almost everyone in our country and around the world. People have lost jobs, homes, cars, and savings. Life looks bleak and for some there will be no way to recoup their losses, at least not to what they had before the financial nightmare happened. Most people believe the financial breakdown started in 2008 and I would agree, to a point. The financial breakdown showed its face to us in 2008 but it did not begin in 2008. Like any problem or issue in life such as the current financial conditions, they do not just pop up, or 'happen'. Bad things were happening long before 2008. Mortgage brokers and bankers were approving bad loans long before 2008. Buyers were shopping for and being approved for homes they really could not afford, and the stock market, well the stock market was just going through a typical cycle.
The fact is, everything, including life, is cyclical. If you are old enough to look back over the last 20 or 30 years of your life you will see that even your individual life was cyclical. You made it through the tough times that occurred even when those tough times happened at the hand of someone other than yourself. The financial loss you may have suffered since 2008, made you either sink or swim. If you swam and did not sink, it should have taught you how to 'live a new normal'. What is a new normal? Learning to live on quite a bit less than you used to, and appreciating the fact that you have a job. This includes having to live without certain things that you may have previously taken for granted, and having the best possible attitude about your changed situation.
Two important thing to do during this time though, is to never give up and to keep putting something away for yourself in savings and in retirement. It sounds crazy because you may have just lost everything, but the fact is, life goes on. You cannot make the excuse 20 or 30 years from now that you could not save anything because there was a crash in 2008. You may have been able to save $5,000.00 per year before your life crashed and can now only save $2,000, $1,000.00, or even $500.00. You cannot live off the crash of 2008, you cannot live off of the pitfalls of life, but you can live off of doing the best you can with what you have left. And who knows, because just like the market, life is cyclical, your new normal may be the best thing that ever happened to you.
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