I am sorry my loyal blog-followers that I have been neglecting you.  It has been over 2 weeks since I connected, but what a whirlwind these 2 weeks have been.

Actually this new year has been a whirlwind for me and “my business.” I was hired in February to help an amazing entrepreneurial woman get her taxes together for her small business.

And then all of a sudden a couple of opportunities have come my way to help 2 more inspirational women launch their new small businesses.

Wow! I am HUMBLED to say the least.

One of these ladies just signed her lease yesterday. I am so excited and proud of her. I have known her since we were 16. I know she will be amazing at this.

My other friend called me yesterday in an excited panic. The “dream” of a new business is now a reality. She had her elevator speech ready when someone asked “What do you do?” She has her first paying client waiting in the wings. Woohoo!  Now to get her even more ready for her debut.

So what else is going on, you ask:

On top of encouraging and guiding these ladies I have been doing what I do best for my family, managing our finances.

I blogged about the local consignment sale that happens twice a year here and this will be the first season that I will consign.

Have you ever consigned?

I have done it before, but nothing on this scale.

Plus, I have 3 kids now and this is a whole new level of consigning.

I have been putting their too-small clothes in plastic tubs and had to haul them out. Then I had to haul out the spring/summer clothes and see what still fits. Lastly, I had to determine what is needed and for whom.

Can you spell p-r-o-j-e-c-t?  Well, worth it, though, since I am now going shopping with a plan.

And….

And that leads to the next project I have embarked on. A make-over of sorts for me.

One of my friends is starting up her personal stylist business. In exchange for my business savvy I get her style savvy. Trust me, I sure needed it.

Our first session together was to discuss “my colors” and my body shape. I had a general idea of both, but it was nice for validation. We even went over my make-up and hair style.

The next session was in my closet, literally. My closet now contains clothes that are appropriate. I am not holding on to that pair of pants any longer that I will never get back into. Seriously. Do you do that too?

I know what I need to round out my closet when I shop which will be very helpful to our budget.

It is time to move on and accept who I am.

The beauty of it all is that my girls see that I am embracing who I am. I don’t ever want my girls to think that getting older is a burden or something dreaded. I want them to think “I hope to look and act like my mom when I am her age.”

Lastly,

I made a promise to myself this year that I would really focus on my trading/investing.

It is my passion. I am good at it. I make money at it.

Plus, I want to learn new things.

And that requires time which, as you can see, is at a premium in my household at the moment.

Oh yeah, and I am homeschooling these 3 fascinating kids.

I wouldn’t trade any of the craziness though. It makes the days go by quickly.

My friends S & K have been plugging away at paying off their debt. Remember them from Life Happens ?  They had a lot of debt to pay off (even more than they originally told me because they were ashamed to disclose it all).

We followed up shortly after my original post and this was where they were:

So I thought I’d give you an update.  Based on current projections, credit cards will be gone 4/15.  Due to selling the Tahoe and the Mortgage payment going down, we should be able to throw an extra 500 – 1000 per month at it.  We need to put some away though for car repairs, water heater is going to be 15 years old.  Dishwasher is getting up there in years.  I like to replace things on my terms, before they break.  Things seem to go a lot easier that way rather than running out and “having” to buy something.

Following that, student loan and second mortgage should be gone within 2 years (son’s junior year of high school).

So 8 months in and we’re down $10,157.  Currently we pay $380 per week towards cc.  March’s budget ups that to $500 per week ($26,000 per year).  Using part of K’s December coaching stipend to pay off the Yaris 9 months early, saving $305 per month.  Then cc goes to $600 per week ($31,200 per year) for 2014.  Should be done sometime in the 4th quarter 2014.

I am in awe of this couple. The perseverance and tenacity they have shown is inspirational.  They SEE a difference in their bills and are even more motivated.

Here’s the key, my girlfriends, GET STARTED!  There is no time like the present to get your finances in order.

Is it tough? Of course, but I KNOW you can do this.

I hear so many girlfriends who lament their debt, but tell me about their latest visit to the nail salon or Starbucks. You will probably stay in debt if you don’t make some lifestyle adjustments.

I’m sorry, but that is the truth. I know, I know, you deserve a treat or two, right?  Maybe, but I am going to bet you have not been depriving yourself up to this point in your life.

NOW is the time to take stock of what is most important….a trip through the drive-thru, a pretty pedi, or a debt-free life?

Here is the best part though:  Once you are living debt-free you can afford to hit Starbucks or get your nails done.  You could probably afford to drink the Starbucks while you are lounging at the salon!

What are you waiting for??!!

I just shared my good friends’ personal journey out of debt in Life Happens.  I received email from many of you (and some phone calls) to tell me how much this has impacted you.  I let them know how much it meant to others to hear their story.  When we are in the “thick of things” sometimes we forget that we aren’t the only ones who have lived this journey.

Here is what my good friend wrote to me:

So I thought I’d give you an update.  Based on current projections, credit cards will be gone 4/15.  Due to selling the Tahoe and the Mortgage payment going down, we should be able to throw an extra 500 – 1000 per month at it.  We need to put some away though for car repairs, water heater is going to be 15 years old.  Dishwasher is getting up there in years.  I like to replace things on my terms, before they break.  Things seem to go a lot easier that way rather than running out and “having” to buy something.

What I  have taken away from their journey and disclosure is the motivation and dedication of BOTH spouses.  Without either one of these necessary ingredients they wouldn’t be where they are today.  Thanks for sharing!!

They have inventoried and sold off a bunch of power tools that were not being used.  They took a hard look at some other items just sitting in boxes or collecting dust and decided it was time to part company.  They now have an emergency savings account. It is not at their goal level, but it is steadily growing from their purging.

Best of all, they aren’t feeling deprived.  They have told me they are relieved. They are glad they finally discussed the situation with a third party because the money issue was the 800 pound gorilla in the room. Our session was the catalyst to get them moving in the right direction.

How ’bout you?  Do you need a sounding board?  Let me know.  I would love to help.

I have a girlfriend who is embarking on a new and exciting business.  She is starting to make money and asked my opinion on what to do with it.  She isn’t interested in adding it to the household budget at the moment because she doesn’t want to become dependent on it and she isn’t interested in adding it to their regular savings.  My suggestion would be to open up a separate savings account for it.

The other thing to think about when starting a small business is keeping your personal and business accounts separate.  It is much easier to track income and expenses when you have a separate account.  And it simplifies life at tax time.  Start a file with all work related items tossed in there.  Be sure to have invoices tracking the sales and income.  Now this doesn’t have to be complicated.  As you get busier then you can add a computer program to track all money transactions, print invoices, and other reports.  In the beginning Keep It Simple.  As you move along in this fashion you will find what you need the most help with and then can decide on the software that meets that need.

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I can truly appreciate not wanting to depend on the income from a new venture.  We never depend on my income in our daily lives.  That is our “fun” money.  We don’t depend on my income for a few reasons.  One of them is that we move frequently so my income becomes fleeting.  And another is if push came to shove and one of us HAD to stay home to care for the kids or an ailing parent some day then we could make that decision easier.

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Here’s an update on my Lenten challenge…as of today we have “saved” almost $400.  I am calculating that based on the credit card statement ending balance last month and the one this month.  We are pretty happy with the results so far.  Even the littles are getting in on the challenge.  As we drove by Mellow Mushroom today, one of them mentioned that we haven’t been there lately.  The other responded that it is non-essential spending LOL  Then she proceeded to critique my spending lately…even funnier!

One of my trade-mentors posted a video on his FB page from TED.  It was a very inspirational video by Shawn Achor called The happy secret to better work.  It is 12 mins long but well worth your time.

As I was perusing the site to find out more about TED I came across a video that ALL my girlfriends need to watch.  It is about saving.  It is about starting small and starting tomorrow.  This is a concept that I have discussed time and again with some of you….take a piece of that pay increase every year and start savings.  If you start with just 3% of your salary in year one, then in 4 years you will be over 12%.  And here is the best part, you won’t have to take from your current standard of living.  So you CAN save and increase the savings.  Here’s the link:  Saving more tomorrow.  It is a 17 min video.  You will get a lot out of it.

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Here’s another question from one of my girlfriends:  I have some derogatory information on my credit report and heard that it can be removed.  Is that true?


The answer is Yes, But.  If there is information on your credit report that is not yours then you have the right to contact the credit reporting agency asking them to correct the information.  We, consumers,  are protected by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) which “promotes the accuracy and privacy of information in the files of the nation’s credit reporting companies.”  (quoted from www.ftc.gov)


The 1st thing you need to do is put in writing the information you believe is inaccurate.  Include copies of any documentation that would further strengthen your position.  Be sure to send the letter return receipt to confirm that it was received.  The credit reporting agency has 30 days to investigate your claim.  If there is no response or the company can’t prove the information isn’t accurate then the credit reporting agency MUST remove the derogatory information from your report.  On the other hand, if the information is disputed by the company, the information will stay on your report for 7 years from the time it was reported as derogatory (when a company starts their “aging” clock will vary so this is an estimation).  The further away from the original date the less the derogatory information will affect your report.


Here is a link to a sample letter on the FTC website:  Sample Letter


As I just mentioned, derogatory information will fall off your report after 7 years, but that doesn’t mean it will necessarily “go away.”  If that information is believed valid by the original creditor and it is an outstanding bill, it will have probably have been sent to a collection agency.  The collection agency will have paid a small fee for your outstanding debt to the originial creditor.  For example you owed XYZ $1000.  You defaulted on said debt in 2002.  XYZ finally got tired of calling you and sold the debt to ABC Collections for $200.  ABC Collections will attempt to collect the $1000 but will negotiate with you.  


There is a statute of limitations on collecting debt and it varies by state.  Here’s a good map Statutes of Limitations by State.  As a caution, though, debt collectors can still attempt to collect “time-barred debts.”  It is up to the consumer to be vigilant.  If a debt collector calls and you know the statute of limitations has run out do NOT have a discussion acknowledging said debt.  This will RESTART the clock.  Yep, that is right, the old debt will have a new date.  This is called “re-aging.”  Should you be contacted by a debt collector always ask for them to send you information in writing.  This will give you time to research the debt and the statute of limitations.


The other very salient point I must make is OPEN YOUR MAIL!!  All of it.  Read it.  Don’t bury it because it is bad news.  You can be sued by a creditor and your ignorance of said lawsuit is no excuse.


Back to our example… You live in Indiana.  It is now 2005 and ABC Collections is calling.  They have the right to continue to attempt to collect the debt.  You have the right to ask them to send you more information on the debt and/or stop contacting you.  They may even sue you.  It is their right.  Let’s say they do nothing and 4 years go by.  Since it is 7 years since the debt was reported as derogatory it has past it’s statute of limitations in Indiana.  


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Things happen in life.  Having poor credit is not the end of the world and it can be fixed.  Trust me on this. I had horrible credit 20 years ago.  I was sued and had a judgement against me.  With vigilance I was able to pull myself out of that mess.  I am determined to never be in that position again.  The worst part of poor credit, to me, was the shame that goes along with it.  And yes, poor credit will affect your ability to get a job, an apartment, a mortgage loan, etc.  It is truly in your best interest to know what is on your report.  I know I put this in a previous post, but it is worth noting again Annual Credit Report is the best link to access the 3 credit reporting agencies.  


Good luck!