Financial Abuse costs you more than money. The reality is when you abuse your budget you pay with retirement, child care costs, health costs, and other fees too numerous to mention. So what can you do about it?
These suggestions will help you put in place a financial management system that works effectively all the time, every time, to save you money.
Meal Time Planning and Freedom
As a parent you may believe, mistakenly, that if you don't prepare food for your child for every meal, your child will be permanently damaged. Sometimes you need to allow your children to fend for themselves, and prepare exactly what they want to eat. (I'm not talking two year old cooking stew here, I'm talking simple meals anyone can prepare.)
Growing up, my family had Fend for Yourself Night once a week. Everyone prepared something they wanted from a specific selection and had a great meal, filled up their belly, and didn't break the bank. From a selection of ramen noodles, frozen veggies, fresh veggies, fruit, breads, and a few small canned meats and soups, we were allowed to prepare what we wanted. The only rule was it couldn't be fast food, and it had to be somewhat healthy (no candy bar/soda pop dinners). My favorite meal was buttered wheat toast, fruit, and tea. My tummy was happy, mom was content, and I didn't have to work hard. It's still my favorite fast food meal.
How often do you grab McDonalds or Arby's because you're out of time? Is it really faster to drive across town than to pop bread into the toaster. Top toast with peanut butter and add a banana or an apple and you've got a healthy FAST meal, that only cost you pennies. No, you can't do that for every meal, but why abuse the fast food privilege? Why not use that option only for special times, when you really want to spend that money?
The best part of Fend for Yourself Night, it teaches children to prepare simple foods for themselves, a skill they'll need in college, that will keep them healthy and well fed on a limited and very SMALL budget?
I remember my daughter calling home and saying she'd been careless with her money, but she still had food for the last week of the month. I asked what she had, and she told me she still had peanut butter, two cans of tuna, two cans of pineapple, a case of ramen noodles, several cans of veggies and fruit, a can or two of pudding, and a box of tea bags. She had eighty-five cents for a loaf of bread. She restocked her supplies on the next paycheck, and was happy eating at the dorm until she got paid.
Smart Consumers Save Money with Gas Rebate Credit Cards
Help offset rising gasoline expenses by paying with cards that pay you back each time you fill up the tank.
Prices at the pump continue to skyrocket, leaving most Americans frustrated and stressed by budgets that are strained to the limit. High gas prices shocked consumers and made headlines a couple of years ago, but by now everyone knows that they are here as a permanent reality. The only news worth mentioning nowadays is practical advice on how to survive the rising expense of fueling our cars, trucks, SUVs, recreational vehicles, boats, and other kinds of miscellaneous gas-powered equipment.
But many consumer experts recommend a simple and straightforward solution that offers a direct way to address the problem. Credit cards that offer cash rebates and other benefits are not only safe and convenient for buying gas, but they offer significant savings that go directly back into your wallet, not into your fuel tank. By buying gas and other items with the right card - or the right combination of different cards - you can offset the financial impact of overpriced gasoline without paying added fees, high interest rates, or hidden costs.
The credit markets are in turmoil because of the spillover of problems related to bad mortgage loans, and banks and other lenders who offer credit cards are competing fiercely to get your business as their own profits get pinched. Take advantage of their generous offers while you still have the chance and you can leverage the bleak situation to your own advantage by paying less for gasoline.
For example, dozens of major credit cards now offer a wide range of benefits, cash-back offers, and other incentives for using plastic, including these:
* Apply for some cards and they will give you $50 back after your first purchase.
* Many cards pay 5 percent or more cash back to you for ordinary purchases such as gas, groceries, or prescription medications at the local drug store.
* Some combine these rebates with other perks; such as coupons you can redeem for merchandise or travel upgrades.
* The more you use some cards, the more cash you earn. Use these types of cards often enough to qualify for preferred card user status - which isn't hard if you buy gas on a regular basis - and companies will even throw in other gifts and cash rewards.
* Lots of cards do matching programs; so that for every dollar you spend you get a bonus point. Many offer double rebates, to double your points or cash savings.
* Apply for many of these popular cards and you can get a free signing bonus worth, for instance, as many as 12,000 bonus miles that you can redeem for travel awards with any airline without restrictions on which dates you fly.
* An important feature of the best rebate cards is that they do not charge you any annual fee, unlike most frequent flier or frequent user programs that charge as much as $100 or more just to join and be a member.
With lots of these cards you can also get zero percent financing for up to a full year on all your purchases and credit card balance transfers. So if you have costly credit card debt you can switch it to a rebate card and make money in a matter of minutes. Say, for example, that you owe $3,000 on a credit card that is charging you 18 percent interest. Shift that balance to a zero percent card and you automatically save yourself 18 percent interest, which is approximately $540 or nearly 50 bucks a month.
On top of that instant interest rate savings you will, of course, still be entitled to whatever rebates and benefits the card offers. That kind of consumer strategy is like giving yourself an unexpected payroll raise. Soon the credit card company of your choice will be pitching in to pay for your gas each time you fill up the tank. That is a great way to manage your finances in partnership with those who issue plastic, during these challenging economic times.
Prices at the pump continue to skyrocket, leaving most Americans frustrated and stressed by budgets that are strained to the limit. High gas prices shocked consumers and made headlines a couple of years ago, but by now everyone knows that they are here as a permanent reality. The only news worth mentioning nowadays is practical advice on how to survive the rising expense of fueling our cars, trucks, SUVs, recreational vehicles, boats, and other kinds of miscellaneous gas-powered equipment.
But many consumer experts recommend a simple and straightforward solution that offers a direct way to address the problem. Credit cards that offer cash rebates and other benefits are not only safe and convenient for buying gas, but they offer significant savings that go directly back into your wallet, not into your fuel tank. By buying gas and other items with the right card - or the right combination of different cards - you can offset the financial impact of overpriced gasoline without paying added fees, high interest rates, or hidden costs.
The credit markets are in turmoil because of the spillover of problems related to bad mortgage loans, and banks and other lenders who offer credit cards are competing fiercely to get your business as their own profits get pinched. Take advantage of their generous offers while you still have the chance and you can leverage the bleak situation to your own advantage by paying less for gasoline.
For example, dozens of major credit cards now offer a wide range of benefits, cash-back offers, and other incentives for using plastic, including these:
* Apply for some cards and they will give you $50 back after your first purchase.
* Many cards pay 5 percent or more cash back to you for ordinary purchases such as gas, groceries, or prescription medications at the local drug store.
* Some combine these rebates with other perks; such as coupons you can redeem for merchandise or travel upgrades.
* The more you use some cards, the more cash you earn. Use these types of cards often enough to qualify for preferred card user status - which isn't hard if you buy gas on a regular basis - and companies will even throw in other gifts and cash rewards.
* Lots of cards do matching programs; so that for every dollar you spend you get a bonus point. Many offer double rebates, to double your points or cash savings.
* Apply for many of these popular cards and you can get a free signing bonus worth, for instance, as many as 12,000 bonus miles that you can redeem for travel awards with any airline without restrictions on which dates you fly.
* An important feature of the best rebate cards is that they do not charge you any annual fee, unlike most frequent flier or frequent user programs that charge as much as $100 or more just to join and be a member.
With lots of these cards you can also get zero percent financing for up to a full year on all your purchases and credit card balance transfers. So if you have costly credit card debt you can switch it to a rebate card and make money in a matter of minutes. Say, for example, that you owe $3,000 on a credit card that is charging you 18 percent interest. Shift that balance to a zero percent card and you automatically save yourself 18 percent interest, which is approximately $540 or nearly 50 bucks a month.
On top of that instant interest rate savings you will, of course, still be entitled to whatever rebates and benefits the card offers. That kind of consumer strategy is like giving yourself an unexpected payroll raise. Soon the credit card company of your choice will be pitching in to pay for your gas each time you fill up the tank. That is a great way to manage your finances in partnership with those who issue plastic, during these challenging economic times.
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