Money Unspent

About three years ago, I left my job to become self-employed for the first time. The first years were great. I had business coming in from another source, and it seemed as if there was nothing but security and growth in my future. When the economy hit, I learned rapidly that growth "out there" was not something I could rely on. I had to turn inward.

Mrs. Eddy, in her book Science And Health with Key To The Scriptures, states, "The wintry blasts of earth may uproot the flowers of affection, and scatter them to the winds, but this severance of fleshly ties serves to unite thought more closely to God, for Love supports the struggling heart until it ceases to sigh over the world and begins to unfold its wings for heaven."

I longed for this to be true, as I was faced with a greater fear than I have ever known, and I needed something to calm me. Before embarking upon my business, I relied heavily on budget and a consistent income. I prided myself on being organized, frugal and responsible. Whenever an unexpected event occurred that required some budget rearranging, fear would be the first thing I would face, "How can I possibly fit this in and still survive?"

For my business to stall, with no other source of income, was definitely unexpected and scary. Fortunately for me, growing inwardly was just as important as outward growth. And, as Mrs. Eddy's quote suggests, the more "blasts" I felt from earth, the more I readily turned upward in my thought, seeking solace in a place I could rely on. Over the next few years, I returned to this quote time and time again, as my income experienced continual swings from high to low. I needed to be reminded that the balance of my money was not an indicator of my true supply.

As a child in Sunday School, I had been taught that Divine Love supplies our every need. But it's hard to count that. There aren't ledgers and checkbooks that will show you are flush. I had to retrain my mind. As my money would dip, I chose to believe that supply comes in a variety of ways. It can be in good ideas, it can be in a gift from a friend or stranger, it can be the offering of a service at reduced or free rates. It can be the sun on my back or the wind in my face. If I feel fear every time I glance at my checkbook or make a trip to the bank, then I must not believe in Divine Love's ability to supply my every need. How could human indicators, such as my checkbook, tell me anything of God's power?

I started to bless the bank, every time I went. I resisted the fear and the shame I would feel as I walked in. I saw the tellers as children of God with me, so caring less about my financial prowess, working with me and all in our expression of Divine Love. I began seeing the building as just one expression of supply, and endless supply at that. I felt the fluidity of supply, as a river always flowing, even though you can't see it at times. Much like an aquifer, supply is always there, it arises in different points and through different materials, but it is always in the earth's crust somewhere.

Now, I'm not going to tell you what my financial status is right now. Does that even matter? I am part of the flow of supply, and I always will be. Its expression in my life changes just as every other material component in my life changes, but the fact will always remain: I am provided for continually, effortlessly and substantially.

The amplified edition of Mary Baker Eddy Christian Healer, written by von Fettweis and Warneck, describes my current understanding of supply best: "...to spread undivided the Science that operates unspent."

"...to spread undivided" meaning all are flowing in this river of supply, and "the Science that operates unspent," meaning there is no end to the supply of Spirit. It is everlasting and continual. I can count on that.

How to Develop a Spending Plan

The best way to develop a spending plan is after you have identified your spending habits, located where your spending leaks are and been able to plug them. A budget focuses more on monthly expenses and how to manage the expenses and income on a short-term scale. On the other hand, a spending plan is mean to be a plan for the long term.

The main aim of a spending plan is to note the money that is coming in and the money that is going out and then think of reasonable ways of balancing the two preferably with more money coming in than going out.

We will start by identifying the four basic steps that are involved in the development of a spending plan.

1. Look at the money coming in - Income
2. Look at the money going out - Expenses
3. Compare the income and the expenses - are you living within your means?
4. Eliminate the non-priority purchases by assigning priorities to all expenses.

What is important is that every member in your family should be involved in creating the plan so that they understand why certain spending decisions that could affect them were made and so that they do not feel left out. Take everyone's opinions while deciding on priorities. However, once the plan is ready, it has to be the responsibility of just one person to track the income and expenses. That person will be paying the bills, balancing the checkbook, keeping track of the cash and forbidding extra expenses, if need be. It is best that every few months, the family meet to review the progress made, the savings already put aside and make the required adjustments in either income, expenses or savings goals.

Traffic Ticket Fines

Nothing sucks more than paying money and getting nothing in return. Classic case: a speeding ticket. You end up owing 0 or more, and in return, you get a beautiful red mark on your driving record that can only make your life worse. And there's absolutely nothing you can do about it except pay the fee and get on with your life.

Ok, so maybe that last statement isn't exactly true. There are in fact things that you can do to get out of your speeding ticket, or at the least get it reduced to something less harmful to your future. But most people will never know, because they just pick up their checkbook and pay the fine without even thinking about it. Whatever you do, don't be that person! Those of us in the know are getting out of those very same citations that you are hopelessly paying.

Some people might not want you to know. They might think that spreading the word will dilute the traffic ticket avoidance potential for the rest of us more savvy individuals. But I don't buy into that at all. As far as I'm concerned, everyone should know that they don't have to just accept their ticket. You can fight your ticket, you can get your ticket reduced, you can get your ticket eliminated completely. Don't let anyone else tell you differently.

"But I already have a speeding ticket on my record, so I'm sure they won't let me off easy." I used to believe that very thing myself, but just recently I had a personal experience with someone that had a terrible driving record and got out of a very bad situation nonetheless. The important thing is that you don't give up. Don't just sign the back of the ticket without even thinking about it and mail it in. You need to do some research, check out your options, and fight those traffic ticket fines.

Checkbook IRA LLC - Investing Guidelines - Part One

Alternative Assets-Non-Traditional Assets

What are alternative assets-non-traditional assets:

When considering their investing choices, the vast majority of investors immediately think of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange traded funds, and closed-end funds. These categories of investment assets are in fact the most well known and popular.

Fidelity Investment, Vanguard, Morgan Stanley, and certain bank trust departments are examples of the type of IRA custodians and administrators that allow only stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange traded funds and closed-end funds.

But, there is a smaller, but very important class of assets that appeal to many investors. These assets are generally not actively traded on exchanges; consequently they are less well known to the general investing public.

There is a separate group of IRA custodians and administrators who allow and encourage their clients to invest in a much broader range of asset classes and asset groups. They provide the capability for their clients to invest in assets that are listed on exchanges and assets that are not listed. The "not listed" category of investment assets are communally referred to as alternative assets or non-tradition assets.

Here is a list of the most common alternative and non-traditional assets:

Flipping Real Estate Pre-Foreclosures Investment Real Estate-all types Commercial Property-all types Raw Land Partnerships Private Developments REITS-all types Domestic Rental Property Foreign Rental Property Foreclosed Properties Tax Liens and Certificate Trust Deeds & Mortgages Equipment Leasing Private Notes Business Notes Limited Liability Companies (LLC) Gold & Silver Foreign Assets Foreign Real Estate Foreign Exchange Hedge Funds Venture Capital Lease Options and Sub Lease Options

As you can see, each one of these asset groups is an investment specialty-possibly in a "world of its own". No individual investor can hope to be informed and knowledgeable about more than two or three of these groups. For an individual investor to invest in any single alternative asset group, that investor needs specific, current information and knowledge relating to that group.

Why do investors invest in non-traditional assets?
In many cases the investor has special knowledge and familiarity with a certain type of asset or industry. An example would be if the investor has been in a specific industry, or if the investor's family has been in a specific industry, or if the investor has studied an industry as a hobby or professionally.

Another reason behind this investment strategy is to try for more consistent returns, and to protect against money getting locked up in inflation.

Diversification of investing capital is yet another reason. Alternative assets may provide a way to create monthly cash income. Different types of these assets provide different levels of income and different levels of risk. The cash monthly returns earned from these assets depends upon in the intrinsic quality of the asset, and the quality and quantity of the collateral security backing it up.

What general guidelines should be followed?
The fundamental considerations that will dictate these investing guidelines are basically the same "common sense" rules governing all financial decisions.

Do I understand what I am doing in a general sense? Do I understand the nature and function of this asset? Do I know how to value this specific asset? Do I understand the risks I am assuming? Do I know the people or company that I am dealing with? How did I find this asset, or how did it find me? Do I know my legal rights? Do I know my legal liabilities? How much of my investment capital should I invest in any one asset? How long should my capital be tied-up? Do I have an exit strategy? Do I need independent professional help in order to "get this right"?

Conclusion

It is not enough to do your best; you must know what to do, and then do your best. W. Edwards Deming

The Importance Of Balancing Your Checkbook

Every once in awhile I get a shock when I look at my bank balance online. It's not because I'm overdrawn, but I will notice that it's less than what I thought I had.

The problem is that I don't consistently balance my checkbook. I do check balances, and I do balance most of the time, but sometimes I forget to do it, and thus the shock when I look at my balance.

The importance of balancing your checkbook is so you really know how much money you have in your account. These days, being able to check our balances online gives us a false sense of security in thinking we know what our balance is at the time. The truth, however, is that it can only show you what transactions have actually taken place through the bank, and not tell you how things are overall.

For instance, with my business checks, sometimes the people I'm paying don't get around to depositing that check for a couple of months. Without balancing my checkbook, I may not know that a certain check hasn't been cashed yet and spend that amount. If I spend too much into that check amount, I'll overdraw my account. It's easy to do, and it can be scary.

Depositors have 90 days to deposit your check before it's considered null and void. Some banks will cash checks older, but that's not standard practice. Even electronic payments sometimes take longer than you expected to show up in your bank account; that goes both ways, by the way, as sometimes you receive payments electronically and might have to wait up to 7 days for it to show up.

There are two ways to balance your checkbook; the traditional way and the modern way. The traditional way is to take your monthly bank statement and follow the directions on the back of the form. It tells you to write out the balance the statement says you have, then on one side list all the checks and electronic payments and withdrawals you've made since the last date showing on the front of the statement. The smart move is to go through all the check numbers and mark them off in your check register to see if any checks are missing that should have cleared. If not, add those checks to your list of outstanding checks.

On the other side, list all deposits into your accounts. Total both columns up, then subtract all checks and withdrawals from the total, then add back all deposits, and that will tell you what your true balance is. If you balance to the amount in your check register, great; if not, see if you missed an entry.

Now, if you're not writing down all of your checks, this next method is definitely for you. You need to have online access to your bank account. Then what you do is see what your balance is and go back at least two pages to see what checks are showing. If you notice check numbers missing and they're recent, then subtract those from the balance showing online. If you're going back two pages and you notice there's a check number missing, go back at least one more page, and if you don't see it then you'll know that something it outstanding. Trying to guess what's missing and for how much will be problematic, but at least you'll be wary.

Truthfully, most people write certain checks for a consistent amount monthly, or at least close to that amount, so it may be easy to figure out what's missing. If you happen to be a person who writes a lot of checks indiscriminately, you're in some trouble.

If more people balanced their checkbooks on some kind of consistent basis, they wouldn't overdraw their accounts, and thus face stiff penalties from their banking institutions. That's never good, because it takes even more money from you that you probably needed. Be careful with your bank accounts and feel secure in how much money you really have to spend.