Recent Articles of Interest

More than likely you are already getting excited about the fat check you are waiting to get from the government. You might have even gone shopping mentally for some gadget you have had you eye on. That can be a fatal mistake.

Now, I'm not trying to be a scrooge here, but the plain truth is, I am not really liking this government plan to try to stimulate the economy and pull us away from a possible recession by suggesting you rush out and spend the money at some local store. President Bush stated, 'Letting Americans keep more of their own money should increase consumer spending, and lift our economy at a time when people otherwise might spend less.' In my opinionThe President needs to read The Fair Tax Book by Neal Boortz.

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that in December 2007, Americans had racked up $944 BILLION in total revolving debt, most of it on credit cards. Spending with creditcards has infiltrated every nook and cranny of our American lifestyle. In the past, consumers put only discretionary expenses on credit cards. Now, most peopleare so short on cash that they use revolving credit cards to pay for necessities like groceries and gas just to make it through the month. That is economic slavery.

The government's plan might sound like it will work well, however,but I don't think it is a good plan. In my opinion a much better plan is to use that rebate money to reduce your debt on credit card balances. If you have less debt, you eventually willwill eventually have a bigger bank account to spend on necessities like gas and groceries. We are talking about basic survival for many families. There is not an economy on the planet that can flourish when families are buried under a mountain of suffocating debt.

Have you already planned out how you are going to spend your stimulus tax rebate? I'm encouraging the plan of using your rebate towards gaining your financial freedom! Here's my best advice.

Do NOT mentally go shopping and spend the money before it arrives in your mailbox. Instead of doing that, plan out how you can utilize the money to improve your current financial condition.

Use the money to reduce your credit cardpay off debt. There is no good reason to rush out and blow the money on 'stuff' when you already can't pay for the stuff that's already sitting on your credit cards as debt. When you get to the point where you are FREE OF DEBT, you can start saving up to buy that gizmo or gadget you have had your eye on.

If you don't have debt, then invest the money so it makes more money for you. It doesn't take but a few years before that $600 or $1,200 dollars can double or triple in value at an 8 - 12% return.

Allright, allright. If you can't control yourslef and just have to blow some of the money on a splurge item, then at least limit the amount you spend by going out for a nice dinner or buying that book or music CD you've been wanting. Then use the remainder to pay off credit card debt or put into an investment. The quicker you become debt free, the more often you can do fun things with your income instead of spending sleepless nights worrying about how you are going to pay off those credit cards and get out of debt.