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Blog: If Your Money Ain't Happy, Ain't Nobody Happy
 Money:101 for 2008
Does making your money work for you seem like a great idea but too hard of goal to reach? Any goal you put in front of you has steps between point A and point B. If you don't know what some of these steps are, winging it just does not cut it. So if you are desperate to find out what some of those steps are then read on because this year I'm going to try to walk you through some of those steps to achieve your monetary goals. The first step is an important one because it sets the foundation to prosperity.
The first step, when deciding to make your money count for you, is telling your money where it needs to go and what it needs to do, in other words setting goals for your money so it goes somewhere so you eventually you do not end up in the same place you are right now. Right now you may feel like you don't even know what goals you should have for your money. That's alright and not all that uncommon. You may feel like you do pretty well with your money and just need to help it go further in the right direction; the same principles can work the same no matter where you are in the process.
Knowing what questions to ask your self is important when setting goals. Goals help you measure where you started and how far you've gone. If you have no means of measuring, you will eventually come back to the same place over and over. Much like walking in the woods, you may think you're walking in a straight line only to find out that if you do not have something to keep your eyes to walk towards you will just walk in a big circle and exhaustingly end up in the same place you began.
Here are five questions to get you thinking and writing down some goals, goals that are written down are accomplished at a much higher rate than those that are not so get a pen and paper and jot down some answers to these questions or better yet copy and paste them to a Word document and type your answers.
- What don't I like about my finances right now?
Help: Do you have too much debt? Does it seem like you come up short too often? Do you not know even what your finances look like in the big picture?
- What could I change this next year to help me feel more in control of my finances?
Help: Save some money? Balance your account monthly? Live within your means?
- What habits have I had that I know I need to get rid of and are standing in the way of organizing my money?
Help: Urge to Splurge? Not budgeting the increases of cost of living prices and trying to make the same amount of money go the same distance? Buying too many gifts? Trying to get in on all the sales by using the credit card instead of cash?
- How do I want my finances to look in five years?
Help: If you don't have this vision, you will end up in the same place over and over. Think about investments you should start to make. How much money would you like in savings? Do you want less bills? Do you want or need a bigger home?
- Do I need some financial counseling to help me get things straightened out?
Help: Managing money is not an easy process. Look online at your bank's website, sometimes they will have an online service of analyzing your finances right where they are right now and giving you some direction of where to go. Don't be afraid to ask for help with the money that keeps you fed, clothed and a warm place to sleep!
If you answered these questions you are already on your way to organizing your money. It does not always start with budgeting; in fact it should not start right off with just budgeting. You need to take the steps first that lead up to that so it will make sense why you need to budget in the first place. Next Wednesday, after 11 a.m. look for my next steps to keep you going towards being successful and prospering!
Be healthy, wealthy and wise so 2008 is great.
posted on: 1/16/2008 11:30:00 AM by Triste Horrell
category: Finances
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If Your Money Ain't Happy, Ain't Nobody Happy
by Triste Horrell
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About Triste:
Being an organizing expert makes one want to be a "showroom" in all areas of life. However reality can hit hard when you're a mother of small children and a military wife and own an organzing business. Of course Triste would like to have a picture perfect Better Home and an even Better Garden. Throw a Pottery Barn in the backyard for exceptional creative time to become the wiz-woman for all the ideas and inventions that the world could not live without. But Triste has settled on the fact of telling herself "I can be perfect in my mind and no one can mess up my space there!" In reality Triste is very self-motivated and has true business accomplishments like having SYSTEMIZE since 1997, the first home and business organizing firm in the state of South Carolina. She has been repeatedly recognized in her Greenville, SC area for her organizing expertise and makeovers on local NBC and FOX news, Greenville News, local magazines such as Greenville Magazine and Upstate Parent and NPR radio. She has turned people's lives around by focusing on what she calls the "four building blocks of being organized" consisting of space, time, financial and personal. This is even represented in her business logo. "That's what I'm in business for, turning people's lives around!" Also applying her popular 3 Steps to Systemize have not only organized her clients but KEPT them organized for years.
Triste's Website:
www.systemize4u.com
Downtime Activities
- Reading Magazines
- Spending time at our cottage
- Keeping our Westie pretty
- Putting tealights around after the kids are in bed
- Adventures with my awesome hubby
- Making microwave smores...just for me
1 graham cracker, broken in half 1 small piece of chocolate 1 big marshmellow On one side of cracker put piece of chocolate and marshmellow on top. Place in microwave and heat for approx. 17 seconds (while cooking replace marshmellow on top of chocolate if needed). Put other half of cracker on top, eat and enjoy and watch out for oozing chocolate!
My Organizing Tool-Box
- Time - Outlook
This is a great way to keep papers off the desk and track where you need to go, task list, jot down quick notes on the virtual "post-its, keep up with contacts in the virtual Rolodex
- Personal Finances - Quicken
This simple yet practical program keeps your bank accounts in tact...did I mention simple?!
- Business Finances - QuickBooks
I have used this program for years and have set many clients up on it. It is a must for keeping track of business transactions and keeping tax time easy...push a few buttons and out come the reports, your done and your tax preparer loves you.
- Space - turntables
I love these things! You can put them in cabinets, the fridge, garage, and closets. They are inexpensive, easy to find and available at any discount store and you can even find fancier ones. If you are not sure what they are, they are the white (or other fancier kinds) and spin around like a lazy susan, you can have a single or double-tier one for spices.
- Personal - Magazines and Internet
I love to look at magazines and the internet for good articles on personal development, pictures for decorating inspiration and fun projects to do with my family. I keep my magazine subscriptions to a minimum (3) so I can read them and enjoy each one. I look for things on some of my favorite websites for whatever fancies me at that time.
- Online Recipe Boxes
Use these on some of your favorite websites, bring the laptop into the kitchen while the recipe is up and you never have to have the paper clutter. One of my and my husbands favorites is Williams-Sonoma.
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www.OnlineOrganizing.com is a service mark of Bradford, LLC.
