The Simple Answer

Why Do Tough Situations Frustrate Me?

2011-04-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

Now there's a great question, one that so many of us have asked at one time or another. We start out doing great and on the road to success and a future with great plans. Some where along the way we seem to get off tract and the road gets bumpy and we more than often get bogged down with total frustration. Once we get "stuck" in the muck and mire of life we give up and realize that all out dreams were just that, "dreams" and noting more. Want to know why this happens? Read on.

There are many, many reasons for this called frustration let me list just five for your consideration:

1. Determination is a must if we are to get through tough times. All too many times we believe that "it just isn't meant to be". We simply give up not willing to see things through to their intended end, we quit too soon.

2. Our Threshold for Pain is Too Low. We can't stand the pain of growing. Anytime we grow, be it physically, mentally, spiritually or otherwise it hurts. Stretching for or moving forward out of our comfort zone makes us use faculties we never knew we had. We begin to cry out that the truth hurts too much for us to continue toward our goal. The truth is, "life hurts".

3. We Have No Plan in Place that will help us determine at what level we are at when frustration strikes. When we make plans we understand that there may be problems along the way and we get ready for them. Frustration comes when we aren't ready.

4. Going It Alone is one of the big mistakes people make when they set out to move forward. We were never created to go through life alone, that's why God created Eve, she was to be Adam's helper in the tough times. One of life's greatest problems is loneliness.

5. Not staying Focused on God and His Will is more likely the number one reason we get frustrated during those tough times. The focus of a persons life ought to always be on Almighty God and what He wants for us. Stay focused on Him and not your problems will bring huge success in all that you set out to do.

Can You Really Keep a News Years Resolutions?

2010-01-01T11:30:00.000-08:00

The tradition of New years resolutions began way back in 153 B.C. when a mythical king of Rome was placed at the head of the calendar (read more)

But the same problem has always prevailed, a person make a resolution and then fails to keep it. Now I know not everyone fails but most of us do. The question posed is "are resolutions really kept?" The simple answer is 'yes' but certain things must be in place:
(1). A heart felt desire for change.
(2). A willingness to work hard.
(3). A plan that will help keep you on course.
(4). A way to measure success.
(5). A support team that will encourage you.
(6) Patience, patience, patience.

Happy New Year and may all of your resolutions be kept.

How To Stay Motivated

2009-10-29T16:23:00.000-07:00

Take one look at this blog and you'll see that I'm, not an expert on staying motivated. But I do have a couple of ideas that might help.

(1.) DO SOMETHING.. if it's writing a blog, "just do it" regardless if you have some great words of wisdom or not. If it's taking off that weight the doctor said you needed to get rid of, drag yourself away from the TV and take a hike, or at least a walk. If it's saving some money, put something away, it doesn't need to be a large amount.

(2). GET HELP.. Some times if you try to do something by yourself, you'll get easily discouraged and give up. A partner in the effort can provide the much needed motivation.

(3). SET GOALS .. If you have no direction or purpose you'll soon burn out.

How Can I Save My Marriage?

2009-09-30T19:08:00.000-07:00

40 years of marriage to the same wonderful lady qualifies me to make a comment ever now and again about how to make the relationship successful. So here goes.

Savings accounts can be found everywhere, some are in a bank and some are in your home. Some involve money and other involve your entire life.

Over the years I have come across different ideas on how to spruce up your marriage and even way to Divorce Proof your marriage. One of the things I try to tell couples that I perform the wedding for is a list of the 10 Commandments as they relate to marriage:

1. Thou shalt have no other Gods before me ... In marriage that means no other human being comes before your spouse, not parents, not children, not friends.

2. Thou shalt not have any graven image ... In marriage, no thing, or object comes before your spouse, no house, no car, no pleasure, no money, no fame.

3. Thou shalt not take the name of God in vain ... in marriage do not belittle, fault find or criticize your spouse. Do not belittle your spouses dreams or desires.

4, Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy ... in marriage remember his/her day and keep it special. Make time to be together.

5. Honor thy mother & Father ... in marriage honor not only "your" parents but your spouses. Never find fault with in-laws.

6. Thou shalt not kill ... in marriage do not destroy the spirit of your spouse. Always honor and and build up the personhood of your spouse.

7. Thou shalt not commit adultery ... in marriage give your passions to one another an no one else.

8. Thou shalt not steal ... in marriage do not take from your spouse what is their privilege to give. Receive what is given to you ion gratitude.

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness .. in marriage be honest in all things. Dishonesty has no place in marriage.

10. Thou shalt not covet .. in marriage don't seek greener pastures , whether they be physical or material. Be content with what God has given you.

Do You Want To Make Some Extra Money?

2009-09-27T11:11:00.015-07:00

I hope the simple answer is "YES" ... If so then here is an offer that I hope you can't refuse.

I am trying to create a line of greeting cards designed specifically for police and fire personnel and I'm looking for someone who can sketch some basic drawings to be a part of this endeavor.

I'm also looking for a photographer who can capture some really good candid shots of those same types of personnel.

I'll pay per piece of art and photo and want to desperately talk with you soon.

If you have the abilities and the desire to check into this potential money making opportunity contact me via email at topekac1@cox.net and lets talk.

What Does Being Authentic Have To Do With My Finances?

2009-09-27T10:38:00.000-07:00

Being authentic is just another way of saying, "Be exactly as you appear". People respect you more when you are what you are. Too many people try to be something or someone they aren't and come across as fake and phony.

People fall in love with and marry people for the way they are and they don't want to wake up some morning shortly after the Wedding ceremony and discover their spouse has become a different person.

Employers hire people who exhibit abilities and personalities that are a perfect fit for the company, they don't want to discover in the board room or out in the shop or plant that their new employee is totally opposite.

When a person is authentic others know what they are getting and they can learn quickly how to interact with them. Authentic people make no pretense about what they believe and how the feel about issues of life. They are the kind of people that you don't have to ask them to tell you how they "really feel".

Being authentic is a great foundation to build your wealth upon. Being authentic is in the purest sense the act of being honest. Honesty will always override any other character trait

If you want your finances to in good shape begin with being authentic in "everything" you do. If something doesn't balance out, check and see how honest you really are and be sure to include being honest with yourself.

Is There an Easy Way To Save Money?

2009-09-26T15:12:00.000-07:00

The answer to this question depends upon desire, just how badly does a person "want" to save. However for the sake of this article let's say you have already resolved the "want to" issue and are about to set out on your journey to create that much needed savings. How do you you do it?

Here are some ideas that will be "easy" for the person with enough "want to".

1. Set Up a Direct Deposit Account ... Often it's lack of discipline that can be resolved by never seeing the money in the first place.

2. Work Extra Hours Or Even a Second Job ... It's difficult to put in more work and remember how much you want to have money in savings.

3. Let Your Spouse Control the Funds ... If and really mean "if" your spouse is better at financial matters than you are, admit it and ask her or him to take over. Swallowing some pride is a little thing to do to get the money you need.

4. Cut Out the Extras ... Sometimes discipline means we must not make that trip to the coffee shop or but that newspaper. Often we can wait for the show to come out on the TV instead of going to see it at the theater. And the list goes on.

5. Truth Is There's No "Easy Way" To Save Money But It Can Be Done.

If you have other ideas I would love to hear them, just click on "comments" and have at it.

Why Savings Accounts - And Why Not?

2009-09-26T14:10:00.000-07:00

Here is a guest post from Trent Hamm at "The Simple Dollar" http://www.thesimpledollar.com/
Trent has declared his site as "public domain" thereby allowing us to reprint his articles

Why Savings Accounts – And Why Not

Over the weekend in a post answering anonymous reader questions, I wrote the following:
Savings accounts are wonderful places to keep money that is very liquid (meaning you can get it if you need it) and earns a small rate of return with very little risk. Because of these factors (liquid, low risk, some return), they are great places to store emergency funds, which is a fundamental part of any personal finance strategy. An emergency fund is a buffer to prevent budgetary disaster in the event of a personal crisis.
This inspired the following question from a very faithful reader who sent me an IM less than five minutes after that article was posted:
It seems to me like it is always good to put your money in a savings account that earns 5% like HSBC Direct. Why would you do anything different?
As I mention, there are indeed a lot of advantages to savings accounts. You can get at the money at your convenience, it can make a nice return in the right account (HSBC Direct, for instance, has a 5.05% APY and some smaller banks do better than that), and there’s very little risk as the account is insured by the FDIC up to $100,000. It is without a doubt a stellar place to put your cash that you may need in the short term.
However, once your savings reaches a point that is out of the reach of your emergency fund needs (at least a few months’ worth of salary), it’s time to start looking for a place to put your money for the long term. For example, the Vanguard 500 has returned an average of 12% a year since 1976, but that return isn’t guaranteed year in and year out – some years have had a net loss, while others have had returns far above 12%. It’s still reasonably liquid in there, but you can pull out at any time (we’ll not get into the taxes on your gains here, but at most you’ll have to pay the same rate as your normal income and it may be substantially less than that). There are many real estate investments that can return spectacularly, too.
Why do this? The potential returns are too good to pass up. If the Vanguard 500 continues along at the historical rate, the money in it doubles every six years, while in a 5% savings account, your money doubles roughly every sixteen years. Let’s say you put a dollar into the savings account and a dollar into the Vanguard 500 and waited 20 years. The savings account would have $2.65 in it, but the Vanguard fund (if it continues at the historical rate) would have $9.65 in it. Multiply those by a thousand or ten thousand and you’ll see why it’s a big deal.
So why not just invest everything in the Vanguard 500 or another investment if it returns that kind of money? The reason is that it’s not insured and it’s far from a guaranteed return. There have been many years where the Vanguard 500 has lost fistfuls of money (the returns from 2000-2002 were positively nightmarish, with 20% losses) – the positive numbers are only over the long term because the good years overall outweigh the bad. On the other hand, a savings account won’t lose its value – it will just stay there and chug along quietly for you, keeping your money quite safe for you.
In other words, keep enough in the savings account so that your short term needs and emergencies can be met, then take the rest and play with it for the long term by investing it somewhere.

Why People Can't Save Money?

2009-09-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest frustrations that many people face is the inability to put money aside for emergencies. The idea of saving for a special project or item they want to purchase is something some folks just can't seem to do. .... Is there a reason? Sure, as a matter of fact there are several reasons here are just six. If you know of any others I'll welcome your response.

1. OVER SPENDING ... It's hard to save if you have nothing left after paying the bills. Being over extended, maxed out on credit cards and just plain spending too much will always get you in trouble. You can't save what you don't have.

2. POOR PLANNING ... Money won't save itself, you have to determine to what you do with it. When you plan a budget make sure that you plan for "savings".

3. PROCRASTINATION ... Some people wait till tomorrow to do what they ought to do today. My dear mother used to tell me "tomorrow never comes". She was right, putting off important decisions like starting a savings account is a sure way to spend the money elsewhere.

4. LACK OF FAITH ... Saving money requires us to look at the bigger picture. All too often people don't understand how a few dollars each week can actually build into a pretty good nest egg. These are the same people who just don't believe they can do what they need to do. The truth is, we are fearfully and wonderfully made and we can do anything we set our mind and heart to. ( if you are a believer you know that the Bible says "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" Philippians 4:13).

5. FEAR OF FAILURE ... It's hard to believe but some folks can't save because they are afraid they can't save. That doesn't make sense does it? Some people just live in this little pity world where they always make excuse after excuse, they never see themselves successful. It's no wonder they can't save money. Part of the process is visualization, seeing yourself as a person who can succeed. You'll never save money until you can imagine going to the bank and drawing out what you need when you need it.

6. SELF DISCIPLINE ... The biggest obstacle that stands in our way of saving money is something that resides within us all. No one can make you save money or at least not for very long. You can always come up with some lame reason to not put that money aside and not spend it. You simply must develop the mentality that says, "I will do this and I will do it now, and I'll do it every week or every pay day or whenever". Don't say you can't do it, because you can, Why do you brush your teeth every day, and why do you roll the car window up when it rains? Why do you put your glasses on every morning? You do all of these things for two reasons, (1) you need to and (2) you have disciplined yourself to just do it.