Ponder This...

Lack of money is the root of all evil.
~George Bernard Shaw

My Story Part 2

In the last episode, I spoke about how I got myself into a financial mess and what I planned to do to get out of said mess. Well, this didn’t exactly work out the way I planned, as plans rarely do, and I am in a deeper hole due to circumstances outside of my control. But in the bright side, I learned some valuable lessons and things can only get better from here.

At this point, I have added medical bills and a new car note to my financial mess. Instead of freaking out (ok some freaking out, but once I stopped freaking out and started looking at the situation) I have adapted my previous plan to include my new mess.

This is what my situation currently looks like:
Medical – A lot
Credit Card – You don’t even wanna know
Car Note - for that?
Student Loans – yes ma’am, Sallie Mae, what can I give you today? I have an arm left.



My new mess plan has changed a lot from the previous one. I have to spread my money further to pay off more. To do this I have to find ways to come up with that money every month. I am still using the Snowball Debt Repayment Method, something’s got pushed further down on the list. Sometimes this happens, but its ok you can still reach you goals. It may take longer, but WE can do it.

One thing I have always done is to track my debt on an excel spreadsheet. This allows me to see exactly how much I am paying off each month and when I do pay something off I get to mark that row Purple for being completed. The medical bill section is starting to look a lot purpler every month.
The cost of living is rising so fast and having less money from debt repayment, I have to find ways to still be able to live.

I mostly do my grocery shopping at Giant, not because I like Giant. But because Giant has a deal with Shell – the gas station – for every $100 a month you spend on your groceries, you save $0.10 a gallon off a tank of gas. Doesn’t seem like much and I don’t have to fill up very often, I’m still saving some money.



I just found out about this food share program that DC has called The SHARE Food Network. The SHARE Food Network distributes high quality, affordable nutritious food as a way to build community and strengthen families. Organized through 320 churches and community groups, participants perform two hours of volunteer service and pay $20.00 monthly to purchase groceries worth approximately $40.00 - $45.00. Last month was my first month doing this and I was amazed by how much food is included. I eat a lot of fruit so local farmers markets save me money there. And anything I need to buy from the grocery store, I try to buy on sale or with coupons. Actually I have yet to use the coupons I clipped but I will soon.

I am selling my old basketball, football, and baseball cards on eBay. I work overtime whenever possible and that helps. I have also started a side business.



Slowly, I am digging out of this mess, while taking what I am learning and passing it on to you.

Monday's Entrepreneur

Every Monday, we, at PF4P like to start the week off on a positive note, so I try to bring you stories of people like you and I who have turned a passion or skill into something we all may use or at least heard of.

Today, we bring to you Oprah. I don't need to say much about Oprah as we all know her story.



This is the first part of the interview between Oprah and Barbra Walters


Visit her website for more on Oprah at www.oprah.com

A Hard Lesson Learned

If you are a government worker or a government contractor like I am, this past threat of a Federal Government closing was a very scary thing for you. Why was this possibility so scary? Well, if you are like me, the threat was scary because I have bills and no savings. The closure would mean no income for however long the Federal Government would be closed. Needless to say, I was VERY worried. Worried doesn’t even explain it. I was terrified!

After many days of worry, my company let us know that we would be able to use PTO and if we didn’t have PTO we could “borrow” PTO from the future, up to 40 hours. So, I was good as long as the closure only lasted 40 working hours. I don’t know if other companies and agencies were going to do the same, so I can only imagine how people with families and mortgages and such were feeling.

This threat showed me how truly important having an Emergency Fund, and savings in general, is. All I could do was to mentally prepare myself to make it on those 40 PTO hours and however long the closure lasted. My mind was focused on trying to pay my rent, care note, insurance, and all the other bills I have. I was scared I had failed in life, a bit dramatic I know, because I was one emergency away from losing everything, after working so hard to get where I am in life. All because I failed to build a savings.

This story ends with the Federal Government NOT closing and me working and paying my bills. But the lesson I learned from this mess? I need an Emergency Fund. As soon as I got to work that Monday I set up automatic transfers for twice a month from my bank account to my ING account. It’s only $50 a month, but it’s something. Once I reach my goal of $1000, the next goal is 3 months of basic living expenses. But lesson learned, the hard way….

Ponder This...

In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women.
~Tony Montana

and with the women comes the headache....

Small Ways to Save Money - Bank Fees

Let’s face it, bank fees SUCK! So, stop paying them. Most banks have some type of free checking and/or savings account. Meaning, it cost you nothing to keep your money with their bank. Why would you pay a bank to hold your money, they should pay you! Does your checking or savings account charge you a monthly or yearly fee?

Another fee that sucks from banks are ATM fees. I always try to use my OWN bank to withdraw money, or I take out extra cash when I am at the store. ATM fees are a lazy fee or a fee for convenience. You are charged double and the fee could be as much as $5 or more in total for using a foreign bank (not your own).



Next time you are in need of some cash, try to plan your trip so you run by one of our own ATM’s. You get hit with these fees enough and it adds up.

Save yourself the money and the stress and use your own ATM or take out extra cash while running errands like groceries.

Monday's Entrepreneur

Every Monday, we, at PF4P like to start the week off on a positive note, so I try to bring you stories of people like you and I who have turned a passion or skill into something we all may use or at least heard of.

Today, we bring to you Dr. Randal Pinkett, winner The Apprentice Season. Dr. Pinkett is so much more than just the shows winner he is so much more. He is an entrepreneur, speaker, author and community servant. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of BCT Partners, a multimillion-dollar consulting firm based in Newark, NJ, that specializes in program management, information technology and public policy.





For more information on Dr. Randall Pinkett visit his website www.randalpinkett.com