Tag Archives: personal finance

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How To PREPARE Financially

After 9/11 and hurricane Katrina occurred, the concept of emergency preparedness became a common household conversation. Then came the financial crisis of 2008. Remember how that started? Do you know what has changed since then? Opinions vary on the specific outcomes of the crisis and the response to it; but one thing is sure many people are not financially prepared for the future.

are you prepared handwritten on blackboard

are you prepared handwritten on blackboard

How can I make such a bold statement? Here are some facts to consider:

 

Only half of all U.S. households are prepared for retirement.

70.7% of households have a mortgage

76% of people live paycheque to paycheque

99% of us are not in the top 1% of income earners

Everyone is scared According to Nobel Prize winner Robert Shiller: 3 minute video

 

Most can relate to feeling challenged to be more financially prepared. Things are changing quickly. Where our parents may have been concerned about the future of their grandchildren, our generation is worried about its own financial wellness!But where do you turn to for information? What are we to do?

God has plenty to say to clarify our present day situation that is timeless and applicable giving us meaning, purpose and hope.

 

The prudent see danger and take refuge but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

Proverbs 27:12

 

And

 

We must live like the sons of Issachar, “men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do”

I Chronicles 12:32

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Pass On A Rich Inheritance

Imagine running a relay race. Each person has to be individually competent but the thing that can trump the whole race is the hand off. Drop the baton and the team is disqualified. If you have a family business you are in a unique position to hand off to the next generation a great opportunity. Sadly, many experience heartache when passing the business on to their children: businesses fail but more importantly families are ruined, broken apart by unrealized expectations and misunderstanding.

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Family business succession is an important topic because it affects many of us, indirectly. In the United States, family businesses employ 60% of workforce. In Canada the number is closer to 50%. Worldwide, in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries – including France, Mexico and Sweden – more than 90% of businesses now have fewer than ten employees and are family businesses.

 

As Thomas William Deans says in Every Family’s Business, handing off a business is largely about setting realistic expectations, avoiding surprises and just plain communicating, and this can happen many, many years prior to the turnover of the business. Through this fictional story based on the real life events in 3 generations of the author’s family, you can discover some essential steps.

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Teaching Kids About Money

How many of us look back on our childhood and wish we’d been taught more about money? More than two thirds of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Many parents are not doing a great job themselves. Many find it an easy subject to avoid.

Sadly, most people leave home and graduate from university without any idea how to manage money never having been taught personal finance. It doesn’t have to be that way!

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For me, it starts at home. I believe in leaving my kids a rich inheritance. However, it has nothing to do with money. Instead, it means teaching my children to be financially literate; to be Balanced financially.

 

Many have encouraged me; it’s better to build boys than mend men. Solve the problem before there is one. Help children avoid the pain of following a consumer driven lifestyle. Instead follow God’s plan.

 

God wants us to make a difference, financially, in our family tree. If we don’t teach children these most basic, critical life skills, they’re going to struggle with this problem their whole lives. Money problems are the leading cause of kids dropping out of post secondary education and the leading cause of divorce.

 

The Bible’s says more about money than any other subject. God inspired the apostle Paul to write theses illuminating words.

 

It is required of a steward that he be found faithful.

1 Corinthians 4:2

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Learn How To Be Rich

What does it look like on the surface to be rich? Ever upgrade a perfectly good computer, cell phone, car, or want a larger home? If you answered yes to any of these, then you might be rich and not know it or feel it. We often have a mistaken understanding of wealth. The richer we become the more our priorities separate from our needs. Our needs become relative to our wealth. The more we have the more we spend.

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Are you somewhat uncomfortable making the statement that; you are rich? Maybe you don’t feel rich. That’s the other guy with more!

Go to www.globalrichlist.com and enter your salary to see where you rank. Then scroll down to gain perspective. How does it make you feel knowing that not only are you rich, but that you are one of the richest people in the history of the world?

Rich is having extra. Even enough to go to a movie! But you can be rich and not be aware of it. And that’s a problem. There’s a gap between being rich and being good at being rich. If we don’t figure this out we will go through life thinking money is all for us. Where do you turn to for insight and perspective?

 

Paul who had an encounter with the resurrected Jesus, acted as a mentor to a young guy named Timothy. He provides illumination.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

1 Timothy 6:17

 

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Ten Commandments For Making Money

Why is making money so important? Who is good at making money? If you read the Forbes 400, the definitive list of wealth in America, you will find out whom – but if you read Thou Shall Prosper: Ten Commandments For Making Money – you will find out how! Ever wonder why so many Jewish businesses are so profitable? Did you know that Jews make up only 2% of the American population yet in any given year make up to 25% of the Forbes 400 list? Similar data for the average population reveals that the percentage of Jewish households with income greater than $75,000 is double that of non-Jews. Why?

Sucessful businessman

King Solomon the richest and wisest man who ever lived said,

 

The crown of the wise is their wealth

Proverbs 14:24

 

If you are willing to read just one book that will add value to your understanding of making money, let it be Rabbi Daniel Lapin’s book Thou Shall Prosper: Ten Commandments For Making Money.

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Secrets Of Becoming A Millionaire

If you’ve got it flaunt it! That’s the mantra that surrounds much of western society. Whether it is appearance, ability or assets – many people live to flaunt it! Especially when it comes to assets; many people spend more than they should and it costs them. They really don’t have the wealth they need or should have for the long term. So what’s the secret to having wealth?  Most people want the short, easy answer. They don’t want to read a book, attend a class, or take the time to learn the power of good habits.

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I hope that’s not you! Invest in learning. There is a secret to getting rich. It’s very simple. It’s so simple almost no one does it. It’s also kind of obvious. Chances are you’ve heard the answer before.

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Five Skills to Become a Millionaire

Who doesn’t want more money? Here’s a site that gives a list of most wanted goals that people have declared they want to make for themselves.  Take a  look at 43 Things. Some common items seen involve acquiring more money. Things like getting out of debt. Becoming financially independent. Work because I like to, not because I have to. Save money. Travel. The problem is over 65% of Americans do not have a net worth of $100,000. In Canada the average is $200,000.

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Everybody wants to have more, do more, be more but where do you turn to for advice? For some the goal is trying to get out of debt. Others are people who have already arrived at the destination of affluence.

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Seven Secrets To Becoming Rich

Read on! You know this headline is a catchy way to grab your attention on an important subject.

Remember, I have shared with you about what it truly means to BE RICH. But if you are thinking about becoming financially rich; reflect on your life. Has your income increased in proportion to the number of years you’ve been working? Has your lifestyle done the same?

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Culture baits us into having it all. Turn on the T.V. or surf the Internet and it is all “buy now, pay later”. It’s a problem we all face. How do we learn delayed gratification? How do we manage wanting to have it all now?

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How To Be RICH? – Start GIVING!

Headlines surround me with the enticing message of how to get rich. Those same headlines say, to be happy I need the newest and best “stuff”. I am tempted to focus my admiration on people who are richer than me. Most people think of someone as rich if they make double what they do. It’s called the Doubling Up Wealth Theory. If we make $30,000 we think someone who makes $60,000 is rich.

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But who is really rich?

We spend so many years trying to get rich but we rarely realize how rich we already are. On a worldwide scale, we ARE rich.

The statistics are staggering. More than half the world’s population lives on less than $2 per day.Go to Global Rich List and insert your family income. If you earn more than $30,000, you’re in the top 2% of all individuals in the world. If you earn more than $40,000, you’re in the top 1%. To poor people in the rest of the world, anyone from the west is “rich.” Bill Gates or you.

Once we realize we’re rich, where do we learn how to be rich?

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Who Else Wants To Be A Millionaire?

As a luxury homebuilder, I observed something very odd. People buying million dollar homes often didn’t have much wealth – they just had large incomes.

They pulled into the sales office in a luxury automobile and coveted the appearance of wealth. But wealth is much different than income. Wealth is what you accumulate, not what you spend. (Remember my Italian mentor from my first job….. )

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Have you dreamed of owning a nicer home? We all love things of beauty. I made my living in the housing industry by identifying a profitable niche. I loved building big, great quality, beautiful homes and neighborhoods. They were my art. However, there is a balance in being able to afford things in the short term and being able to accumulate wealth in the long term.