Jill Russo Foster

Save Your Change

I never use change when making a purchase. I always get coins back.

At the end of the day, that change goes into a bank in my home. At the end of the month, I bring it to the bank (mine has a free coin counting machine) and deposit it to my savings account.

I average about $20 per month. You might be thinking what’s $20, but for me, $240 a year is a car payment. Learn to think with the bigger number and it will feel worthwhile to you.

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Catchup Day

This was a big project to give you to do in five minutes a day for seven days. I am giving you two additional days to wrap up this snapshot of where you stand.

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Add Up Your Numbers to See Where You Stand

Now comes the day to add up your numbers to see where you stand. Use my budget tracker to make it easier. Which side is bigger? Is there more money coming in than going out? Or is it the other way around? That is all I am asking you to figure out here.

You need to determine what the next step is for you. If you are like most people, you will need to get your expenses down or generate more income. Don’t panic! In the coming months, I will discuss raising your income and reducing your debt. You may want to pick up my book to read the “Reduce or Eliminate Expenses” chapter in Thrive in Five (where these micro-tips come from).

For the rest of this month, I will talk about ways to save more. Again, these are suggestions that you can chose to do… or not. Only implement ways that seem right to you now. Then go back at a later date and try others.

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Variable Expenses: Knowing Where You Stand

This is Day 5 of our month long Financial Literacy Month project. You can continue using my budget or spending plan worksheet for this.

Now for those variable expenses – groceries, eating out, entertainment, gifts, travel etc. I find this the hardest category to come up with a number. The easiest way is to check your bank and credit card statements for the costs to come up with a number. Try looking at three to six months and taking an average to see what you “normally” spend on these kinds of expenses.

Don’t forget to include the things that are paid for in cash – tips, babysitting, coffee, newspapers, lottery (you get the idea).

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Fixed Expenses: Knowing Where You Stand

This is Day 3 of our month long Financial Literacy Month project. You can continue using my budget or spending plan worksheet for this.

Now, let’s look at your fixed expenses – mortgage or rent, insurance premiums (home, auto, health, disability, long term etc), utilities (if possible, take an average of the last year), and any other fixed recurring payments that apply to your situation

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Income: Knowing Where You Stand

To take charge of your finances you have to know where you stand. I know that some people will want to shut the book at this point, but don’t. It’s not going to be that hard for you to do this. This is not a one day project, so don’t panic. You have a week to do this for yourself. No one is going to look at this, but you will need this as a starting point. Take the time to do this.

Start with my budget or spending plan worksheet. If you’ve already prepared your taxes, you will have this information readily available. For your income, look at your W-2 forms and divide by 12. This will give you a monthly figure. If you have 1099’s then you can do the same. Or take your pay stub and multiply by the number of pay periods in the year. Remember to add any other income – pensions, rental income, investments etc to get a clear picture.

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Financial Literacy Month starts Monday!

In honor of that, I’ll be posting an entire chapter from my book, Thrive in Five, in 1 post a day.

My micro-tips will ask you to think outside the box and push your saving even higher. For starters, you’ll have a week to record your monthly expenses. Then I am going to suggest things to you that you might not want to do. Other things might intrigue you, try them.

Each effort you make will save you money.

Watch for my first post on April 1st. 🙂

Make it rain! Spread the word about financial literacy

……..

April is Financial Literacy Month and I want to spread the word so that everyone can improve their finances.

For the month of April, we will be posting daily tips from my book Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day on Twitter, LinkedIn and my Facebook Fan Page. We need you to share and repost to your connections and friends so that these simple tips spread across the internet. My goal is to increase my exposure and increase the number of people who subscribe, so we can ease the financial confusion that holds so many people back.

As new people subscribe to my newsletter, we will be asking them to tell us who referred them. Remember to ask them to use your name. The top person who gives us the most new subscribers by April 30, will win a free 30-minute coach session with me. It’s that simple. So tell your friends, family, co-workers and everyone else you know so you can increase your chances to win.

First, remember to connect with me through social media – Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook Fan Page, or you can forward this blog post for them to sign up for the newsletter. Thank you for spreading the word.

If you want an additional way to win a free coaching session with me, tell us which tip has inspired you to make a change in your finances. What have you added to your routine, or what have you stopped doing? Maybe you read that you could keep the same routine if you just did things a little differently. Tell us your story in a few sentences that we can use as a testimonial. Don’t worry; we will only use your first name. We will select one quote randomly from all submitted and that person will also win a free 30-minute coaching session with me during the month of May.

We want everyone to have some extra cash this April, so let’s make it rain by sharing financial information that really works.

Do you want a free coaching session with me?

We can talk about any personal finance issue…

Is your goal to improve your credit score?
Are you trying to make your money last for as many days as there are in a month?
Are you thinking about buying a home?
Are you trying to determine if you should refinance now?
Do you want to start to save but don’t think you have the money to do so?

I can help you with these issues and more. All you have to do is help me get more exposure. My next post has all the details.

It’s too much! Stop the junk mail and sales calls

Is your phone ringing when you sit-down to dinner? Do you come home to find your mailbox overflowing with junk mail that you’ll have to sort, shred and recycle? Do you want it to stop?

I’m vigilant about my family’s privacy and do what I can to protect our personal space. I don’t want to waste a second of my precious spare time on unsolicited calls or credit card offers. Sometimes it feels like an uphill battle. Between social media, email, the phone and your mailbox, it’s like being pressure-cooked in sales offers.

First, make the calls stop!

We have been registered on the Do Not Call list since 2003 (www.donotcall.gov). But, they can’t protect you from charities, political campaigns, surveys, or companies that you have a relationship with. You’ll have to tackle those individually. When they call, take a moment to ask to be removed from their list. They’re supposed to comply with your request.

Reduce the sales flyers

We’d been getting unwanted mail and realized we’d gone over the 5-year limit at www.optoutprescreen.com. When we renewed our preferences, we were pleasantly surprised to find that you can now opt-out permanently. It’s a similar process to the 5-year opt-out with one additional step: you have to mail in a confirmation. This should cut down on all unwanted mail and offers… forever!

Stop the credit card offers and checks that you’ll have to shred.

We fill out the privacy options for all of our credit cards. You can find these on the inserts that come with the bills. You may have tossed them out without looking.

How did you get on these mailing lists in the first place?

So, you opted-out a year ago and suddenly you’re receiving mail and phone calls? Why? How? Well, there are quite a few ways to get back on a company’s mailing list. For example, we just went to a home show and almost every booth was offering a “free give-away”. When you fill out the form, you’re giving them permission to contact you with sales offers. Think twice before signing up. Are the odds of winning worth the unwanted calls and mail? For myself, the answer is no. But, we do take any literature they may be offering so we can contact them if we want to.

I want my home to be a sanctuary not a fortress where I’m forced to fight off unwanted contact. Here’s hoping that we can come home to minimal mail and eat a cozy dinner in peace.