Tag Archives: Jamaica

Money Mission: Make Time for Your Money

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The month of January has already bid us a swift farewell. We have all heard the old adage, ‘Time waits for no man’ and the days, weeks and months of 2013 will not delay their passing for any of us. How successful have you been in getting started on the resolutions that you were determined to accomplish this year?

For our monthly ‘Money Mission’ columns this year, I would like to focus on strategies that will help you keep your dreams in the forefront of your minds. Don’t accept the mistaken belief that it is impossible to accomplish your resolutions; with clarity about your goals and the right attitude you can adopt new habits that will help you to be successful.

What do you do with your time?

Many people find that even though they are desperate to make changes to their financial situation, they just can’t get the time to do what they need to do. We often let work pressures and trivial events distract us from our goals. We stop thinking about and carrying out the daily steps required to maintain our progress; thereby relegating our future to the back burner.

It’s pointless to say “If only I had a little more time, I could really get going with my plans,” as we all have the same number of hours, minutes and seconds to utilise each day. Wealthy persons and successful achievers don’t have some secret stash of time that puts them ahead of the pack; they accomplish exceptional things with the same amount of time resource as you do.

What should you be doing with your time?

There are several essential activities that you need to accomplish if you want to be financially successful. You need to be efficient at budgeting, practice smart spending habits, be cautious with debt, save consistently, invest for future goals, put money aside for your retirement years, and make adequate provisions against life’s eventualities. Continue reading Money Mission: Make Time for Your Money →

More Money: Get Paid to Shop

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Many people are feeling a tight squeeze on their pockets as their spending power decreases in line with the increasing cost of goods and services. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have incomes that automatically adjust to inflation, so it means that what we earn can buy fewer items each month. How can we maintain our standard of living in light of this reality?

To stay on top of rising costs, you need to create a budget plan for the year and track your expenses every month. When you consistently record your actual spending, you will quickly be able to ascertain when your bills start to increase. You can download a budget plan with a monthly tracking spreadsheet at www.financiallysmart.org.

Rebalancing your budget

When the expenditure side of your budget goes up, your first strategy is to try and rebalance it by cutting back on other costs. Apply conservation strategies to reduce your utility bills, plan your driving routes to use less petrol, and make drastic reductions on non-essential expenses such as cable TV, fast-food restaurants and mobile phone calls. Continue reading More Money: Get Paid to Shop →

Budgeting: Get it right, Get it done

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Last week we reviewed Brian Tracy’s best-selling book, Eat That Frog! looking at simple tactics that could help you to take action on your financial resolutions this year. The book’s unusual title is derived from a saying that if the first thing you do each morning is eat a live frog, it would probably be the worst thing that would happen to you for the entire day.

Tracy, a goal achievement expert, explained that your frog is your most important task, “the one you are most likely to procrastinate on if you don’t do something about it now.” If you immediately tackle your frog every day, it will have a tremendous positive effect on all your goals. Ignoring your frogs will only make it harder to achieve your life’s objectives.

Your ticket to success

One thing you can do right now to change your financial future is to prepare a budget. However, it is probably the one money objective that people procrastinate on the most. Budgeting could definitely be viewed as a big ‘frog’ that you need to eat. It is the foundation to money success; as without the clarity it provides, it will be hard to proceed with your other goals. Continue reading Budgeting: Get it right, Get it done →

How to Become a Goal-Getter

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Last week we discussed the importance of focusing on one major goal at a time instead of attempting to carry out all the items on your money to-do list. The idea is to concentrate your efforts on the activity that would have the biggest impact on your finances right now. By breaking down that task into smaller steps and doing something every day, you would be more likely to succeed.

As simple as this plan sounds, I know that it can be difficult to stay on track when distractions and disappointments come our way. When it comes to goal achievement, it really is a case of ‘easier said then done.’ If you want to make the most out of 2013, you need to learn some practical strategies to help you persevere and press on until you accomplish all your objectives.

Don’t kill your dreams

To become an effective goal getter, you will need to overcome one of the biggest dream defeaters that prevents people from actualising their plans. Victor Kiam got it right when he declared that “procrastination is opportunity’s natural assassin,” as many dreams die a slow and painful death simply because persons failed to take action on them. Continue reading How to Become a Goal-Getter →

Money Mission: Just Do It!

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It’s the beginning of a new year, and like most people, you may have prepared a list of things that you want to accomplish for 2013. Whether you hope to get fit, lose weight, save more money, read a book each month or spend less time on Facebook, you probably have a strong desire to finally see your plans through to completion this time.

The reality is that the success rate for keeping New Year’s resolutions is usually very low for many persons. Despite our best wishes and firm declarations of change, somehow it is just easier to continue along the familiar highway of ‘same-old, same-old’ than to traverse the often challenging pathway that leads to progress.

If you are one of those faithful readers who have followed my column for almost seven years, you might have seen me confess my own limitations with following through on important tasks. In the past, there have been several missed opportunities and projects that have been left undone, because of my lack of courage, determination, or patience. Continue reading Money Mission: Just Do It! →

MoneyAir Flight 2013

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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard MoneyAir Flight 2013, with non-stop service to Money Success! It is my pleasure to be your financial flight attendant who will guide and assist you for the duration of this 12-month journey.

Your trip on MoneyAir will be customised to fit your needs, as all passengers must create individual flight plans to achieve their personal objectives. It is important that you make a directional map that is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based. If not, your journey will be aimless and frustrating, and you will not be able to reach your desired destination.

On MoneyAir, we put you in the pilot’s seat, as you are actually the designer and driver of your own destiny. You will be required to adopt a persistent and determined attitude on this flight, as it will not always be a smooth or simple journey. As we prepare for take-off, please pay full attention as I explain the safety features of our special flight. Continue reading MoneyAir Flight 2013 →

2012 Money Mission Review

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This year, we started off on an optimistic note, asserting that it was possible to make 2012 your best financial year ever, despite the challenges that you may have been facing. To guide you along the way, I outlined a Money Manifesto with 12 commitments that were essential if you wished to achieve financial success.

Recognising that many people abandon their new year’s resolutions by the end of January, I thought that it was important for us to make more regular declarations if we really wanted to improve our financial well-being. My monthly Money Mission suggestions were designed to help keep you focused on carrying out your money goals.

If you have been reading my recommendations every month, how successful have you actually been in carrying out the advice? Has your year been a ‘Mission Accomplished’ or has it been yet another 12 months of ‘Mission Impossible’? Let’s review all the money objectives that we proposed during 2012. Continue reading 2012 Money Mission Review →

My Christmas Wish

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And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. – Job 42: 9-11

The year 2012 has been very eventful, and in some respects, it has been the worst of times. We have experienced many low points and challenges hitherto unseen in our young nation – frightening criminal atrocities, worrying economic signals and disturbing social trends, among other concerns.

In many other areas, however, we have had the best of times. We celebrated 50 years of Independence with successes in the cultural and sporting fields; and once again, we proved how much influence our little island has on the rest of the world. Jamaica is indeed a nation of confusing contradictions and intriguing inconsistencies!

A welcome holiday break

In a few days, we will commemorate another Christmas Day. This holiday period gives us a brief respite from our personal and national troubles; when we can eat, drink, be merry and pretend that all is right in our world. After all, who can be too concerned about the future when we can enjoy family, food and fellowship right now? Continue reading My Christmas Wish →

Money Lessons from Home Decorating

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Recently, I got involved in a home decorating project, which saw me creating custom-made curtains for some bedroom windows. In a former career life, I used to produce and market a line of ladies’ clothing and accessories, but I had shelved my sewing machine and design skills for nearly 15 years.

It seems that a change of environment had rekindled the dormant fire of my creative talent. I became inspired by a scrap of leftover fabric which had been used to reupholster a chair. Convincing myself that I could turn this remnant into fabulous window shades, I set about bringing my vision into reality.

I knew it would have been challenging to pull off this feat, since I was a little rusty in recollecting some sewing techniques. However, just like riding a bicycle, there are some things that you never really forget. In the end, I was rather pleased with my designing effort and even more thrilled that I had used what I had on hand to achieve my objective. Continue reading Money Lessons from Home Decorating →

Money Mission: Curb Careless Consumption

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All too soon, the month of December is upon us, and many people are busy making preparations for various kinds of seasonal festivities. If gift exchanges, holiday events, party clothes, lavish decorations, and Christmas feasts are part of your plans at this time, it means you could be spending a lot of extra money this month.

In light of the current financial challenges being faced by the country and its citizens, we need to be very cautious when it comes to our spending choices. At the risk of sounding like the Grinch who stole Christmas, the reality is that this is not really the best time to be engaged in too much frivolous spending.

With 2013 promising uncertainty in many areas of national life, it makes sense for us to adopt a more prudent approach to what we do with our money. The possibility of more job layoffs, the depreciating Jamaican dollar and the ever-shifting date for a final IMF agreement are only some of the worrying signs on the economic horizon. Continue reading Money Mission: Curb Careless Consumption →