Tag Archives: personal finance

Smart Spending for Savvy Shoppers

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How can words adequately describe the high that comes from shopping with genuine abandon? The surge of energy while speeding on a roller coaster ride, the enthusiasm of winning a hard-fought race, even the excitement of a first love can sometimes pale in comparison to the adrenaline rush that a serious shopaholic experiences upon seeing a sale sign in a favourite store.

Thanks to our challenging economy, the joy of carefree spending has been drastically curtailed for many consumers. Stringent budgets and limited disposable incomes have forced many former fashionistas to turn away from their favourite pastime and focus their spending on the bare necessities of life.

While prudence might dictate that in tough times it’s financially wiser to choose between fresh or canned vegetables instead of the new red or black shoes in the department store, decreased consumer spending on non-essentials actually has a negative effect on the livelihood of many business owners. Continue reading Smart Spending for Savvy Shoppers →

Debit Card Fraud

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In Jamaica, unscrupulous persons are getting more creative in finding ways to rob unsuspecting persons of their hard-earned money. Debit card fraud has reached unprecedented levels in our country.

I received an article recently online that explains how these scammers work.
It’s vital to be aware of how you can protect yourself against card fraud.
Thanks to Stuart Lieberman for sharing this information!  Continue reading Debit Card Fraud →

Financial Education for all Jamaicans

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“He who knows not and knows he knows not, is simple; teach him” – Arabic proverb

The road to financial achievement can be a difficult journey for many persons. The passage to money success is frequently encumbered by deep potholes and unexpected speed bumps. In fact, most people never end up attaining their goals, as along the way they detoured from the straight and narrow path of making smart financial choices.

Over the years, I have realised that the number one reason that most people falter on the route to financial freedom is that they aren’t aware of what it takes to be successful with money.

Thanks to improved access to communication sources and lessons learnt from the recent financial fallouts, more persons have become concerned about their lack of knowledge about financial matters, and are desperately seeking answers to their problems. Continue reading Financial Education for all Jamaicans →

Making Money With Personal Services

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As we continue to highlight practical options of generating income to make ends meet or save towards future goals, today we will look at some of the ways to earn from providing personal services. Depending on your background or natural talents, you may find one of the following opportunities ideal for you:

Self-defence Training

In today’s society, there is a high level of anxiety caused by crime and violence and the perception that personal security is at risk. While others focus on worrying about the problems that exist, true entrepreneurs pay attention to the opportunities that they present.

One possibility for income earning is teaching others how to defend themselves in the event of an attack. If you have training in the security field or excelled at a self-defence course, you could provide this worthwhile service to help persons overcome their fears. Continue reading Making Money With Personal Services →

Making Money With a Vehicle

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The purchase of a vehicle is often viewed as a necessary investment for many Jamaicans who are forced to struggle with an unpredictable public transportation system. However, after the initial euphoria of gaining their own set of wheels wears off, new drivers quickly realise that owning a vehicle can sometimes be a very expensive affair.

Most people opt to take out a loan in order to obtain the funds for their vehicle of choice, but the required monthly payments can put severe pressure on their budgets. Add the costs of petrol, insurance, licensing fees, servicing and major repairs, and it becomes clear that vehicle ownership is definitely more of an expense than an investment.

The good news is that your vehicle can actually provide several opportunities to generate income that might not only cover the upkeep charges, but leave you with a tidy surplus to boot. If you’re looking for ways to earn more money, you may find a suitable option in one of the following ideas: Continue reading Making Money With a Vehicle →

Making Money With Food

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It’s been said that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. This saying certainly rings true for not just Jamaican men but women as well, as it is part of our culture to enjoy a good meal. Practically every month a food festival is held somewhere in the country, and people will travel far and wide to partake in the offerings.

With the universal love for eating out, it’s ironic that the restaurant business holds the dubious distinction of having a 90 per cent failure rate. Although researchers debunk this statistic as an urban myth, many persons are still wary of venturing into the food industry because of its varied challenges.

Despite the possible setbacks, there is nothing as satisfying as food preparation for those persons who are naturally talented in this area. The good news is that you don’t have to inject significant financial capital and spend extended hours to benefit from the food business, as it also presents several opportunities for earning part-time income. Let’s look at some tantalizing options: Continue reading Making Money With Food →

Making Money With Your Home

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Over the past weeks we have been encouraging persons to get innovative in looking for ways to become more productive. It makes no sense to merely complain about a shortage of money – you have to focus your efforts on creating solutions to earn more. Fortunately, there are dozens of methods of generating income; it’s wise to choose one that best fits your personality and situation.

In your quest to improve your finances by finding a practical means to earn more money, you may encounter some roadblocks. You may have a job that expressly prevents employees from marketing things at the workplace or having any outside employment.

You may find it hard to discover your inner talents to exploit for profit. Maybe you’re hopeless at sales and couldn’t even sell water to a thirsty person.

If you have a challenge identifying a viable product to sell or making use of your talents to serve others, don’t despair. There may be several earning opportunities lying undiscovered right at home. Many people don’t recognise that their residences are ‘lazy’ assets – they have monetary value but never contribute any income into their pockets. Continue reading Making Money With Your Home →

Making Money From Training

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IN these tough economic times, it’s important for us to focus on income possibilities instead of just worrying about our financial problems. If we can envision a more prosperous future and then channel our energies into productive activities, then we will eventually overcome the money challenges that burden us today.

Over the past weeks, we have been highlighting a variety of options to earn extra money. If you are looking for part-time income, remember to concentrate on opportunities that fit your natural talents, which can be carried out after regular work hours or on weekends. Today, let’s look at ways to create income sources from training.

In this information age, many people recognise the importance of training to attain their goals. However, the problem is that most educational sources are priced beyond the means of the average consumer. In offering solutions to the market, you can gain a competitive advantage by charging lower rates and being more flexible to meet customers’ needs. Continue reading Making Money From Training →

Making Money From Your Backyard

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Many persons find it challenging to think of practical ideas to earn extra income. The key to making more money is first to identify where people have unmet needs or pressing problems that you can solve for profit. When you are trying to create a part-time source of income, you should always stick to options that fit in with your natural talents or the resources that you already have on hand.

Using these basic principles, it should not be difficult to find several opportunities to become more productive in your spare time. Today, let’s look at how you can use your backyard, whether big or small, and a little elbow grease to work your way into extra cash. Continue reading Making Money From Your Backyard →

Multiple Streams of Income

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“Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. A river flowed from the land of Eden, watering the garden and then dividing into four branches.” – Genesis 2: 8, 10 NLT

When it comes to their finances, many people are currently experiencing severe drought conditions. The reservoirs of their bank accounts are running dangerously low, as the constant outflows of money are not being replenished by new inflows of savings. The Jamaican proverb, “Rain a fall, but de dutty tough,” aptly describes the inability of their scattered income showers to nourish their parched budgets.

Some persons whose steady earnings have regularly flowed from their work pipelines, now find their taps painfully dry. Everywhere you look, people are engaged in a desperate search for fresh income sources to meet basic requirements and to store up for the future.

While the drought analogy might be appropriate for the financial challenges that many of us are facing today, remember that money is still in abundant supply even though it might not be obvious in our pockets. Continue reading Multiple Streams of Income →