Do you often reflect on ever increasing debt and wonder "How will I ever get rid of debt?" You may find yourself screaming "Help, get me out of debt!" If this sounds like you, you may have what I call debtor's disease. You've been injected with the financially devastating virus by credit card companies, sneaky marketing campaigns, societies expectations ,and, yes, even our own self justification. Do you have debtor's disease?Self justification is a major factor in fueling the affliction and encouraging us to throw caution to the wind. It's no wonder that now and again we're scratching our heads (how did I spend so much?) as we calculate the numbers. But, simply screaming "help, get me out of debt" will not get rid of debt! You have to decide you've had enough and that you are ready to take back control of your money.
- Have recent buying sprees pushed you to your limit?
- Are you tired of playing catch up and never making it to first place?
- Are you ready to stop investing in credit card companies and start investing in yourself?
- Are you ready take control of your money and make a plan for successful debt free living?
Only you can know the answer. There comes a point when anyone depending on credit cards to make it through life gets tired of living paycheck to paycheck. You get tired of losing sleep over financial worries. Consider this, wouldn't it be nice to be debt free? Imagine the burden lifted off your shoulders, your mind clear of financial worry, and clearly seeing your way to financial independence. It is a dream that many people in today's debt ridden society long to make come true. Your dreams of financial independence and security can be a reality because........... Anyone can live debt free and everyone deserves debt free living!So How Do You Get Rid of Debt?
The only effective way to lower and get rid of debt forever is to combine personal finance strategies that encourage debt free living. You may have heard them before. That's because they work! Each individually will help you on your way, but it will take a combination of debt free living strategies to successfully lower and get rid of debt forever. Of course, most of these strategies require change. Change in your habits, your lifestyle, your plans and goals. It may even require a change in perspective! A powerful tool for success. Are you ready for your "Get me out of debt" solution?Steps to Successful Debt Free Living- Budget your expenses to live within your income
Nothing new here. Until you take control of your money, debt will continue to control your life. Review budgeting options and choose a method you are comfortable with. You can create your own household budget. But, if you don't think you have the self discipline and control to be a successful do it yourselfer, then make it easy on yourself.
The easier it is for you to maintain your budget, the more likely you are to stick to it! You may do better with a computer or online budgeting software program. Be sure to choose an all inclusive personal finance budgeting program that will address all your needs to get rid of debt and manage your money. Manage your money through household budgeting to help you live within your income and stop creating debt.
- Debt Management
Once you've eliminated and reduced expenses to live within your income, consistently lower and get rid of debt. Make a commitment to stop creating debt. Develop a self help plan or review debt management or credit counseling programs that may suit your needs. Gaining control, and getting rid, of debt is essential to debt free living success. Stay within your budget, save money whenever possible, and apply any extra funds to your credit card balances to get rid of debt!
- Frugal Living
Frugal living inevitably leads to debt free living. If you've been living beyond your means, and most of us with large debt obligations have, frugal living will be an essential ingredient to get you back on the right path. You may need to lower monthly bills and learn some money saving tips to balance the household budget. Cut back on unnecessary expenses and reduce your monthly expenses. Make a few simple changes in lifestyle and you can comfortably live within your income, save money everyday, reduce and get rid of debt, save for unexpected events, and reach your goal to become debt free and financially independent.
These three main goals will bring your finances under control and get rid of debt. You may be thinking "Hey, what about saving?" Isn't that important for financial independence?" You're right, it is important. However, if you're carrying a heavy load of debt, saving will only cost you money. If you can free up extra money each month to knock off that debt bit by bit, then you can free up the same money for an unexpected emergency. You'll be surprised how much money you'll find through saving on your everyday expenses, especially your food budget. However, if you find that you still want, or need, to make some extra money to get rid of debt and complete your debt free living goals, then consider these options:- Ask your boss if overtime (or extra hours at regular pay) is available
- Get a part time second job
Consider a practical home business idea
- Sell off items that you rarely or never use at yard sales, consignment shops, or using newspaper ads
If you consistently follow these simple strategies for taking control of your finances you will become debt free.
I always feel guilty that I can't give to charity more than I do. But, honestly, my budget is trimmed down to the bare minimums and our income just meets those obligations with pennies to spare. Still, I feel that I should be giving something. After all, I know that there are other families struggling much harder than ours to simply provide the very basic needs of survival. You need only to look at your budget to see that our society places a high price on the very basic needs of food, shelter, and clothing. Seems odd to me. In a perfect world these basic needs of survival would be more modestly priced, if not free. But, this isn't a perfect world (at least not by my assessment) and that's not the case. That's why I think it's important to give in some way, even when you can't imagine where it will come from. Here a few little ways you can give and not really miss it.
- One of our local supermarkets (Shoppers) has a display at each cash register where you can add $1, $3, or $5 to your grocery bill as a donation to the food bank. It doesn't hurt so much to give in these small increments often, as opposed to one larger lump sum. I think this is a great idea. You may find this convenient for you if you have a Shoppers or other supermarket in your area with similar donation opportunities.
- Take advantage of food collections at post offices, schools, and even the supermarket. One or two cans, boxes, or bags of non-perishable foods will probably not ruin your entire menu for the week. You may not even miss it and you'll be making a charitable donation. I have ample opportunities in this area as I have four children in three different schools (elementary, middle, and high school). All three do food drives every year. Our local post office and supermarket also participate in food collections around the holidays.
- During the holidays, toys for tots is a great way to give a gift as a donation. Some people say they feel cheap if they only give one gift. Well, you can give just one. It's not only acceptable, it's very much appreciated. One from you, and you, and you, and you, ......... well you get the picture. Collectively, it adds up to a happier holiday for many less fortunate children.
- Take advantage of donation matching to make smaller donations go further. I have certain charities that I receive newsletters and updates from. I recently read of a matching opportunity in one of the newsletters and donated $5 during the promotion. That means that the matching donator gave $5 as well.
- You can also set up a reoccurring payment in your bill pay program as a donation. Set up a payment to send a donation of $5 every week, bi-weekly, or even monthly. Whatever you feel your budget will permit. If you ever fall short, just reschedule or cancel the payment for that period.
- Don't forget that donating your time is valuable, and appreciated, also. Volunteer to help a neighbor, visit a nursing home or home for the elderly, cheer up hospital patients, or help out at a local charity organization.
- Donate all your unwanted items and clothing to a family in need, the Salvation Army, or other charity owned thrift store.
You can see that if you really put your mind to it, you can come up with a variety of ways to donate when donating seems impossible. Donating more often in smaller increments is a lot less noticeable than forking out a large lump sum. And, donating your time is sometimes more appreciated than money, since organizations may really need the manpower to be successful. A warehouse full of food won't do anyone any good if there is no manpower to get it where it is needed. In today's fast paced society, time is a valuable gift to give!
The reception alone will bust your wedding budget if you're not careful. Of course, the most obvious way to save money on the reception is to keep it small. Where you host this grand occasion could make or break you.Your low budget wedding remedy? Find a reception location that's free or low cost. A free location may include, your home, or a friend or family member's home. A low cost option might include the Church reception hall, the local fire department's reception room, and club hall rentals. Most will have a kitchen area for preparing and serving food.Sometimes you will even find a local restaurant that specializes in low budget wedding receptions. These will likely offer a package for the reception which may include dinner and limited beverage with the rental of restaurant space or banquet rooms. Check hotels in your area for banquet rooms as well. Some may rent the banquet room alone and/or offer reception packages as an option.Leave no stone unturned in your search! You may happen upon a gem of a deal that will save you alot of money. Ask around. Get recommendations from friends and family. Do a local search on the internet. We have several plantations in our area who offer wedding reception packages. These are elegant locations and are usually competatively priced; Including options for the low budget wedding.Make a list or chart to record all your findings. Record not only price but services available, and packages available. Then you can compare where you will get the most for your money. For instance, you may be able to rent a space for a really cheap rate and hire outside catering for the dinner. But, if you find a location that costs more but will offer you a package that includes the catering, it may be the better dealin the long run.The one big exception to this scenario is if you opt for a potluck reception. Many guests may be pleased, if not relieved, to be given the choice to bring a reception dish in place of a wedding gift. You will find that low budget reception packages usually come with a low budget menu as well. If you choose this option, you will save greatly on catering expenses. I am certain your guests will be more pleased with the menu selections. This would be your best low budget wedding option and will save the most money.The Potluck Reception Don't be shy to pursue this potluck reception idea. It is truly the traditional way to celebrate. And, it is truly the number one low budget wedding option. Today's weddings are so commercialized. You will learn that caterers offer very limited menus to very limited budgets! Guests will likely be very pleased and welcome the idea of a potluck reception.The potluck reception goes well with any wedding theme. If you are shy about approaching this option you can simply call it an "Old Time Traditional Wedding Celebration" The potluck dinner will suit this theme quite naturally and no-one will even question it!You may even want to pick an "Old Time" theme for your decorating and favors. This will further incorporate the idea of an old time tradition theme. Perhaps a 50's theme or a 20's theme. These are both popular old time themes. Simply slip an added note with the invite, or on the invite, to give guests this option. For example the note might read...~Our reception will be an "Old Time Traditional Celebration" with a potluck dinner. ____ Please check here if you would like to bring a dish for the reception in place of a wedding gift. Call with dish suggestions please.Have them call to get or offer suggestions on a dish so you have control over the menu. No one is obligated to particitpate, but I'm sure you will be surprised at how many guests will opt for this.
More and more people go to seminars to attend a professional lecture about business, technology, education and many others. Seminars are highly regarded as a useful instruction for any particular area where you get to learn things, interact with other people, and even raise your own questions. If you want to conduct a seminar, it may be hard to persuade people to go. You need to have a specialized skill to attract people to your seminars. There are a lot of marketing techniques that will help you sell your seminar. Read on to learn the things you need to know to market your seminar. 1. Find listing online. Since the internet is the busiest place, you can catch potential leads for your seminar. There are specialized sites where you can sell events like seminars, classes or workshops. This is indeed the easiest way to target potential people to attend your seminar. Just search the web to find internet providers that give this kind of service. 2. Most people who will conduct seminars will use brochures and flyers to fill your seminar. It is the traditional way but it works. How about being more warm with those potential attendees to attract them to your seminar. All you need to do is to make the people subscribe to your website, this way you can send them newsletters about your seminars. 3. During your past seminars, I am sure you had a lot of attendees, so why not market your next seminar to them. If your last seminar was a success and the attendees had fun and they learned from you, chances are you can persuade them to come to your next seminar. 4. Before you conduct your seminar, it is very important that you undergo training, even though you think that you are ready for it. Take training from professional organizations. This way the people learn that you have undergone training with them; they will be more convinced you can conduct a good seminar. 5. Always create good marketing brochures, this will attract the attendees attention. 6. Many people will decide at the very last minute, grab this opportunity. Give them the so called last minute pricing. You can do this after ten days if you still have vacant seats. You can market and list your seminar through. Tell them that you have a special price offer, definitely. More people will be interested.7. The traditional way still works, market the seminar yourself. Go out and do the job. More personal networking can be a good way to attract people to your seminar. These are some of the marketing techniques that will help sell your seminar. It takes a lot of patience and effort to get people to attend. Get things done and see the promising rewards it brings. Good Luck!
To succeed with your seminar, always think of those strategic seminar formats. There are actually a number of ways you can do this. Organizing and implementing a very good format can turn your seminar to success. There are a lot of different seminars, some are made to inspire, educate and entertain. But whatever seminar it is, the sole purpose is to learn from it. Another thing is to persuade people to go to your seminar. It is really a hard task. Just keep focused, and everything will go your way.Seminar success is based on how many people show up and enjoy it. So spend your time and days to organize your seminar and see the good results for all your efforts. Below are the ways to have a good seminar format to get you started. Most people do not really have time for a long seminar. Some of them might get bored if you have a very long time discussing things that are not direct to the point. Attendees time is precious so why not have a seminar for just a half day or less. But make sure that your seminar is a fruitful one. Less time but more information, learning and advice. Try to arrange a good time for your seminar, the place it will be held and the time when they are going to have their lunch breaks.Next, you need a lot of practice. Watch other successful seminars and you can definitely learn from them. At any rate, practice really makes perfect. Lastly, focus on what format you will use for your seminar. Always make the people feel that you can educate them. Try to catch their attention at the beginning. Do not just tell them the information, always seek their problems and give them the best solutions. So always be ready to answer and give possible solutions. Never sell your products, keep in mind that you sell yourself. The people will have fun if they will get to know more information about you. Just be confident but humble about your achievements if you do tell them.These are some of the few ways you can plan your seminar. Always keep your cool. Focus and have the best seminar plan and design that will fit your seminar style.
One of the most important things to consider when conducting a seminar is your seminar materials. No matter how good you are as a speaker, the people will want to have these materials for their own references and study guides. Seminar materials include workbooks, reference guides, manuals and hand-outs. These materials will help you introduce yourself to the people.So what are the ways to make good seminar materials so that the seminar will be a profitable one? Listed below are the things to consider when making profitable seminar sales materials. 1. Your seminar materials should not always be a loose leaf when the people open it. It is better that you bind it, so all the materials will be kept together because they are going to browse the other study guides. It looks more organized too.2. To cut cost on your seminar materials, why not print on both sides. Reduced paper is far cheaper than having many pages to print. 3. Highlight the important keys, events and facts that are listed in your seminar materials. That way you can point them easily to the topic you are discussing and they'll can see it right away. Use color codes that are available on the internet to make the material look more appealing.When there are illustrations and charts in your seminar materials, it will be very good also if they are colored. 4. The most appealing seminar material are the ones that contain oversized pages that can be folded inside. Include the top topics you want your listeners to learn because you can include a lot of information in the folded page. You can tell the printing press how the fold is going to be. It can either be a Z fold or the traditional half fold, just the way you like it. But always make sure that the folded paper fits inside neatly.5. Create a section where the participant can draw out the specific problems that they are facing. It will be more powerful if it is personal so that they feel you are extending your help to them.6. Then never forget to put a lot of useful information at the end of your seminar material. But make sure that it is relevant to your seminar and the participants will find it useful for them. These are some of the best techniques that will work for your seminar materials. Remember your seminar materials really speak of you, so take a closer look at your materials and plan the best way to attract the participants.
Seminars are an excellent way of showcasing your knowledge and skills. Once your seminar becomes effective, companies will readily want your service and this can lead to high profits! The effectiveness of a seminar however will rely on the persons or groups receiving it. Getting the peoples feedback about your seminar can really be beneficial to you. How will you get the attendees feedback on a seminar? There are many ways of doing this but generally all feedback is done after the end of the workshop. The most common means is to distribute survey questionnaires eliciting the comments and suggestions of the participants. You can get examples of the questionnaires or modify your own. Some of the common parts are survey regarding the venue (if the place is conducive for the seminar), the food (does the food taste well), the speaker (expertise and knowledge) the conduct of the seminar and the topic discussed (was it informational and helpful).With all the feedback from the participants, their first hand experiences can bring about changes on how your seminar can be presented. Feedback will lead to certain benefits such as it will help you with your planning the next time. With real facts coming from the attendees, you will know what did not work and what worked among your techniques. You can make a better presentation next time if the participants view that there is something lacking in it. You can also compute for what will cost you on your next seminar with the use of feedback from the participants. If the participants commented that the materials used weren't sufficient and if the venue is not suitable for the conduct of training, this can help you seek a better location and better materials that can be supplemental for the learning process. You can have cost cutting measures and bidding processes and all will lead you to budget your resources better. Customer feedback can also win you a new set of clients. If the participants gave positive feedback about your seminar, they can relate it to the other groups. This can also be a marketing scheme for you to prove that you have good seminars that are appreciated by many people. Through this, you are giving yourself an edge in the business. Feedback on seminars can be positive or negative but altogether can help you improve your craft and can lead to your self fulfillment. Using the feedback can give you profits that you never imagined before. So collect all the feedback and use them for your success!
Now that you have finished you're plans for your seminar, and have the design and advertising, the next thing you do is attract people to your seminar. But how will you get them to your door? Of course every seminar has a fee. Now think is your seminar worth the fee. If you think have something good for the participants and you are ready to deliver your seminar, you are now ready to book them. What are the ways to take bookings for your seminar? Read on to learn some of the creative techniques so you can reach a participant by getting bookings from them. First you need to buildup a list of potential participants for your invitations and from other enquiries list you already have but have not been converted to your bookings. Make frequent, polite calls so that the actual selling process moves. This is what you call the follow up method. Most people will likely attend if you give them benefits. One good thing to give is an incentive. Before, people went to seminars to get helpful information, but as they matured they looked for reasons because time is very precious to them. So a good incentive will work to attract participants.Before taking bookings, make sure that you set the proper time and location. Many business owners have families so set your time to accommodate them. A good time to start is during 7 to 8 pm, since some parents drop and pick up their kids from school. About the location, the very best is in the heart of the city.Always consider networking as a good reason to get large participants. Not only does it get potential participants from your contacts and other acquaintances but it can seek a far broader audience through exploring different networks.After you have all these, you can plan now on how you will take bookings. It could either be the conventional phone calls or the most popular way which is through the internet. Online booking is a good idea right now since the internet is a place people visit everyday.
