Jerry- I think your 10 commandments are great! And to Keith-Yes, when you start over, your income goes down. On Fri, Mar 13, 2009 at 9:14 AM, Jerry Belloit <[email protected]> wrote:
> Helen and other Gators, > > > > I think it is great what you have done. I want to add a thought for those > times when the economy improves: > > 1. Many years ago when I was just beginning my career, I had a good > friend who sat my wife and I down and gave us some fatherly advice. He was > a wealthy retiree. He told us that he had started out just like we had—no > money but a lifetime of career earnings ahead. He wanted to share with us > his keys to financial success. They were two very basic and simple rules. > First, be careful about acquiring debt other than your home mortgage. (I > would add to that—be careful not to use variable rate financing for your > home.) If you don’t have the money to purchase something, wait until you > do. Second, when you get your paycheck, set aside 10% to pay your church. > (He was religious, if you don’t feel that way, don’t.) The next 10% you > MUST pay yourself—i. e. save! Then spend the rest if you want. > > 2. Keep your wealth balanced. In the past year, I like many others > in the world have seen their stocks and bond retirement portfolio > dramatically decline. I estimate that it is worth about 40% less than a > year ago. As I am probably in the decade before I retire, this is of some > concern. However, it probably will not impact my retirement timetable or > decision. The reason is that over the years I have been careful to > diversify my investments into several other areas. My stock/bond portfolio > is down, but other things I have are still doing OK. > > 3. I have learned over the years to distinguish between wants and > needs. As much as I want one, I have not yet bought a BAT—the newest TV in > our home is about 12-15 years old. (It’s old enough that I cannot > remember.) > > 4. Finally, I do a financial planning seminar for students, > churches, and other groups called the 10 Commandments of Personal Finance. > Below are the highlights: > > a. Thou Shalt Have Dominion Over Thy Money: Manage Your Money, > Don’t Let Your Money Manage You! > > b. Thou Shalt Have a Financial Plan: Set financial goals—short, > medium, and long-term > > c. Thou Shalt Keep Track of Thy Money: Begin With Balancing Your > Checkbook then Develop and implement a Personal Budget > > d. Thou Shalt Know Thy Opportunity Costs: There are important > trade-offs in life. Buying one thing may limit your ability to buy > something else. > > e. Thou Shalt Plan Thy Spending: Plan when and where to > buy—comparison shop and time your purchases. > > f. Thou Shalt Manage Your Credit Wisely: Don’t unwisely substitute > credit for money. > > g. Thou Shalt Be an Aggressive Saver: Save from every paycheck > > h. Thou Shalt Invest Thy Money Wisely: Diversify your investments > widely > > i. Thou Shalt Plan for the Unexpected: Be properly insured with > both insurance and a “rainy-day” fund. > > j. Thou Shalt Keep Thy Life Balanced: Beware of love of money. > Money doesn’t make happiness but can reduce stress when you plan properly. > > > > *From:* [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] *On > Behalf Of *Helen Huntley > *Sent:* Friday, March 13, 2009 7:41 AM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* [gatortalk] Re: Herald sports writer Mike Phillips > > > > You try to figure out what else you can do. I took a buyout from the St. > Pete Times last year because I could see that things were only going to get > worse for the newspaper industry. Because I was personal finance editor, I > thought reinventing myself as a financial adviser was a logical course of > action. (www.holifieldhuntley.com) I also have been doing some freelance > writing and research. For example, I helped with the research for this book: > > http://www.amazon.com/Fight-Your-Money-Getting-Fortune/dp/0767929845/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236944055&sr=1-1 > . > > So far things are working out. However, my husband works in local > government, where they are planning major layoffs, so he could be job > hunting later this year. > > Helen > > > > On Thu, Mar 12, 2009 at 4:40 PM, <[email protected]> wrote: > > I was thinking about that similar thing today. I think that the Raleigh > newspaper laid off its sports writers and now th only sports writers are in > Charlotte covering the whole state. > > > > If all you've ever done is go to college for something, and done something > for like 20 years - what do you do when you are laid off and no one is > hiring in your field? It seems kind of ridiculous going back to school - > after you've already graduated with a bachelor's or Master's. > > > > > > > > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: [gatortalk] Herald sports writer Mike Phillips > From: Helen Huntley <[email protected]> > Date: Thu, March 12, 2009 3:58 pm > To: gatortalk <[email protected]> > > Is one of the Miami Herald writers who lost his job this week in the big > layoff they had, according to a report I read. We've often had his stories > posted to Gator News. > > </div > > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
