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Archive for the ‘Spiritual’ Category

Finances and Scripture

Monday, October 5th, 2009

Years ago (15 – 20 years!) I went through the Crown Financial series. I still remember some of the Bible verses we had to memorize. Some of the great ones were:

The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave. Proverbs 22:7

The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever het gets. Proverbs 21:20

Steady plodding bring prosperity. Proverbs 21:5

But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his househole, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:8

I found a link on the Crown website with many more Bible references. Check them out.

Tags: Spiritual
Posted in Budgeting, Financial, Spiritual | No Comments »

I ran across a website that has a test for people to take in 15 – 20 minutes and it gives you immediate results on your main role and supporting role. It asks what you would do in certain circumstances – how you relate to people, etc. The author of the website was on Dave Ramsey recently. The site is http://www.stronglifetest.com/. Check it out.

Tags: goals
Posted in Job Loss, Spiritual, Wellness | No Comments »

Planning a Farewell Service

Saturday, September 19th, 2009

Most of us hate to think about planning our own funeral but it is an inevitable part of life. My mother recently passed away and she had everything planned out – location, pallbearers, casket, plot, music, scripture, dress, headstone….She was 92 when she passed away and she had planned her funeral ten years earlier and talked to the family about the plans and had everything written out. She made it clear what she wanted. It sure made it a lot easier on the family when the time came.

On the financial end of funeral planning, experts suggest you preplan, but don’t prepay. You don’t know that the money will be in a safe investment or that the funeral home will still be in business.

Shop around as prices for caskets and funerals can vary by thousands of dollars, even in the same city. You can purchase a casket online or elsewhere at a discount and the funeral home has to accept it. If they give you a runaround on accepting it, you can report them to the Federal Trade Commission (or threaten to report them and they may change their mind). Also don’t purchase a “protective” rubber seal for the casket – these are just another way for a funeral home to overcharge you.

Consider having everything at your place of worship rather than at the funeral home which will also save you money. Make it even simpler by going the cremation route. That is what I am planning on doing. When I see all of the space being taken up by cemetaries where will it end? If everyone continues to take up at least 6 foot of space when they die and old cemetaries can’t be dug up as they are sacred, where will there eventually be space to live???

Tags: funeral
Posted in Retirement, Shopping, Spiritual | No Comments »

Teaching Your Kids about Alcohol and Drugs

Friday, August 28th, 2009

We all know that kids are influenced by what they see. The old “do what I say, not what I do” doesn’t work. A study came out recently that looked at the influence of a parent’s drug and/or alcohol use and their children’s drug and/or alcohol use.

Compared to teens who have not seen their parent(s) drunk, those who have are more than twice as likely to get drunk in a typical month, and three times likelier to use marijuana and smoke cigarettes, according to the National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XIV: Teens and Parents, the 14th annual back-to-school survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.

“Some Moms’ and Dads’ behavior and attitudes make them parent enablers—parents who send their 12- to 17-year olds a message that it’s okay to smoke, drink, get drunk and use illegal drugs like marijuana,” said Joseph A. Califano, Jr., CASA’s chairman and founder and former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. “Teens’ behavior is strongly associated with their parents’ behavior and expectations, so parents who expect their children to drink and use drugs will have children who drink and use drugs.”

For more on the study check out this link or download a free copy of the study with this link.

Besides influencing our kids, remember that a regular 12 oz beer is at least 140 calories and an 8 oz glass of wine is at least 160 calories. And who needs the extra calories??

Tags: alcohol, drugs
Posted in Nutrition, Spiritual, Wellness | No Comments »

Before You Give to a Charity

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

Charities are struggling for money during these tough economic times too. But before you give make sure the money is going to a place that will really use the money as you think they should.

The first question to ask the charity is if the IRS recognizes them as a charity. If the answer is no you won’t be able to deduct the donation from your taxes (if that matters to you).

Ask how long the charity has been around. If it has been less than five years you may want to find a charity that has a longer proven track record.

Ask what percentage of your donation will go to charitable works. If it is less than 75% the charity is run ineffeciently and you may want to look for another organization where your money will be used more for what you intend.

Ask if they charity has a year’s worth of working capital. If they don’t they may not have enough assets to make it through this economy.

Ask if they are slashing services. If they are, it is another sign that the charity may be shaky.

If the charity has answered all of your questions to your satisfaction, go for it. Giving back and tithing (giving 10%) is a great thing. You get more back from giving than you give.

Check out www.charitynavigator.org or www.guidestar.org for more information and research on charities.

Tags: charity
Posted in Budgeting, Financial, Spiritual | No Comments »

Rule Number 1: Assume Failing Is Impossible

Monday, January 5th, 2009

What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? Think about that for a minute in regards to your personal, family and business life.

If you assume that failing is impossible and let those thoughts govern you life, you will be more innovative, willing to take on risks and push to create what’s next. It doesn’t matter in the end whether what you do turns out good or bad. What matters is that you experience it as if you could not fail. Dream big, innovate, challenge yourself, push to create what’s next. Own the choices you make. You are accountable for everything you do. Accept things that scare you as you have the most to learn from those things. You will learn more mastering something new to you than you will from doing the things that you already know.

Tags: goals, Wellness
Posted in Budgeting, Exercise, Financial, Spiritual | No Comments »

Top 10 New Years Resolutions

Monday, January 5th, 2009

The following are the Top 10 New Year’s Resolution categories… those items most likely to show up on ‘the list’. Have you ever thought about the idea behind setting resolutions… a new year thus a time for new direction in your personal life? Do you make resolutions… do you keep them… do you get a bit depressed when you don’t?

Be Healthy: Welcome this never experienced New Year with a resolution of getting in shape and being healthy and fit. A dieting plan, teamed with regular exercise, is the key to shed those extra calories and get to be in perfect health throughout the year. Make a resolution to be healthy and then feel the difference of glowing health.
Spend More Time with Family: Make that little difference with your presence amidst your family and dear ones. Make a resolution to spend more time with your family and bring back the joy of bonding to your life.
Quit Smoking: Shake off the bad habit of smoking and say goodbye to the costs and negative impact on your health. Make a resolution to quit smoking and feel the pleasure of a smoke-free world.
Quit Drinking: Why not greet the New Year with a resolution to quit drinking and lead a healthy life. Leading a sober life can be very fulfilling
Enjoy Life More: Get out of the stress of daily chores and enjoy the spirit of living an easy life. Make a resolution to enjoy life more to get the maximum pleasure out of the New Year.
Get Out of Debt: Make this year the start to a debt-free year. Repay all your debts and start saving beginning this year. Take the pledge of getting out of debt to mark this New Year with financial security.
Learn Something New: Have you vowed to learn something new this year? It will help you in every way, be it to improve your career or your personal life. Make a pledge to learn something new this year and enjoy the difference new knowledge makes.
Go on a Vacation: Get out of the drab chores of routine life. Make a resolution to plan a vacation that makes this year significantly diverse from past years.
Help Others: Lets’ make a popular and non-selfish resolution of helping others. There are lots of others who can use your help.
Get Organized: Let’s take this New Year seriously and make a vow of getting more organized… it simplifies your life.

Anything above stimulate something specific that you’d like to act on? In the potentially tough year to come, some of them have added economic value. In business, we’d consider these as annual objectives, so I challenge you to think of resolutions more like goals… something to move towards, with a plan, knowing that plans do not always become accomplished 100%. This removes the stigma of “failing” to keep a resolution, but showing progress towards the objective. And remember what gets measured gets inproved – track you progress.

Tags: goals
Posted in Budgeting, Exercise, Financial, Nutrition, Spiritual, Wellness | 1 Comment »

Create a Plan For Your Life

Friday, November 7th, 2008

In order to reach what you want in life (whether it is in terms of personal development, business, wellness, self-help, spirituality, financial management, etc) you have to develop a plan and set goals. Here are some valuable rules for setting life goals:

Until its written down, it is not a goal – it is a slogan. Write your goals down. Make a list. I love lists.

Make sure your goals are specific, measurable and provable. List the details. What will you do. By when will you accomplish it? How will you know you made it?

Take immediate action on your goals so that you start movings towards them. Get started within 48 hours.

Once you have written down your goals, put them someplace where you can see them everyday. Put them on your bathroom mirror, your refrigerator, your automobile steering wheel.

Share your goals with someone that you love and trust. Verbalizing your goals to another person makes them more entrenched in your mind and the other person can may be able to help keep you on track.

Develop goals that fit in with your values. What is important to you? Is it security, independence, freedom, helping others, helping family, happiness…..

Review your goals at least every twelve months. Are you on track? Do you need to adjust, redefine?

Remember, if you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got! Reach for the stars.