APRIL Lifestyles COMMUNITY NEWS MONTHLY How to Live Within Your Means by Ann Marosy Planning and goal setting are critical to your success if you want to become wealthy. The two key traits of people who do not become wealthy are, firstly, they tend to spend all of the money they have and, secondly, they do not know what they spend their money on. The lack of goals is the main culprit. Ric Edelman, author of The Truth About Money and Ordinary People, Extraordinary Wealth, calls this "spending unconsciously." He says the reason why people spend without giving it much thought is they have no goals. Without goals, we live unconsciously from moment to moment, we never plan for the future, we spend all of our money, and as a result, we are unlikely to ever become wealthy. "Unconscious spending" is more prevalent in our society than we realize. I would estimate approximately 80% to 90% of the population spend unconsciously. The vast majority of my clients had no idea what they spent their money on until I asked them to prepare a list of their total expenditure and outgoings before our first session. In fact, many were too frightened to do the initial exercise and waited until they arrived at my office, so I could help them through the ordeal. Money matters simply scare people. They are terrified to know how out of control their finances are. Yet, this is precisely what needs to be done before we can start working on a solution. While it is important to become relaxed and carefree with our financial matters, this does not mean careless. We become carefree with money when we know that it is not a scarce resource, we work on increasing our income, we invest a little time on a regular basis to plan and review our finances, and we systemically set aside part of our earnings regularly to build our savings and investments for the future. We are careless with money when we don't keep track of what we are spending and squander money on things that are wasteful, extravagant and not needed. I often compare money to water, another important commodity in our lives. Both are essential and critical to our survival, however, we rarely worry about water in the same way we do about money. We systematically set aside water when it rains in dams and reservoirs to provide us with water 'on tap' when we need it. We are careful not to waste water, however, at the same time we can relax and not have to worry about it on a dayto-day basis. When we apply the same reasoning to managing money we are well on the way to becoming wealthy. After we resolve our beliefs about money and realize that becoming wealthy is a possibility, the next step is to put aside a little time to set goals and do some planning. Planning does not have to be an arduous affair. It takes approximately one to two hours upfront to prepare your plan and, thereafter, an hour a month to review or revise it. The first part of your plan is to set some goals. Goals will help you focus on the future and increase your willpower to prevent overspending. The more concrete you make your goals, the more committed you will be to achieving them. Set timeframes and break them down Join the Crowd! Refer Your Friends To Our Community And Get Great Benefits. Contact the Leasing Office for details. Please Send My Friend Our Community's Information: My Name is: ________________________ My Apt. # is: _______________________ My Friend's Name is: __________________ Address: ___________________________ Phone: ____________________________ into manageable steps, to make your goals more realistic and attainable. Along the way, however, we also need to manage our day-to-day spending to ensure that we set aside the required savings to achieve our goals. In designing the Money Program, I used a simple, effective formula that everyone can apply to easily manage their finances. I call this the 40%30%-20%-10% rule. This formula is used to measure your expenditure and cash outflows. You divide your expenditure into four categories and calculate the total of each category as a percentage of your net (after tax) income. The four categories are Fixed Costs, Variable Costs, Discretionary Costs and Savings. Fixed Costs are your essential costs that are known and have to be paid on a regular basis. For example, rental payments, personal loans and credit card repayments, and insurance. These costs are usually determined by your lifestyle choices, the size and cost of your apartment, cars and major possessions, and therefore difficult to change without making major adjustments to the way you live. However, because fixed costs are comprised of debt and committed payments, they are critical in determining your ability to create wealth, as well as your capacity to lead a stable financial lifestyle. If your fixed costs are too high, you will probably be living from payday to payday worrying about the next large bill that arrives. If your fixed costs take up too much of your weekly pay packet, there will be less to spend on other essential costs, and often little for luxuries - unless you go further into debt. Variable Costs include our essential living expenses, which can vary from week to week, yet you have some control over what you spend. These will include food, clothing, groceries, mobile phone expenses, medical and motor vehicle running costs, such as gas and repairs. The previous two categories relate to essential costs that we cannot live without. Some are controllable (variable costs) and some are set (fixed costs). Discretionary costs are expenses that are non-essential and highly variable. These costs are very much in your control and where most choice is possible about how much is saved each month. For example, entertainment, F Earth Remember Earth Day Want to make your corner of the Earth more beautiful this Earth Day, April 22nd? Organize a project to clean up or beautify some area in your town. Make sure to have a plan for how to take care of the spot after you've made it nice. To read more about what other earthlings have done for their planet visit the kids domain web site at: http://www.kids domain.com/holiday/earthday/activity.html Save $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ t Conserv irs e& dining out, presents, holidays and all luxury items that we love but can live without. I affectionately call this part of our budget, our 'play money.' The problem with most budgets is they often exclude this significant element and this is why most people fail. We all need a little play money and a few luxuries in life. The Money Program 40%-30%-20%-10% rule, then is fixed costs are roughly 40%, variable costs 30% and discretionary costs 20% of net income. The most critical category is fixed costs. If you want to be wealthy, you have to be committed to dropping these costs below 40%. The key to good financial management is managing and controlling your fixed costs. Remember, it is all done by measuring your fixed costs: if your fixed costs are 40%, you are living within your means, if your fixed costs are above 40% you will be putting yourself under financial strain, and if they are below 40% you will be in a surplus position. If excessive debt is keeping your fixed costs high, formulate a debt-free plan and do not go deeper into debt. Learn to live with cash. It is far more finite and when the cash runs out, you know you definitely cannot afford to buy those extra purchases. If low income is your problem, consider all alternatives to increasing your income. These may include: part-time work, turning hobbies or crafts into cash or investing in additional training to further your career prospects. Also, to decrease your fixed costs you may have to make some difficult decisions about what you can afford. Remind yourself that you can have the bigger car, toys, etc - later, when you can better afford them. By keeping your fixed costs as low as possible, you will accelerate your progress to becoming wealthy. Your plan should always aim at decreasing your fixed costs below 40% by either increasing your income or decreasing your debt, or both. Once you have achieved this, use the extra money to add to your savings and investments. This is the guaranteed way to accelerate your path to wealth. To find out more about the Money Program visit http://www.moneta.com.au or contact the author at [email protected] Fatigue: Tips to Help You Recharge Your Batteries by: QualityBooks.com Re-energizing yourself will help you put fatigue to bed for good. A little effort and a positive attitude will perk you up in a flash. These simple energizing tips will give you new life. 1. Eat properly. Nutritious meals are number one in the battle against fatigue. Make sure to eat high-protein foods, such as meat, cheese, eggs, beans and whole-grain breads with each meal. Munch on fruit when you need a snack. Avoid too much caffeine. You may want to try perking yourself up with a high potency vitamin B complex. Cayenne pepper is another natural stimulant. You can mix in a teaspoon in hot water or take it in capsule form. 2. Get your proper rest. If you are not getting enough at night, take a break and nap during the day. Or perhaps before you head out at night if you’re a late-night partygoer. 3. Keep in shape with exercise. A good daily walk will get those tired muscles moving. 4. Meditate. Any form of meditation can be a real, natural healer. Just sit quietly, breathe deeply, and let your mind forget your daily hassles. Think of pleasant things. Above all, you can fight fatigue best by keeping a positive mental attitude. Try the tips mentioned, and pamper yourself; take a break when you need it. Now You’re 1/2 teaspoon salt COOKING 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 6 cups water Minted Vegetable Medley April through June is peak season for sugarsnap peas, and they're wonderfully sweet in this simple three-vegetable medley. There's no need to shell the peas; whole sugar snaps are delicious. Source: Ladies' Home Journal 1 tablespoon butter or margarine 1 pound sugar-snap peas or green beans, trimmed 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint 1. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat; add carrots, bell peppers, salt and black pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender, 8 to 9 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in large saucepan. Add peas; cook until tender-crisp, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain. 1 pound carrots, cut into 2x1/4-inch matchsticks 3. Toss carrot mixture, peas and mint in medium bowl. Makes 6 side-dish servings. 2 yellow bell peppers, cut into 1-inch squares APRIL 2004 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday 1 4 5 Palm Sunday Daylight Savings Time Begins 6 7 Saturday 2 3 9 10 15 16 17 22 23 24 8 Passover Good Friday 11 12 13 14 18 19 20 21 Easter Earth Day 25 26 27 28 29 30 Arbor Day