This is a very special guest post from Michael Sitarzewski, who in September of 2007, became debt free using Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover. I found his post in a tweet on Twitter, and after reading it, asked if I could share his story with all of you. You can connect with him by visiting msitarzewski.com. I hope his story motivates and inspires all of you to think BIG! If he can do it, why can’t you? 50K in less than a year!! WOW! How We Got Out Of Debt: From $50k To $0 In Less Than A Year Posted […] Read more »
Have You Ever Had A DEBT FREE Christmas, And Will You Accept My Challenge?
An ‘Official’ Enemy Of Debt Challenge – Can You Have A Debt Free Christmas In 2009? You might think that a debt free Christmas is not possible, but it is! Very possible! You just have to think and behave differently with your money. With Christmas a little less than five months away, it’s time to start planning. Actually, the best time to start is around February in order to decrease “wallet shock”. (When you fund Christmas all in one month) We’ve all experienced it. It’s when we realize in the 11th hour Christmas is upon us. Usually it happens after […] Read more »
Public Service Announcement: Cash For Clunkers Equals Debt For Suckers
Poooof!! And The Government Said Let There Be…Three Billion Dollars! Now this is just getting silly! This post is about DEBT! The Cash For Clunkers program has been, or is in the process of being revitalized. Yep, that’s right. Two billion dollars out of thin air, or maybe I should say, out of your children’s children’s front pocket. Debt is dumb and so is this ridiculous program! Let me see if I understand this correctly. The Government taxes you into servitude, creates a program in which you are said to receive FREE money by giving you up to $4,500 in […] Read more »
The Dream Budget: Your Debt Free Potential! What’s Yours?
What is the “Dream” Budget? I have referred to this before in earlier posts, but I have never actually written a post about it. Basically a dream budget is the budget you would have IF you were completely debt free. That’s right, no car payment! No mortgage payment! No credit card payments! No debt at all! I always ask my Financial Peace University classes to do a dream budget. I believe that when you see how much you could do without debt in your life, it will inspire and motivate you to set that goal. This exercise should not […] Read more »
Hope Is The Dream Of A Soul Awake
“When you do nothing, you feel overwhelmed and powerless. But when you get involved, you feel the sense of hope and accomplishment that comes from knowing you are working to make things better.” As some of my most loyal readers know, I eat, sleep, bath, and drink personal finance. It’s sometimes all I talk about, definitely all I think about, and I seriously love blogging about it! I absolutely NEVER EVER pass up an opportunity to discuss with someone the benefits of debt freedom. My co-workers and friends, even the ones that aren’t completely on board, seem to know deep […] Read more »
“Financial Independence” Ceremonial Speech
As you know I am currently taking a public speaking class. The last speech I posted was an informative speech about The Benefits Of Saving. I told you that I planned on doing my ceremonial speech as if I had just become debt free. I did so, but also decided to make it about my entire class becoming debt free. Not only that but I wrote the speech as if I was giving it to a crowd of people. After all, this kind of celebration would be huge. I am scheduled to give this speech tonight in class. I am […] Read more »
The Debt Snowball – Do It Your Way!
The Debt Snowball There are so many ways you can pay off your debt. Of all the methods out there, the one I like the most is the one Dave Ramsey teaches. The debt snowball is the second baby step in the Total Money Makeover. You generally start your debt snowball once you have saved AT LEAST $1,000 for your baby emergency fund. The idea is to give yourself a buffer so that as you are paying off your debt, you will be able to handle life’s little problems without having to borrow money in the process. Dave’s Snowball method […] Read more »
An Inconvenient Myth: The Marketing Effect
This is a guest post by, well…we’ll just call him Mr. Joe for privacy reasons. Mr. Joe is a jack-of-all-trades, and writing happens to be one of the many. He’s been my mentor, and a very influential part of who I have become over the last 5 or so years. When he asked me if he could write a guest post for EOD, I was honored, and considered it a privilege. Perhaps after reading this you will want to see more from Mr. Joe, because it is indeed a wonderful piece. De-mythologizing the Language of Debt You can use […] Read more »
12 Steps To Debt Freedom
I am addicted to becoming and staying debt free! Are you addicted to becoming and staying debt free? If so, these are the principles and ideas that you would follow to achieve such a thing. You have probably heard about the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, and how they really help these folks cope from day to day. I just created 12 principles very loosely based on those of AA, with a debt free spin. I really just got the idea of where and how to list them, and then I just started thinking of all the things one […] Read more »
A Destructive Mindset: Is This What You Believe Too?
Becoming Debt Free Is Priceless Indeed I was reading an article yesterday titled, Debt-Free: Priceless, and the one and only comment on this article blew me away! Seriously, the comment brought me to my knees, like kryptonite did Superman! Back to the ice cave! The article talked about what a Federal Bankruptcy Judge was doing to combat the destructive nature of credit card abuse, that possibly led people to his courtroom to declare themselves bankrupt. “John C. Ninfo II, a federal bankruptcy judge, has founded the Credit Abuse Resistance Education (CARE) Program, www.careprogram.us, a national initiative to teach high school […] Read more »
Some Bash Dave Ramsey, But Why?
Every so often, I run into a blog that bashes Dave Ramsey and what he teaches. If you are loaded with debt, and you don’t know who Dave Ramsey is, then maybe you should take this opportunity to get to know him. Don’t take my word for it, and especially do not take the haters word for it. Learn for yourself, and find out why Dave is actually changing people’s lives! You might be surprised at what you find out! Who Is Dave Ramsey? Dave has made it his mission to help people avoid, or get out of tough […] Read more »
Got Credit Cards? Here’s Another Reason To Say Goodbye!
There are some that are so adamant about the fact that credit card companies are NOT bad, and do NOT take advantage of consumers. I disagree, and I think that an article I came across from dailyfinance.com proves otherwise. For the minority that have the discipline to not carry a balance, you will be okay, but for the rest of you who use credit cards to subsidize your income, you might want to consider cutting the cord! The article states that, “credit card companies are insisting upon exercising their right to abuse their customers in the name of higher […] Read more »
3 Proven Steps To Debt Freedom
I receive a lot of emails asking me “where do I begin?”, so I decided to write this blog about just that. One of the most overwhelming feelings for most is in the beginning, when things are not very clear, and you do not know where in the world to start! You are not alone, and like MANY others, I have been there too! There is a reason why it is overwhelming, so I want to discuss some prerequisites before we get started with the 3 Steps To Debt Freedom. Prerequisite #1 – You must STOP […] Read more »
Are You Getting Bit By Snakes?
When You Ignore The Warnings, Getting Bit Shouldn’t Be A Surprise! On my way home tonight I heard on the radio some hissing from people getting upset because Credit Card companies have started to rattle their tails. It started near the end of last year when credit card companies started lowering consumers credit limits, to no doubt protect themselves from the possibility of continued economic decline. The following article excerpt sheds some light on the problem this is causing for people: “Texas-based flight attendant Lilli Durbin used to have six credit cards (my emphasis added), which is fairly typical for […] Read more »