Frugality Tips – Practice Makes Perfect

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This is a guest post written by Ross of GoBeRich.com. Photo credit: Cliff1066 So I took a little trip to the mall the other day with my girlfriend and one of her friends. This was my first mistake. My second mistake was thinking I would tag along with them while they shopped for clothes and shoes and that it wouldn’t drive me insane. Needless to say, it did drive me insane, so eventually I set off on my own in search of something to occupy myself with. I first headed to Game Stop, as I have to admit, I’m a […] Read more »

Enemy of Debt’s 3 Year Anniversary and Reader Appreciation Giveaway

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Hello everyone! Today’s post is ALL about you! Last month on April 5th, Enemy of Debt reached a three year milestone. On that day, I started this blog with Hitting a Home Run and Becoming Debt Free Are the Same. Each year I have been blessed with the privilege of getting to know some really terrific people! I have enjoyed checking my inbox each and everyday to confirm that what I am doing is making a difference. Those emails really do keep me going and I have all of you to thank for it. Whether you actively comment or just […] Read more »

Race to Freedom Challenge #3 – Maximize Savings

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Photo Credit: totalAldo Last month you were challenged to stop eating out for the entire month, OR severely cut back to a reasonable level. To recap, my family tried to cut our eating out visits to 4 times with a cap of $120 being the most we could spend for the month. As I reported in the update post a few weeks ago, we went out to eat six times, but since then did add one more time to that for a grand total of $200. To be honest IU’m not regretting that one either because it was right before […] Read more »

Debt Free for Life Book Review and Giveaway

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If I could give a Nobel Peace Prize to anyone — one of my possible choices would be to give it to someone who wrote a book with the title “DEBT FREE FOR LIFE“! (Biased, I know) Unfortunately, the Nobel Peace Prize has been tainted many times by being given to anyone that has a pulse, instead of to those who actually achieve greatness. In my opinion, the author of Debt Free for Life, David Bach, has achieved excellence and deserves such an award for his latest book. 🙂 Of course, for me, those that teach about debt and the […] Read more »

No Eating Out Check-in: How Have You Done?

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Okay folks. I wanted to check in with everyone on the No Eating Out Challenge last week, but got kind of busy so here goes. How are you doing? Are you sticking to your goals of not eating out at all? Some of you, like me, gave yourself a smaller eating out budget; how have you done? I’m almost ashamed to admit I have done lousy. I mean, I’m still doing WAY BETTER than I would on a normal month, but I have really struggled with saying “NO” on a couple of occasions. We said we wanted to eat out […] Read more »

Financial Literacy Month Video Question – Day 18

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It’s still Financial Literacy Month and I want to start Monday morning off with a BANG! I have really enjoyed being a part of Steve’s idea to post one video a day on Money Plan SOS. There have been some great video questions and for my second video I decided to get my 5 year old, Isaac, to participate. He was sooo awesome too, as I’m sure you’ll agree! 🙂 Here’s a link to my first video question in case you missed it. Let the conversation begin. I would like to encourage all of you to take a second to […] Read more »

It’s Not a Myth, It’s a Lie; You Don’t Need a Car Payment

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Have you ever wondered what it would be like to own and drive a nice car without payments? Wonder no more. It's AWESOME! Imagine driving down the road care-free, except for the road in front of you of course, without having to spend the next 3-6 years paying for it. It's yours. You own it. And the best part is, you didn't have to pay any interest AT ALL. If you lose your job, you know your car will not be repossessed because you failed to make the payments. Ahhh, the good life! Read more »

My Interview on Fighting Back Financially with Gregg Pechmann

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Good morning everyone! A week or so ago, I had the privilege of chatting with the author of Upside down, Gregg Pechmann of Fighting Back Financially. We had an awesome conversation about various topics related to personal finance. Gregg is one awesome dude and has been following Enemy of Debt for about a year and a half. He’s a certified financial coach, with the same passion for helping others take a different financial path by coaching them with solid common-sense principles. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know Gregg and look forward to working with him more in the future. Trust […] Read more »

A Top Priority: What to Consider When Budgeting for Roof Maintenance

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This is a guest post by Herbert Norton. Photo Credit: Mart T Clark Having a roof over our heads is something we often take for granted. And yet, like anything else, roofs are not indestructible. The longevity and performance of a roof is affected by many factors, including the sun, wind, rain, ice, snow, condensation, and just plain old age. Like other aspects of maintaining a home, keeping a roof intact often requires making significant decisions and carefully weighing different options. Here are some important things to consider so that the cost of maintaining your roof won’t send you spiraling […] Read more »

Financial Literacy Month – What Can You Learn in One Minute a Day?

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Happy Friday everyone!! Some of you may not know this but April is Financial Literacy Month. I think it should be an ALL YEAR event, but nonetheless, I’ve joined a team of financial coaches and bloggers to hopefully encourage you to spend one minute a day with us to get you thinking about money and how you manage it. You can find these one minute videos over at Money Plan SOS where there is a new video every single day. Enjoy and please take a few seconds to answer the question in the comments section so we can start the […] Read more »

P90X is Doing for my Body, What the Total Money Makeover Did for my Finances

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Photo Credit: West Point I wanted to get out of debt so I BROUGHT IT!! Now I want to lose weight so I’M BRINGING IT!! What do they have in common? Intensity! It’s about intensity and doing things you wouldn’t “normally do”. It’s not about kind of sort of wanting to lose weight or dump your debt. It’s about sacrifice! It’s about intensity! If you’re not willing to do either your debt free journey will seem like a trip to the moon, and likewise, if you’re trying to lose weight! Its about dedicated and deliberate action! When your security and […] Read more »

Race to Freedom Challenge #2 – No Eating Out

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Hello everyone. There will be two parts to this article. First, anyone who participated, “officially” or not, in March’s Yard Sale Challenge, will need to email me some information regarding that challenge. And secondly, I’ll introduce you to April’s No Eating Out Challenge. Are ya ready? We only had 4 ladies, officially known as the Fab Four, who participated in last month’s challenge. I would love to have more people become involved as we progress through the year. My Race to Freedom reality series as it was originally envisioned has been scaled down to a much less formal competition. Honestly, […] Read more »

If You Want to Fix Your Money, Fix Your Marriage

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Are you constantly trying to figure out why you suck with money? For those that are single, part of the problem is accountability, but for those that aren't, the problem(s) can go much deeper than that. Sometimes the solution is right in front of you, or in this case, in your marriage. Money and Marriage are two words that sometimes seem like distant relatives, but the fact is, the connection between the two are actually hand in hand. If you look at some of the number one reasons people give for getting a divorce, money is usually at the top. I say, if you want to fix your money, fix your marriage...and vice-versa! If you fix your money, your marriage will get better, and if you fix your marriage, how you handle money (as a couple) will follow. It's a positive cycle that involves super communication and a lifetime of commitment! That's right, that commitment doesn't stop at the alter. Read more »

Got Kids? Start Teaching Them Solid Financial Principles

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Got kids? If so, you should really consider teaching them solid financial principles as early as age  4. (we started at around three and a half) Why? Well, because if you’re anything like most parents, you desperately want to help your children avoid what you have had to learn the hard way. DEBT SUCKS! Give them a rockin’ head start by helping them understand the money principles that will keep them from making avoidable financial mistakes. Help them: learn how money works learn about debt and why it should be avoided about what expenses are learn about savings and why […] Read more »