by Elisabeth Donati | Oct 7, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Financial Literacy Principles, Latest News, Uncategorized
Have you ever made a mistake that cost you money? Lots of money? And when you thought back over how it happened, you realized it was simply a lack of attention to detail on your part?
Of course you have. We all have. I know I have, and recently I might add. It started out being a $1600 mistake, but with the help of the company, turned into a $300 mistake instead. (Insert heavy sigh here!)
What happened doesn’t matter; it’s how I did it that tells the story. And it only took a couple of minutes to make the mistake.
The Dastardly Details (if you want them!)
There I was, needing to place a pretty big order with the printing company that prints some of our booklets and manuals. The company is Mimeo and they are awesome I might add.
We have this great relationship with the Cherokee Nation and every few months, they order our Camp Millionaire Curriculum and Financial Freedom Playbook for new and/or additional teachers to teach financial literacy to their community. We love what they are doing and so appreciate the difference they are making. And honored to be part of it, of course.
Well, here in the office, Jan and I have acronyms for everything: CM is Camp Millionaire, MO is Moving Out, CWW is Creative Wealth for Women. The problem started with this naming situation. You see I needed to order 250 of our CM Playbook but we also have a CCK (Creative Cash for Kids) Playbook.
You guessed it. I didn’t take the time to review (where was Jan when I really needed her eyes?!?) or look close enough to realize I clicked the wrong playbook and put it in the cart. The prices are about the same and I don’t have them memorized so I clicked, clicked, and clicked and went on to the next project.
Fast Forward
A few hours later something niggled me. You know that feeling you get when the Universe says, “Hey, something seems not quite right here! Pay attention!” and you have to stop what you’re doing and go check something?
Sure enough, that’s what happened. For whatever reason (this happens to me a lot), I realized what I had done but IT WAS TOO LATE! Most of the order had already been printed. Luckily for me it hadn’t been bound and my rep at the company was incredibly sympathetic. He gave me a huge discount to reorder the right product, reinstated our credit that we order with and talked to billing about only charging me for the actual cost of the paper for what was printed.
Huge Costly Mistake Widdled to Small Costly Mistake
In the end, what might have cost me $1600 ended up costing me $300. I feel incredibly grateful that the lesson wasn’t more expensive. And it prompted me to write this article.
“Paying” Attention to Details Saves You Money
That potentially costly mistake caused Jan and I to rethink our procedures here in the office for ordering things and doing all things related to money. We now only order things together so we can double check what the other is doing, we confer on all orders and sourcing projects, and we even enter items into Quickbooks and balance our checking account together.
All in all, that $300 mistake helped us put some very important checks and balances into place that will keep us (hopefully) from making any more costly mistakes in the future.
Avoiding Costly Mistakes in the Future
Here are some tips that may help YOU avoid having to shell out your hard earned cash in case of a financial mistake:
- Plan your financial actions, be them personal or business related. This gives you the space to be calm and pay attention when you do what you need to do with your money.
- Have a set procedure in place for handling financial transactions; from ordering things and keeping track of your spending to investing, buying stocks, receiving money, doing invoices, etc. Anything that involves money should involve a procedure and a thought out one at that.
- Take your time! This is probably the biggest reason we make financial mistakes (and any other kind of mistake actually). We get going too fast and simply don’t pay attention to the little details that turn into big mistakes later on. Make a time to do what you need to do, pour yourself a cup of decaffeinated something, even put a little classical music on if you need to. Do whatever it takes to be relaxed so you PAY ATTENTION.
- When you DO make a mistake — little or big — do your best not to get too upset. Sometimes there is nothing you can do but get the lesson. Let the mistake be fodder for learning a little more about how you operate and what you might need to change about who you’re being around money so you don’t repeat the mistake.
I’d love to hear about your financial mistakes here. Leave your comments below and share what you did and what you learned. We’ll all learn from them!
by Elisabeth Donati | Sep 30, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Financial Literacy Principles, Latest News, Uncategorized
by Paul Richard – ICFE PresidentSan Diego, CA – A growing number of merchants won’t accept cash anymore, including many airlines, which insist you pay by credit card if you want to buy a drink or a sandwich on board. There are also news reports that the U.S. Treasury is printing fewer dollars, as American consumers move towards an all-plastic economy. It is good news for the banks, card companies and other lenders.
To add to the cost of banking is the threat of a new one percent transaction tax on all banking activity.Cash is this writer’s preferred method of doing business. No credit cards, no travel cards, no charge accounts and here are some reasons why.
- Spend less using cash. Most people are simply willing to spend more when they use credit cards than they do when they use cash. The day-to-day cash spending rates drop. There are far fewer impulse purchases too, because if there is no cash available there will be no splurges.
- Cash makes budgeting easy. Draw out a certain amount of cash once a week and budgeting becomes automatic. One thing we all do when spending cash, we count how much is left over after a purchase. Hardly any credit card buyers check their credit available after their purchases.
- Reduce indebtedness. Credit cards were originally designed to be used for convenience, however a growing number of card holders now use them to accumulate debt. Using a card for convenience means paying the account in full at the end of the accounting period. Using the cards for debt means consumers will pay a lot more in the end because credit card interest rates are higher than most loans.
- Cash makes me think about what I spend and why. Brett Arends, a writer for Smart Money magazine, remembers back when he got his first job, he writes that he started calculating how much everything he spent cost in terms of hours worked. That new CD cost two hours of his time, and so on. It was a good discipline.
- Identity theft potential is minimized. Many people worry about handing out a credit card or details every time they make a purchase because of the prevalence of credit and identity thieves. Using cash cuts down on the risk and increases privacy.
- Cash helps local people. The cash spent at local merchants and their suppliers is keeping some fellow citizens in work. On the contrary with credit cards, the interest and other fees are helping finance bank executives, their marketing teams and call centers overseas.
Paul Richard
is the President – Executive Director of
Institute of Consumer Financial Education (ICFE). The Institute of Consumer Financial Education (ICFE) was founded in 1982 by the late Loren Dunton (creator of the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation). The ICFE is dedicated to helping consumers of all ages to improve their spending, increase savings and use credit more wisely.
by Elisabeth Donati | Sep 23, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Latest News, Uncategorized
“Learn how to be financially free today.”
“Be all that you can be now.”
“Learn to play a bigger game!”
“Propel yourself to another level!”
And on and on…
Are you at all tired of being made to think that being who you are, where you are isn’t enough? Quite frankly, I think a lot of adults would be less stressed if they stopped listening to the media, the seminar gurus and others who tell them they aren’t OK just the way they are.
This is true both in how we live in general and how we choose to do money.
Your Financial Drummer
Personally, I love having an old car that’s paid off and gets great gas mileage and has the old fashioned windows you roll down by hand. I’ve always thought this is a much better option if you ever end up plunging it into water (not that I think that is ever going to happen, mind you:-). Never mind my iPod won’t plug into it. I don’t care.
I love that my clothes don’t have other people’s names on them and I’ve never cared for fancy purses or makeup or fancy anything else for that matter. I have always worn what felt comfortable on my body and gave me joy to put on and move around my world in.
I enjoy having to budget my vacations. It makes me appreciate the experiences I plan and pay for.
I’ve never worn a suit and I get a kick out of wearing my toe shoes with anything and everything. You couldn’t pay me to wear a suit or heels. I have never worn ‘appropriate’ clothing and I’ve never known anything bad to come of it. Heck, for those of you who have been to my trainings, you know I teach barefoot because I am a better teacher when I’m connected to the world physically.
I’m grateful I don’t own any real estate! Been there, tried that. Didn’t like having to be responsible for so much stuff. I prefer renting and love that my landlord takes great care of my house. I’ve never needed to own a home to feel secure in my life day to day. Security is highly over-rated and rarely exists anywhere except in our minds.
What’s my point?
I just want you to notice two things:
First, whose life are you living right now? One that you’re comfortable in most of the time or one you think you should be living because you’ve bought into levels, classes, better thans and worse thans?
Second, are you inviting your children to grow into their true selves or forcing them to grow into any number of society’s acceptable roles…roles you might even live in but don’t care for yourself?
If there’s part of your life that isn’t you or you’re force feeding your kids into a life that you sense isn’t them, stop.
One of the nicest compliments I ever received from someone who met me years ago was a card that said something to the effect that I just seemed happy marching to the beat of my own drummer.
What beat are you marching to?
Just something to think about.
by Elisabeth Donati | Sep 21, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Latest News, Uncategorized
We frequently get questions from our websites from visitors. Here are a few I answered in very unconventional ways. Here is his email to me…
Burning Financial Questions
My single biggest question(s) when it comes to creating financial freedom for myself or teaching my kids about money is(are)…
1. What world currency is the most stable/reliable jurisdiction to sustain cash reserves?
2. What is your “take” (position) on the rates of inflation and currency value of US Dollars?
3. What criteria do you recommend for putting cash “to work”?
4. Does your curriculum address issues of: a. personal productivity, b. use of time, c. assets” [tangible (liquid/semi-liquid)] and[ intangible (example: education), d. Lifestyle choices that address consumption, saving, investment, giving.
5. What is your definition of “Financial Freedom
James
My answers to him…
Hi James,
Thanks for the questions though I don’t think I’m going to be all that helpful.
1. I have no idea…to me, the best currency is one’s talent and creativity. That way you see opportunities everywhere to create cash whenever you need it, regardless of what currency you use to buy groceries.
2. I don’t pay attention to stuff like this. It has never mattered to me. As I mentioned in #1, as long as I can always make way more money than I need (I didn’t say ‘earn’, I said ‘make’), inflation and the currency value of US dollars doesn’t affect me.
3. The only way you can put cash to work is to put in into an asset that will produce cash flow somehow. Real estate that produces positive cash flow (rents), stocks that produce dividends and you can sell covered calls on, creating businesses that produce regular profits without you having to do most of the work.
4. Our curriculum addresses: yes, yes, yes, yes.
5. My definition of financial freedom is simple: when I have more than enough money coming into my life than going out and able to do whatever I please, I am financially free. That being said, not making the money in your life mean anything about who you are as a human being is a secondary, and critical aspect of, the first part of the definition because without the second part, you’ll never really experience the joys of the first part.
Thanks again…E
by Elisabeth Donati | Aug 25, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Latest News, Uncategorized
Up until now, the majority of children in this country, and perhaps the world, have been raised with the belief that the way they will be financially successful in life is by getting a good education which will then (hopefully) lead to getting a good job where they can then save and invest enough of their money over many, many years to eventually be able to do this thing called retire.
We’ve all heard this scenario…uttered by our own parents or someone else, and chances are, if you have children, you’ve even uttered it yourself once or twice.
The problem with this particular life course is that it continues to create a society of ‘dependent’ human beings rather than one run by ‘independent’ human beings. And that dependency, on others, for their well-being, causes all sorts of emotional, financial, cultural and political issues…many that will take a long time to untangle…and that’s only if we have shifted our beliefs about life, work, money and retirement today.
Financial Freedom is the Ultimate Freedom
Some might argue that the ability to think one’s own thoughts is the ultimate freedom but, as long as life takes money, I disagree. You see, I’ve done a goodly amount of financial education coaching over the past nine years and I haven’t found a single person under financial stress who has control of his or her own thoughts or feels free enough to think whatever he or she wants to think.
Yes, technically no one is ‘controlling’ their thoughts, but because they were raised in our current “gotta get a job” mentality, their thoughts are controlled by the feelings of shame, inadequacy and dependency they feel on others…on a system that has fallen extremely short in terms of empowering them to be all that they can be.
Slavery is all but abolished in the United States
According to Wikipedia, slavery is described as a system under which people are treated as property and forced to work. I submit that ‘financial slavery’ comes in at least two packages:
- Where the person who has dominion over ‘the slave’ (or employee) is the one in control, and,
- Where the person in the ‘slave position’ feels out of control. In other words, the person feels like property in their own mind. They feel as if they have no control and are forced to work for the person because no one taught them there was any other choice.
Both instances connote a sense of dependency in as much as the slave, though he doesn’t feel like he has any control over his days, becomes dependent on the ‘owner’ for his well-being. In the case of the employer-employee relationship, he feels a slave…he must work for the money that he needs to take care of himself and his family.
Another concept of financial slavery comes in terms of debt. When we use other people’s money and must pay that money back, with or without interest, we then become a slave to that debt. This creates an even greater sense of dependency on the source of income because the pressure to pay back the debt increases as the debt increases, both in terms of how much interest is being paid (money being wasted that could be used to make us money instead) and the constant need to ‘service’ this debt.
In the United States, debt slavery has become a tradition…but not a good one. The sickest part about this debt slavery is that it begins at the top with our government. Talk about setting the worst example possible!
Financial Freedom – What it isn’t
In order to understand what Financial Freedom IS, it’s helpful to understand what it ISN’T.
It isn’t getting up every day to a job that you don’t like at all (there are almost always aspects of what we do for a living that we don’t really care for but that’s not the same as not liking what you do at all).
It isn’t worrying every day that you may lose your job for one reason or another.
It isn’t spending your day with someone who doesn’t have your best interest at heart peering over your shoulder waiting to catch you doing something wrong.
It isn’t getting you a paycheck and realizing the government took a huge chuck out of your hard-earned salary.
It isn’t wishing the government would do something about the cost of things.
It isn’t wishing the government would provide you more services (free stuff) simply because you haven’t figured out how to make enough money to pay for everything you need and want in life.
And lastly, it isn’t about feeling dependent on anyone else for your well-being: physical, mental, emotional or financial.
Financial Freedom – What it is
Financial freedom is knowing that you can, and do, create your own life, and that it can look like anything you want it to look like.
Financial freedom is knowing that you have the power to make as little or as much money as you want and need.
Financial freedom is believing beyond measure that we live in an abundant universe and as long as you’re tapped into that abundance, you have what you need…more than what you need usually!
Financial freedom is having more money coming INTO your life than going OUT in expenses.
Financial freedom is loving the bills that come in the mail because they mean your life is rich with experiences and you have the money flowing to you to easily pay for those experiences.
Financial freedom is going to bed each night knowing the money is simply a great tool to create whatever you want for yourself and those around you.
And lastly, financial freedom, provides the biggest sense of relief and security most human beings ever experience because finally they can work because they want to, and not because they have to.
Just something else to think about…
by Elisabeth Donati | Aug 11, 2011 | Financial Literacy, Latest News, Uncategorized
Every Camp Millionaire we hold has the same group of kids in it. We have marveled about this for years. We chuckle about it during and after camp as we notice how, over and over again, the same personalities show up.
Since we just had one of our weekend Camp Millionaire programs two weeks ago, the kids and their parents are fresh in my mind, and heart, and I just thought you might get a kick out of it. We’re constantly reminded how easily stereotypes are set up in each of our brains and how important it is to let each child stand on his or her own.
The Usual Camp Millionaire Characters
We have the adorable little ten-year old girls whose role it is to be cuter than any instructor can resist. These young ladies make us smile from deep within, say the darnedest things and often surprise us at how amazingly smart they already are. We had at least three of these girls in the last camp and they were charming as usual.
Then we have the one young man, usually another ten-year old, with the most gorgeous eye lashes! OMG, there is one in every camp. You can’t help but imagine the girls flocking over him as he turns sixteen. And not only that, he’s smart, gracious, full of manners and just pure delight.
The Money Cow Game
Now comes the young man who has more potential in his little fingers than most of us have in our whole bodies…but he hasn’t learned how to focus or control that energy yet. He’s what we usually call the natural-born leader.
When put into a group competition or challenge, he steps to the plate immediately and leads the group to victory, or in the last camp’s case, second place:-). The point is, he’s a leader through and through and we know with the right direction, mentoring and education, he will grow up and make a huge difference in the world for all of us.
Then there are the 13 and 14 year-olds who desperately want to be older, but aren’t. We find them having a great time despite their attitudes when they come into camp. Since we have ages 10-14 in most of our two-day programs, there are always a couple of tall 14 year-olds who feel awkward until they start having fun and realize it’s not such a bad thing to be there at all.
Then there are the 13 and 14 year-olds who thoroughly enjoy themselves but talk their parents into letting them skip Day Two. This breaks our hearts and happens every time.
As you can guess, going to a ‘money camp’ isn’t most kids’ idea of a good way to spend the weekend…until they actually attend, of course. When kids decide they’d rather do something else the next day, many parents give in…too easily. The problem is that their parents 1) don’t realize they actually did have a great time that first day and are manipulating them, and 2) don’t realize that by skipping out on Day Two, the kids miss the most critical financial principles and habits we teach. Principles and habits their children won’t learn in school and rarely learn at home.
There are a lot of other learning opportunities these kids miss out on as well…like looking for value in everything they do, seeing something through to the end and, one of the biggies to me personally, is learning that parents often know when something is ‘best’ for their children even if means that their child might not be ‘happy’ with the decision. (We have seen so many parents who allow their kids to dictate what is best.)
In this past camp, we had two young teens who were too old for the camp but whose families wanted them to attend to get the information. We let those two kids come as ‘counselors in training’ and we gave them the responsibility of being leaders in our ‘cabins’ (the groups we put kids into during the program).
Both teens decided together not to return for Day Two even though they had given their word to our Head Volunteer at the end of Day One. Not only did we have to completely reconfigure the cabin structure and break up the kids who had already formed a connection, but the next morning, but their parents couldn’t fathom that there was an impact. They couldn’t hear that their kids had let their groups down, impacted the camp dynamic, and were out of integrity with our staff. What feels most pathetic to me is that the kids didn’t get a valuable lesson in making commitments and keeping agreements or, at least, taking responsibility for not keeping their word. (For many of you, you already know that wussie parents are a pet peeve of mine because, well, you know, because wussie parents create more wussie young adults and we need strength and integrity to turn this country around!)
OK, I got that out. Thanks for letting me vent! Let’s move on to the rest of the characters who show up. Finally, you have the rest of the kids…common, every day great kids…funny, playful, mature, immature, secure, insecure, class clown, quiet but taking it all in, 10 going on 30, and, oh yeah, the one who doesn’t want to be there so badly, he (it’s always a he) will do anything to get out of there.
But we don’t let him. We continually enroll him in what’s in it for him and eventually we notice he’s smiling and learning and, by the end of the camp, you’d never know he had been so resistant to coming! This is usually the kid we’re most proud of because he’s the one who could have so easily gotten lost in the shuffle.
Camp Millionaire July 2011
So there you have it. Camp Millionaire in a nutshell. Take all these characters, add The Money Game, tons of activities, some contests, lots of moola and music, snacks and laughter and what do you end up with?
Kids who – if they remember even a smidgen of the information and actually use it in their lives – will grow into financially savvy adults!
But what really makes our hearts sing is when those kids come back the second, third and in Richard’s case, a fourth time. This is when we start seeing the information stick and when we know that ‘this one’s going to make it.”
You guessed it. I didn’t take the time to review (where was Jan when I really needed her eyes?!?) or look close enough to realize I clicked the wrong playbook and put it in the cart. The prices are about the same and I don’t have them memorized so I clicked, clicked, and clicked and went on to the next project.
