I have met a lot of people who have taken steps to improve their finances in an incredible way, and then they fall victim to "the urge".  What is "the urge"?  It takes shape in various forms.  Here are a few …

• I have put off fun too long.  I deserve to have some fun.  It is OK to take a vacation and pay for it with our credit card.
• That [insert item here] is AWESOME!  I want it.  No, I don't want it.  I need it!  It is OK to use my emergency fund for this purchase.
• I am tired of telling my kids, "NO!"  It will be OK to give in just this once and buy the item using some of our savings for the future.
• The roof is leaking!  I don't want to live in a dump anymore.  I am going to move out of here, and I don't care how much it costs.  Who cares if I do not have a down payment or the income to support a larger mortgage payment.

In each case, there is a conscious choice to disregard logical and rational thinking, and we jump into the soup – regardless of the potential future cost.

Here are the top ways I have been able to resist the urge (remember that I am a spender – I definitely experience "the urge")

• We build some "fun" into the budget every single month.  We also save every single month for our known, upcoming, non-monthly expenses like vacation and Christmas.
• Jenn and I each receive spending money every month that we are not accountable to the other for how it is spent.  This allows us to give in to some of "the urge" without destroying the family finances.
• We make it a point to talk to our daughter about "why" we are saving money and putting off some purchases.  She knows that Baby Sangl is going to cost us a lot of money in healthcare costs.  She also knows that we are against all debt on non-appreciating assets (we don't like that type of debt much either).  It reduces the quantity of "I want that!" statements from her too!
• We save for the known upcoming expenses of home repairs.  Most homes are not dumps, they just break down like everything else.  By saving for some of them, we get to see progress.

Any that you would add?

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It is my passion to help others accomplish far more than they ever thought possible with their personal finances.

With that in mind, I want to know the financial questions that you are asking right now.  Our team will gather the questions, prepare a response (minus personal information) and share it in a series of blog posts called, "You asked."

So … Let the asking begin!

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Courtesy of Jason Frame’s website HERE.

A reader of JosephSangl.com shared her story with me recently.  It sums up why I do what I do.  With her permission, here is her story …

I was OVERWHELMED with JOY as I dropped my oldest child off for college last weekend! NOT because I was happy to have her leave the house…she has been such BLESSING and a BIG part of my life since I was 17 years old and learned I was pregnant… but because I have PRAYED, PLANNED & PREPARED for this day for YEARS.

I made a lot of COSTLY mistakes. I turned my back on God and did things my way! I maxed out my first credit card at 15 YEARS OLD! That was the beginning of several bad financial decisions since I didn't put any thoughtful planning into them! They were "this will due 'til the next bill arrives" solutions which is NO solution at all!

I hit rock bottom and was in BONDAGE financially, spiritually & emotionally by my early 20s. After a divorce, I was living in an apartment I couldn't afford and my car was being repossessed so I swallowed my pride, went to D.S.S. and applied for assistance. I was denied for everything. I was told that my full time job paying minimum wage put me over the limit for any assistance for myself and two children. I was devastated. I asked the lady how anyone would qualify if the standards were so low. She advised me to lose my job and showed me that if I would stay home with my children instead of working then I would actually make MORE money on welfare. I left and never went back. I got sick of hot dogs, grilled cheese and pb&j sandwiches but kept working.

I EVENTUALLY came to the conclusion that this wasn't the life that I wanted for myself or my children!! I was raised in a Christian household and accepted Christ at seven years old. I KNEW that how I was living was wrong. I wasn't going to church, tithing, or budgeting my money. I felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit when I made bad decisions whether they were moral or financial. God had more in store for me than I could ever imagine and I was cheating myself by cheating Him!

I began going to church, budgeting my money and planning for the future. I saved what I could… as often as I could. I got life insurance on myself and my children. I started a Future Scholar 529 College Savings plan (direct so I managed it myself and didn't pay anyone a fee) for both of my children. I started saving the minimum amount allowable. $50 per month. It was A LOT to me but I am so thankful that I did. I was able to raise the amount over the years and I am pleased to say that my daughter's first tuition payment was paid in full directly from that account!! AND she is driving a car that is completely paid for!! I think I was the happiest mom at the college last weekend. I literally found myself skipping with joy as I transported her belongings from the car to the dorm!!

If I could say anything to the moms & dads out there it would be this, "Don't let time get away from you! Start saving NOW!" Ideally, you should save $200 per month per child to plan for their college expenses but WHATEVER you save will help!! God has great things in store for you and your children!! I am still saving every month for college expenses because I know there are more tuition bills on the way.

My goal now is to help my daughter through college with NO student loan debt. I don't know what's in store for us over the next four years but I know that I will keep PRAYING, PLANNING and PREPARING every day!! 

THAT FIRES ME UP!

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How long has it been since you checked out the FREE (HERE) financial tools available via the I Was Broke. Now I'm Not. website?  Chances are pretty good that there are several tools that can really help you take your finances to the next level – and they are FREE!

It is our passion to help others accomplish far more than they ever thought possible with their personal finances.

This passion is the reason we offer the free tools.  It is the reason I write a blog post about personal finances every day.  It is the reason that I write a weekly newspaper column.  It is the reason I travel the nation speaking and teaching.  It is the reason that I wrote I Was Broke. Now I'm Not. and its related Group Study.  It is the reason that I am writing a book directed toward those young people who are about to embark on their big adventure into the real world.  It is the reason that we offer free financial counseling through over twenty churches (and increasing!).  It is the reason that I have been training team members at every single live event.

I'm FIRED UP and sold out to this God-given call on my life.

However we can serve you, it is our honor.

In I Was Broke. Now I'm Not (you can read the intro HERE), a key principle that I share is the following fact:

INCOME – OUTGO = EXACTLY ZERO

I am debating holding a free seminar in Washington DC about this fact (maybe my representative will invite me).  It seems that we have COMPLETELY neglected it!

This is a not a political statement.  This is purely a statement of fact.

I submit my evidence:

• The national debt (which continues to increase – view it LIVE)
• Unfunded Social Security (My Social Security statement says that I can expect to only receive 70% of the stated benefits)
• Tax revenues are way down so the "fix" is to raise taxes – not cut programs
• When the OUTGO is clearly more than our INCOME, we have decided that this is not OK.  The cure?  Spend nearly $2 TRILLION dollars – using debt!

I am a simple person.  This means I have to look at this in a simple way – using my own life as a learning tool.

Simple lessons I have learned …

• When I run short of funds, I have to stop spending or I will incur debt!
• No matter how much money I have, I possess an uncanny ability to spend ALL of it.
• When I run short of funds, I have to cut out spending – even on things that I really want!
• If my OUTGO does not include "saving money for emergencies and known, upcoming expenses), my financial plan will fail when emergencies happen or when the known, upcoming expenses occur.
• I have NEVER seen my bank account balance go up when I "saved money" at the store.
• Huge debt is always a recipe for disaster.
• A balanced budget requires sacrifice and compromise – from me, my bride, and my daughter
• It is never fun to say, "NO!"  Especially to something we care a lot about.

What are your thoughts?

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If you are one of the millions of people who are facing extremely tough situations with your home mortgage, this website might help you out a ton!

Here are some helpful tips/tools I found while browsing the site:

• Self Assessment Tool  This tool helps you determine if you are eligible for Home Affordable Refinancing or Home Affordable Modification.
• Home Affordable Refinancing  If your mortgage is held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, you could be eligible to refinance – even if you owe up to 25% more on your house than it is currently worth!
• Home Affordable Modification You can use a tool on this site to determine whether or not you are eligible for a mortgage modification.
• Foreclosure Delay  I read the following statement, "MANY LENDERS HAVE MADE A COMMITTMENT TO DELAY FORECLOSURE ON ALL LOANS THAT MEET THE MINIMUM ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR A HOME AFFORDABLE MODIFICATION."

You can visit MakingHomeAffordable.gov by clicking HERE.

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Selfishness leads to poverty.

But not necessarily in a financial sense.  It is much deeper.  I believe that selfishness leads to poverty of the spirit and soul.

Are we not all born with a drive toward selfishness?

It is proven to me every time I am standing in a line at Wal-Mart for thirty minutes.  I want to cut in line to avoid waiting.  Let's say that I did cut in line.  I would have the immediate gratification of getting out of the line and not having to wait anymore, but there would be a moment later that evening when I would have to wrestle with the fact that I was out-of-line – literally and figuratively.

It is proven to me when my wife is suffering from morning sickness which has turned into all-day sickness.  The magic fairy that somehow transformed dirty clothes and dishes into clean clothes and dishes has ceased to exist.  The magic fairy that managed the household – mail, laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, library trips, activities with the daughter, shipping IWBNIN resources, managing the financial affairs …  It all stopped.  Now I realize that it was my bride all along.  Now I have to clean, wash, shop, etc.  Poor me.

You know what drives the pity party, right?  Selfishness.  You know what selfishness leads to?  Poverty of the spirit.

No one wants to hang out with a selfish person.  No one wants to hear the pity party.

If you want to lose friends and ruin relationships, be selfish.

Everyone wrestles with it.  If you do not believe me, watch your children when they are little.  "MINE!", is one of the most uttered words.

My friend, Jake Beaty, once asked another friend, Jamie Salmon, this question: "Why do you give?"

Jamie's answer rocked Jake's world.  When I heard it, it rocked my world.

Jamie said, "I give to keep from being selfish."

Well said, Jamie.  Well said.

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Don't believe me?  Go read Lazy Man and Money's post HERE.

This type of article is why I get up FIRED UP and PUMPED UP to do what I do.  I am passionate about helping people make GREAT decisions with their financial resources so that their children can be PROUD of how their parents managed their "stuff".

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I can't believe I am writing this, but I am PUMPED and FIRED UP to say that I just ordered another 3,000 I Was Broke. Now I'm Not. Group Study Guides!

What started out as a dream to teach 100,000 people in the first five years of this crazy ridiculous crusade is becoming a reality!  We are nearing 1/2-way there!!!

I have two things to say:

• I could not do it without you – the only way this crusade works is by you carrying the word to others!
• I can't believe I get to do this for a living!

I have had many people ask how they can support the crusade.  Here is my answer:  Buy these resources and give them away to others.

Thanks so much for making this possible!

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