The following is a guest post by a dear friend and colleague Ed who is just months away from finally getting out from under $40,000+ in debt. Give him a warm welcome in the comments or a shout on twitter(@ed_bruner):

The First Step Into Chains

When my wife and I got married, we were debt free with money in the bank (minus my student loans…which I wasn’t even thinking about). When she got pregnant, we decided it was time to buy a house. The year was 2001. The Housing bubble in NJ was already ballooning. We had difficulty finding anything that wasn’t a “fixer-upper”x2. Mistake #1: the mortgage loan officer realized that I didn’t want to borrow all the money I was qualified for, so his advice was: “When you buy your first house, you want to borrow to the point that the payments are difficult to make because over time it will get easier”. I believed it. And so, our first house was a challenge. Our savings were wiped out because there was no extra money. In 2003, we moved to our current house. It too was a stretch. Over the course of years our debt was slowly becoming unmanageable.

Journey into the Red

To be honest, I tried to create a budget, but there was no room for savings. If something unplanned occurred, we had to put it on a credit card. We used an ATM card for our purchases, not cash. We would set an amount to spend, but would easily go over the small amount when tallying receipts. So, when I would “do the bills” I would have to juggle things to make it work. I would have to estimate the days it would take for a check to get delivered/processed so it wouldn’t bounce. We were living without a budget and the credit card debt was beginning to get stressful. 2005 brought pregnancy with child #3, the harsh reality of a needed minivan became apparent. Mistake #2: I reasoned in my mind that I could make the loan payments on a used vehicle if I took advantage of just 4 hours of OT a week. The vehicle was purchased in 2006, a month before the child was born.

Crisis

In May 2006, I suffered two strokes a week apart. I am thankful that I have made a full recovery, but I was on disability for several months….needless to say, no OT was happening. Debt was piling up, and for the first time in our marriage my wife begun managing the bill. I was mentally “checked-out” due to recovery. She realized the financial house of cards, I built for us was crumbling. When I returned to work, either OT was not available or I was still too mentally “checked-out”, either way, I wasn’t doing any. Between my medical costs, car loan, student loan, new baby we found ourselves 40k in debt with increased monthly expenses. Failure was imminent.

Hope and Change

Because I have the best wife in the world and because of several positive influences in my life, we realized that managing our debt was not the way we wanted to live the rest of our lives. Two main positive influences: 1. The Happy Rock, because I know him personally I was challenged and inspired to embark on this journey toward debt freedom. 2. Duggars, as corny as you may think the show is, it has made a resounding positive influence on my family. For those who don’t know, the Duggar family contains 19 children and boasts that they live debt free. If they can do it in AR with 19 kids, why can’t I do it in NJ with 3? These influences allowed me to see that not only is debt freedom possible, but it is essential to a successful family.

Resolved

I began to see debt as the enemy of our success and dreams. In addition, because of my faith, I began seeking Scriptural verses to confirm this avenue I felt God was directing me. “Owe no man anything but love” Romans….”the debtor is a slave to the lender” Proverbs…. Seeing debt as slavery brought more clarity and resolve. Large sums of debt keep us from enjoying things like much needed vacations, car repairs & maintenance, and proper heath care among other things. With debt, we are not free to pursue our dreams because we are tethered to a lender. I want freedom, don’t you?

Roll Call

Credit card  = $10,000

Auto Loan = $4,000

Student Loan #1 = $5,000

Student Loan #2 = $6,000

The First Steps Out of Debt

After expressing my intentions to the HappyRock, he gave me a copy of Total Money Makeover – D.Ramsey.  We began by creating a budget.  We started using Ramsey’s Debt Snowball method. Mistake #3: we wanted to get started immediately, we didn’t start with a $1,000 security fund first. I recommend the security fund.  Basically, we stopped adding to our debt using a good budget.  We started making minimum payments on all loans except for the one with the lowest balance. Finally, we began living on cash.  My wife and I each divided a modest amount for  each other for each week.  When that money was gone, the spending stopped.

The Journey is almost Over

After two years of intense debt reduction, we have paid off all non-mortgage debt, except for Credit card #2.  My father felt bad about not helping me out with college and started sending me money to pay the Student loans.  With his help, we wiped them out.  When you get to the point where we are at now, it is amazing to see how much money we could be keeping instead of sending to creditors.  Never did I dream about so much available money.

Our goal to reach debt freedom (minus the mortgage) this September.

Original content from The Happy Rock: Into Debt And Out Again – Overcoming $40,000 Of Debt

This is a guest post by PF blogger The Weakonomist @ Weakonomics.com. He is a twenty something who works for a major bank and unlike most PF blogger has stayed debt free. For those who aren’t familiar with his blog, click through and say hello.

I’ve never written for Happy Rock before so you probably don’t know much about me.  Normally I wouldn’t care to tell you and you wouldn’t care to know, but it adds context to my post.  I’m a young buck and getting married this fall.  Me and The Sheconomist don’t own much stuff, so we are in the process of acquiring all that married life stuff.  We’ve needed a bed, couch, coffee table, dresser, etc….  Since we’re starting from scratch we have a lot to buy and not a lot of money to spend.

When you’re shopping for any items over $100 that you plan to keep for a while it’s easy to get caught up in the shopping experience, and not in a good way.  Not only are you trying to find the right design for you, but you’re also trying to maximize the value of your purchase.  So you comb the sale ads in the Sunday paper, check for coupon codes on websites, and spend every single Saturday going from store to store looking but not buying.

At some point a line is crossed.  You’re actually wasting time.  After a month or so of this routine you know the lay of the land and you’ve seen deals come and go.  You probably missed out on a couple of really good deals because you just couldn’t pull the trigger.  And this happens for one of two reasons: either you’re indecisive or you’re holding out for a better deal.

Now I don’t like to give advice, so I’m not going to try and help you figure out how to actually make the buying decision.  Instead I’ll tell you the consequences of not buying.  Eventually you do have to make a purchase, and if you wait too long you may have to make the decision in haste.  This happens if your furniture breaks, or you car finally gives out, or even if your cell phone stops doing the things phones should do (like ringing).  Hasty purchases are filled with emotion and you risk over-paying or not getting the item you really wanted.  Buyer’s remorse will then attack like the plague on a 14th century peasant.  So make a decision and move on.

You may not find the best deal, but because you’re a smart shopper you know that you will get a GOOD deal.  You will waste you life away chasing perfection.  Live in a world of “good enough” with your purchases and you’re living in a happy world.

And if there’s one other thing you should know about me it’s that I’m kind of a hypocrite.  No not with purchases but because just a minute ago I said I don’t like giving advice, I actually do.  I have some parting advice for men and women when it comes to purchasing decisions:

Women: The subtle details mean very little to us.  The end-tables with drawers or the ones without are unimportant to us.  If you ask us what we think we’ll tell you to get whatever you want.  We want you to be happy with your decision because we’re just happy to get back home and watch some TV.  If you ask again and we say we don’t care which one you pick, this does not mean we don’t care about you and doesn’t mean we think getting end-tables are stupid.  We just don’t care between the options.  If you force us to pick one, we will pick the cheaper one and this has nothing to do with the appearance.  Don’t take anything we say personally.

Men:  Don’t ever say you don’t care!!!  The women will see that as a sign it’s unimportant that your home looks nice and so you don’t care about her either.  Pick your words perfectly (yes perfection matters here!).  I got some great advice from my dad about this the other day.  Say that you are less sensitive to the details of the purchase and are only concerned with making sure she is happy.  Reinforce her ability to provide the best judgment and under no circumstances allow annoyance to sneak into your tone.  You risk her losing interest and then you have to come back next week.

I’m generalizing the sexes of course, you could flip the roles too if you want.  If you hate shopping only slightly more than you hate spending money, I feel your pain.  We all think it, but under no circumstances should you ever say “Just buy it already!”

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go to the bed store… again.

Original content from The Happy Rock: Just Buy It Already! Fighting Indecision On Big Purchases

The following is a guest post by DebtKid, who writes about his journey to get out of debt, and achieve financial stability.  He runs a small software development company in Seattle and just launched a new coupons section on his blog.

For consumers who are barely getting by, the concept of building wealth in the current economy may be low on the list of priorities. After all, if you are struggling to keep the bill collectors at bay or prevent your credit rating from dropping like a stone, it gets a bit tough to see the “big picture”.

Unfortunately this tunnel vision needed for survival during tough times, does nothing for your long term financial security. These simple tips can help you not only make it through the recession with which we are currently dealing, but also prosper in the future.

• Review your budget. The importance of having a well thought out household budget cannot be stressed enough. It is neither new or innovative advice, however it is vital to your current and long term financial stability. After the recent changes in the credit card industry and other areas of personal finance, what worked twelve months ago may not work today. For this reason you must sit down and revamp your budget to reflect your current position. Once you have made the necessary adjustments to income and expense requirements you can then determine if you have to consider a new strategy for long term financial growth.
• Adjust your lifestyle to reflect your income. You can not maintain certain standards of living when your income is reduced or eliminated. Unfortunately prior to the recession many consumers tried to live beyond their means and used credit cards to achieve a higher of standard of living than they could realistically afford. This practice will not result in financial security or contribute to building wealth for your future. For this reason you must avoid the temptation to keep up with the Joneses (who are probably also burdened with debt) and learn how to live within or below your means. This is one of the challenges many people face but ultimately one of the best ways to maintain good credit and save for the future.
• Stop wasting your money. Recent months have reminded us that money does not grow on trees. Unemployment levels continue to grow and many people are trying to keep their credit card payments current. Carrying high levels of debt will almost certainly prevent you from reaching financial goals. To put it simply, every month that you carry a balance and pay high interest charges you are throwing money away that could have been invested or saved elsewhere. Getting out of debt should be a top priority and there are many strategies available to achieve this goal. If you are unable to maintain your minimum payments each month consider professional advice on how to tackle your debt. On the other hand, if you are able to afford your payments, aggressively attack your debt and get it paid off. Once you are debt free you can then use your income to better your own future rather than that of the financial institutions that profit off of your burden.
• Understand investing and savings. Most people do not invest or save money for one of two reasons. The first is they are limited in the amount of money they have available to cover all bases. If you can barely cover living expenses and debt repayments, finding extra money to put away each month is challenging. For people who do have a little extra each month, lack of education or knowledge about investments or savings strategies often hold people back from pursuing these options. If you do not currently have an emergency fund, retirement savings or other investments to grow your money, you must take the time to understand the role they play in your life and eventual financial stability. Once you have a basic understanding you can then begin to put money aside (even if only a small amount) today. Getting started is often the hardest step.

To truly achieve wealth you will have to develop these and other skills that will help you reach your goals. Unless you receive an inheritance, win the lottery or some other financial windfall you are the only person who can determine your financial success and there is no better time than the present to get started.

So what’s your excuse?

Original content from The Happy Rock: 4 Simple Tips To Improve Your Wealth Building Skills

The following is a guest post written by Barbara Waltz one of the founders of 247QuoteUs.com, an online resource blog and insurance quote comparison guide.

Rising health insurance costs make it important for individuals and families to reduce the amount spent on coverage. Some people feel that the situation is out of their control. However, here are several tips to lower health insurance premiums.

Tip No. 1 — Choose a Health Insurance Policy Customized for Your Needs

Many health insurance policies give you options that you simply do not need. While it might make you feel more secure to have these options, you should consider whether you really want to pay for services that you are not using.

Choosing a policy that excludes services like orthodontics, prescription medication and doctor visits can drastically reduce your health insurance costs. If you are in good health, then you rarely use these services. So why pay for them?

Tip No. 2 — Investigate Your Private Health Insurance Policy Options

Even if you get health insurance benefits from your employer, you should still consider contacting insurance providers to discuss the possibility of purchasing a private policy. This is especially true since so many companies are raising rates and co-pays for their employees.

You can customize a private policy to your needs instead of accepting the terms set by your company. You are better equipped to make your healthcare decisions than your employer is.

Tip No. 3 — Shop Around for Good Rates

Another advantage of getting your own health insurance instead of using your employer’s system is that you can shop around for better rates. This will require some effort on your part, but the results are worth it.

Contact several insurance providers and get information about their plans to help you decide which ones have affordable plans that address your concerns. Be sure to contact other providers on a regular basis, as well. It is a good idea to choose one month a year to shop around for a better rate and make sure you have the best deal.

Tip No. 4 — Increase Your Deductible

Increasing your deductible will reduce your health insurance costs. This is especially useful if you only have insurance for emergencies instead of regular doctor’s office visits. Keeping your deductible high but within your range of affordability can significantly reduce your monthly insurance bill.

Tip No. 5 — Make Healthy Lifestyle Choices

Many health insurance providers give their best rates to clients that make healthy lifestyle choices. In fact, many policies will help you pay for gym memberships, massages and other services that can improve your health.

Smoking cessation programs also give financial incentives to tobacco users. You could actually lower your monthly health insurance bill by exercising, giving up tobacco and eating well. Not only will you save money, you could feel better and live longer too!

Original content from The Happy Rock: How Can I Lower My Health Insurance Costs?

If you listen to the news or our politicians, we should live in a constant state of fear. Our government just spent $800 billion in fear, because the politicians didn’t know what to do and were afraid of were the US was headed.  If you don’t think it effects your life and your decisions, you are probably mistaken.

FEAR IS NOT A PRODUCTIVE WAY TO LIVE!

A few weeks back I wrote a guest post for Jeff at My Super Charged Life that explored seven different ways that fear can negatively impact your life and your decisions.  Here is the article – Living in Fear – Too Much Baggage?

Click on over to face your fears and while you are at it check out a great blog.  Here is a teaser :

He moved past the fear with knowledge and action and is now more powerful and more equipped to face the world. We don’t want him to stay in a state of fear and we don’t want to live in fear because it brings along with it too much baggage.

Let’s take of look at some of the downsides of fear so that we can examine our lives for them.

Avoidance

Fear causes us to avoid situations were we can fail, get hurt, be humiliated, be rejected, cause confrontation, or make mistakes, so we actively run in the opposite direction.

Original content from The Happy Rock: Living In Fear – It Is Not Productive

I have a guest post up at Bible Money Matters explaining numerous ways that coupons can cost you more money than you think.

Click here to read Using Coupons Can Cost You Money!

Original content from The Happy Rock: Using Coupons Can Cost You Money!

I posted a guest post over at Frugal Dad, one of the best personal finance blogs and some of the best personal finance readers on the net.

Head over there to read An Emergency Fund Is More Than Just Money.  Feel free to Stumble or share the article using other social sites if you like it.  Enjoy!

Original content from The Happy Rock: Guest Post @ Frugal Dad

This is a guest post contributed by Heather Johnson, who writes on the subject of Discover rewards programs. She invites your feedback at heatherjohnson2323 at gmail dot com.

Whether we can officially call the economic downturn we’re currently experiencing a recession, we can all agree that it’s harder and harder to keep your head above water these days.  If you’re like me and in debt then you are feeling the pinch even more so.  Being in debt is always a terrible feeling but it’s worse when your dollar just doesn’t go as far as it used to.  The high gas prices and soaring cost of food have made being in debt as bad as it’s been in decades.  While there are no easy ways to get out of debt, there are ways we can stem the tide.  Here are a few ideas for you as you try to crawl out your umbrella of debt:

1. Cut up your cards or toss them away for the time being. Consider relying on cash for the foreseeable future.  This will put you in a position where you are weaning yourself off your reliance on credit cards.  You may want to keep a low interest credit around for extreme emergencies.
2. Talk to your boss about a raise. This may sound like the boldest move you could make but it’s not so far-fetched.  Presuming you have a good track record at work you could be in line for a promotion or a raise.  Go to your boss and talk about your options.  Express desire to take on more responsibilities.  Being proactive will increase your chances at earning that much needed raise.
3. Be proactive. Talk to your lenders personally and let them know you’re taking ownership of your debt.  This will make them more likely to be lenient if further problems arise down the road.
4. Get the best deal you can on your utilities. This is a great way to increase your savings.  Spend some time online and find out if you’re overpaying for any of your utilities.  20 or 30 bucks a month off your bills will go a far way in helping you confront your debt issues.
5. Be creative. If you own your house or rent an apartment with an extra room, consider renting out it out to pick up some extra cash.  Look around and see if you have any appliances or anything of considerable value that you can sell to increase your cash flow.  Now is the time to make cash and if you have to think outside the box then so be it.

Original content from The Happy Rock: 5 Creative Ways to Reduce Your Debt

This is a guest post by Miranda Marquit.  You can read a little about her writing at the end of the post.

One of the more controversial subjects being canvassed right now in the world of personal finances is the idea that maybe a financial plan based around a monthly budget isn’t the way to go. Indeed, the monthly budget mentality is about living paycheck to paycheck and managing your resources rather than growing them. The alternative to the monthly budget mentality is the net worth mentality. This is a long-term, big picture mentality that is about wealth building rather than mere money managing.

With the monthly budget mentality, you can spend everything you make each month, as long as you have enough to cover it. But then you are left, at the end of the month, feeling anxious as you await your next payday or you are worried about what happens if your hours or benefits get cut at work, or — worse — if you lose your job. With the net worth mentality, you spend less than you earn every month and get into that habit. You actively build wealth.

Ideas that can help you shift from a monthly budget mentality to a net worth mentality

Shifting to a net worth mentality requires that you change how you think about money, and then change your practices to go with it. After a while, you develop habits that become part of your life. Here are some ideas that can help you make the change from a mentality that considers only budget, to one that is focused on net worth:

• Find ways to spend less than you earn every month. One of the first steps is to stop viewing your paycheck as something that you spend. Most people see the paycheck and make a list of things they need or what to spend it on. View your paycheck as a tool to help you achieve wealth. This means that you can’t spend all of it every month. Even after savings and retirement type things, there should be money left over in your checking account at the end of the month. This might mean cutting some things out and learning to prioritize your spending.
• End impulse buying. If you have a net worth mentality (and the checking account padding to go with it) you can spend money on fun things. In fact, you should spend money on fun things every once in a while. But impulse buying can be a way of keeping you in the budget mentality. Think about what you are spending your money on. Do you need it? Will the fun it imparts be of a lasting variety? For big purchases, plan it out. And, even for small purchases, give some thought before you buy.
• Set long term financial goals. Create long term goals for growing your wealth. Create a long term financial plan that goes beyond the monthly budget.
• Look for ways to add multiple income streams. Living paycheck to paycheck in a monthly budget mentality usually means that your only source of income is your job. Can you find other ways to bring in some income? Investing, hobbies and other opportunities can provide you a way to take the money you have and leverage it into something even larger. Just be careful that you don’t get involved in anything too risky.
• Reduce your debt. Debt is one of those things that diminishes net worth. And making a monthly payment feeds into the monthly budget mentality. Try to get out of debt, and live a lifestyle that keeps you out of debt.

When you develop a net worth mentality, and start living in such a way that invites you to grow wealth, you can actually experience less money stress in your life. Having that paycheck right now, and in a specific amount, no longer seems as important. And you have the security to know that if something happens, you won’t be in immediate trouble because you have a safety net.

Miranda Marquit edits information on debt consolidation for DestroyDebt.com. She also writes on personal finances for YieldingWealth.com.

Original content from The Happy Rock: Tips for Developing a Net Worth Mentality

Below is a guest post from Brooke. Brooke is a PF blogger over at Dollarfrugal.com, a site for people looking for innovative ideas and encouragement for living frugally. If you like this article, consider checking out her RSS.

Physical health is extremely important and cutting costs shouldn’t be a factor when deciding whether or not to exercise. It’s very simple to break down the ways to exercise, as there are two types of exercise: aerobic and anaerobic. Aerobic is anything involving cardio or an activity that raises the heart rate for a sustained period of time. Anaerobic is weight-bearing activity. Here are some kid-friendly ideas to get you started without costs:

Aerobic

1. Go for a fast-paced walk or jog. Increase your distance gradually and work in speed drills every couple of days (“I’ll keep up this faster distance for two more light poles”). Once you get fast enough, your kids can probably ride their bikes at a slow enough pace to stay with you.
2. Jump rope.
3. Jumping jacks (if you don’t have a rope).
4. Arrange a pickup game of football with some friends – the more competitive your friends, the better!
5. Go for a hike at a local state park.
6. Ride bikes with your kids on a local trail.
7. Challenge your kids to a run at a local track. I love to challenge my son (10 years) to a 2-lap race. I run regularly, but he doesn’t understand pacing himself. He is pooped by the second lap! ½ mile! Or try teaching them about baton handoffs and see if they can accomplish a good handoff (bring a paper towel tube to practice).
8. Do your own yardwork/housework. I never did understand how some people pay a gym membership, then pay someone to do their yardwork and housework.
9. Stairs if you have them in your house. Try just running up and down them twice every time you would normally run up them once. Extra calories! Bleachers work well for this if you have a high school stadium nearby.
10. Here comes the hard one – go to the mall for a walk and only window shopping. The old people must be doing it for a reason!

Anaerobic

1. One of the things they can’t take away from you is your body weight! Use it! Do pushups, sit ups, chin-ups on the monkey bars, squats. Be creative!
2. Check-out a yoga video from your local library. If they don’t have videos, study yoga books (it’s just harder to study yoga books and try to pose while reading!). This suggestion is for the guys too. I’ve never felt so relaxed and strong as after a yoga session.
3. Repetitive motions while you’re doing other things. If you’re standing at the stove, preparing food, do leg lifts. Holding a glass of water isn’t hard – until you hold it for 10 minutes. Then it’s heavy!
4. Lift up your kids and carry them around with you. My son is small for his age, but I’m always lifting him up, just to prove to myself that I still can! It’s fun to do curls (bicep curls) holding on to him – he just giggles!
5. Do pushups or situps every time you enter the house/leave the house or a certain room. Start with ten and build up from there. Your kids will love it!
6. Do the same as above, but do it every hour on the hour at work. Get up from behind your desk to break the monotony.
7. Climb a tree with your kids. If you don’t have kids, just climb a tree. Quickest way for me to feel like a kid again!
8. Do planks, wall-sits and other isometric exercises. Isometric exercises are exercises where you are not moving, but you’re again using your body weight to stress the muscle.
9. If you know someone that owns a construction or landscaping business, ask if they need a laborer on Saturday mornings. Money + calorie-burning = good!
10. Do sprints at your local track or on your bike. This article has some good ideas for sprints.

As always, consult your doctor before beginning an exercise regimen.

Original content from The Happy Rock: Excercise For Free – Tips For Inexpensive Workouts