Halloween is right around the corner, are you ready? The US candy industry is big business with the average family spending $44 on Halloween candy each year. Check out more interesting stats in this fun “candygraphic” from creditloan.com.

]]> http://www.golifedreams.com/blog/2011/10/spooky-halloween-spending-candynomic/feed/ 0 http://www.golifedreams.com/blog/2011/09/does-the-word-budget-make-you-cringe-8-reasons-it-shouldnt/ http://www.golifedreams.com/blog/2011/09/does-the-word-budget-make-you-cringe-8-reasons-it-shouldnt/#comments Fri, 16 Sep 2011 19:23:27 +0000 elizabeth http://www.golifedreams.com/blog/?p=602

There are a lot of personal finance terms that might haunt you and make your hairs stick up when you hear them. Heck, the term ‘personal finance’ itself might be enough to scare you away! But there are so many reasons why you shouldn’t be afraid of personal finance. It can be fun, easy, and rewarding!

Tools like our Life Dreams planning tool are easy ways to help you determine your cash power and overall financial health. We even will include outside economic factors that can impact your finances. One of the benefits of creating a financial plan is budgeting!

Budgeting allows you to determine where you will spend you money and how you can save money to achieve your dreams! MSN Money recently wrote about “8 ways to make a budget your buddy.” I thought their tips were really great. Here’s the top 3 problems that MSN says people have that prevents them from being solid budgeteers.

1. You have the wrong impression.В What you may need before you even get started is an attitude adjustment. Budgets aren’t straitjackets to keep you from spending your hard-earned money. Rather, they are the key to financial freedom, ensuring you have enough money to spend on what you want.

2. You’ve been trying to fit into someone else’s shoes.You know that scene in “Cinderella” when the stepsisters try to cram their feet into the impossibly tiny glass slipper? Trying to squeeze your spending personality into someone else’s spending plan could hurt just as badly.В 

3. You’re making this harder than it needs to be.В The key to a successful budget is to keep it simple. Don’t get me wrong: Building and maintaining a budget requires effort. But take it one step at a time.

Don’t miss the rest, visit MSN Money’s 8 ways to make a budget your buddy. And while you’re at it, don’t miss the opportunity to be one of the first to try out Life Dreams planning tool. You can sign up on our homepage!

-Elizabeth

We’re not the only ones asking this question lately. Recently Bonnie Marcus with Forbes.com interviewed author Marilyn Tam about the topic. Marilyn’s book is all about helping people find balance in life and how we can turn dreams into reality. Her success as an author has brought her to live what she believes is her dream life.

It took a lot of courage and strength, but Marilyn was able to overcome boundaries and achieve her dreams. Below is a quote from the interview with Forbes. Be sure to check out the full interview here.

“She overcame ‘glass ceilings and glass walls’ by encouraging and supporting the best of the people around her to achieve the highest interests of the company and the community. Her unlikely rise at a time when virtually no women, Asian Americans or persons of color were in corporate hierarchy made people want to know her recipe for success.”

What can you do to push yourself to achieve your dreams?

-Elizabeth

Love this helpful and inspiring article from the Huffington Post by Larry Jacobson that answers the question: Is the economy draining us of our dreams? The following are my top three takeways with quotes from the article. Let me know what you think of this advice and also read the full article here.

1. Don’t give up

“Keep your dreams, turn them into goals, and decide that you’re going to stick to them.”

2. Keep your commitments

“Speaking of goals, I strongly urge you to write yours down. Putting your goals in writing triggers your brain into believing you really mean what you’re promising yourself.”

3. Stay inspired

“Mark Twain said, ‘Twenty years from now, you’ll be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than the things you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.’”

-Elizabeth

Let’s take a look at this infographic from 1BOG, which explores the factors that influence retail gas prices. Understanding why they change can help us better plan for our finances and expectations for the future.

-Elizabeth

I am loving infographics these days. They are a fun way to convey useful information. Recently, I stumbled on this awesome videoВ infographic from Mint.com! Very cool and dynamic information about how much people spend on food and dining. Check it out and visit Mint.com’s YouTube page for more videos.

We love how Mint used aggregated data from anonymous user’s to analyze spend on food and drink.

Our Life Dreams tool can help you budget for your future and help fulfill your life dreams. We can’t wait to share these tools with you! They are coming so soon!

-Elizabeth

In order to help you make the most out of your travel plans, be sure to follow these helpful flying tips:

1. Do research

Research the best time to fly and when prices can be found out their lowest. Bing.com has some great travel information, including the “best time to fly” and “last minute flight deals.”

2. Consider additional fees

Remember that in addition to your flight, you may also be paying checked luggage fees, parking fees, food and beverage (unless you enjoy airplane pretzel packs). On flights these days, you may also find yourself forking over money for comforts such as pillows, blankets, and headphones.

3. Use your perks

If you travel often, consider using a credit card with airline mile perks. They can also help you sweet seat upgrades and other bonuses like free travel insurance.

What are some other helpful travel tips when booking flights? Let us know your secrets and we will be sure to share them!

-Elizabeth

Love this article about the goals and rewards of the financial planning process. As I hope to inspire you to change your mindset and attitude on financial planning, it is important to note the great rewards you can gain from taking control.

Goals & Rewards of the Personal Financial Planning Process from eHow Money

Personal financial planning is a part of life that many people like to avoid. According to the 2010 Consumer Financial Literacy Survey, more than half of American adults do not have a household budget, one-third are not saving money for retirement and 25 percent of people aren’t even paying their bills on time. The problem is, ignoring financial affairs won’t make them go away. Here we’ll take a look at some of the key reasons why personal financial planning is important and examine some of its rewards.

Maintaining and Improving Your Standard of Living
Financial planning is a way for people to improve and build on their current standard of living. The goal here is to move beyond living paycheck to paycheck and create some measure of financial stability. By planning purchases and making saving a priority, it becomes easier to avoid debt and to save for major purchases such as buying a home.

Living Well Today and Tomorrow
Another key goal of personal financial planning is to control consumption. For many people, this seems like a punishment, but the goal here is not to live an austere life devoid of all luxuries. Instead, smart financial planning means balancing current goals and desires with longer-term goals, such as saving for retirement. This paves the way for some measure of financial security, and the ability to maintain a consistent standard of living.

Meeting Expenses
About 40 percent of American adults admit to carrying credit card debt. Unfortunately, these high-interest purchases can trap people in a cycle that makes it harder and harder to get to out of debt. This can really put a drag on saving, investing or even just paying the bills. Take a careful look at income and the money required for necessities such as housing, food, utilities and transportation. Whatever’s left is called disposable income. Diverting that money toward meeting long-term financial goals is the next important step in any financial plan.

Saving and Investing to Meet Financial Goals
The key reason for financial planning is that it can help free up money for saving and investing to meet long-term goals. Retirement should be among these goals, but others may be more personal, such as buying a home, saving for a child’s education or taking a vacation every year. The key thing to remember is that it’s your money, and you should be in control of what it does for you. Unfortunately, many people spend their money on impulse, rather than as part of a plan, and then wonder why they don’t have money left to save, invest or even meet basic expenses without resorting to debt. Meeting a goal — whether financial or otherwise — is never easy because it often means saying no to one thing in favor of a bigger reward down the road. However, when it comes to your finances, a little forethought and planning can go a long way toward creating a lifetime of rewards.

Read more: Goals & Rewards of the Personal Financial Planning Process | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_11403390_goals-rewards-personal-financial-planning-process.html#ixzz1WSNMXoQB

- Elizabeth

Between the royal wedding budget and Kim Kardashian’s wedding price tag, it may seem that planning your own wedding is actually affordable! But that may depend on where you live and other factors. I found this cool infographic, similar to the true cost of your pets, but for weddings! Find out more below:

Infographic on the True cost of tying the knot.

See the original posting of this infographicВ here. And don’t miss the wedding cost calculator that we’ve shared with you before!

Know some В more great wedding money-saving tips? В Be sure to share them with us!

-Elizabeth