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Debunked Part II: “My kids wouldn’t appreciate it”.

In part of changing the family legacy, we have the naysayers that believe giving to a child is the wrong thing to do because they haven’t worked for it like you did and won’t appreciate it.  In a sense, that may be true but what about those that are already doing it?

Is it that hard to raise a child to be responsible so that they can carry on and build on the template we’ll create with out debt free financial independence?

Starting when the child can comprehend wants, we should limit them so that they aren’t used to getting their way. This instills that they either have to work for what they want or that it’s not available to them. This simple discipline is the most important element in parenting to raising a responsible child.

When I was coming up, I just had to have the new Nike, British Knights or Fila’s (at the time).  I was brought up on, if you want something you have to work for it.  So my mother would pay for half of anything I wanted meaning I had to come up with the other half.  I accomplished everything I wanted as a child from manual labor jobs as cutting grass, chores and selling things wasn’t out of the question.

When I became of car age I was given an old burnt orange 1978 Buick Skylark (In the mid 90’s).  I was basically forced to get the car as I didn’t want to get one because of the responsibility that came along with it (insurance, drivers license, etc).  However,  once I did get the $400 beater, I had to pay for everything to maintain it.

See the trend?  I’ve had to work for everything I’ve received.  My parents were well off enough that they could have paid my way or given me everything I’ve ever wanted as a child.  Through hard work and determination within the lessons they were teaching I’ve become a responsible adult.

So in order to start my legacy I’m trying little subtle things to start planting the seed in my kids.  Instead of playing music in the car while the 11yo is in the car.  I’ll play Dave Ramsey TMM or FPU.  She may not be paying much attention right now but just like kids and church or my dad with sports radio,  she’ll start familiarizing herself with the message.

Next we follow Daves instructions on the compensatory allowance system.  She gets $10/week (broken down into 3 parts) to clean the kitchen after the family eats dinner Monday-Friday.  $4 goes to a savings account/envelope (which she can’t spend).  Goes to a Give away to charity or somewhere account while the remaining $4 goes to her to spend as she chooses.

The $4 savings system is a way to start planting the SAVE SAVE SAVE seed early.  It teaches discipline and lets her know that in order to get something she wants, she’s going to have to work for it.

The $2 “give away” portion is liken to taxes taken out of the check (Plus it’s nice to give).  She’s already donated $12 to a local fundraising event for her school.  She was really excited to give the $ too.

The $4 for her is to let her enjoy the fruits of her labor.  She even spends that responsibly too while sometimes saving that portion for bigger purchases also.

I haven’t given her any speeches about debt or financial independence, because she’s too young and I want her to stay that way.  But at the same time, I’m instilling valuable lessons that reach much further than any amount of talking I can get through to an 11 year old.

When I do give her the speech, I’m sure it’ll be full of “Credit Cards are the devil” cult speak.

Time changes things but at this rate,  since I “can’t take it with me”,  I’m building wealth and financial independence for my kids & kids kids & their kids.  With the daily lessons being taught I hope they’ll hit the ground running when I pass the torch.

Posted in Informational, Inspirational, Personal debt, education, goals | No Comments »

Debunked - Money: Can’t take it with you.

Simple enough question but has anyone ever thought about why they want to become debt free?  To some, becoming debt free is an opportunity to start over and possibly acquire more debt. To others, it may be a vehicle to stay par for the course and build financial wealth. To me, it’s an opportunity create a paradigm shift and start a family legacy.

Listening to one of Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace lessons, he spoke on changing your family’s legacy and a lot of the things he mentioned within it made sense.

Growing up, I was always taught that money is… the root of all evil, can’t buy happiness,  and you can’t take it with you, amongst a lot of other stupid myths.  That got me thinking… all of those statements usually come from BROKE people.  Dave is a firm believer of, “if you want to be rich, do and think like rich people”.  The people that make those comments are usually the same people working very hard to achieve and accumulate nice things.  I know it’s probably extreme reasoning but, do those people realize that when they say that they’ve basically thrown in the financial freedom towel?

I’m not stressing that money can buy happiness by any means.  At the same time, I fail to believe that broke people are the happiest people on the planet.  I also notice that crime is highest in poverty stricken areas, so why is the “root of all evil” comment accepted as truth?

Furthermore, the “can’t take it with you” comment is one of the most ignorant statements one can muster.  YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO TAKE IT WITH YOU, BUT YOUR FAMILY CAN (assuming you have family).  The comment is consistent with selfish and irresponsible ideology and it promotes and supports unaccountable habits that effect present and future generations.

That’s why I’m trying to get my family and anyone that’ll listen to think differently about what their financial freedom represents.  It’s more than a chance to debunk the previously mentioned myths.  It’s a chance to create a template of responsible behavior for future generations hence changing your family’s legacy.  For when you have people working with your template and instead of against it, you have responsible family members that are fed the belief to make money work for them instead of them working for money.

Think about the hypothetical.  I purchase each of my (responsible) kids their own home with cash.  That one action is the beginning of a responsible wealth building family legacy that can will grow with each generation.

Before we get ahead of ourselves, I should mention that it’s very important to mold your family to think and be responsible before changing your legacy (more on this later). If not, the financial ignorance will set in and money will become, the root of all evil, nor will it buy happiness.

Posted in Informational, Inspirational, education | No Comments »

Take it slow and save big on gas

Driving style has a big impact on fuel economy. Backing off can save big.

Most drivers agonizing over the cost of gasoline fail to realize the enormous impact their driving style has on fuel consumption.

During the last run-up in fuel prices, we wrote about Edmunds.com’s tests of common fuel-saving driving tips. Some common tips, it turned out, had little or no effect on fuel economy. (Edmunds.com provides data and content for CNN.com’s automotive Websites.)

For example, using the air conditioner at highway speeds had no appreciable effect on fuel economy compared to rolling down the windows.

Keeping your tires properly inflated, while important for safety, has only a small effect on fuel mileage, according to Edmunds.com’s tests.

Using cruise control on the highway, though, really does have a noticeable effect on fuel economy. In Edmunds.com’s test using a Land Rover LR3 and a Ford Mustang, the Land Rover got almost 14 percent better mileage using cruise control set at 70 miles per hour rather than cruising at driver-controlled speeds between 65 and 75 miles per hour. The Mustang got 4.5 percent better mileage.

Using cruise control cuts down on unnecessary speed changes which can eat up gas and it prevents “speed creep.” the tendency for a driver’s average speed to gradually increase with time spent on the road. (In that way, it can save you from an expensive speeding ticket, as well.)

If you want a big gain in fuel mileage, though, you need to seriously lay off the pedals when driving around town. Accelerating more slowly away from green lights and stopping more gradually for red lights cut fuel consumption in Edmunds.com’s tests by 35.4 percent for the Land Rover and 27.1 percent for the Mustang.

Slamming down the gas pedal pushes more fuel into the engine while it also keeps the engine running faster.

You can also save a lot of gas by just lifting your foot off the accelerator as soon as possible when approaching a yellow or red light or a stop sign.

For one thing, letting up on the gas sooner gives your car more coasting time.

By the way, when we say “accelerating hard” and “stopping abruptly” we aren’t necessarily talking about juvenile tire-squealing antics. If you start keeping a conscious eye on how you drive, you may realize that you’ve been hot-rodding around for years without realizing it.

In Edmunds.com’s tests, they slowed acceleration times down to a 20-second run from zero to sixty miles per hour. Compared to the kind of zero-to-sixty times we hear car makers bragging about these days, 20 seconds may sound impossibly slow. In fact, it is slow. But, while it won’t get your pulse pounding, it will get you safely onto the highway.

Since most drivers don’t have a stopwatch handy to time their acceleration, Cole Quinnel, a spokesman for Chrysler Corp. engineers, advises not pressing the gas pedal down by more than an inch unless you really have to. Using that approach, the difference in fuel economy will be appreciable.

Let’s say that your car currently gets 22 miles per gallon overall. If this laid-back driving style gets you just 30 percent more in fuel mileage, which Edmunds.com’s tests indicate it could, you’d see that increase to about 30 miles per gallon.

It’s not easy, though. For most people, driving this way will feel, to say the least, awkward. When I tried Quinnel’s high-mileage driving advice, it was difficult to maintain this disciplined approach to acceleration and deceleration without consistent effort. The minute I let my concentration slip — Zoom! — off I’d go again in a gas-wasting rush, just like I usually do.

And, to be perfectly honest, it was a little embarrassing to drive that way. Every molecule of testosterone in my body was begging to be excused for the day.

But, in a couple of short drives, the car was using significantly less gas per mile, even with my occasional slip-up. Maybe if I keep it up, I can soothe my dented ego with a little cash in my wallet.

Posted in Informational, purchases | No Comments »

Student Loan is finally paid off!

WOOO HOOOO!

The $9K + student loan I took out to invest in myself is FINALLY paid off in full. I sent them the last $458 of it today.

Looking back on it, it wasn’t a bad investment and if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t. I would’ve instead chose a local community college in hope of getting my GPA up high enough to merit some sort of scholarship upon obtaining my associate degree.

Dave Ramsey, makes a LOT of sense when he stresses that there are no longer prestigous colleges so a college education anywhere is somewhat equal no mater where you go.

Boy how I wish I would’ve received that lecture, 13 years ago, but truth is, I would’n't have listened to the lecture as I had my mind set on attending Lane College in order to get away and be with my friends.

The experiences themselves were great and I wouldn’t trade that for anything though so i guess it was a win-win situation in the end.

I’ve been really busy remodeling my mothers beauty salon so I apologize about not being able to put some kind of an update up.

Tired but relieved.,

Roger

Posted in education, goals, success | No Comments »

Dumping (obvious and hidden) Debt

I constantly search for new ways to dump debt and I’m currently facing a changing point in my life to where I need to start going to the basics. Basically, I’ve come to the realization that there’s obvious debt and hidden debt.

For instance, I have no obvious debt in my Yukon because it’s completely paid for.  However, the maintenance and upkeep along with constant rising gas prices is making it become a debt problem to drive. So here’s my solution…

As I’ve said before, I think I can get $15-$17K out of my car (I paid $19K 3 years ago). I’ve realized that I don’t need something other than a dependable older car that will get me to point A & B with as much comfort as possible. I think I can reach that comroft level within a $8K budget.  So considering, I sell the Yukon for $15-$17K, That’d leave me with $7-!0K to put invest or save.

Not only will the lump sum monetary gain be obvious, but the better gas mileage/ less expensive car will also pad the savings account that much more.  That extra $10K will go a long ways towards my wifes $30K student loan debt (still a ‘09 goal - $288/month).

Considering we’re going to be paying $1400/month in daycare, that aligns us to be able to pocket or invest $1000/month once 2 of my 4 children are in public schooling. In the process, that means that once the student loan is paid off & daycare is no longer an issue, we’d be able to put $2500-$2700/month total towards a house payment (we’ll add our current payment of $1000/month). 

That $2500-$2700 monthly payment puts us in a very nice middle to middle upper class neighborhood in a Kansas City suburb.

I can’t wait.

BTW: It’s official! The Nebraska Furniture Mart bill is PAID OFF IN FULL! $524 more to go on my student loan.

Posted in Generate income, Informational, Personal debt, education, goals, purchases | 1 Comment »