A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
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Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
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A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
bench craft company>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
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[reefeed]
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Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
Small Business <b>News</b>: Digital Privacy and Customer Care
Small business is all about customer care. So how to you feel about new proposed legislation that is designed to prevent online clients from tracking customer.
New York Yankees <b>News</b>: The Captain - Pinstripe Alley
New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
bench craft company
A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
A new year often means lofty resolutions, especially when it comes to planning and maintaining a travel budget.
Though there are many personal-finance sites and software out there, this year I'm resolving to use Mint.com's free online tool. You can create plans for saving toward retirement and buying a house, but I'll be primarily using the site for its Travel Goals, which help you set -- and stick to -- realistic travel budgets.
And though the tool obviously doesn't do the hardest part (you still have to save the money), it does track how far or close you are to achieving your Travel Goal.
For example, say you want to go to Hawaii for a week this summer. Once you create a budget by filling in the estimates for airfare, hotel, meals, and other expenses, you can then specify how much you will contribute to that Travel Goal each month.
If you underestimate how much you'd need to save per month, the online tool points out: "Oh no! You aren't saving enough each month to reach your goal on time." The tool then offers you two ways to fix your Travel Goal: increase your monthly contribution in order to reach your desired travel date or postpone your planned date to fit your monthly contribution.
If you stay on track with saving the specified amount each month, Mint.com's budgeting tool highlights (and adjusts) the projected date of when you can afford to take the trip. Save more, and you could afford to take your trip a month or two earlier.
But if you slack on your monthly savings, the date will be pushed back -- a reality check and an instant motivator. Once you mentally equate an unnecessary clothing purchase or an impulse buy to the consequence of delaying your trip by a month, saving becomes a little more real.
Granted, most people will buy plane tickets and reserve hotels with a credit card several months before actually taking the trip; the tool helps track if you'll be able to easily pay it all off after your trip. After all, nothing ruins a vacation more than coming home to bills that you're not financially prepared to handle.
To fund my travels this year, I've linked my Mint.com account to an ING Savings Account labeled Travel Fund.
How do you stay on track with saving up for a vacation?
[flickr image via epSoS.de]
Gallery: How to create a realistic travel budget
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bench craft company
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
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New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
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bench craft company
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
Small Business <b>News</b>: Digital Privacy and Customer Care
Small business is all about customer care. So how to you feel about new proposed legislation that is designed to prevent online clients from tracking customer.
New York Yankees <b>News</b>: The Captain - Pinstripe Alley
New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
bench craft company
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
Small Business <b>News</b>: Digital Privacy and Customer Care
Small business is all about customer care. So how to you feel about new proposed legislation that is designed to prevent online clients from tracking customer.
New York Yankees <b>News</b>: The Captain - Pinstripe Alley
New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
bench craft company
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
Small Business <b>News</b>: Digital Privacy and Customer Care
Small business is all about customer care. So how to you feel about new proposed legislation that is designed to prevent online clients from tracking customer.
New York Yankees <b>News</b>: The Captain - Pinstripe Alley
New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
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Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame <b>...</b>
Sigma announces 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II for full frame: CP+ 2011:Sigma has introduced the 12-24mm F4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II, an updated version of its ultra-wideangle zoom for full frame SLRs. It uses a revised optical formula which ...
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New York Yankees news from around the internet on 2/9/2011, including Rob Neyer on Derek Jeter's attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 2010 season.
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Before you can begin mastering your personal finances, you need to understand what personal finance is all about. First, it's personal - meaning it's about you and it's unique to your situation. Second, it's about finances - meaning it involves money. Personal finance is more than just paying off debt, picking your investments, and buying your first home. Those things alone will not achieve your goals. Personal finance requires you to define your goals and dreams and then to apply the ideas and behaviors required to reach those goals. It's all about managing your money with an end in mind - achieving your goals.
Identify Your Issues
You probably aren't reading this article just for the fun of it. There is a reason you are seeking personal financial advice. Maybe you never seem to have enough money to make it through the month - or week. Perhaps you just need to figure out how to prepare yourself for those unexpected emergencies. Or you could be just fine, but you'd like to polish your financial plan and accomplish goals you never thought possible. Whatever your reason, it's important to begin by identifying the obstacles that lie ahead. Here are some common financial problems:
Repeated Overspending - We have all experienced the temptation to buy more than we can afford at some time or another, but making a habit of overspending will quickly destroy any financial plan. Debts can easily become too much to handle and prevent you from ever reaching your true financial goals.
Emergencies - Your car breaks down, your paycheck comes late, or you forgot about that insurance bill that only comes twice a year. Financial emergencies can wreak havoc on the best laid plans. By not preparing for these emergencies, you are setting yourself up for future failure.
Procrastination - Who hasn't put something off until the last minute? We're all likely to do this sometime or another, especially with long-term goals that don't seem very urgent. But saving for retirement is a lot easier if you start early - even if you're only saving a little bit.
Emotional Decision-making - Financial decisions require prudent forethought and careful execution. By allowing our emotions to take over, we often make terrible financial mistakes. Those get-rich-quick schemes you see in infomercials late at night may seem like a good idea, but they're just another quick way to kiss your hard-earned money goodbye.
Personality Mismatches - Money & finances are one of the top reasons people get divorced. But how do you manage to create a financial plan when you are a saver but your spouse is a spender? By working together to create a solid basis for your personal finances, you and your spouse can utilize all your strengths to ensure financial success.
The Basics
Personal financial planning draws from aspects of finance, investments, insurance, law, employee benefits, and taxes. But you don't have to be an expert in all of these areas to reach your goals. Three basic rules will help you stay on track in your personal finances:
1. Money, income, and wealth are all different. Your financial situation doesn't depend solely on how much money you make - it really depends on how much money you keep. Personal finance focuses on the accumulation, preservation, and distribution of the money you keep - your wealth.
2. Be on your best behavior. All the nifty financial tricks in the world can't save you if you don't learn to control your spending, begin saving, and change your habits to achieve your goals.
3. It's an ongoing process. Managing your money requires more than creating a financial plan and following it for the next 10 years. It requires a lot more than just making sure you paid all your bills for the month. Personal finance demands that you are fully aware at all times of your responsibilities and actions - otherwise all your effort will be for naught.
Income Is Not as Important as You Might Think
If I told you I make $100,000 a year, you'd think that sounds pretty good, right? But what if I'm spending $150,000 every year? Doesn't sound so great now, huh? Income is important - but only to a certain extent. What's more important is what you do with that income and how much you keep at the end of the month. Your financial success depends much more on how you manage your expenses than the money you make on each paycheck.
Another important factor is your net worth. Your net worth is basically your assets (what you own) minus your liabilities (what you owe). Net worth is the real measure of financial wealth. You might live in a $300,000 home, but it doesn't mean much if you owe $270,000 to the bank for your mortgage. Take a minute and think about your net worth. Do you know what it is? Do you have any idea? Keeping track of this number helps you see where you are, where you came from, and where you are going.
What's Your Financial Type?
You may have heard of the Myers-Briggs Typology. To borrow from that system, think about how you would categorize your financial type. Are you aware or oblivious? Can you easily control your spending, or do you have problems? Are you committed to your financial goals, or do you lack follow-through because you haven't established firm goals yet? Are you an aggressive investor, or do you prefer to safely manage your risk by taking a more prudent route?
The answers to these questions can help you determine the make-up of your financial type. These questions can also help you realize the areas where you and your significant other may differ. Take the time to answer these questions honestly, and you'll soon find yourself on the path to a better understanding of your current financial behavior and what you may need to work on.
Your Habits Will Make You or Break You
The financial habits you adhere to will ultimately determine your success or failure. You can make all the plans in the world, but if you don't stick to them you'll never achieve your goals. Begin thinking about your current financial habits and ask yourself how you started those habits. Ask yourself if those are good habits - in that they will lead you to your goals. If you need to change your habits, what should you do instead and how will you make the change? Start today by thinking of a simple change you can make. Stick to that one little change for two weeks or four weeks and you'll soon find you can begin to make bigger changes. Eventually you will have all of your habits aligned with your goals, and you will be on the path to achieving your dreams.
Stay tuned for the rest of this Personal Finance series. We will cover net worth, financial math, budgeting, reducing debt, understanding credit, investing, insurance, taxes, education planning, retirement planning, estate planning, and other important topics along the way. In the meantime, you may visit Free Financial Plannerto get answers to your specific and unique financial questions.
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