Financial Health - Where To Begin?

Unless you work in a financial industry, you probably don't think a lot about finances.  We all want to achieve financial health, but where do we begin and how do we know we are on the right track?

There is piece of mind knowing there is a plan for your financial future and knowing that it's rooted in biblical principal.  I have found a simple way to get on the right track financially that doesn't require a finance degree to understand.  Dave Ramsey talks about the 7 Baby Steps and I want to share them with you.  As of the date of this blog post, I am currently on step 2 and just months away from beginning step 3.  It is simple, but it isn't always easy.

Dave Ramsey's 7 Baby Steps:

1. $1,000 Emergency fund - Your first step to financial health is to stop borrowing and the only way to do that is have some sort of emergency fund.  This will keep you from hitting the credit card if something comes up and sets you up for success on step 2.
2. Debt snowball - Pay off every debt except your mortgage.  This includes, but not limited to, credit cards, automobiles, home equity limes of credit, student loans, etc.  Start with the smallest debt and work your way up to the largest debt.  It is like a snowball rolling down a hill because you roll your previous payment on to the next debt every time you pay something off.  Don't be afraid to sell stuff, starting with that new car.
3. 3-6 Months emergency fund - Now you can begin to build an adequate emergency fund.  This is 3 - 6 months of expenses in a savings account or money market.  You need to be able to get to it in case of emergency so don't put it in CD's or bet it in the stock market.
4. 15% for retirement - Begin putting 15% of your income into your retirement.  Don't be a financial burden to your children because you wanted stuff now.  Plan for the future.
5. Save for college - Don't let your children be saddled with enormous student loans.  Start saving for their education if College is in their future.
6. Pay off the house early - Get rid of that final debt and live DEBT FREE!  How amazing would that be?  Don't believe the lie that there is good debt and bad debt.  Proverbs 22:7 says "The borrower is slave to the lender", so end that slavery.
7. Build wealth and give it away - It's not time to blow through your money.  Build your wealth and give like no one else.  What a joy it is to invest in eternity through giving.  You can enjoy the fruit of your labor, but I'm pretty sure you will get a bigger kick out of spending it on others.

In order for you to do these 7 steps, you will need a budget.  You can check out my post titled "Budget Basics" to help you get started.  Like a said earlier, it's simple, but not easy.  It is a lot better than being a slave to your financial situation or having no idea if you are headed in the right direction though. Now, go get financially healthy.

If you have any questions, please post them in the comments section below.

Wealth Creation Through Giving?

We have all heard that it is better to give than receive, but why is that?  Is their some magical reason that giving might allow us to receive more blessing?  My hope is that by the end of this post, you have a better understanding about how giving away wealth can actually build wealth.

We all understand the concept of Investing but tend to put giving in the spending category.  The reality is that systematic giving such as tithing can actually build wealth.  Though we don't give in order to receive, giving is truly an investment not only in this life, but the next.

Here are five reasons why I view giving as a great investment:

1. Giving takes the focus off yourself - When we are so focused on ourselves that we are unyielding of the resources God entrusted to us, it affects the way we interact with others.  Others will pick up on your inward focus and be less likely to trust you.  This will affect your ability to create the needed connections in the marketplace that will help you advance.
2. Giving feels good - When we spend money on ourselves, the euphoria does not last long and soon we are left with remorse over wasting money on something that didn't actually make a lasting difference.  If you used that same money on others, you will get the same euphoria, but are not left with the remorse because you actually made a lasting contribution.  This affects your own self confidence because you feel good about the choices you are making, which in turn affects how you approach your career and are likely to use that confidence to take bold steps forward in life.
3. Giving draws you close to God - The initial step of deciding to give 10% of your income requires a lot of trust in God.  This step allows us to trust in Him rather than in our money, talents, or abilities.  We all trust people that we have close and intimate relationship with.  You can' have intimacy without trust, and I promise that trusting God will build intimacy with God.
4. Giving creates opportunities - God promises that He will pour out blessing on us when we give and this is usually in the form of opportunities.  It's the sudden promotion, that new client, the unexpected gift.  Look around you, givers tend to get more opportunities.  At a minimum it will help you see the blessings in your life because you are not focused on yourself and your negative circumstances.  A few of God's promises regarding giving are found here: Malachi 3:10-11; Luke 6:38; Matthew 7:7-12
5. Giving develops contentment - A giver tends to be comfortable with their current stuff level.  Because you have taken the focus off yourself, you will begin to feel significant, rely on God, see opportunities clearly, and you will be less likely to try and seek significance in your stuff accumulation.  You'll know that the high of the next purchase cannot compare with that of giving, and you aren't trying to impress your friends and neighbors because that won't compare with the intimacy of God. When you aren't spending everything you make, you are able to invest it and build wealth. 

I see giving as the best investment out there because it has so many benefits both tangible and intangible.  I know there are many more ways that giving is a great investment and I would love to hear them.  Put a reason why you think giving is a great investment in the comments section below.

Finding Your Motivation

I have never considered myself disciplined.  Ask my mother how disciplined I was as a child and she could recount story after story of procrastination on homework assignments, brushing my teeth, or cleaning my room.  She literally would have to turn on the lights in my room and steal my blankets to get me out of bed in the morning.  So you can imagine my surprise when someone recently lamented that they wish they could be as disciplined as me.  Knowing that I was not a disciplined person in the classic sense, I replied "I'm not disciplined, I'm just motivated."

I have figured out that finding motivation for an activity or habit is key to getting my lazy behind to do something that I know is good for me, but don't really want to do.  There are certain things that I need no motivation for like eating and watching T.V., but my life would be uneventful and rather useless if I stuck to the things that I needed no motivation for.  Here are a few things I have learned in my road to "discipline".

• Your willpower is greatest in the morning.  If you think of willpower as a battery, your battery gets charged overnight and you are likely to make the best choices in the morning.  Toward the end of the day you run out of willpower and can end up making terrible decisions.  I do it all the time, that is why I pray, exercise, and decide what I will eat for the day before I head off to work.  Check out the book "What The Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast" for more insights on this.
• When you get motivated to do something, do it.  I am writing this blog post a week before my deadline because I am motivated now and likely won't be a week from now.  Warning - It will take less willpower to get your project started, but it may take some willpower to finish.  Make sure you finish or at least come to a natural stopping point in the process.  You can't always rely on your natural motivation to get you moving so when you have it, use it.
• Get inspired.  Surround yourself with things that will inspire you.  I listen to many audio books and podcasts to inspire me and, in turn, motivate me to action in some area of my life. I even watch certain inspirational television programs to motivate me in some way.  The Biggest Loser gets me inspired to eat right and exercise and a show like the X Factor inspires me to get out my guitar and practice or write a song.  The next time you feel inspired to do something, take note of what inspired you and surround yourself with similar inspiration.
• Set goals for yourself.  Get inspired and then set some goals.  Write them down and put them in a place where you have to look at them.  I use my mirror next to my bed because it is the first thing I see in the morning and the last I see at night.  Make sure they are SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Result-Based, and Time Bound.  I want to also mention that they should be your own because you will almost never accomplish the goals of someone else.  I set goals annually in 7 areas of my life: Career, Financial, Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Family, and Social.  If you are just getting started with setting goals, set a smaller goal to get a quick win and that accomplishment will move you to an even bigger goal.

Now you just need to take some time to figure out what you want your life to look like and what things you would like to achieve.  Once you have that figured out, find your motivation and  get to work.

UPDATE:  I recently taught a seminar on this very subject called "Where's My Motivation?".  It goes into more depth and there are even real life examples.  Just click the links below:
    Where's My Motivation - Audio
    Where's My Motivation - Handout

I also recently wrote a post about goal setting called "Setting Goals That Matter"

The Emotional Factor

In every decision we make, large or small, there is an emotional factor that can compel us to make a decision that does not lead to the desired outcome.  On the flip side, emotion can be the spark to move us into action on a decision that we have avoided for some time.

I enjoy the Star Trek franchise (I don't get crazy about it) and recently turned to my wife and asked "Is it strange that I relate more to the vulcans than the humans?"  To which her reply was "Yes."  Vulcans, for the uninitiated, are a species on the Star Trek series that have suppressed emotions and work solely with logic.    By contrast, the humans on Star Trek seem to be led by their heart almost to a fault, though it always works out by the end of the episode.

Though I may lean toward putting on some pointy ears and saying "live long and prosper", complete emotional suppression is not the key in decision making.  The key is to be aware of the emotional factor in a decision and weigh that into your decision making process.  I want to look at 3 examples of decisions we make and what role emotions tend to play in that decision.

1. Purchases - Emotions have a tendency to take the lead in this type of decision.  It can lead you to buy that candy bar because you are having a bad day or lead you to do whatever it takes to buy a house at the height of the housing bubble (I've done both).  Stop and ask yourself "What is my motivation?"  If you just want it, maybe you should stop and wait a few days.  Pray about it and seek council if it is a large purchase.  If you cannot tap into your inner vulcan and find logical reasons, then slow down.  Wait and see if you feel the same way a week from now.
2. Relational Decisions - We make all sorts of bad decisions when it comes to relationships if we are not aware of the emotional factor.  "Family first" is thrown out there and it's the total abandonment of logic that leads to hurting the very ones we think we're helping.  Parents often use this misguided approach with their teenagers instead of instilling strong values and helping them understand the consequences of their decisions.  They end up saying to their 16 year old "I know your going to drink, so I want you do it under my roof" or "I know you are going to have sex, so here are some condoms" instead of helping them understand the actual outcome of their decision to do so and inspiring them to be a responsible young adult.  If you don't think it's an epidemic, just look at how many adult children still live with their parents (BTW - that doesn't help them). I have so many examples of relational decisions go awry that I could devote many more blog posts to it alone.
3. Compassionate/Willpower Decisions - Emotions can spark you to action on something that you know you should do, but do not have the willpower to make it happen.  For instance, hearing a story about how someone trusted God with every part of their life may inspire you to finally take the faith requiring step to start tithing.  A movie about the slums of India may move you to support a child in that region.  Don't forget to use logic in these decisions as well because the emotional response is the spark, not the only factor.  Don't decide to quit your job and move to Africa until you have done what I suggested with your purchases.  Slow down, pray, and seek council.  Emotional responses have sparked many great decisions in my life and will in yours as well.

Those are just a few areas that need an honest assessment of your emotions and are a good place to start using your new found vulcan logic.  Try looking back at a few recent decisions and determine if you may have come to a different conclusion had you appropriately considered the emotional factor.  Then start using this awareness in your future decisions and I can almost guarantee that you will "live long and prosper".

To Give or Not To Give?

That is the question posed by my friend, and fellow pastor, Kevin Finkbiner in his blog post titled "What Would You Do If She Asked You?".  It is also a question we have all asked and often times we are struggling with the answer at the very moment someone asks us for something.  In Kevin's blog, he walks the tension of 2 Th 3:10 - “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”and Gal 6:10 - "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people...".  Let's explore the bible and some practical steps we can take to be both good stewards and good to all people.

I take stewardship of God's resources and the value of giving as great importance in my spiritual development.  I am also a big proponent of personal responsibility and not aiding people in the destructive cycles currently in their lives.  How do we know when to give and when not to give?  Here are  few things to consider that might help navigate those waters.

• Examine Your Heart - "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." - Mt 6:21. Where is your treasure?  Is it in debt payments or various niceties that make your life comfortable?  Are you storing up treasures in heaven through giving?  If on careful reflection, you find that are very selfish with the resources trusted to you, you need to make a plan to change that.  If you are unable to feed your family because you give everything away, you need to re-prioritize.
• Make a Budget - "Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." - 2 Cor 9:7. Create a budget and put giving at the top.  You can figure out a percentage or an amount that you wish to give (above the tithe) each month for various charities or individuals and either spend it, or set in a separate savings account to be used as God directs you later.  Do not be put on the spot, unsure of if you can even give.  Ask God at the beginning of the month what you can do that month to give to someone in need.
• Listen to The Spirit - "After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper." - 1 Kings 19:12. Sometimes God will nudge you and it usually comes in a way that you normally wouldn't think.  Last Christmas, I was doing my last minute Christmas shopping and as I was about to enter the store, a young lady squatting on the ground with her head down asked if I can spare some money.  I asked her what she needed it for and she told me to buy presents for her children.  I could feel the shame and desperation in her voice, so I gave her what I had in cash, which was $2, and entered the store.  Just then I heard my internal voice say "go take her shopping".  I was in a hurry and fought the feeling off as I tried to find what I was looking for.  Was it God or was I under compulsion?  I realized it was God, but rather than follow the original call to take her shopping, I decided to get $20 cash back on my way out and give her the money.  When I walked out of the store, she was gone.  I looked around the parking lot hoping to find her but, to my shame, I missed my opportunity.  It was my deepest regret the entire year.  If I had only listened, I could have touched several lives, including my own, and pleased God.
• Don't Contribute to Destructive Patterns - "Don't give a drunk a drink." - Unknown.  This one speaks to our principles.  What you do either helps move someone forward in life or it keeps them in their destructive pattern.  I won't help someone who begs with a cute cardboard sign about how they will use the money on booze or asking where their bailout is.  I'm not helping them by keeping them in the begging business.  There are others that you can tell just can't function in our society and only need a little food.  One thing you can try is going to a couple fast food establishments (Subway if you value nutrition) and get gift certificates at the beginning of the month with the money you had set aside to give in your budget.  Keep them in the car and help someone that you can tell needs it.  This will take some discernment, but again, listen to The Spirit on these cases.  It's not your job to fix their behavior but ask how can I help point them in the right direction?  Then do what will help them.

That's a good place to start because there is a lot more to this issue and a lot more scripture to know and use. These are a few steps you can take immediately to be on your way to becoming a generous giver and a responsible steward.

 

Budget Basics - Taking the pain out of budgeting

For most of us, the idea of doing a budget is about as fun as a root canal.  The reality is that God calls us to steward the resources that He has entrusted us with and having no plan or even an idea of where the money goes each month is hardly being faithful.  I have a few tips to help make this process a little less painful. If you aren't convinced that you need to budget, see Luke 14:28-30.

• One Month at a Time - Do a budget every month and at the beginning of the month.  Your expenses change each month and you will need to adjust some of your categories a few times to dial it in.
• Keep it Simple - List every major category, but there are only a couple that you need to closely monitor once the month has started.  I have basically 4 categories that I track throughout the month; Groceries, Shopping, Gas, and Fun money.  Trying to budget clothing, haircare, toiletries, and dog food  separately is time consuming and you will stop doing the budget in no time.
• Use Cash - Use only cash for the 4 categories that I mentioned above.  This will make it easy to track how much money you have left in each category and when you run out, don't buy anything else.  I take out half at the beginning of the month, and half on the 15th. (The other benefit of cash is it hurts more when you spend it)
• Account for Every Dollar - Don't leave a bunch of money at the bottom of your budget.  Tell it where to go. I put every extra dollar to the baby step that I am on.  If you aren't familiar with Dave Ramsey's baby steps, check it out Here. You can use it how you want but make sure every dollar has a purpose, even if it is just going to sit in a savings account for who knows what.

If you need help prioritizing or don't have enough money to last you through the month, here is a list of categories in order of importance.  The first five are the ones that are essential.

1. Giving
2. Food
3. Shelter (Mortgage/Rent)
4. Utilities (Electricity and Water, not Cable)
5. Transportation (Fuel, Insurance, Repairs)
6. Insurance (Medical, Life, etc.)
7. Saving
8. Other Utilities (Cell Phone, Cable, etc.)
9. Shopping
10.  Loans
11. Credit Cards
12. Fun money

Budgeting is not glamorous, but it is what people who have financial security do every month.  The next step is sticking to the budget, and if you do, your stress levels will decrease and you will begin to be faithful with what God has entrusted to you. That is a pretty good feeling.

If you have any debt (other than a mortgage), check out my blog post "Debt Crisis".

Lastly, if you are married, check out my blog post "We Are On The Same Team!" to help you keep from blowing up your budget and your marriage.

Update - 5/5/2014 - Below are three budgeting tools that will help you in your quest for tracking your money.

• Dave Ramsey's Cash Flow Plan - This is a classic paper version of a budget that you can print every month and go old school pen a paper.
• BudgetSimple - This is a more high tech version of a cash flow plan.  This is my recommendation, because you can get everything in there and plan one month at a time.  You can also print your budget once completed and copy your previous month to the next month to give you a starting point.  It will connect with your accounts to track expenses for a monthly fee, but you can use the budgeting feature for free.
• Mint.com - This is a free version of BudgetSimple, but has some limitations like an inability to print your budget or plan a month ahead.

The Opportunity Cost

In everything we do, there is what is known as an opportunity cost.  Doing one thing means not doing another.  Spending or investing money in one thing means not spending or investing money in another.  Even doing nothing can have it's consequences (See the parable of the talents, Matthew 25:14-30)  This week, I am going to break this blog into two categories, the spiritual and the financial.  Each will explore opportunity costs in these two different aspects and hopefully challenge you in each.

The Spiritual Cost- Think back on the people that have invested in you.  Individuals along the way have invested their time into you and that investment has brought you to where you are today.  When I think back on my life, I am brought to my childhood friend, Jeremi, that invited me to church with the promise that there would be pretty girls attending.  I think of the youth pastor, Greg, that invested months of time in me and would eventually lead me to the most life transformational  experience in my life, choosing to be a Christ follower.  I think about my parents who paid for the education of a christian college that led me down a path that I never imagined prior to Jeremi's initial invitation.  All along the way, people invested in me in small or large amounts and that investment has shaped who I am in small and large ways.  As I look at what I invest myself in, each minute has the potential to be a wise investment or a lost opportunity.  If I stay quiet when I someone hurting or headed down a bad path, it could mean destruction in their life.  If I choose to simply say "You should come to church with me, there are pretty girls there", it may be a small investment that yields eternal dividends.

The Financial Cost- Similar to the spiritual aspect, there is a tangible opportunity cost with everything that you do with your financial resources.  Do you tend to spend everything you get?  Do you invest, or save?  Most of us tend to spend more easily than we save.  This can cost you an opportunity later.  That daily lunch out can mean not being able to help pay for you children's college education or wedding.  Your car payment may mean not retiring at age 65, or at all.  How you choose to allocate resources also has eternal consequences.  Perhaps your spending has hindered your ability to sponsor a child that will hear about Jesus and be given an education, or even adopt a child that is lost in our foster care system. How you invest the money God has entrusted to you has real and lasting consequences.

It's time to weigh the opportunity cost.  What are you investing in?  Will it make a difference a year, a month, or even a day from now?  Are you missing out on some eternal opportunities?

Money - The Root of All Evil?

Money is evil right?.. No.  The bible says that money is the root of all evil... Not exactly.  Oh yeah, it says the love of money is the root of all evil... Wrong again.  The verse you are looking for is "For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." - 1 Tim 6:10

Money is neither good or evil, but instead it is a tool to be used for good or evil.  Many times we look at others that we perceive to make or have more money than us and we are quick to judge either how they spend or even save the money that has been intrusted to their care.  Even as we judge them, we spend every dime that we make on ourselves justifying our selfish spending on our "lack of income".  I know I have found myself there, and I'm sure you have too.  The irony is that it is our own love of money that leads us to think another has a love of money.

What kinds of evil are we talking about?  Here are a few:

• Envy - Our love of money can lead us to envy another person's wealth and possessions.  This can manifest itself in a small way like changing a relationship with a person we envy all the way to taking, through force or coersion (usually through government), the wealth of one who earned it to give to ourselves or others who did not earn it.  Envy can lead to some dark places and was one motivating factor that led to the Nazi concentration camps. They blamed the Jews for their economic hardship and took their possessions, and ultimately their lives.
• Oppression - This is on the opposite end of the spectrum from envy.  For those who have accumulated many worldly possessions (This is more typical in people with high incomes that spend wildly and almost exclusively on themselves), they will be tempted to manipulate (through gifts and bribes) and even enslave (through giving loans) others to be used for their own purposes.  This can get to the point of using their money, power, and influence to get special favors or to hurt another individual.  This is the prominent view of the rich throughout history.
• Pride - Whether we have much or little, we can begin to trust in money and stop trusting in God.  When we begin to view what God has given us as ours, it is just a short descent to trusting in ourselves or our money as our source of security.  Remember that it could all come crashing down tomorrow as many of us have learned in the current recession.

How do we avoid the love of money?  Contentment and trust.  Be content with what you have been given.  If you are content, others possessions will not matter because you are still content without them.  The interesting thing is, the more content you are, the more money you will accumulate.  Trust in God alone and look to Him as your provider.  This is not a license to spend everything on yourself or even give to the detriment of your family in order to "trust" God more.  Instead acknowledge him as the owner of all and know that he will provide all that you need.  The starting point of trusting God is through tithing (giving God back 10% of your income).  This is the first step of trusting God as your provider and until you begin tithing, you can never fully trust God.

The question is, are you content and are you trusting in God?

Death By A Thousand Paper Cuts

"I can't get into the flossing thing.  People who smoke cigarettes tell me, 'Man, you don't know how hard it is to stop smoking.' Yes I do, it's as hard as it is to start flossing." - Mitch Hedberg

 Bad habits are hard to kick and good habits are hard to implement.  In order to be great at something, you need to develop a habit. A habit is formed by doing one small thing a lot. The same is true with bad spending habits. It's not the huge purchases that blow up your budget but the little ones, over and over. It's the drive through, Starbucks, or one more pair of shoes.  It's death by a thousand paper cuts. But there is a way for your money to avoid that slow painful death, and to jump start your financial goals.

Here are a few tips to keep from losing all your income to little purchases. 

1. Create a monthly budget. It sounds painful but start with three categories you need to track; Groceries/Dining, Shopping, and Blow It. Figure out how much you will need each month for each category.  It is important to know how much you will spend on groceries and how much you will spend on eating out. You will find significant saving by cooking at home.  Shopping will be all those household items like cleaning products and toiletries. The Blow It category is there so that you have a little each month set aside to spend however you want.  Just having a plan will get you started in the right direction.
2. Use cash. Take out cash after payday for each category. Use the cash from each category for your purchases. This will be the biggest thing you can do to control your spending because you will think twice about your purchases.  Using cash also hurts so you will be reluctant to hand it over for those impulse purchases.
3. Stick to the budget. Plan carefully because when you run out of money, you stop spending.  This will be tough, but will be worth it when you have a lot more money at the end of the month to put toward your financial goals.

• Bonus Tip - Driving costs money.  Be aware of how much it will cost you to go somewhere.  It sounds crazy, but I know it costs me $3 for one round trip to work and back. You don't have to live the life of a hermit, but just remember that 20 mile trip to the mall will cost you even if you didn't spend a dime while you were there.

You may be thinking that you want to live life and not deprive yourself, but living paycheck to paycheck, only one financial emergency away from financial disaster is no way to live either.  What will you choose?  Will you sacrifice your financial future for things that will end up in next year's garage sale?

What spending tips do you have?  Let me know in the comments.

Garage Sale Season: 10 tips to get the most out of your garage sale.

This weekend I participated in yet another garage sale and realized that I kinda like it.  Since getting focused about getting out of debt, my wife, Jessica, and I have now held several garage sales and shopped quite a few more.  Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your garage sale this summer.

1. Pick the right day of the week and weekend.  Saturday is the day for a garage sale so don't get too creative and do a Friday or Sunday sale. Watch out for the weather and big event weekends or holiday weekends.  Be sure to pick a weekend with good weather and know your community's events.  Is it the town parade that day? You might want to try a different weekend.  
2. Plan to prepare.  Give yourself ample time to get your stuff together the week of.  You will need time to figure out pricing, placing, and posting. (more on those later).
3. Price everything ahead of time. Figure out how much you want for every item before you open that garage.  If it's a bigger ticket item, know how much it is worth and what others are willing to pay for it.  If it is a desirable item, you can stick to your price and put it on Craig's list or ebay.  Is it just stuff you want to get rid of?  Plan on practically giving it away because you probably will when your stuck with it at the end of the day.
4. Post it on Craig's list.  Put your garage sale up on the site with details of the items you are selling.  Include pictures and prices so that people looking for certain items or just garage sales can find yours.  Don't forget to put the date, time, and location of the sale.  Craig's list shows the most recent posts on top, so wait until Friday to post your sale.
5. Mark every item with a price.  Get some pricing stickers and let people know how much you want for that Special Edition Thigh Master.  Your sale looks more inviting and you don't have to remember how much every item is.
6. Make sure the price is right.  Remember, it's not how much you paid for it, it's how much it's worth to the customer.  If it's used clothing or paperback novels, keep them under $1.  If you have another way to sell an item, you can stick to your guns on the price.  Just don't get stuck with your junk at the end of the day because you wouldn't budge on that gravy boat.
7. Place your items strategically.  The goal is to get your customer out of the car.  Spread your stuff out.  Spreading items out will make it look like you have a whole lot to look at.  Place your big ticket items up front because people will see that there is much more than junk at the sale.  Get everything out of the garage (space permitting) where it can be easily seen. Think about how it looks from the street first and foremost.  Would you stop at your garage sale? Place like items together and isles to walk in to make it a more pleasant shopping experience.
8. Signs, Signs, Everywhere the Signs.  Place large descriptive signs at every major cross street along with signs directing people to your sale.  You almost can't go overboard with this. Plan on 10 to 15 signs depending on how off the beaten path you are.  Remember to get high traffic intersections and re-assure them they are on the right path if they have a long way to go. Also, you can put them up Friday with the address, day, and time listed and catch the Friday evening commuters on their way home.  Just don't forget to take down all those signs at the end of your sale.
9. Talk to your customers.  Yes, they are customers and you should make them feel welcome.  A simple "Good morning", or "Are you looking for anything specific?" will let them know that you acknowledge their presence and make an opening to start a conversation or negotiation.  If people are checking out an item and you will go lower, it's okay to say "Make me an offer." If they are on the fence, this one phrase will put them in the drivers seat and may help get you the sale.
10. Combine your sales with friends or neighbors.  Take all these steps and blow it up with a block sale or just beef it up with some friends stuff.  If you are inviting friends to contribute, ask them not to bring their garbage.

If you use these steps, you will have to do more prep work, but you won't be scratching your head wondering why you didn't sell anything at the end of the day.  You are also likely to make a lot more than you expected.  Once you have cleaned up and counted your money, remember to sell off whatever you can on Craig's list or E-bay and add to that total.

Did I miss anything?  If you have a great tip, let me know in the comments section.

Make it a great garage sale!

Updated - 6/23/2014

Doing Dumb

I've done dumb in many areas of my life, but I done costly dumb when it comes to finances.  Proverbs 18:2 says "Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinion."  How true that is!  I have been way too clever for my own good and found out the hard way that there is a difference between being clever and being wise.

In 2005, my wife and I purchased a house. We didn't have enough for a 20% down payment so we took out a Home Equity Line of Credit for $50,000 (mistake #1).  Here's where I get clever.  I choose to transfer money from my HELOC to low or no interest credit cards because I could pay a much lower interest rate. What could possibly go wrong?  All I have to do is transfer the balances back to the HELOC when the low interest rate expires. That proved to be really dumb.

After moving all but $16,000 to these credit card offers, the bank dropped our Home Equity credit limit to $16,000 without warning.  What!? You mean I now have $34,000 on credit cards and I can't transfer the balance back to the Home Equity Line? Yep.

I spent the next few years transferring from one credit card to another until I finally got fed up and attacked my debt.  Today, Jessica and I have paid off all the credit cards and are about $10,000 away from paying the rest of the HELOC off.  We feel great about the progress we made and the choices we now make, and it is all because I stopped airing my own opinions and began delighting in what God says about finances.

I'm sure you have your own stories about doing dumb and I would love to hear about them.  Let me know in the comments what your dumb maneuver was and what you did, or are doing, to fix it.

If you are struggling with debt, you can check out my blog post titled "Debt Crisis!" for some insights.

Debt Crisis!

If your not living in a van down by the river or in some commune, you have heard about the national debt crisis.  It is an enormous amount of debt, but it is just a reflection of our own personal debt crisis. There are two questions we have to answer in our own lives: Is my debt helping or hurting me?, and what does God say about debt?

There are two basic thoughts on debt and if you are like me, you where taught that debt is okay or even good if it is well managed.  If you want to purchase a home or car, then debt will help you achieve that goal.  The second mindset is that debt is something to be avoided and should only be used very conservatively on rare occasion.  The problem with the first mindset is that we haven't done the math to see if debt is helpful and we tend to let our debt creep into other purchases causing a debt spiral.

I was in the first camp and I can remember my own debt journey.  I opened my first credit card at 20 years of age and always paid it off on time.  That is until I misplaced the bill and received a late fee and a ding to my credit score.  In college, I made a scant $400 a month and started putting groceries on my credit card and paying only the minimum.  I made it through college and got a full time job, so of course I paid off the credit card and bought a brand new car.  This new car came with a $400 payment.  A few years later, I got married and, of course, bought a house (after all I had to buy quickly because house prices would only go up, ouch!).  This left me in a pile of debt and barely able to make all my payments.

I ask the question again, is your debt helping or hurting you?  It nearly crushed me.  So what does God say about debt and would this have helped me avoid my personal debt crisis? Proverbs 22:7 says "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender." - NIV  How true this was for me.  I had so many payments that I was truly a slave to them all.  I was able to tithe and eat, but had nothing left for saving or even the occasional date night (unless I wanted to add to my debt).

Now what?  If you find yourself in debt, how do you get out?  God speaks into that one as well; Proverbs again talks about what to do if you have ensnared yourself. "So do this, my son, to free yourself, since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands: Go—to the point of exhaustion—and give your neighbor no rest! Allow no sleep to your eyes, no slumber to your eyelids. Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler." - Proverbs 6:3-5

Do whatever it takes and get free!  Dave Ramsey gives the practical advice to first save $1,000 as an emergency fund to keep from going back into debt, and then paying off everything but the house.  These are the first two steps to freeing yourself from the slavery of debt.  This is something that my wife and I have applied in our life with great results.  I will confess that it is hard!  It isn't pleasant or easy, but it is worth being free to allow God to use you in ways that you never thought possible.  There is hope and you can do it, you just have to want it bad enough.

If you are looking for more tips and tricks on getting out of debt, Dave Ramsey has some great articles and materials including an article titled "Get Out of Debt with the Debt Snowball Plan" to get you started.  You need to get mad about being a slave and sign your own emancipation proclamation. Do it today!

If you truly want to be debt free you will need a plan.  Check out my blog post about the dreaded "B" word, "Budgeting".

God and Money

As we explore what God says about finances we often start with asking how God wants us to use our money.  This is a bad place to start and will set us up with feelings of guilt and or resentment when it comes to money and God's instructions about it.  I want to flip this question on it's head and hopefully help you have a paradigm shift when it comes to your view of God and money.

This first lesson about God and finances is foundational to a healthy perspective of finances and of God.  This one concept so transformed my thinking, it changed my relationship with money, things, people and God.  This transformational idea is summed up in four words.

"It's not my money." 

 God owns it all (Psalm 50:10-11). Once I grasped the idea that everything in my life is ultimately God's, I no longer look at God as a cosmic owner trying to keep me from enjoying my money.  Instead of being resentful of the things God asks of me, I can follow His advice about money with confidence because, after all,  it is His money.

This concept will only work and make sense if you have a personal relationship with God.  Until you have decided to give your entire life over to God, this concept seems completely crazy.  Jesus gave up his life and took the punishment for my sin and my response to such grace is to give him the only thing I can offer, my life.  That includes my family, work, relationships, recreation, mind, body, soul, and oh yeah, finances.

If you want to experience God in a whole new way, and begin having a healthy view of money, then stop thinking "it's mine" and start thinking "it's God's".

Subscribe to this blog and get future post including next weeks when I will dig a little deeper into the nature of money.