Posts Tagged ‘debt free’

For those of us old enough to remember the Saturday morning Schoolhouse Rock episodes, this video will be a nostalgic turn down memory lane. For everyone else, it’s an easy-to-understand explanation of what’s going on in government right now and how it is (and will) affect us in the very near future. My goodness, do I wish I’d understood this concept better when they where passing out all of the “free credit cards & free t-shirts” freshman year of college!

“Economic armageddon”

Formal education will earn you a living, self-education will make you a fortune.

- Jim Rohn

The trend of Independent Business Professionals continues to rise during what has come to be known as The Great Recession. Many industrious Americans are choosing to opt out of the recession by taking control of their financial freedom with creative entrepreneurial business ventures. Everything from tupperware-style pleasure parties for women to mobile dog-walking services, the list has no end.

The Coop :: Chicago-based Co-working Community

One of the growing trends that Indies are using to maximize their resources as they start their new businesses is  joining co-working communities. Co-working communities are sprouting up all across the country and take advantage of shared resources that a traditional office space provides for the fraction of the cost of leasing an office space. The communal space is often shared by individuals who do not work for the same company, instead they work for themselves. This concept is attractive to both work-at-home and traveling professionals because it offers a much needed relief from the isolation of the home office or local Starbucks.

Too often than not, fledgling entrepreneurs get caught up in the fancy trappings of starting their business. Things like sleek, flat screen plasma televisions for presentations, fancy office furniture and the top of the line ergonomic chairs. But what business really boils down to is the ability to foster growth from consistent sales and by staying true to that goal, business debt is less likely to occur. At least not for such superficial reasons. This is critical to a start-up since lack of cash flow is the primary reason why they go under. To be able to keep the cash flow going means being able to keep the doors open one more day, which is crucial in those critical first stages.

Collaborative workspaces allow for a debt-free opportunity to bootstrap one’s way to business success while meeting the needs of a business start-up. In a time when debt is all too common, being smart with limited resources is almost as good as cash in the bank. Golden.

I’ve been thinking a lot about debt-free living lately and wondering if it’s really possible or just some elusive carrot on a string dangled in front of me and my working middle-class friends to keep us tuned in and tied up to the proverbial rat race.

Since wealth gurus like Suze Orman and David Bach seem to think we can live debt-free I decided to do a little research of my own and came across John Commuta’s Debt To Wealth program. His program is carried by Nightingale-Conant and I’m a big fan of their self-improvement audio discs. BUT, being that I’ve committed to a Financial Fast for the next month I figured I would check it out from the library instead and save the duckets to put on a bill payment or something.

Boy am I ever glad that I went the library route because he takes a whopping eight, albeit well-told and fully engaging, discs worth of time to describe his program which could be adequately explained in twenty minutes. So, again, I’m glad that I saved my money. However, the revelation that I got from it was priceless.

By jotting down my debts and income in the fashion he describes, I could see clearly where the leaks were in my financial buckets, so to speak. And it totally explained why I was feeling like I never had any money even though, in theory, the ledger books indicated that I should have some.

Anywho, based on John’s easy-to-understand formula, I could see clear through to debt-free living and I feel so relieved to know there is an end in sight. Now, I find myself daydreaming about what I’ll do with all of that extra money. Perhaps I’ll buy a car…j/k:)