Firefighters in Switzerland responding to an elderly woman’s call to say her TV was burning arrived to discover that it was actually tuned to a channel which airs the constant image of a fireplace in the small hours. ‘The fire was extinguished with the press of a button,’ a Zurich police spokesman said.
Lesson: switch TV off before you sleep so you won’t wake to a nasty surprise - real or imaginary. You’ll save a bit on electricity as well.
It is not all bad news out there. This is because the british Royal Mint has announced a production mistake of not putting the date on some 20p coins which has made them worth £50 each because of their rarity. That’s what you’ll get if you return them to the Mint itself.
Another piece of the good news is that there are 200,000 of those coins made before the mistake was rectified; which means the ‘fortune’ will be spread far and wide. The faulty batch was produced earlier this year leaving the date stamp off the ‘tails’ side.
My advice is that you check through your coin deposits at home because you may be sitting on free money. If you have one and want the £50, simply register at www.undated20p.com and send it back.
If on the other hand you want to keep yours (experts are saying the coins may be worth over £200 within ten years), you can still register and the Mint will send you a presentation box.
It is nice to have a bit of good news in the midst of this financial gloom and doom. Happy hunting.
Since Michael Jackson died last week, there has been lots of speculations as to the real cause of his death. Everybody seems to be pointing accusing fingers to everybody else. We are all waiting impatiently for the autopsy report to reveal the ‘truth’.
If we all look at the situation properly, we can come to the conclusion that we indirectly played a part in Michael’s demise. “How?” you may ask. In my opinion, all this guy knew how to do was to please his fans; even if it meant becoming addicted to painkillers - just to rehearse well enough to give perfect performances. The man in the mirror (who pushed Michael too hard) contributed to his death - believe it or not.
In financial matters, when people hit troubled times, the last person they blame for their situations is themselves. Everybody and everything else is at fault. Is that not usually the case?
Even if circumstances beyond your control bring about a bad financial situation, it is your duty to have been prepared for any emergency. It could have been your spending or non-saving habits that is the cause anyway. Check yourself first before blaming others. The man in the mirror should be ready to take responsibility for his own actions (or inactions) so he can move forward quickly.
Well, it is another Friday but there’s nothing funny about this one because there is a “bad” news in the air. First Farrar Fawcett, one of the original Charlie’s Angels lost her battle against cancer then Michael Jackson died from heart attack at the age of 50!!
You may be wondering what all these have got to do with money managment. I will say ‘not much’ but i just like to show my human side once in a while.
I have been the Music Director in my church for more than a decade now but i didn’t start music in the church. My grandfather was a Churh Organist and a Choir Master, my mother was one of the best alto singers i have EVER seen or heard. My real musical interest began I was given an old Michael Jackson album entitled Music and Me when i became 13 - my first album! I learnt almost all the tracks by heart and it even spurred me on to learn how to play the acoustic guitar just like on the title-track.
Either you like him or not, everywhere you look you will see ways in which Michael’s music has, in one way or the other, affected you or those around you. He will surely be missed but he would wish he was better prepared.
Talking about preparation, this guy was only 50 years-old and tomorrow has not been promised to anybody. It means anyone of us can “Beat It” at any time.
How will your family fair if you die today? Will they thank you for your financial preparation because you have an up-to-date Will assuring them that they “are not alone” or will they curse you all the way to eternity for wasting your resources and theirs too - because now they have to “.. be startin’ somethin’” all by themselves? Think about those questions and act today!
Get life insurance and get a Will.
After writing yesterday’s blog-post, i started to ponder on what type of Dad (financially) do i have and what type am i to my children?
As a reader of the Rich Dad books who understands the main characteristics of a man you can call a Rich Dad and those of a Poor Dad, i can say my father has the traits of both. Being a very good businessman who started out with nothing, he knew how to invest the money he made from his business in the stock market as well as in properties. My father, who is now 88 years old, has been retired for more that 20 years but his investments are still feeding him to date.
On the other hand, while i was growing up, my father, showing his Poor Dad traits used to tell us to study hard, so we could get safe, secure and well-paid jobs. Most of us followed that advice earlier in our careers but things have changed now.
As for me, i have been leading my children in the direction of distinguishing between Assets (what feeds you and can grow like investments) and Liabilities (what eats you and can grow too through interest payments). Not only that, as the Bible has said in 2nd Corinthians 9:10 that God who “supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, shall supply and multiply your seed for sowing, ..”; if they want their wealth to grow, they must not eat their seed which is supposed to be planted. I am teaching them not view all income as money to be spent but to allocate some as capital for new investments.
If they learn their financial lessons well and know that it is very difficult to grow rich while working for other people, they will be much more better-off financially by the time they reach my age.
In case you don’t know yet, i have written a book entitled “Milestones of Financial Freedom” - Simple Steps For Conquering Debt And Building Wealth in which i dealt with ways in which we can pass the financial freedom ‘baton’ to our children. You may download a FREE chapter from here.
Today is Fathers’ Day in the UK and i (along with other fathers) received a special celebration cake from all the mothers in the church. Nice gesture, ladies. After church, i called my Dad just to say ‘Hello’ and wish him ‘Happy Fathers’ day’.
While we were talking i recalled something that he told me many years ago which i still hold on to - till this day. He used to tell me “Invest your time before you invest your money“. I have found this saying to be a good and wise advice because i have tried it and it worked for me. I have even included it in my book “Milestones of Financial Freedom“; i also advice my clients to get a proper knowledge of investments while they are still paying-off consumer debt in anticipation of when they will be able to invest without other debts hanging around their necks. Haste is one of the reasons people lose money in the stock-market and other investment vehicles. Take the time to do your homework properly before you commit your money.
Thanks Dad for the advice. Happy Fathers’ day.
Niyi
In China, a bungling burlar has been jailed for a year after breaking into a bank and stealing forged notes. Zhan Chui took £1000 cash that has been confiscated by the bank in the eastern province of Jiangxi and was earmarked for shredding. He was caught when he tried to spend the duds.
I know it has been said that “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure” but not about stuff like this. Once the authorities say ‘No’ to it, don’t go near it.
Spring-time usually ushers in the season for weddings in any given year and this year is not an exception even with the ongoing financial crisis. However, there is a new development which may stir the course of many new marriages towards ‘the rocks’ from day one.
The wedding custom mostly used in the western world comes from the following phrase:
“Something old, something new
Something borrowed, something blue
And a silver sixpence in her shoe.”
“Something old” symbolises the continuity of the bride’s family from the past one onwards. “Something new” stands for optimism and hope for the bride’s new life ahead. “Something borrowed” is usually an item from a happily married family member or friend. The item also reminds the bride that she can depend on her family and friends. “Something blue” symbolises purity. Blue used to be the most popular colour for wedding gowns in centuries gone past. As for the “silver sixpence in her shoe” this represents wealth and financial security for the new family.
With all that said, it seems people are beginning to capitalise on the “Something Borrowed” part of the wedding phrase above. The number of people borrowing to pay for their wedding has soared by 43% in the past 12 months. The report by Sainsbury Finance went on to say about 13600 people borrowed £113million in the first 4 months of this year!!!
The wedding day is supposed to be the beginning of a new life together for a couple, why start the married-life with debt?
“It is the blessing of the LORD that makes rich, and He adds no sorrow to it.” Marrying the one you love is a blessing but doing it with debt is sorrow. Believe me debt is sorrow because it will steal both your time (your life) and your money. Instead of using your money to prepare for the future together you will be using it to repair the mistakes of the past i.e. the debt incurred to pay for the wedding day.
If you don’t have the money for a ‘big’ wedding, go for a simple and affordable one. Don’t let the ‘happiest day of your life’ became one you will look back at with regrets. You don’t have to be like the proverbial “Joneses” to have a good wedding and on the other hand, having a one-of-a-kind wedding should not cost the earth.
Remember that the wedding day lasts for only 24 hours but the marriage itself is for a lifetime. Don’t allow your story to end “Happily Never After” because of wedding day debt.
Here is a story that i hope will brighten up your day as you head for a restful weekend:
I hired a plumber to help me restore an old farmhouse, and discovered he had just finished a tough first day on the job: a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric drill quit and his ancient one ton truck refused to start. While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence.Upon arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands.As he opened the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.
Afterwards he walked me back to my car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me, so I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier.“Oh, that’s my trouble tree,” he replied. “I know I can’t help having troubles on the job, but one thing’s for sure, those troubles don’t belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home and ask God to take care of them. Then in the morning I pick them up again.”“Funny thing is,” he smiled, “when I come out in the morning to pick ‘em up, there aren’t nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.”
I hope you can hang up your troubles today, have a nice weekend and forget to pick them up on Monday.
It has been reported that one in every three adults in the UK lose sleep at least once a week because of the recession.
Sleeping habits are rapidly changing as thousands try to battle this worry-induced insomnia. A recent survey revealed that one in six are turning to alcohol to help them sleep. Others are using TV to help them drift off ; with 44% saying they have recently moved thier sets to the bedroom.
31% say they are now reading more in bed, while a similar number play computer games.
Caterina Gerletto of Harris Interacive, which carried out the survey on people aged 16 to 64 said, ”The economic crisis appears to be taking its toll on us when we do eventually decide to turn out the lights.”
Have you had any change in your sleping patterns recently? You might want to share others who are going through a similar experience.
