7 Simple Money Making Tips

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The Simplest Money Making Tip: Manage your own Money

For most of us, if we are even partially above drooling doofustry, managing our own money is the smartest financial decision we can make.

We've seen the performance of the mega banks in the US and Eurozone (not Canada), and the best thing most can say is they didn't break the law. Wow. Their interest in customer care is about the same as a Lion's interest in wild beasts....we are their dinner...that's all! We read about brokers who have "Madoffed" with money people saved all their lifetime and the protection available was zilch. Willingly dressing as a goat and walking into a cage of feral dogs is not seen as a smart move but we do it in the financial world constantly and then complain when we get nipped! You are on your own when it comes to investing and if we have learned nothing else in the last 2 years, we have been hammered sufficiently to take responsibility for our own money....and, it is NOT that difficult.

Let's make this personal....I am NOT a financial advisor and all I have is my own experience. Maybe, it's helpful. From years of experience in managing our own finances starting without not one clue as to how to go about it, we have realized that there only a few commitments you need to stick to...like a gecko to a wall. They are just simple common sense rules. The key principle is, if you cannot trust yourself to manage your own money, whom can you trust?

Here are the simple steps we have adhered to.

Interested in making money?

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Tip #1:Take charge of your own money

Read, research, think, and then advise yourself

simple money making tips

I know that many people are happy to have advisers. And some have chosen wisely...have a horse shoe ahhhhhhhh....on their head... or found the last saint. Generally, people near other people's money behave like small boys with a newly painted chair...finger prints everywhere! They want to use your money to get wealthy themselves. They want to eat your lunch. But even then, the few lucky investors with solid advisors followed basic rules.

OK..OK...OK...Some advisers are less rapacious than others...but finding them is tough. They are not on TV. They rarely spend clients' money on advertising. They really count on word of mouth but so did Bernie M! It would be better if you take your own interest to heart. Do your own driving. Learn how to do the basic tasks. Take charge.

Learn more about making money

Some books to start with

Making the Most of Your Money Now: The Classic Bestseller Completely Revised for the New Economy by Jane Bryant Quinn

Making the Most of Your Money Now: The Classic Bestseller Completely Revised for the New Economy by Jane Bryant Quinn

Consumers Union named Making the Most of Your Money more...0 points

The Art of Making Money: The Story of a Master Counterfeiter by Jason Kersten

The Art of Making Money: The Story of a Master Counterfeiter by Jason Kersten

Art Williams was a precocious student with a brigh more...0 points

Get Rich Click!: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money on the Internet by Marc Ostrofsky

Get Rich Click!: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money on the Internet by Marc Ostrofsky

Whether you are looking to earn $100 a day or $100,000 more...0 points

The ABCs of Making Money by Denis Cauvier, Alan Lysaght

The ABCs of Making Money by Denis Cauvier, Alan Lysaght

The revised and updated, 2008 version of The ABCs more...0 points

Blogging Professional - Making Money As A Professional Blogger by Joel Stevenson

Blogging Professional - Making Money As A Professional Blogger by Joel Stevenson

"The Complete Guide To Building A High Profit more...0 points

Thou Shall Prosper: Ten Commandments for Making Money by Rabbi Daniel Lapin

Thou Shall Prosper: Ten Commandments for Making Money by Rabbi Daniel Lapin

A practical approach to creating wealth-based on the more...0 points

Making Money from Home: How to Run a Successful Home-Based Business by Donna Partow

Making Money from Home: How to Run a Successful Home-Based Business by Donna Partow

In tough economic times, conventional jobs can be more...0 points

How to License or Sell Your Ideas; 7 Steps to Making Money by Licensing or Selling Your Ideas to Companies by Matthew Yubas

How to License or Sell Your Ideas; 7 Steps to Making Money by Licensing or Selling Your Ideas to Companies by Matthew Yubas

Learn how to make money by licensing or selling your more...0 points

The Stay-at-Home Mom's Guide to Making Money from Home, Revised 2nd Edition: Choosing the Business That's Right for You Using the Skills and Interests You Already Have by Liz Folger

The Stay-at-Home Mom's Guide to Making Money from Home, Revised 2nd Edition: Choosing the Business That's Right for You Using the Skills and Interests You Already Have by Liz Folger

Increase Your Family's Income While Taking Care of more...0 points

Making Money with Your Computer at Home by Paul Edwards, Sarah Edwards

Making Money with Your Computer at Home by Paul Edwards, Sarah Edwards

Self-employment gurus Paul and Sarah Edwards offer more...0 points

The Stay At Home Mom's Guide To Making Money Online by Ron Taylor

The Stay At Home Mom's Guide To Making Money Online by Ron Taylor

As the father of four children I know how hard it is more...0 points

Creating Capital - Money-making as an aim in business by Frederick L. (Frederic Lockwood) Lipman

Creating Capital - Money-making as an aim in business by Frederick L. (Frederic Lockwood) Lipman

Creating Capital - Money-making as an aim in busin more...0 points

The Ultimate Resource for Making Money and Getting Rich by Napoleon Hill, James Allen, Wallace Wattles

The Ultimate Resource for Making Money and Getting Rich by Napoleon Hill, James Allen, Wallace Wattles

Eleven of the most acclaimed experts in wealth and more...0 points

The ABCs of Making Money 4 Teens by Alan Lysaght & Denis Cauvier

The ABCs of Making Money 4 Teens by Alan Lysaght & Denis Cauvier

The ABCs of Making Money 4 Teens is a groundbreaki more...0 points

Not Your Parents' Money Book: Making, Saving, and Spending Your Own Money by Jean Chatzky

Not Your Parents' Money Book: Making, Saving, and Spending Your Own Money by Jean Chatzky

In this captivating, accessible guide, Jean Chatzk more...0 points

Making Your Money Last! - 7 Steps To Debt Free Living by Benjamin Bonetti

Making Your Money Last! - 7 Steps To Debt Free Living by Benjamin Bonetti

Are you stuck in a financial rut? Are you lacking a more...0 points

The Entrepreneur's Guide to Second Life: Making Money in the Metaverse by Daniel Terdiman

The Entrepreneur's Guide to Second Life: Making Money in the Metaverse by Daniel Terdiman

Business is booming in Second Life, and many residents more...0 points

Cash Flow First: 41 Fastest Ways to Start Making Real Money Online Today! by Manohar Chimmani

Cash Flow First: 41 Fastest Ways to Start Making Real Money Online Today! by Manohar Chimmani

Cash Flow First: 41 Fastest Ways to Start Making Real more...0 points

Undress for Success: The Naked Truth about Making Money at Home by Kate Lister, Tom Harnish

Undress for Success: The Naked Truth about Making Money at Home by Kate Lister, Tom Harnish

This book is for the bummed out, burned out, and stressed more...0 points

Point, Click, and Save: Mashup Mom's Guide to Saving and Making Money Online by Rachel Singer Gordon

Point, Click, and Save: Mashup Mom's Guide to Saving and Making Money Online by Rachel Singer Gordon

Filled with up-to-date information on the newest technologies-texting, more...0 points

Art of Money Getting Or, Golden Rules for Making Money by P. T. (Phineas Taylor) Barnum

Art of Money Getting Or, Golden Rules for Making Money by P. T. (Phineas Taylor) Barnum

This book was converted from its physical edition more...0 points

Tip #2: Heed the simple rule in spending

Spend less money than what you earn

Everyone understands this but the world conspires against us. They all want to get our money, not to make us earn more. The Banks plead with us to sign up for cards...to make them rich. It is easy to blow $2,000 on several purchases in an hour of shopping....and go home and feel empty because it was just a car load of stuff. We only realize this when the credit card bill comes and we wonder: how did we ever get ourselves into this mess?
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The sale signs are always inviting. We have seen people and maybe, we have jumped into the line for 30% off Manolo Blahniks or Guccis or Ferragamos. Oh Lordy....there are those irresistible Hermes bags and accessories and thousands of brands to lure us to open our wallets and give our credit cards. Those credit cards are the culprits. It's not my fault...it's the cards...the Banks...my mother.....workplace stress......time for a class action suit against all of them. Grow up. Always remember this simple tip: If you spend more money than you earn you will be under water eventually.



Clip Art from Microsoft

To help you spend less money

Let the experts help you

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Tip #3: Pay yourself first

Each time you get your pay

Each time you get your pay, take out 5 or 10% and give it to yourself. You will be surprised at how this will grow after a few years. In fact, I started saving $50 a month when I started earning and after a year, I was surprised at how much I had accumulated. I immediately invested this in my retirement plan so I could get the tax benefit. This increased the value of the money I had saved. In retrospect, it wasn't the smartest investment but it got me started. What is $50 a month? That is $1.66 a day. Timmy's or a Starbucks (small). Do NOT wait for a windfall before investing, start small now...pay yourself first and start making money.

Paying yourself first is always a good money practice

Interesting books on paying yourself first

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Tip #4: Buy things with 18% to 24% discount

Or 50%-70%

Pay cash. Cut your cards up. But don't be tempted by sales. Look in your closet...your basement...your garage..your living room...how much "stuff" do you need? I keep cleaning up my closets and cupboards and I keep finding things I have bought and have never even used...and I really try to be careful. I have friends with an extra bedroom, rented for the purpose, just to warehouse unused and unusable "fabulous bargains" bought on plastic. If you depend on the cash in your pocket, you really make smarter buy decisions.

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. We laugh at the old buying a gold brick for a dollar joke but watch television and see the parade of heartbroken and bankrupt confessors who bought the snake oil, the magic discovery, the Wall Street secret, the I-Know-an-Insider special, the I'm-too-nice-to- be-a-liar sting. If someone promised you instant beauty in 10 days, would you believe them (please say you wouldn't)? Risk taking is one thing. Letting people make a jackass out of you because of your own greed is quite another.

Using your credit card especially if you are only re-paying the minimum each month adds 18% or more to everything you buy and they just escalate from there. Of course, the government, acting as nanny, had to intervene and enact a credit card reform to bail out our backsides and protect us from our own doofustry. Take charge of yourself, because it's the face in the mirror that is making you poor. Maybe, cut up those credit cards. Make a family party out of it. Pay cash for the Pizza!This will stop you from shopping online. I have a friend who was searching for one item online but by that time an hour passed, she has already racked up $2,000 worth of shopping. Even she was surprised at how she did it.

For those who use credit cards and pay the full balance each month, keep using it. You gain points which you can use in airlines, hotels or other things. Just make sure you get more than the annual fees you pay. Otherwise, get one that has no fee and continue to pay the full balance each month. It gives you the convenience and you can get deals online and use it in booking hotels and others requiring credit cards to confirm your reservations.



Clip Art is from Microsoft

Money makeover demands good use of credit cards

Get more tips on this

Survey Compares Credit Card Use by People who are Struggling to Pay their ...
The preliminary study was not designed to yield broadly representative data about all Americans, but rather, it looks at specific consumers to compare their perceptions about their own financial stability to their use of credit cards and their payment ...
CreditCards.com Weekly Credit Card Rate Report: Credit card interest rates rise
Those categories included balance transfer, rewards and business credit cards. The CreditCards.com credit card rate survey (permalink: http://www.creditcards.com/rate-report) is conducted weekly, using offer data from the leading US card issuers' ...
Credit-Card Parking Meters Coming to Columbia
(Source: Clif LeBlanc The State, Columbia, SC (MCT) ? By autumn, drivers will be able to use their credit cards to feed meters in about 175 of Columbia's parking spaces. If motorists like the new meters and the pilot program succeeds, the city might ...

Tip #5: Give some of your money away

Spread the Blessing

This way, you bless your money. You make it do something good and more good things come to you, too. I know that we have always been told that giving is better than receiving, but more than just this, you become part of a mutual relationship of give and take and thus make this energy circulate around the world. This works. Be generous and life is generous to you.

Make a donation

We are a group of concerned citizens interested in making Pendleton SC's Veterans Park the best it can be. We currently have a playground, walking trail, three picnic shelters, a concessions pavilion with restrooms, and three old ballfields.

Tip #6: Buy quality, not labels

A key step towards your money make over

Quality lasts and really supports the new positive, high quality vision of yourself. I have friends who buy very little, but only buy quality, take good care of what they buy, and take pride in their accoutrements because they are the best. I see them take care of their really well made t-shirts in the way they wash so that they last for years. They "Dubbin" their beautiful leather shoes, jackets and purses and use them well, constantly, and with real pride. You don't really need to arrive at the office with a new BMer. If you must have a car...I mean really MUST...how about a beautiful old Caddy, or Lexus or Merc. They last forever if you look after them and they really tell a strong story of your self vision. However, walking is the best and renting a car when you really need one makes real sense.You will get good exercise and become a healthier person. Then, your vision of yourself would be more substantial. People who are healthy, confident and happy always exude an aura that is more attractive than being in those celebrity outfits.



Clip Art from Microsoft

Help in buying quality products

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Tip #7: Vision a happy and successful you

This is your key to success

Remind yourself of this each time you think about finances. Because with a sewer self vision, we think we are inadequate or failures or just feel depressed and we hope that buying those shoes, clothes and celebrity purses and "instant fame brands" will make us winners. Buying helps us feel better, for a very short period, and, then, the ashes come back because our personal vision of our selves as a poor loser just creeps on back, too. See yourself as a winner. Do one thing every day that supports this vision. You can't buy your way out of misery but a house cleaned vision can do the trick.

Learn about visioning

Start practicing

Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams by Lucia Capacchione

Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams by Lucia Capacchione

A truly visionary book based on the popular workshops more...0 points

Soul Visioning: Clear the Past, Create Your Future by Susan Wisehart

Soul Visioning: Clear the Past, Create Your Future by Susan Wisehart

"Inspiring true-life stories and practical leading-edge more...0 points

Visioning Your Life

Visioning Your Life

This guided meditation CD takes you through the process more...0 points

Creativity, skepticism, and visioning the future [An article from: Futures] by W. Bell

Creativity, skepticism, and visioning the future [An article from: Futures] by W. Bell

This digital document is a journal article from Futures, more...0 points

The Complete Guide To Visioning: How to discover, shape and realize your vision by Clive Johnson

The Complete Guide To Visioning: How to discover, shape and realize your vision by Clive Johnson

"If you can picture it, you can do it". The more...0 points

Visioning and Visualization: People, Pixels, and Plans by Michael Kwartler, Gianni Longo

Visioning and Visualization: People, Pixels, and Plans by Michael Kwartler, Gianni Longo

Two remarkable phenomena have affected the practic more...0 points

Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life (Gawain, Shakti) by Shakti Gawain

Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life (Gawain, Shakti) by Shakti Gawain

Creative Visualization has been successfully used more...0 points

Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life by Shakti Gawain

Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life by Shakti Gawain

Creative visualization is the art of using mental imagery more...0 points

Creative Visualization for Beginners (For Beginners (Llewellyn's)) by Richard Webster

Creative Visualization for Beginners (For Beginners (Llewellyn's)) by Richard Webster

You have the ability to visualize success and manifest more...0 points

The Joy of Visualization: 75 Creative Ways to Enhance Your Life by Valerie Wells

The Joy of Visualization: 75 Creative Ways to Enhance Your Life by Valerie Wells

In an era when people are increasingly busy juggli more...0 points

Practical Guide to Creative Visualization: Manifest Your Desires by Osborne Phillips, Melita Denning

Practical Guide to Creative Visualization: Manifest Your Desires by Osborne Phillips, Melita Denning

If you're ready to do powerful magick without using more...0 points

Which of these tips in money making is top for you?

Vote for it

Take charge of your money

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Spend less than what you earn

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Pay yourself first

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Buy things at a discount

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Buy quality, not labels

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Give some of your money away

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Envision a successful you

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Taking charge of your finances

No one else will do it better

Time to take charge. Start learning not just relegating the responsibility to someone else.
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Take charge, but stay human

Your self is your wealth

OK? We have matched income and expenditure. We are cardless. We are paying ourselves. We are avoiding snake oil in investing. We are giving a bit to others and we have a Vision of ourselves as effective and likeable human beings. We buy quality, not quantity and we are so self righteous no one will talk to us!!! Ohhhhhhh...don't like that last one much!

How to avoid "pretending perfection". Well...give yourself, and all your friends a break. Treat yourself to a nice dinner in a fabulous restaurant or go for a spoiling in a spa (using cash). You will feel much better. We don't have to be prissy and pinch mouthed around our finances. When we feel this way, we only alienate the world. It's like the sanctimonious ex-smoker or the smug ex-drunk. Friends will avoid us so pointedly that we will end up going for a retail therapy.



Take charge, but stay human.

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Share your own tip on money management

Or just leave your comments

I know how much each of us try. Nobody wants to be in debt. Every one wants enough to enjoy a quality life. Share with us your own maxim. Or, just leave us a message.

  • punkgrinder Sep 6, 2011 @ 2:39 pm | delete
    Great and informative lens with excellent tips, thanks and thumbs up!
  • aesta1 Sep 13, 2011 @ 9:49 pm | delete
    Thank you so much. Am glad you liked it.
  • JeffreyTymczak Oct 1, 2010 @ 10:44 pm | delete
    Thank You for the very informative lens! I loved it! I rated it up and joined your fan club, hope to see you in my fan club too! Great Job!!!

    Jeff
  • greenlife17 Sep 25, 2010 @ 5:32 am | delete
    I practically have a hard time in taming my monetary woes, and this lens is just great! thanks, saving it on my folder now...
  • OhMe Sep 18, 2010 @ 11:04 pm | delete
    Wow, thank you so much for featuring my Cards lens and our Friends of the Park organization. I sure appreciate it. This is a great lens and I like your 7 Simple Steps in a Money Makeover. Money Management is something that seems so hard for most of us.
  • CCGAL Sep 18, 2010 @ 8:09 pm | delete
    I'll share a motto with you: "If your outgo exceeds your income, then your upkeep will be your downfall." You've given good advice here. I'd add one book recommendation, though - "Your Money Or Your Life" is the best money book I've ever read - to actually do the exercises takes some time and effort, but when you realize that you are trading precious moments of your life that you can never get back in order have that gadget or whatever, it puts things into a whole new perspective.

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