OT: Allen's testimonial . . .

[Octoman]

You've got me interested too Allen. This thread came up at a time in my life where I realized I either need to change my spending habits or I'll be in serious trouble soon. At this point I've got about $11.5K in ccs and auto loan and about $58K in student loans. (I've got no shame in putting it out there, it is what it is...) The student loans are deferred for another year and a half, but they're still gaining interest. I'd like to get out from under at least the CCs/auto debt before we even think about buying a house. I've tried to budget before, but it always works great for a month and then falls apart. Maybe I need a better plan to hold it together longer.

I have been successful at paying down my CCs by $1400 in the last couple months, and I want to keep this momentum going. I didn't grow up with the best financial modeling and my attempts at managing my finances have been mostly a hodge-podge of what I've seen on tv or read in magazines. I think what I need is a single plan that will be easy to stick to. I'm going to get the book and give this a try Allen, it seems to have worked for you and you seem pretty charged up about it. I'm usually suspicious at this point, waiting for the catch where I have to enroll for $30 a month, but I trust you on this. Maybe it can work for me too.

[BigAl07]

Originally Posted by BoomerD

a'aight..you have my interest...and a PM.

PM replied! Let me know if I can help in ANY way at all! I can talk this from sun UP to sun DOWN!! Once it gets rolling I'm sure OTHERS will be yelling from the Mountain Tops with me

Originally Posted by Octoman

You've got me interested too Allen. This thread came up at a time in my life where I realized I either need to change my spending habits or I'll be in serious trouble soon. At this point I've got about $11.5K in ccs and auto loan and about $58K in student loans. (I've got no shame in putting it out there, it is what it is...) The student loans are deferred for another year and a half, but they're still gaining interest. I'd like to get out from under at least the CCs/auto debt before we even think about buying a house. I've tried to budget before, but it always works great for a month and then falls apart. Maybe I need a better plan to hold it together longer.

I have been successful at paying down my CCs by $1400 in the last couple months, and I want to keep this momentum going. I didn't grow up with the best financial modeling and my attempts at managing my finances have been mostly a hodge-podge of what I've seen on tv or read in magazines. I think what I need is a single plan that will be easy to stick to. I'm going to get the book and give this a try Allen, it seems to have worked for you and you seem pretty charged up about it. I'm usually suspicious at this point, waiting for the catch where I have to enroll for $30 a month, but I trust you on this. Maybe it can work for me too.

Mark you're a perfect candidate to do this. You CAN manage money of you would be deeper than you are. The key is starting it YESTERDAY and sticking to it. It's not rocket science at all. That's the irony! It's simple common sense that USED to be common practice. Our society is being brainwashed into not only accepting but now WANTING Debt! That's a HUGE step back for us as a society. I'm not going to let EVERYONE go down that road if I can help it. If I can help one more (already had some GREAT success with other friends and a family member) then ALL of my time and efforts (and monetary input) are worth it. If I can get one of you to FEEL this feeling of FREEDOM or better yet get ONE family back on track so they can LOVE each other wholly without worrying about debt then I have succeeded!

Please don't hesitate to shoot me a PM buddy! I'll be glad to help in ANY way I can! Let's change your family tree FOREVER!

[BigAl07]

All PM's replied (I think)

Man this is SWEET! I'm THRILLED with the interest and responses I've gotten thus far!!

Just in case anyone is wondering.. this is all something YOU do. It's nothing I do except point you in the right direction. I'm helping You help YOURSELF! I don't want/need to know anything about you or your finances. That's all for you to handle (and pay off).

[Jason25]

Al, were you able to get the dvd in the mail for me? I appreciate you putting this out there for us. My GF and myself argue alot over finances and it would be so nice to pay off our debt so I can marry her and give her what she deserves.

[BigAl07]

Jason I did get yours in the mail buddy. It went out yesterday so you should have it ANY day now.

I honestly believe in my heart this WILL make all the difference in the world for you. The idea of you starting a life with your special person with NO debt... WOW! That's strong!! Very strong!

Thanks to EVERYONE for the AMAZING PM's! I really appreciate ALL of them!!

Keep em coming

[Octoman]

Originally Posted by BigAl07

I don't want/need to know anything about you or your finances.

I only posted mine for my own benefit. It's kind of liberating to get it out there, makes it much less of a "skeleton in the closet".



Something else I'd like to mention. Reefkeeping and really any other hobby involve investing in some stuff. There's always new and cooler stuff out there. Sometimes, I even find myself thinking something like, if everyone else has a controller then I must need one too! But I want to make it clear that when I look at other people's tanks, what stands out to me is when people put love, time, and research into their reefs. That's what really makes the difference in an exceptional tank. All the cool stuff is nice, but its just stuff.

A hefty cc bill can really make the hobby unenjoyable and I would bet that is what turns a lot of people off. They've got a couple thousand to pay on their tank and it just turned green again, they get fed up and throw in the towel. I think proper planning and budgeting can make this a much more enjoyable hobby.

[BigAl07]

Originally Posted by Octoman

I only posted mine for my own benefit. It's kind of liberating to get it out there, makes it much less of a "skeleton in the closet".

Hey buddy! That wasn't for you bro. I had someone send a PM saying they were ashamed of their finances and wanted to know if I could help them get started without them giving me a FULL financial statement. I just wanted anyone else reading to understand that I'm just trying to "Spread the Word" and point in the right direction. That's the ONLY reason I said that

Originally Posted by Octoman

Something else I'd like to mention. Reefkeeping and really any other hobby involve investing in some stuff. There's always new and cooler stuff out there. Sometimes, I even find myself thinking something like, if everyone else has a controller then I must need one too! But I want to make it clear that when I look at other people's tanks, what stands out to me is when people put love, time, and research into their reefs. That's what really makes the difference in an exceptional tank. All the cool stuff is nice, but its just stuff.

A hefty cc bill can really make the hobby unenjoyable and I would bet that is what turns a lot of people off. They've got a couple thousand to pay on their tank and it just turned green again, they get fed up and throw in the towel. I think proper planning and budgeting can make this a much more enjoyable hobby

You're exactly right. There's nothing "cheap" about this hobby. It takes money to just MAINTAIN the tank. The initial investment is just the beginning. I found this out the HARD way... partly due to my ignorance and partly through some bad advice locally. The good news is that NONE of any of our tanks have been bought on credit. Everything was paid for with CASH. There was two items I borrowed from another "fund" because it was something "Urgent" but it was still in CASH. Now we just add money to the "Tank Fund" from each paycheck and when we need something it's there waiting.

Like right now.. I too want "another" controller. I have enough to get a Jr. but I want a much more robust controller. So I'll do it all by hand and keep saving until we have the CASH! It's so much better to pay CASH and the good news is.. unless you're buying something ONLINE you usually get a better deal with CASH! Can you say Win-Win? I can

Again thanks for the replies and the PM's! I'm trying to make sure I reply to each one!!

[KodiakBear]

Originally Posted by BigAl07

It's so much better to pay CASH and the good news is.. unless you're buying something ONLINE you usually get a better deal with CASH! Can you say Win-Win? I can

Funny how many non-chain stores are willing to negotiate their prices if you actually have the cash on hand. All you have to do is ask and the price tends to drop 10% or more.

[BigAl07]

That's exactly right. It's funny, the higher the price the MORE you save with CASH! That's a VERY strong and profitable part of Financial Peace program. It teaches "Real World" ideas that really do work. One of my vendors was in my office a few weeks ago and we just happened to discover we're both FPU graduates. He told me how he saved several thousand $$ on his last auto purchase. That's STRONG!!

thanks for your input buddy

[BigAl07]

Thanks for the PM's! I really appreciate hearing from everyone! It makes it ALL worth while!!

[BigAl07]

Wow! This morning my PM box was slammed! THANK YOU people!

[BigAl07]

Good Monday morning

I'm anxious to hear if anyone has finished the book yet! It's an AMAZING and easy read!!

[johnbljr]

PM sent......

[BigAl07]

PM replied

I'm thrilled people are still taking the time to read this and contact me!

I KNOW what a HUGE difference it is to NOT worry about debt or money in your life! EVERYTHING is better with NO DEBT!

[ReefGuy69]

I finished the book Al, i got the DVD to. Havent watched it yet. The wife and I havent had a chance to sit and watch it together. Everyone at my work is now hooked on the book and starting the program themselves. Now if only the government could follow the same thing. Our country would be Debt Free and then we really would be the richest nation in the world.