You come home after a long day at work only to find numerous unwanted bills in your mailbox. As you sift though them, you start to get that sinking feeling. You know there is no way you can afford to pay all of them on time. It’s at this time that you remember that you have a vacation coming up and you want to make the most of it. What you really need now is a money makeover and this is how you do it.
No makeover is ever complete without a before picture. Take a financial snapshot, sometimes called a net worth statement. Imagine you are going to sell everything you own and you are taking that money to pay off all your debts and normal monthly expenses like rent, cable and telephone bills. Then count what is left, if you didn’t know what net worth meant before, you sure will now.
The next step to take is to make a plan. You need to write down all the steps you need to take to achieve a goal. You’re finances should be reasonable, specific, and realistic. There should be a time frame for all your goals so that you know that you can handle all those payments that need to be made.
This step is going to be the most difficult. You really have to...