Time to budget?

Hi neighbors. I hope you are all warm and dry, snug in your homes. Unfortunately there are people who are not.

Here in Nevada we know there are people facing difficult times. I don't know if we have any actual 'street people' or not. I haven't seen anyone sleeping on the square or in cars parked around town.

We get so busy with our daily lives, we don't realize how quickly we could lose everything and end up with little or nothing to survive with.

How many weeks or months could you live without your job? If you became unemployed tomorrow, could you pay all your bills at the end of the month? Of course, in today's economy, many people work every day and still can't meet all their obligations.

What can we do? As individuals and families, how can we help ourselves and the American economy? Setting aside a little money each paycheck for the unforeseen is a good step. Of course, getting out of debt is a big step in the right direction -- although doing that may seem pretty daunting.

Getting free of credit cards would be the biggest relief on the average American family. How can you do that? First stop your spending. Stop using credit cards for non-essentials.

Remember credit cards don't offer 'free' money. And payback can be more than just hard to do.

Whoever invented the idea of a credit card must be a happy person. Loan sharks make less money than credit card companies. Although the credit card company may not send someone over to break your kneecaps, they do mean business if you get behind on your payments.

And the charges! If you have a pair of glasses, a magnifying glass and a bright light, be certain to read all that very tiny print on the back of your credit card agreement. If you can read all of that and still accept the credit card, you are a braver person than I am! Of course, we all assume we'll handle our credit cards with some sense and sensibility when we get one. "I'll only use it for (fill in the blanks)" is a frequent assertion. Good intentions often fly out the window when a card holder is faced with a financial crisis and needs to use the card for something else.

If your New Year's resolution involved getting out of debt; best get rid of the credit cards.

How else can we help ourselves financially? Saving money is a good start. Savings accounts at your local bank may not pay much interest, but the money remains easy to access if you need it in a hurry for unexpected expenses.

Some employers who offer automatic deposits of your salary, also offer to deposit a set amount of your salary into your savings account each payday.

Also, some companies have credit unions where you can get low interest loans that can save you a lot of money on larger purchases like automobiles.

My grandmother used to tell me that the only way to have any money was to earn more and spend less...but she quickly added that with nine children she had never had much likelihood of being rich.

Still, she was right about earning more and spending less. If you need a better paying job, get some additional training, or apply for jobs that offer on-the-job training for advancement.

People sometimes work two jobs, and if you can afford the child-care costs, that might be a short-term options. I don't recommend it for the long-term though as it drastically cuts down on time with family. If teens and children are taught that everyone in the family has to pull together to get through a rough time, they usually step up to the challenge.

Sit down with the family and make a budget, or at least go over the monthly expenses and see where corners can be cut.

There are lots of things people want that they don't need, point out the differences between 'wants' and 'needs' with your family.

You might discover that learning to be economical can lead to more awareness in other areas. Remembering to turn out the lights when leaving a room can reinforce the need to recycle.

Let's face it, no one wants to think of themselves as poor; and there are always others who are poorer. But facing the fact that you have to cut back, go the extra mile and take a few precautions to assure financial stability, is just good sense.