Spring Into Action Series

Warm weather, sunny days, bright colors…I’m officially ready for Spring.  In my city the temperature reached 80 degrees twice last week so it’s clear that my favorite time of year is approaching!  To welcome this new season, I’m featuring a series of posts influenced by the Spring.  Spring is thought of as the season of new beginnings and growth, so it’s the perfect time to start your managing your money or renew your commitment to making your money grow.  Be on the lookout for several posts over the next few weeks to help you “Spring” into action!

Update: Short Term Goals

A few months ago, I came up with a few goals to keep my finances and life on track.  Here's a quick update on my progress:


Financial

• Create a $1000 emergency fund by September 2011.  75% of the way there! Woo Hoo!
• Have a "no-spend weekend" every month.  I started off well, but I didn't plan ahead so some weekends I needed to buy groceries, ran out of supplies around the house, or was too lazy to cook.   

Making Savings Fun

What you see above is my new money bank and also one of my favorite gifts that I got for Christmas. Yes, it's technically for kids, but it is absolutely adorable and makes me smile. It is designed like an ATM machine equipped with an ATM card and secret pin. It automatically counts the money I "deposit" and keeps track of my "balance." My boyfriend and I are using it to build our "weekend getaway" fund...granted we are only depositing coins so we're not expecting this to pay for the entire trip, but every little bit helps (and it's much better than having change weighing down my purse or filling up the upholder in my car).

Now the main reason I love this litte bank is because it makes saving money FUN. I get the rush and instant gratification that I don't feel when my money is automatically transferred each month. I hear the "ca-ching!" when the coins drop inside.  Plus it's something me and the boyfriend can do together, which is always nice!

So, how do you have fun with your savings?  Any tools (or toys)?  Tell me :)

Monthly Payment Calculator

So you've decided that you are ready to pay down your debt.  You gather your bills, find out how much you owe, and what your minimum monthly payment is for each bill.  Now comes the hard part...answering the tough questions like "How much should I pay each month?" or "How long is it going to take me to get out of debt?"

At this point, many of us will pause for a minute and wait for a nice round number to pop into our heads (hmm...$100 a month? sounds good! lol).  Well I'm offering a better solution.  I created an easy Monthly Payment Calculator to help you figure out how much you should contribute each month to reach your financial goals.  Just enter the amount you owe, your  interest rate, and the number of payments you plan to make and find out how much your monthly payment should be to pay off your debt in that time frame.  The calculator also shows you the total amount you pay back over the life of your debt, so hopefully it's an incentive to pay it down faster!

Download by clicking HERE or selecting the link under my "Helpful Tools & Downloads" page.

Let me know what you think!

A Lesson on Selflessness and Risk Management

Photo Credit: NFL.com

This is Keith Fitzhugh, former free agent with the New York Jets.  Recently he made headlines for turning down an offer to re-sign with the NFL team to continue working as a railroad conductor with Norfolk Southern Railroad, a stable occupation that allow him to provide for his parents financially.   While some may scoff at his decision, I commend him for his act of self-sacrifice, and completely understand how he could make such a decision.