GET OUT OF DEBT: 6 STEPS YOU NEED TO TAKE

The New Year is full of hope and excitement. Many are looking forward to a bright year ahead. This includes goals like having a new car, promotion at work, increase income, better relationships, better house, and probably more travels. The list goes on. 

For me, I have decided that I will look for ways to increase my earning capacity for two reasons: to speed up the process of paying my debts and to celebrate my birthday in May, my first since I can remember! I want to save towards that meaningful event of my life when I turn 60. What A blessing!

I am posting this article by MMarquit entitled "Get Out Of Debt: 6 Steps You Need To Take" (Coupon Shoebox). The thing that really cool about this article is it's simple and easy to do. My wife and I start our year by revisiting our last year's budget and making changes to arrive at our 2012 budget. Part of that process is listing all of our debts as suggested in item no. 3.

I know it will be of great help to you as you do what MMarquit says. Cheers and Happy New year!

One of the most important financial lessons that you can learn is that debt is prison. Indeed, when you are paying interest on your debt, that money is going straight into someone else’s bank account — and you receive nothing in return. Plus, paying that interest makes it harder to pay down the principal and to reduce your debt. Even though it might be difficult to get out of debt, it is doable. Here are the steps you can take to get out of debt.

1. Really Decide That You’re Getting Out Of Debt

The first thing you have to do is decide that you are really committed to getting out of debt. You need to truly want to change the way you do things, and get serious about paying down your debt and getting on the path to financial freedom. Without the commitment to get out of debt, you are likely to give up.

2. Stop Adding To Your Debt

Take a look at your budget, and figure out how you can better live within your means. Before you can effective tackle your debt problems, you need to stop making purchases with debt. Look at your spending, and cut back on the unnecessary items so that you are living within your means.

3. List All Of Your Debt

Next, list all of your debts. List the balances, minimum payments and interest rates. Decide on an order to pay them off. Many people like the “debt snowball” method. You take that lowest balance debt, and concentrate on that first. This method is psychologically rewarding, since you see success faster, and are encouraged to keep going. Others, though, prefer to start with the debt with the highest interest rate, since it will save more money in the long run, since you will get rid of the most expensive debt faster.

4. Decide How Much You Can Put Toward Debt Pay Down

Now that you have prioritized your debt list, it’s time to figure out how much money you can put toward your debt pay down. Honestly evaluate your spending, and look for places to cut back. You should be able to find waste in your spending, and, instead of spending it on frivolities, put it toward paying off your debt. Pay the current minimum on all of your debts, except the one at the top of your list. Put your debt pay down amount toward that debt. The more you can put toward it, the better.

5. Look For Ways To Earn More To Speed Up The Process

If you want to speed up your debt repayment process, you can look for ways to earn more money. Start a side hustle. Get a part-time job. It’s only for a little while. If you can put your debt repayment efforts into overdrive, you can be free that much sooner — and you will reap the benefits.

6. Acknowledge Your Successes

You can stay motivated when you acknowledge your successes and take time to reward yourself. Don’t go big though — you want to stay out of debt. But you can hold a little celebration, or you can retire each debt in a creative way. Buy a small treat, or cook your favorite dinner at home. Be sure to mark each milestone, and get excited about your next step toward success.

Looking forward to 2012, debt-free,

Jimmy

P.S. Last year, I decided to start blogging in my desire to create a new stream of income. However, as I learn how to blog, I found that beyond making money, I can express my passion and help others find answers to their problems and challenges. Today, I am grateful to my mentor, Jomar Hilario, for teaching me how to blog and hopefully to be like him someday. If you are interested in blogging, why don't you join me at Online Mentoring Club.

Photo Credit: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/files-with-labels-royalty-free-image/92347801

Thank You For The Blessings!

I am grateful to God for this year 2011. Looking back, I see many blessings that have come my way.  It is always good to count our blessings, list them and thank God for them.

I have learned that nothing is solved by thinking and focusing on my problems.  Focusing on the negative things that happened in my life, including thoughts on how to deal with DEBTS, make these problems bigger than what they really are. So, why waste time thinking about the negative things?

Today, I would like to thank and praise God for these blessings:

1. My wife, Maritess, who has been very loving, understanding and supportive of me
2. My 3 daughters, who have grown to love the Lord and are now professionals in their own right
3. My son-in-law, Allan and our first grandson, Jesse Alexandre
4. My Pastors and mentors: Colin Shaw and Ian Shelton
5. My brothers, who are very caring, brotherly and fatherly to me: Larry, Ralph and Butch Plus their wives, Gina Mae, Del and Babylin respectively
6. My dear close friends, many of them, imagine that? Wow. Ramon & Elvira, Andy & Cristy, Edna C., Gene & Zeny, Edna & Ador, Daisy, Bing & Virgie, Dennis & Divine,  Bong, Gwyn, Rose, hah-- too many to mention... thank God for each one of them
7. My house of 14 years 
8. My 17 years old Toyota Corolla, which is ably maintained by Chief Ruel Larrosa, owner of Exalta Auto Shop in Banawe, Quezon City. Thanks so much, Chief
9. My dear sisters Jean and Julie
10. My brothers, Jessie (my disciple)& his wife, Greta and Nonoy
11. My good friends, Adel Lacson, German, Domeng Jose, Radley
12. My new pairs of Hush puppies shoes
13. The gifts I received this Christmas: A pair of Sanuk shoes, pink shirt, hankies, Samsonite laptop bag, too many to mention too
14. Uno Overseas, for the job and opportunity to preach the Gospel to our Interns going to Japan
15. For the health card provided by CRC and Uno, a big help for Maritess and I
16. For the money we receive every payday
17. For Jomar Hilario, my internet marketing mentor 
18. For the almost weekly massage at Rilassante Spa located at Banawe infront of the Orthopedic Hospital
19. For the discounted Dr. Pi Water from Tere and Mario Lontok, hehehe
20. For the Scalar Pendant and Scalar Flask we bought from Adel. It really helps increase my energy level daily and in lowering my blood pressure. Try it
21. For the Mercy, Grace and lovingkindness of the Lord Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior!

There are many more. I tell you, if you try writing them, you'll never run out of things to thank God for.  I have made it my New Year's resolution to count my blessings everyday in order to overshadow the seemingly negative things that try to disturb me every now and then. 

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good for His mercies endures forever!

May the coming year be a blessing to us all.

May the Lord Bless you and keep you. May His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May His  countenance be upon you and give you peace!

May 2012 be the start of a debt-free life for all of us.

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

A Dream Come True

I would like to sincerely thank Manuel Viloria for featuring Debt Free Life Philippines in his very popular  Online Marketing Philippines

When I first joined Jomar Hilario's The Online Mentoring Club, Manny was one of those who made me feel welcome in the club and have encouraged me to blog.

When he made a challenge to feature my blog provided I write at least 5 (or more) original articles in my blog, I took it. I was excited because he is very popular in the blogging world. It pushed me to do something I couldn't do, to write articles.

I have not reached my goal yet, but with mentors like Manny Viloria and Jomar Hilario, I know I will achieve my goal of making money online and then helping others the way these guys are helping a lot of people now.

Again, thank you Manny for the very good review of  Debt Free Life Philippines.

Really, if you want to do something, it starts with a DECISION.

To our debt-free life,
Jimmy

2 Things You Can Do With Debt

On my way to the office, I have breakfast at Burger King near the Rotunda in Quezon City. Why not? You see, almost daily, I bring my breakfast, which is prepared for me by my cousin. Do you want to know what my favorite breakfast is? 

My Morning Power Drink
Well, before we go there, I also want you to know that we follow a daily regimen of drinking a dose of Vitamin C, the natural way. Everyday I squeeze Twenty Eight (28) pieces of the local lemon called "Calamansi"in a glass and drink it. That's it! I learned this from Bo Sanchez in his 52 Healing Habits. My wife and I take 28 pieces of Calamansi (local lemon) each almost daily. This is our morning power drink! Uhmm, why did I tell you that? Why do we drink Calamansi? Well, Click this, and let Bo explain it to you better.

Breakfast
Back to my favorite breakfast, One (1) hour after drinking our morning power drink. My favorite breakfast is Fried DILIS (anchovies) with cut tomatoes and a cup of rice! Almost daily!!!!! 


Frugality
You see, I save a lot by bringing my favorite breakfast with me and eat it in my office. Savings is the issue here. If I eat at McDonalds or in this case at Burger King, it will cost me P125.00! Compared to my favorite Dilis (anchovies) breakfast which will cost me only less than P25.00! That's a lot of savings! Every centavo counts if we are serious in getting rid of our debts.


Treat for me
But that day, I can afford to treat myself for breakfast at BK. You see, in our budget, my wife and I allocated an amount for "Entertainment". The money put in this item can be used for treating ourselves or our friends. We can do this because there is a budget for it.


Two (2) Things you can do
Now back to my main issue about debt. Do you know that debt is a reality of life. If you are in debt, there are two things you can do: 
1. You can accept it
2. You can do something about it


If you accept it, you wallow in it and it becomes your lifestyle. You will have every reason why you are in debt and will be in debt. But the truth is, nobody wants to be a slave to debt and to a creditor. 


Another way is to do something about your debt. I recently had an exchange of ideas with Bradd Chaffee. I posed a question on how one can get rid of his debt if his income is not even enough to cover his expenses. He gave me a simple but practical answer: increase your income! Whoaaa! So simple yet we often miss it. 


The best way to get rid of debt, after doing all you can to reduce it, is to increase your potential to earn more money. How do we do that? SELL ANYTHING!

• Sell items that are stored in your house and have not been used for a long time
• Buy and sell item on Sulit.com.ph. I know people who makes money doing this on the internet. LAWAY lang and puhunan. Their capital is just their "Saliva".
• Recently, I attended a real estate seminar because I want to explore selling REAL ESTATE PROPERTIES. If you sell MILLIONS worth you get MILLIONS too.
• So SELL, SELL, SELL ANYTHING THAT WILL GET YOU INCREASE IN INCOME.

But many people are afraid to go into selling. Here's my recommendation: Be willing to be trained. Invest in yourself by training yourself how to get those deals that will give you increase in INCOME. I tell you, you will never be the same again.

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

P.S. Recently, I enrolled in Jomar Hilario's Online Mentoring Club so I could learn how to blog. It's been almost six (6) months and I am getting better. This blog that you are reading is a product of what he is teaching me. I have not yet submitted this blog and monetize it through Google Adsense. Once I do that, I start earning passive income.


P.S.S. I plan to invest again in myself and plan to attend Jomar's Online Wealth Breakthrough Seminar to be held on June 28, 2011. You see I want to move to the next level and I need to be equipped to know how to SELL products through the internet. I want to bridge the gap between my skills in blogging and my GOALS, to earn extra income!!!!

I MET JOMAR HILARIO

It has been my desire to meet my mentor personally since I became a student of the Online Mentoring Club. Finally, last week, April 30, at the Think Rich Quick (TRQ) Seminar of Trace Trajano, I met my mentor, Jomar Hilario! In just the span of five minutes of talking with him, I learned a lot. The funny thing was when he asked me who I was. He had a hard time recalling my name. But when I mentioned to him about my BLOG, Debt Free Life! Philippines, he immediately remembered. To me, it means only one thing! He reads and studies my blogs!

Thank you, Jomar. In my amazement, I forgot one thing though... to have a photo op with him. Well, maybe next time. I’ll have that privilege when I join the Breakthrough Seminar.

Every successful person has a MENTOR. Manny Pacquiao has Freddie Roach. He is a billionaire. I have Jomar Hilario, and I am a millionaire!

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

P.S. Internet Marketing and blogging will earn you passive income. One sure way you can erase your debt. That’s one reason why I enrolled in Jomar Hilario’s Online Mentoring Club. More than the technical information and techniques that I have learned, my mentor opened my eyes to new opportunities and possibilities of MAKING MONEY ONLINE!

You too can.! Be mentored and be the next Online Internet Marketing guru. 

A COMING CHANGE IN YOUR INCOME

Lately, I have been discussing with my “friends” about the possibilities of adding new streams of income. The reason behind this is obviously the need for more money to pay off a lot of things, including mounting DEBTS.

Lately, I met someone who earns P60,000 a month just working at home! She works as a virtual assistant or VA to those of us that are techies. Her income is a lot better than many of those working in Makati offices. She will be moving to her own apartment. She is misunderstood by her family because she works in the evening. She does book reviews. Compared to those working as employees, her income is a lot higher and better! No traffic, no office politics, and no uniforms.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/55573153@N00/113524107

My friends, some of whom are full time moms and employees, became interested when I told them about Jomar Hilario’s Manila VA Seminar. They are inspired by stories of people earning even if they stay home as Virtual Assistants. Jomar says, when you're at home, you'll rediscover your real joys, your family and your own time.

You can change and improve your finances by adding a new stream of income as a virtual assistant working on your free time or at home. Today you can make that choice! Join Jomar’s Manila VA Seminar this coming May 28, 2011.

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

P.S. If you want a change in your income, one sure way is to sign up right away for the Manila VA Seminar. Limited seats, I understand. 

Discounted Fee: P 2,375/$ 53 pay on or before May 18,2011 

Normal Fee: P 2,675, pay on or before May 27,2011
Walk In Fee: Pay on Tue, May 28,2011 is P 2,975

#1 Reason Why I blog

I am a Pastor and a businessman. After working for Fujitsu Philippines for 17 years, I retired in 2000 and went into the ministry.  In 2008, I went back to the marketplace to manage a recruitment agency, UNO Overseas Placement, Inc. We send Filipino skilled workers to Japan under the Technical Intern Training System of the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization (JITCO). Part of the training we give to our Interns is the “Work Ethics and Values Seminar”.

The Work Ethics and Values Seminar was designed to help our Filipino Interns cope with life in Japan and equip them to face their future with both emotional and spiritual substance. The most important aspect of this 3-day seminar is changing the way these interns think. Most of them come from the province and urban areas. As such, ingrained in them is the poverty-mentality.

Seeing them wallow in poverty and in debt even before they leave for Japan, I made it my goal to help them be set free from this evil bondage. To break a bad habit of living in debt is not easy. The initial step towards freedom is to teach them to change the way they think and then increase their literacy about finances. So far, we have made progress. We believe money is not the answer to living a debt-free life. When they learn to manage their finances properly as good stewards of what God has given them and then take on an “investor mentality” as opposed to a “consumer mentality”, the interns begins to see that they can prosper!

I love helping our interns or OFWs change the way they think!

Last week, one of our interns came home after a 3-year contract in Japan. He is now a millionaire! What is his secret? He followed our advise by diligently saving 30,000 Yen a month! Now, his plan is to invest part of it in a food franchise.  Indeed, there is hope for our OFWs.

Last year, I became a member of Truly Rich Club. I am now incorporating the principles that I’ve learned and tested from Truly Rich Club to our interns. It is easy for them to understand financial literacy when they see how it works!

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

P.S. I became more passionate to see our OFWs set free from poverty-mentality. Late last year, I decided to do online marketing and took Bo’s recommendation to enroll in Jomar Hilario’s Online Mentoring Club. I am now in my 4^th month as a student of Jomar Hilario. I am making progress and one day, I will be sharing with them what I’ve learned.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/38307206@N02/3634843977

This blog is part of our lesson. Honestly, it was the monetary returns that motivated me to do blogging. Today, I found the real reason for my blogging: to help my “Kababayans” specially our interns and OFWs, be set free from wallowing in debt.  If I can show them how to be free through my blogs, I would have done a good job. That’s why, now I love blogging!  

5 Simple Ways to Erase Debt

I used to owe a lot of people and credit card companies. I was deep and wallowing in debt. I had a good job, driving my own car yet deep in debt. I didn’t know how to manage my money. I was loose.

Then one day, I received a demand letter from a law office, threatening me to pay or else? Being a young, I didn’t know how to handle the threat. I felt like it was a shock treatment. I learned my lesson. I decided to do something about my debt. I talked to the credit card company manager and asked for practical way to pay my debt. Yes, slowly but surely I was paying and getting out of debt.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/17642817@N00/3378489363


I learned to prioritize my expenses. It was like starting all over again. Somebody taught me how to budget. It was simple but effective. I used a simple system called the “envelope” system. Each time I received my pay, I put money on each envelope, starting with “debt payments” envelope then the rest. My life changed. I cut down on self-indulgent activities and stuck to my budget.

When I got married, the first thing we did was to make a budget. My wife, my lovely wife, Maritess and I agreed to have a budget and stuck with it. I got out of my credit card debt. So, it was a good start!

Today, we still work on a budget. We do this at the start of the year. We review it at the middle of the year and assess it at the end of the year.

Here are 5 simple ways to erase your debt:

1.        Decide you want to get out of debt.

2.        Do something about it. Contact all creditors, honestly relate your problems, and arrange an equitable repayment plan. Creditors love it when you talk to them sincerely. And you know what? They will agree with your repayment plan.

3.        Destroy all credit cards. Buy on a cash basis, and sacrifice your wants and desires until you are current.

4.        Make a budget. Establish a payment schedule and allocate at least 5% of your income for debt payments.

5.       Stick with your budget. If the expense is not in the budget, do not proceed. Be disciplined.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50715604@N07/4882450962


Yes, discipline is an integral part of this debt-free process.  My coach in “Vertical Leap”, Al Hollingsworth, defined Discipline as “delayed gratification”.

Why stay in bondage to your debt? You can live a debt-free life now. Just make a decision!

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy Ching

P.S. This year, instead of focusing on not getting into debt, I decided to increase my income by creating additional income stream. I have joined Jomar Hilario’s “The O.nline Mentoring Club”. He’s helping me make money online.. right now! Jomar is one of the Philippines' foremost online business guru. He has helped a lot of people become internet entrepreneurs. What I am learning from Jomar, I wish I did when I was younger. But, the good thing is you can always start anytime you decide to do something about your situation. Today I am being mentored by one of the best in online business guru. How about you?