My 2Cents!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Newsletter all about Living with Abundance, Ditching Debt and Collecting Cash.
Welcome to the Frugal Friends NetworkSponsored by SmartCents, Inc.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Janine Bolon, Editor
Welcome to MY 2Cents!
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To opt out, please scroll down to the bottom of this newsletter. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In this Issue--The Newsletter and Web Site has a Makeover: Send your comments--Revisiting Vision--WHO WE ARE
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Note from the Editor ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dear Frugal Friend,
Wow! What a busy month April has been. Can you believe it? It is May! So, happy May Day to you, and thank you for your patience as the newsletter was revised and the web site layout was updated. I hope you like the new formats.
This month I have a ranting article on Vision. This time of year is perfect for reworking Vision -- what you want most out of life -- and for realigning your goals with the changes you have experienced as the New Year has progressed to this time.
This month also finds me hosting the long-awaited Ditching Debt While Banking Bucks Seminar in Cedar City, UT. Members of the local community have been asking me to do this event for four years, and I have finally been able locate a worthy co-speaker (financial planner Jan Geiger) and coordinate our schedules so that we can finally present it. You can learn more about the seminar at: http://www.ditchingdebtseminar.com
Lastly, stop by the new and improved web site (http://www.smartcentsinc.com) and take a look around. Iíd like your suggestions. Some of the pages are still being worked on, but then when is a web site truly ever finished, right? Please send me an email if you have recommendations, ideas, or just wish to share a link with me. If youíve found a really cool financial blog or web site or newsletter, let me know and we'll get the frugal friends network humming with additional resources and information!
Wishing you abundance,
Janine
Revisiting Vision: Time to Break Out that Eulogy/Obituary ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Research has found repeatedly over the years that most people don't look at their New Year's goals after January 15th. By the second week of the New Year, folks seem to lose their momentum to drop a few pounds, clean the garage, or get their finances in order. I want to encourage you to dust off that New Year's resolution list and look at the items that you thought were important in January. Maybe you were right! Or maybe the items you put down were not truly the really important ones that you need to work on at this point in your life. Either way, what should you be doing today? Spring is the perfect time for you to revisit an old friend and sometimes adversary, your Vision.
There is so much energy being put into your life at this time of year, what with summer approaching and all kinds of seasonal changes occurring in your life. This time of year offers a fresh perspective very similar to what you experience at the beginning of the calendar year. I know that in this newsletter I frequently remind you that a person needs Vision to become wealthy, and it is true. When you really nail down what you really, REALLY want out of life, it is almost miraculous how life moves to give you what you ask for while you work at dropping what no longer serves your goals. The challenge is seeking what you specifically want, not what you think will make you happy. What is the difference? A lot. Let's chat about the concept of vision.
Vision is the long-range plan that you set into place for your life. This idea is not a fixed-in-concrete plan. This idea is more like a road map where you get to draw (with crayon, pen or marker) the destination as well as the best route you can think of to get there. Vision is where you want to end up at the end of your life here on this big, blue marble that whirls around in space. When your friends and family say good-bye to you for the last time as they lower (toss?) your carcass into the ground, what is it that you will want to have done in your life? How will they remember you? The answer to this question is Vision.
I know I gave you this exercise in January. I described how to write out a Eulogy or Obituary to guide you in honing your Vision for this life. Well, this is the time of year for you to go back, read it over again, and see if you are actually on the right track for your end-of-life goals and whether or not you have actually been doing something about it! It may be that you have needed to deviate from your January Vision because your purpose has changed and you want to head in a different direction. That is great! Adjust to the changes in your life and move in the new direction that is appropriate for the now. However, if you've gone off track and you know that you need to get back on or rework your path, now is the time to make adjustments in your life to navigate back to your destination.
I've had many emails this year from you wonderful readers that have shared with me the power of writing down your vision and then revisiting that purpose every few months. Many of you have told me the surprises you find in your Eulogies when you reread them later. You see that you actually wrote down many things you've forgotten, but that you're now working on implementing those surprises into your life. For example:
All of you have something that you know you need to be doing. You may be a bit foggy on the exact details, but I'm pretty sure you have some clues through your hobbies, passions and day-dreaming of just what the Universe needs you to be doing to realize the most good in this life before you go. That good may be in the form of a new job, location change, or a new mindset through education. Whatever it is, here is a list of questions to get you started on learning what your Vision is for the future. (I've provided it just in case you can't find that old Obituary you wrote in January.)
1- What is it that I really want out of this life?
2- How do I wish to improve my little corner of the world for the better?
3- What do I see wrong with my community that I could set right?
4- Other than being a good mother, father, friend, aunt, uncle, sibling, what else am I to do in this life?
These are the really important questions in life. It is a given that you really want to be a good person and that you will die having lead a great life, but what about the other side? What is it that you built, created or designed that left the world a little better than you found it?
If you get stuck in this exercise, please email me (Janine@smartcentsinc.com). I will be glad to give you some help as you unlock your purpose for being here on this "Third Rock from the Sun!"
Ditching Debt While Banking Bucks Seminar in Cedar City, UT ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On May 17th, I will be presenting a one-day seminar on how to dump your debt and save money starting with your current income. No real estate programs, no risky investments, no expensive plans to buy. Just plain old goal-setting and using the 60/40 principle while decreasing your expenses.
The excellent feature of this event is my friend and colleague, Jan Geiger from Atlanta, GA. She will be flying into Cedar City to speak for the afternoon on how to invest your hard won savings without high risk ventures. She is a certified financial planner that has excellent common sense approaches to learning the money game of investing. Learn more about us and the seminar at: http://www.ditchingdebtseminar.com
Do You Have a Question for the Next Newsletter? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you've got a question you want me to address in the next newsletter, type it up and please send it to janine@smartcentsinc.com with the subject line "My 2Cents Question." If you wish to remain anonymous, not a problem! Just state that in your email.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WHO ARE WE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~SmartCents, Inc. is a company dedicated to bringing the systems of debt-free living to as many people as possible. We wish our students to go out and make their communities stronger by building financial security within their personal lives first and then demonstrating the conserver lifestyle to others.
To schedule a seminar or consultation, send your e-mail to janine@smartcentsinc.com with the subject line "Financial Services Info." You can also visit our Web site at www.smartcentsinc.com.
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Reprinted from "My 2Cents newsletter," a free ezine offering financial systems for debt reduction, wealth accumulation and the conserver lifestyle. http://www.smartcentsinc.com
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Contact Information ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~email: Janine@smartcentsinc.com web: http://www.smartcentsinc.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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