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Introduction to my 11 part Life or Debt (LOD) Home Study Course.  Topics to be covered: Increasing your income, cutting your expenses, calculating your net worth, creating a budget and much more.

America is about to hit $1,000,000,000,000 (TRILLION) in credit card debt for the first time in its history.  What's going on?  Why is this happening?  The problems are complex but they can be traced to inflation and wage stagnation.  If we're going to reduce or eliminate our credit card debts as individuals, we need to focus on two things: cutting expenses and finding ways to increase our income.

Stephen Covey wrote a book called The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People where he talked about how to increase your circle (sphere) of influence.  There are things outside of our sphere of influence that we can't control.  But there is also a sphere we can control and EXPAND our control by practicing four (4) things:  What can we START doing, What can we do MORE of, What can we STOP doing and what can we do LESS of in order to get ahead.  Starting and doing More are two positives actions we can take.  Stop and Less are actions we need to cease or reduce order to be more efficient and effective.

Here are 10 Mistakes people make when wanting a higher salary. #1: Never Asking.  You have to ask!  85% of managers expect you to ask for a raise #2: You hear something negative and your demeanor changes; you get defensive.  they can read you. #3: Key is to challenge but NEVER argue.  #4: Stubborn.  Be open to being wrong and simply say “You’re right, that’s one area I need to work on” #5: Mistake: Never talk about hardships and that’s the reason you want a raise! #6: Mistake: Not asking for the raise.  Salary.com study found; 21% fear of getting fired, 60% fear of getting fired or rejected.  Asked MGRS, did you fire someone for asking for a raise, 0%. #7: At the end of the meeting, try to summary (take notes) on the points discussed #8: After the meeting, write out your notes and email your boss with a “Summary of Meeting” to write out your points, any agreed upon course of action(s) and Expectations on both ends. #9: Send a followup email with the notes you've taken regarding action items and things that have to happen. #10: Study: Economist Linday Babcock Carnegie Mellon University, “By not negotiating their job (salary) at the beginning of their career, their leaving anywhere from 1-1.5M on the table in lost earnings over one’s lifetime.  (Snowball effect, compound interest) You can find more information at: www.Financialtoughness.com  

Episode 3: In this episode of Financial Toughness I'm going to talk about How to Negotiate for a Higher Salary Raise using my six-step process.  You're going to learn what to say and how to prepare for the meeting with your manager or boss.  Before we jump into the process, let's talk about: The Tough Economy, Inflation at 3% and wage stagnation.  Salary.com study: 84% of managers expect you to ask for a raise.  So, you should ask!  I have a 6 Step Plan for negotiating a higher salary:   Step 1: Pre-Preparation The best time to prepare for a salary negotiation session is not a week or so before the meeting.  No!  Three months leading up to the raise, get in gear.  I want you to go above and beyond (e.g., spend more hours, cover someone else, get involved with team projects, etc.)   Step 2: Quantify your value.  During those 3 months  I want you to document all the tangible results you are bringing. Increase revenue, Cut costs or Increase the client base Step 3: Know what you want to ask for by researching comparable salaries: Go to www.salary.com and find what the range it. Then go to a JOB website and search for your position and see what the going rate is. Base on your findings, you’ll know how MUCH you should negotiate for. Step 4: Add a few $$ or percentage points to what you’re going to ask for.  For example, if you want a 5% raise, ask for 8% and back it up with your VALUE.  If they give it to you, great!   But, if they negotiate down, to 5% YOU'RE happy and the manager feels like they also won;  win- win. Step 5:  Prepare your argument Use the information you gather in step 1 and 2 and also present your research and finding online about salaries and “comparable value”. Step 6: The Meeting Scenario A:  Boss says, "You get to go first:  “How do you think you’re doing?”  You say, “I knew you were going to ask that question, so I’ve prepared a few things."  Scenario B:  Boss starts and they go first and tell you.  Listen carefully especially for point of disagreement.  so when it’s your turn, stick to your plan, but along the way, address those points of disagreement.  

Episode 2 - As the host of Life or Debt, I challenge families to come up with their Magic Number.  That's is the amount of money they need to make in order to live the life they want to live.  The Magic Number covers all your expenses, housing, paying down debt and saving for the emergencies, retirement or college for the kids.  Learn how to calculate YOUR magic number in this episode.

Episode 1: In this episode of Financial Toughness I tackle the tough question of whether or not college tuition should be free.  I also ask the question, "Even if it was free, is it really free?"  This podcast pulls back the current to reveal the "Stinking Thinking" many people have about how the market responds when government steps in and makes things "free".