Straight Talk on Debt: Everyone Has a Choice

Every morning when I wake up I am blessed with the freedom of choice; coffee or tea, oatmeal or eggs, and yes even the choice to spend or save.

We are all faced with choices each and every day on everything from breakfast to our finances and making the "right" choices is not always an easy task (I really would like to eat pancakes every morning).

For some of us the "wrong' choices have landed us in debt. But don't let those choices haunt you forever; there is always the chance to make "smarter" choices. This week's reading is all about making choices; we all make mistakes sometimes but armed with this information you will be able to make educated choices when it comes to your finances. In other words choosing eggs, over pancakes.

To Spend or Not to Spend 

• Conscious Spending: What is It? @MarriedWithDebt "According to Ramit Sethi, conscious spending is simply laying out a plan in advance for how you will spend your money. This includes bills, groceries, entertainment, investing, saving, hobbies, etc. By laying it all out in advance, you are making deliberate decisions with your money." 
• The Real Purpose of Tracking Your Spending @MoneyCrush "But tracking your spending can change your life. That's because the real purpose of tracking your spending is to give you insight into what you're actually doing (instead of what you think you're doing.)" 
• Can You Live a Cash Only Life? @AllFinance "This may sound like a silly question but credit card companies would lead you to believe it is not possible to live a cash only life. Their marketing teams push hard to make us believe life without a credit card is just not possible." 
• Your Bad Financial Choices Affect Others @applecsmith "Even if you're a young single person with no kids, your personal choices still have a ripple affect on the people you care about." 

• Got Kids? Here are 10 Tax Benefits For Parents @TheMoneyCoach "Little wonder that, in the past decade alone, the cost of raising a child from birth to age 18 has risen nearly 40% to $226,920. And since those figures don't even include college, just send my husband and me to the poorhouse now. We've got three kids to raise, and every year the costs of everything seem to only increase."　

Talk About it or Keep Quiet 

• Premarital Financial Advice @ontargetcoach "Why is money so important to discuss before you are married? Money is #1 reason for fights in a marriage and also the #1 reason for divorce. This is serious." 

Pay off Debt or Keep Charging

• Pay Off Debt Faster by Using the Right Financial Tools @EnemyofDebt "The fact is that you are more likely to pay off your debt if you have a plan to guide you through the mud. Let's face it. We need to see and visualize what we're doing and how long it will take. If we say we want to pay off our debt but have no idea when it will happen, chances are we won't make much progress towards reaching that goal." 

• Want to Get Out of Debt Fast? Just Use Super Powers! @SoOverDebt "Getting out of debt really isn't very exciting. Don't get me wrong - sometimes I squeal a little when I make an extra payment, and I threw a virtual party when I paid off all my credit cards - but I've noticed that the process is largely full of dull milestones over years of hard work." 

Eat Healthy or Unhealthy 

• 20 Simple Ways to Live a Healthy, Happy Life @MoneyCrashers "You don't need to make a resolution to improve your life, as there are many simple changes you can make at any time. To be happy and healthy does not require a lot of money or time - just a little desire and motivation." 
• What We Think vs. What We Do: America's Nutrition Evolution (Infographic) @FrugalDad "I think it's important to save money on your food, and to not overindulge by eating fast food for the sake of cheapness or convenience. Your health and the food you eat and your family eats are worth investing in-balance frugality with quality and conscientious choices. They aren't mutually exclusive."

Photo Credit

Suzanne Cramer   

Suzanne is a certified credit counselor and a Social Media Specialist for CareOne Debt Relief Services. Suzanne writes for Divorce, Debt and Finances and A Straight Talk on Debt. Follow Suzanne on Twitter @SuzanneCramer1  and @AskCareOne where she shares her insights on divorce and managing your finances.