3. Control your finances

{Tips courtesy of Dave Ramsey's Facebook page}

You guys. I have a confession. I secretly wish I was Dave Ramsey. I think what he is doing is amazing.  With the economy the way it is, in my opinion it all boils down to one thing. People are spending money that they don't have. Period. I could seriously go into wayyyy too much detail about all of my opinions about money, blah blah blah...but I'm trying to keep it short and sweet.

Let me just start by saying this. Money is a necessary evil. You can't live without it. It is usually the number one reason for divorce. It doesn't matter how much of it or how little of it you have, it's always an issue and is usually always an argument with your spouse or family. 

1. Avoid debt like the plague. Every dollar you borrow today will cost you $3 to pay back tomorrow. (I totally pulled that number out of thin air. It all depends on interest rates, length of loan, etc.) People don't understand that taking out a mortgage on a $200,000 house for 30 years at a 3.0% interest rate is actually costing them the asking price of $200,000 plus $180,000 in interest at the end of their 30 year loan period. That means that at the end of your 30 year loan, you will have paid $380,000 for your house, almost double the cost. Paying interest is like flushing money down the toilet. Don't do it if you don't have to!
2. Understand the difference between wants and needs. Nowadays too many wants are being justified as needs. (Guilty as charged. I NEED those cute shoes on sale at Target or I will die!!!!)
3. Understand how much of your paycheck is actually taken home. For example, 10% of everything we make goes to our church for tithing. Then 15% goes to Uncle Sam. That's already 1/4 or our paycheck gone before we even pay our bills. Don't let your bills take up the rest!!!
4. Save save save. You never know when life is gonna give you lemons. My husband was unemployed for two months last year and having savings saved us. (No pun intended.)

5. Don't be afraid to say no. Friends, family, strangers, organizations, etc. all want your money. Are they all going to be around when you are putting your kids through college? Or when you lose your job? NO. Don't hand your hard earned money out like candy.

Yikes this post is making me feel really guilty about my target trip last night. Here's to making better financial decisions this year!!!