Reminder: Check your credit report
In this day and age of identity theft it is a good idea to review your credit report at least once a year. Also, studies have shown that many people have incorrect information on their credit bureaus and it effects their credit rating. You can’t report an inaccuracy that you don’t know about, so taking the time to look can be helpful. I had a student that discovered a $10,000 truck loan (that was not his) on his report and was able to get the reporting agency to remove it.
You are able to get your credit report at no charge from all three of the major reporting agencies once a year. The three reporting agencies are Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. If you have never checked your credit report then here is what it looks like to get your report:
Go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com and select your state in the “Start Here” box. At that point you will be be taken to a secure page and asked to enter your information (name, address, Social Security number, etc…). If this is your first time to the site then it should ask you to create an account. Remember, this is FREE (but this is NOT FreeCreditReport.com). Select the reporting agency (Experian, TransUnion, or Equifax) from which you would like to receive your report.
The next step is to validate your identity. There are a few multiple choice security questions you will need to answer correctly or you will not be allowed to review the report. It would be a good idea to have your mortgage statement or other credit/loan account statements nearby.
Once the questions have been answered then you are able to select the type of “products” you want to order. Do not select anything you don’t want, and it might take some searching to find a link that says something like “No thanks, just let me view my report”. This is your report at no charge. If you ever get to a page that is asking for a credit/debit card number then simply go back until you find the right link.
The three agencies report differently, but they all receive similar information. If you find something that is inaccurate then you can complete a form at www.MyFICO.com (or click here to go directly to the page) and follow the instructions.
Because you can get a free report from each of them once a year I would recommend you get the report from one of them every four months. Set a reminder in your Outlook or Google calendar and you will be in great shape.
The Next Challenge
My wife and I worked together on a shared goal in 2007. We both agreed to lose a certain amount of weight in just over 4 months or we would not take a family vacation that year. We took on the challenge and rented a condo for a week on North Reddington Beach.
Earlier last year I had the challenge of saving money for a childhood dream: Taking a convertible On Route 66 with my best friend. I used travel points for some gas cards but we did it and made the trip in August 2008. Click here to see our journey.
There wasn’t much time for the next big goal: to pay cash to remodel the kitchen. Click here to see that story.
Over the past 2 years I have started to slide on the weight lost in 2007. I would like to blame the fact that my wife is an AWESOME cook in our new kitchen or I’ve been busy traveling and it’s hard to eat healthy on the road. But I’ve just gotten lazy about eating right. When you are spoiled you get lazy, and I’m spoiled. Time for a challenge.
The GOAL: To lose 15 lbs by September 18th. The HOW: Eat right and exercise. This will be an extremely difficult challenge, not because it is only a month away but because I just told a bunch of people here on my blog. It would really suck to lose this one! But there is a really cool reward: My wife and I will attend a live simulcast of the Total Money Makeover on September 19th.
Check back every few days for updates.
And wish me luck!
Good Fortune Cookies
I recently took the local Investing ELP out to lunch. An ELP is an “Endorsed Local Provider”, one recommended by Dave Ramsey because they have the Heart of a Teacher in their respective field.
His name is Dan Hirsch (click here to read about him in a past post). I have been a client of his for at least 4 years, doing contract work for him for 2 years, and have been developing a friendship. He is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet, loves God, and “tells it like it is”. The purpose of the lunch was purely professional but we also enjoy each others friendship.
Here is the kicker: I invited him to PF Chang’s in order to learn how to advertise my counseling business without spending thousands of dollars and learn how we could strengthen a professional tie to his contacts through the Dave Ramsey ELP program. At the end of lunch I received this fortune cookie:
My fortune cookie
Dan values relationships over all things. Yes, he runs a business selling financial products – but he is only good at it because he gets to know his clients and becomes friends with many of them. He thanked me for the lunch, said he had a wonderful hour, then opened his fortune cookie:
Dan's Fortune Cookie
‘Yes God, I know you were with us. It just feels kind of weird that you wanted to remind us through our fortune cookies.’
Dave Ramsey’s Counselor Training – Day 04
- Coach Campbell and SOS
This is Coach Campbell – the Senior Corporate Trainer. He is the man who heads up the Workplace training for Financial Peace University. I met him 2 years ago when I received my certification to be a Financial Peace University @ Work Trainer. If you would like to learn more about this, go to DaveRamsey.com and click on “Workplace Trainer Certification“.
- Derrick Hoog and SOS
Then there is my twin, Derrick Hoog. Well, he isn’t really my twin – he’s much better looking (and younger by the looks of it) than I am. He also works at Financial Peace Plaza in the Workplace Division. This is the man who contacts me when a company wishes to provide solid financial teaching to their employees as a benefit (ie: He gets me the job). So I like him for three reasons: He’s a great guy, he gets me work that has purpose, and he is a sharp dresser (nice shirt).
Dave Ramsey’s Counselor Training – Day 03
Another full day of case studies, lessons, and food. But we got out a little early to go out for dinner (yes, more food). If you ever want to meet with very kind and thoughtful people then you need to meet a financial counselor who received their training from Dave Ramsey’s group. Everyone here has a big heart – and talented (in a financial way!). I’m sitting with CPAs, Attorneys, business owners, a large and wonderful group of people from all over the United States, a couple from Canada, and even one from Australia. (The Aussie is in this picture, I’ll let you try to figure it out).
By the way, the gentleman in the front of this picture and his wife (sitting across the table from him) paid off $90,000.00 in two years following the Total Money Makeover and have started a business called TheHeartOfATeacher. They sure do.
Dave Ramsey’s Counselor Training – Day 02
Day 02 of Dave Ramsey’s Financial Counselor Training. A couple case studies, lessons on how to act with (or react to) different personality styles, and another employee of the Lampo Group with an incredible background – Chris Hogan. I had never heard of Chris Hogan until this week, but this guy has an AWESOME story.
First of all you need to visualize this man. He has an incredibly booming voice, one that would make you think of Barry White. Chris used to play football and also coached the sport. He earned his master’s degree in 1995 and spent over a dozen years in the banking and financial industry. Chris shared with us the different positions and jobs he performed, and a few things he did as a collector that he isn’t proud of. Over the years he found that the products he was selling did not help his clients, but hurt them. For example, one client consolidated his credit card debt four times by re-financing the house. That is not the way to help someone find financial peace.
But he has found his calling. Chris is now a Senior Financial Counselor and Director of the Wealth Coach Program and Entertainment Sports Division for Dave Ramsey’s company. What a perfect fit! A man who use to play and coach professional sports and has a finance degree is now a financial coach for sport athletes and people with over $100,000.00 to invest. Who would you want to give you financial advice if you were a big-time football star? A little guy in a suit and a calculator or a man that used to coach who sounds like James Earl Jones? Slam dunk!
Coach Chris Hogan and SOS
To learn more about Chris you can see his profile on LinkedIn.
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Dave Ramsey’s Counselor Training – Day 01
Dave Ramsey's Counselor Training building
When your cheese is moved
A wonderfully short, entertaining, and educational book is “Who Moved My Cheese” by Spencer Johnson. It is a funny little story that colorfully describes how two sets of characters react when their “cheese is moved” (cheese being a metaphor for change). The book is less than 100 pages, so it is a quick read.
Today I was reminded of the “cheese” being moved as I walked to catch a plane at St. Louis International Airport. Less than 1,000 feet from the main security checkpoint is an awning for “Cheers”, a restaurant chain that got it’s image from a television sitcom from the 1980’s. I remember walking by this restaurant in the late 1990’s and every seat or bar stool was taken, sometimes with a line waiting to get in.
Less than 1,000 feet from the security checkpoint
But the store is closed, boarded up and nearly unidentifiable – except for the “Cheers” logo above a locked door that used to be the main entry way for food and beverages. They didn’t close because the national economy was bad, or from a salmonella outbreak from the food they served, or because the owner retired - they closed because their cheese was moved.
The majority of their customers were men, women, and children waiting for friends or family members to get off their plane, or passengers waiting for their plane to board, or people killing time during a layover or delay. But after 9-11 the nation had to make changes - we could never ever let something like that happen again. Rental car parking garages were moved off site, security checkpoint restrictions became tighter, and only ticketed passengers were allowed past those checkpoints. The gate-area restaurant’s businesses waned once non-ticketed passengers were refused entry to the gate area and the additional time it took to go through security further reduced the chances of someone arriving early enough to be able to sit and eat a quick bite.
The business model for airport restaurants changed in the days following the attacks on 9-11 – the cheese was moved. I don’t know what happened to this chain, but I hope they were able to open in another location and maintain the same level of success that they had here in the Gate D area.
Don’t forget the lessons learned
Can you feel it? It’s just beginning to show up, but a gradual change for the better is happening all around you. How do I know? You could say it is just a feeling, but I have noticed that most of the headline news is concentrating on the less-sensational economic stories. For example: The New York Times today is featuring stories about Judge confirmation hearings, a prison trial in Cambodia, insurgents in Afghanistan, a gay ban, and other miscellaneous articles. The economic-type news says Goldman Sachs is having a good time, Intel results are giving hope to the industry, and 7-Eleven is planning on opening 200 more stores. The signs are there.
How did you weather the storm? Did you cut expenses? Did you sell some stuff you didn’t need or couldn’t afford? Did you save money? Don’t forget the lesson learned over the past 12 months.
America is a country of boundless opportunities. Everything we want is within our grasp. Example: I’m hungry at 1am – I can go through a Taco Bell drive-thru if I want. Entertainment? I can turn on the television and surf the 100+ channels for hours or even order a movie that was in the theaters just three months ago without leaving my couch! The water coming out of my sink is clean enough to drink or clean the dishes. Vacation? Education? Retire? We can have anything we want if we pay the right price for it. Unfortunately, our society is so product-driven and A.D.D. that we can quickly fall back into the same habits.
If you made changes to your financial life and no one is going hungry or had to move into their parents house to “make ends meet” then keep it up! Don’t let the world see us fall right back into the old habits that caused so much pain! Instead, keep paying off debts, save a little cash on the side, and then start investing for your future. You have already done the hard work – don’t go waste all the money you saved in fear to buy a new car or take an extravagant vacation when the market recovers. Take care of your household first, SAVE more money and THEN go out and buy stuff with CASH!
If you are like me and want a step-by-step plan to follow then I suggest you follow Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover plan. You can view a summary of his “7 Baby Steps” on getting out of debt and building wealth by going to www.DaveRamsey.com and click on “7 Baby Steps” in the Useful Tools section.
It’s a common-sense plan that will work if YOU work it!
