Hope for your financial life and beyond

How to Make a New Year Resolution That Works For You

December 27, 2021 by 7 Comments

Once again we face the turn of the calendar to January which means you may be thinking about making a new year resolution. It’s quite normal to think about all you want to accomplish in the year ahead. Having targets to shoot for is important to move forward in life. Without direction, your life will grow stagnant and directionless. It will have no spark.

new year resolutionBut just thinking about a new year resolution isn’t enough. You have to develop a definitive plan of action. This plan becomes the step-by-step guide that will help you accomplish what you want.

In order to get your plans on the right track, you have to decide on the right type of goal. Goals are hard enough to reach. And I’m convinced that we ultimately frustrate ourselves in the goal-reaching process by not making the right type of goals in the first place. Consequently, we end up drifting aimlessly because we did not have the proper starting point.

So how do you set goals that will help your new year resolution become a reality? Above all they must contain a few basic elements.

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What Contributes More to Financial Change – Knowledge or Behavior?

June 8, 2015 by 11 Comments

Several weeks ago I finished leading my most recent Financial Peace University class. I love leading Dave Ramsey’s FPU classes because the people there are eager for change. They know something is not right and are looking for a financial change.

financial changeTwo things are needed though for them to head in that new direction. One, they have to understand why financial change is needed. I call this gaining knowledge. Our mind has to become aware of something we didn’t know before. That awareness eventually leads to the change.

However, knowledge isn’t enough. We also must look at behavior. More often than not it’s our behavior that gets us into financial trouble. If we don’t alter our patterns of behavior financial change is not possible.

I think we can all agree that both are needed. My question today is, “Which one is most important? Which one contributes more to financial change?” You can make an easy case for either, but in the end I believe one is the clear winner.

The Case For Knowledge

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How I Got Financially Real in 5 Minutes

April 27, 2015 by 32 Comments

Up until seven years ago I lived with the delusion that I had no money problems. Everything seemed fine to me. We were paying bills on time, building our credit score and saving/investing money along the way.

What more do you need than that, right?

The truth however didn’t match reality. I was an over-spender…a chronic over-spender. Every month we were spending more than we made. (Well, it probably wasn’t every month but it sure seemed that way.)

Like so many others who live on credit and spend, spend, spend, I was content to keep walking that path. That was until I had an encounter I’ll never forget.

The five-minute encounter changed my life.

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How to Stop Making Bad Money Mistakes Again and Again

February 2, 2015 by 13 Comments

Have you made a lot of money mistakes in life? I sure have. Some of mine seemed to happen over and over again. After awhile, they end up becoming bad habits of thinking and acting that impact the course of my life.

money mistakesWhen habits become ingrained we have a difficult time changing our mind and consequently the actions that follow. It’s like we become Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, living the same day over and over, making the wrong decisions again and again.

If you find yourself in this situation, take hope. Turning the corner is possible. We do not have to be bound and determined to live a mistake-prone life.

How to Stop Making Money Mistakes

Whether it’s money mistakes other issues of life, the path can be altered. When I keep making the same mistakes over and over I work through these steps.

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The Government Won’t Solve Your Money Problems

November 3, 2014 by 23 Comments

In case you didn’t know, tomorrow is a mid-term election day in the U.S. If you live here I really don’t understand how you could not know it’s a voting day given the emphasis placed on it by the news media and advertising groups for months now. It should be interesting given the frustration many people in both parties are having with functioning of the current government.

Capitol Hill Everyone has their reasoning for why they chose to vote or choose not to vote. That reasoning can easily turn elections to one side or the other. In the past presidential election, we now know that 4 million conservatives stayed home, choosing not to vote. That groundswell of opposition and apathy towards their candidate followed by their subsequent inaction when it came to voting turned the election for the incumbent.

Whatever your political persuasion, I hope your beliefs are deep enough that money isn’t the only consideration when it comes to choosing an elected official. Too often voters only vote with their wallet, casting a ballot for the candidate they think will improve the economy, thus making their financial life better off than it currently is. I’m not saying the issue of improving the economy should be ignored. We just can’t base our entire decision on that one factor.

Money isn’t everything.

The Government and Your Money Problems

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Bad Personal Finance Habits Only Change When the Pain Spikes

April 9, 2014 by 23 Comments
frustrated, pain

Are your bad money habits causing pain?

All of us are a mixture of logic and emotion. We think and we feel. The two interact continuously with one another – mind acting upon the emotions and emotions acting upon the mind.

One of the toughest emotions we deal with is pain. We know it’s going to come from various sources and in varying intensities throughout our life. So we prepare for it as best we can, hoping we don’t have to endure great amounts of it along the way.

The personal finance portion of our lives can’t escape the issue of pain. In fact, our habits often facilitate the onset of pain because we make poor decisions with money. We spend too much, fail to pay off debts and don’t plan for what the future holds.

The problem is that we seem to be OK with certain levels of pain. We may get frustrated about it, but most pain is not powerful enough to force us to drastically change our patterns of behavior. Instead, we endure all kinds of abusive relationships, deplorable job situations, poor physical fitness levels and sinful behaviors until the pain engulfs us.

I believe for real change to happen we need to experience pain levels so severe they lead us to scream “I’ve had it!” At that moment, our mind is ready to make changes that will alter behavior and subsequently move us forward.

The “I’ve Had It!” Moment Visualized

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We Are One Heartbeat Away From a Life Changing Moment

March 21, 2014 by 12 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #33 – “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.” – Proverbs 27:1

life changing

Sports fans watching their Wednesday late night highlight reels witnessed some stunning footage of Cincinnati Reds pitcher Aroldis Chapman being drilled in the head from a batted ball by Kansas City Royals player Salvador Perez. It’s a “Gasp…OMG!” moment, as Chapman lay sprawled on the ground, writhing in pain.

For those able to stomach grisly injury videos, the scene can be found here at ESPN.

Reports today are that Chapman suffered a few fractured bones and a mild concussion. He will have surgery to implant some steel plates in his head and miss about 6-8 weeks of the regular season. I’m amazed that’s the extent of his injuries and am thankful he is fine.

Let me rephrase that…I’m thankful he’s alive.

The speed and suddenness at which this incident happened, reminded me of a Monday night football game I watched in 1985. On that night, Giant’s linebacker Lawrence Taylor sacked Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann, snapping his leg in two. That fateful flea-flicker play that took only a few seconds ended Theismann’s career. Anyone who was there or watching on TV will say it’s the most gruesome sports injury ever.

Events like these remind me we are one heartbeat away from a life changing moment.

Reacting to Life Changing Fastballs

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What Ritz Crackers ‘n Cheese Dip Taught Me About Breaking Routines

January 31, 2014 by 25 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #26 – “And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw.” – II Kings 6:17

Ritz 1I have a guilty snack pleasure confession to make. I love Kraft Handi-Snacks Ritz Crackers ‘n Cheese Dip.  Four crackers…compartment of processed cheese…sealed together in perfect harmony. Simply pull the plastic tab off the top and enjoy the yummy cheese ‘n cracker goodness. And only 100 calories to boot.

I’ve loved these all my life despite one annoying feature about the product…the little red stick. The 2” red stick has never worked for me. My irritation revolves around two things: cheese distribution and cracker stability.

First off, if you want the same amount of cheese on all the crackers you have to control how much cheese is spread onto each cracker. The stick makes this difficult. I usually end up putting too much cheese on the first cracker and then having none left for the last one.

The stick is also renowned for breaking the cracker in half, unless you hold it daintily with your pinky up like you are sipping a cup of tea. The cracker must be laid out on a completely flat surface or there is a greater than average chance the cracker splits when the stick spreads on the cheese glob. Don’t try to hold the cracker in the palm of your hand or between your thumb and index finger either. Neither of those methods solves the soft cracker vs. hard stick problem.

Clearly I have issues.

I’ve put up with that red stick for 25+ years, resigned to the fact I have to use it. That all changed recently, when I had a Handi-Snacks revelation.

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Filed Under: Hidden Nuggets Series, Random Fun Tagged With: , ,

Burn the Obstacles: Getting Rid of the Junk That Holds You Back

August 18, 2013 by 9 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #6  – “Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.” – Acts 19:18-20

What’s standing in the way of you and an awesome life?

fireA few pounds?

A damaging relationship?

A pessimistic attitude?

An addiction?

A spiritual connection?

Sometimes it’s tough to see what’s holding us back. In general, we don’t have a great track record of diagnosing our own personal issues. Others are much more skilled at pointing out areas of our life that could use some improvement.

Even when we are able to pinpoint the issue, it’s not always easy to alter our course. We offer excuses, rationalize actions and justify our way out of change. We’d rather keep hurting our chances at an excellent life than face the harsh realities of what are our faults.

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Want to Influence Others? Lead by Example

July 11, 2013 by 25 Comments

lead by example I mentioned in a recent post “Health, Wealth and Moments of Clarity” how I was inspired to begin my running program after meeting someone my age on a cruise that was an aspiring triathlete. At the time I was overweight, out of shape and low on energy.

Talking with him throughout the week ignited my mental toughness and helped me see crazy dreams could still be achieved even at my age.

But it was someone much closer to me that truly provided the inspiration for me to get in shape. That person was Mrs. Luke1428. No, she wasn’t going all drill sergeant on me, screaming through a megaphone for me to roll out of bed each morning. Instead, without goading or guilting me into doing the same, she had been religiously going to a health club each week for months, getting herself in shape.

And boy, could I see the results! “Surely” I thought, “if my wife can change her physique post-four children, then so can I.”  I wanted her to be as proud of me as I was of her.

I don’t think her efforts were premeditated – like some devious reverse-psychology attempt to give me a wake-up call. She really wanted to exercise for herself. But the fallout did affect me.

Lead By Example

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Time to Punt This Goal Away

May 23, 2013 by 10 Comments

In the game of American football, the offensive team has four downs to move the football ten yards. If they accomplish that feat, they keep their offensive drive alive by receiving four more downs. The process repeats itself over and over until the team kicks a field goal, scores a touchdown or commits a turnover.

NFL PunterOn most possessions, the team only uses three downs to get the requisite yardage. This is because the fourth down is a risky one, in that if the team doesn’t reach the first down marker, they turn the ball over to the opposition, even if they miss it by an inch. This happens no matter where you are at on the field.

So if a team reaches fourth down and they are backed up in their own end or have a long way to go to get the first down, they evaluate the situation and usually choose another option. That option is the punt. On this play, the center snaps the ball to the punter who is standing 10-15 yards behind the line of scrimmage. He holds the ball in front of him, plants his non-kicking foot and swings his kicking leg forward as the ball drops out of his hands. The ball is launched into the air and down the field to be received by the other team.

It is very much a strategic maneuver designed to minimize risk and gain field position against one’s opponent. It’s recognizing that the team failed on the current drive and is voluntarily giving the ball up. The team hasn’t lost sight of the goal, which is to score and win the game.  But by punting, they have just admitted they will have to wait for future opportunities to score.

The same can be said about goals and I have one I need to punt away.

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