PART 1

Yes, that Krystal may have done it but dammit, she’s the exception that proves the rule:   If you are hell-bent on getting rid of your debt NOW, you will fail.  Or most of you will.

I feel your stress level shoot up.  Hang in there.

First, some (begrudging) exceptions:

• If you have a healthy income and a small-ish debt ($500 – $2000), go hard.
• If you are young or youthful, unhindered by kids, dogs, violin lessons, boyfriends,  with quantum energy to work multiple jobs go crazy.
• If Frugaliciously You live well and truly below your means, have been for a while, and you’re good like that, go for it too.

But for the rest of you:  those of you who have hit some kind of panicky pissy pain point that makes you think This feels awful and I want this debt of my back NOW, for those of you, listen closely.

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If you are serious about eliminating your debt, it requires a long-haul strategy.   A long-haul, day after day after day after day after day after tomorrow and the day after that and the day after and the day after and the DAY AFTER THAT strategy.

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So.  What can you do to get started on a serious journey, not a loop-de-loop in debt | workworkworkwork | making good progress | DAMN NOW I’M BACK IN DEBT  journey?

Here are three starters:

1. Decide on three small, really small, changes that you can make in your lifestyle that you won’t feel.  Think of things like a subscription for a magazine you don’t read anymore; eliminating your land-line and using your cel and skype instead;  switching to public transit to save on parking fees at work (but only if you can really handle it).   That money you saved?  That specific amount (yes, get your calculator and get specific) now goes to your debt every month.
2. Move your debt to a lower interest debt. Credit cards can be moved to a lower interest card; lower interest card balances can be moved to lines of credit; lines of credit can sometimes be rolled into your mortgage if you have one.  The money you will save in interest? That specific amount (what.  you put your calculator away?  silly you) now goes to your debt every month.
3. Snowball it.  The money saved in #1 and #2 goes to your smallest debt.  Once that is paid off, combine the money saved in #1 and #2 plus whatever you had been paying originally for that smallest debt and start applying that to the next smallest debt.

Come back Saturday for PART 2.

oh, and if you’re burning to eliminate your debt and take control of your money right now, time for you (shameless plug alert) to take my program.

update: for a recap of all Sept Money 101 posts, click here

Photo Credit:  Firepile

Three different people taking my online money coaching program have contacted me recently about creditors who were hounding them, including two who were receiving calls at work.

Here’s one of the emails I received:

Credit cards and debt collection – is there a law stating how many times they can call you in a day? [credit card collections] has been calling me 4-8 times a day for 2 weeks starting at 7:30am! Last week I wasn’t able to answer my phone (mechanical failiure) but this week I can and I just asked to speak to a supervisor, who was of course out of his office.
Any suggestions? I’ve complained to them about this before.

I recognize that I am in arrears with my account, but does that give them the right to basically harass me? Any links / tips would be helpful. thx.

The answer is “NO!  Creditors cannot hound you like that”.  Most Canadian jurisdictions have laws regarding how creditors must operate.

Before proceeding with the resources below, it must be said:   If you are in a situation financially where creditors are hounding you, you need the help of my business.  Listen to this (my story) and take it from there.

In 2003, the Ministers Responsible for Consumer Affairs all across Canada agreed together to work towards legislating limitations on Collection Agencies in their respective jurisdictions.

BC.  According to the Canadian Bar Association of BC creditors can only attempt to call your employer to verify your employment.  They can call you at work once, only if they cannot reach you at home.  In addition, if you request in writing that they contact you only in writing, they must do so.

Alberta:  This legislation (scroll down on the page) applies to collections agencies (as opposed to businesses collecting money you owe)

Saskatchewan:  Collections agencies cannot call you earlier than 8am, after 6pm, or on Sundays or holidays.  There is further protection from harassment

Manitoba: Scroll down to Section 98 for the limits on collections calls.

Ontario:  They can only contact you three times (including leaving voicemail) within a seven day period.  Further information is here.

Quebec:  The legislation isn’t as specific but it provides some parameters

Newfoundland/Labrador:  Scroll down to Section 12

PEI: doesn’t allow them to contact your place of employment at all (see Section 5)

New Brunswick:  has robust regulations.  Scroll down to Section 14.

Nova Scotia:  see Section 20

Territories – sorry – it wasn’t easy to find legislation!  Worst case scenario, contact your MLA.

Today is the start of a 3-post mini series by Career Coach Karen Begemann with a recommendation today, tomorrow and Thursday to strengthen your job security during these days of real economic uncertainty.  We’ve been pretty jittery the past couple of years, haven’t we?  I don’t know about you, but I lived through the dismantling of a bank and it was, well, really awful. Most of you won’t experience anything that drastic (God forbid) but there likely have been and will be lay-offs around you. Here’s recommendation #1 to increase the odds that you won’t be one of them.
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Recommendation  1: Know your Why
Ask yourself, what motivates me to do the work I do?  For some it’s the lifestyle it affords them, for others it may be a sense of contribution, opportunities for learning, growth or advancement. The list goes on.  Think about someone you admire. What is it about them that draws you to them? Chances are they are driven by an inner passion to do what they do.  If you think about what makes people successful, one of the key qualities is this sense of purpose.

Think about moments in your own work where you are completely absorbed by what you are doing. What were you doing that engaged you so fully? These “flow moments” offer us clues to a deeper purpose that motivate us in our work.  Now ask yourself, how can I do more of this and other activities that really engage me?

While being highly engaged with your work is no guarantee of security, the odds increase that you will be doing the quality of work that makes you a highly valued employee.  Being clear on your Why will fuel you to be a high performer.

Check back tomorrow for Recommendation #2!
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Karen Begemann has worked in the career development field for the past 10 years in government-funded employment programs, the corporate sector and in private practice as a Career Coach and Facilitator. Her passion professionally is helping people to connect with meaningful work.  She provides a range of services including career exploration, job search (resume support, networking strategies and job interview coaching) and resiliency coaching (dealing with work related stress). Karen also specializes in working with professional moms who are planning to return to the workforce. She practices in Vancouver, BC and provides coaching services either in person or on the telephone. Karen can be reached at 604-828-5600 for a complimentary telephone session to determine an individual’s career coaching needs. For more information visit www.workmattersconsulting.com.

Photo Credit: Dave77459

Hello my name is Taylor Moore and I am a filmmaker, photographer and game developer.
I am a Digital Nomad.
When I turned 50, I wanted everything to be different. I wanted to radically simplify my life, and get rid of all of the crap that I was dragging around. I wanted to travel, and pursue work that was global and to live the life of a lifestyle entrepreneur.

In the Beginning
So to start things off, I got my personal belongings down to 50 things(excluding my professional gear). It actually was much easier than I thought it would be. Doing this purge has been one of the most liberating things I have ever done. It is comforting to know where everything is, and not to worry about “stuff” anymore. It has made me very conscious of what I will bring into my life next. I don’t know if I will always conform to this lifestyle but it has been a great personal experiment and experience.

Office Away
The next thing was to be anywhere but in an office. In the last year I have worked out of coffee shops, book stores, libraries and beaches. This has been a tremendous boon to my creativity and approach to work and projects.

Bye Bye TV
One of the greatest events has been getting rid of the TV. Now I only watch what I really want, when I want. So many people live there augmented life through TV. With the relatively short time we have here, to spend it being spoon fed information is not my idea of living life.

Regrets, I have some

• This is not an easy path at times, and I depend on Skype and email to retain my close friendships.
• Having a romantic relationship in this type of lifestyle is very hard, but the new friendships forged makes it all worthwhile.
• Loneliness is not something that visits me very often, but it can be lonely. Getting out and exploring my surrounding breaks it.

What can I not live without

• Digital Camera with which I shoot stills, HD video and time lapse
• Macbook Pro with which I edit my stills and video with.
• iphone Keeps me connected to friends, family and twitter.
• 2 TB backup Drive (Shit happen’s be ready for it)
• Swimming trunks…ya never know when you will find a good place to swim!

Benefits

• Having the freedom to pursue projects I believe in – such as being asked to film a Strawbale House-Raising for a family in Tennessee who lost everything in a Tornado.
• Learning and speaking another language, which makes me think differently and grow.
• Helping build a school in Mexico and what that does for the children, community and my karma.
• Realizing that no matter where we are people want to help. And that gives me hope and faith in humanity.

Money tips I’ve learned

• Always travel with two bank cards
• Find out which local bank is closest to you (some places are pretty remote.  I once had to travel 20 miles to the nearest bank!)
• Find out which day is payday for the local folks because the line-ups can be around the block on those days
• Get used to military men with machine guns standing in front of the banks
• Withdrawing cash internationally has fees attached.  Use a bank ATM though;  white-label machines have even higher fees
• Paypal is your friend.  I typically get paid in the local currency via paypal which then converts to Canadian and is deposited in my Canadian bank account.

Taylor Moore is a filmmaker, photographer and game developer. In 2011 he has lived in Chacala Mexico, Guanajuato Mexico, Summerland BC, Tonasket, WA and Yellowknife, NWT. He can be reached at www.pixelbuz.com or on twitter @pixeltrek

Mentors:

Everett Bogue
The guy who made me look at all of the things I don’t need.
Ashley Ambirge
One of the greatest new writers, and my secret agent muse.
Seth Godin
One of the greatest marketing writers ever. Linchpin has been a personal best read for me.
Tim Ferris
Four Hour Work Week Author and Fitness Guru.
Karol Gajda
He’s the guy who got me started on this path…damn you Karol. Walks the talk.
Tyler Tervooren
He is the master of Riskology. No messing with his success.

July’s posts have been chock-a-block with on-the-ground money tips for travellers to England, Russia, Thailand and today, we hear from Jean* about being money smart in Nicaragua.

(pssst: Want to become a world traveller but don’t have the money? My business helps folks set and attain those kinds of savings goals!)

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When my parents first told me they would be traveling to Nicaragua with my sister, my immediate reaction was, “Have fun with that.” But no more than a day later, my brother and I decided we would tag along for the trip.

For as long as I can remember, whenever I was asked if I would be interested to travel to the homeland, I would always say no and that it would never happen. “Not a chance in Hell!” I think I was afraid of what I would see and learn. Living in Canada, I have gotten quite used to my possessions and other things we may take for granted.

If you are going to be traveling to Nicaragua, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Do not advertise how well off you are by pulling your smartphone (or anything else of value, for that matter) out of your pocket. This is foolish because it is quite dangerous. You are likely to attract the attention of no-gooders anyway simply by being a tourist. You do not need to become a target.
2. Be prepared for the electricity and running water to cut out at the most inconvenient of times.
3. Dress lightly. Why you would even consider wearing long pants is just beyond me. They do provide great protection from the bugs though…

Now, as a super user of social media (Is saying “it consumes my life” too strong?), I usually rely heavily on Wi-Fi and for the most part (if at all), that isn’t an option in this country. So my one tip for those of you who are like me:

Turn off your mobile data. The cost of data in Nicaragua in roaming fees is astronomical. $25.60 per megabyte of data (if you are with Bell), to be exact. If you are looking to tweet or update your status on Facebook, set up the mobile texting service before your trip. The cost of sending a text is $0.75. A much better alternative. Facebook’s number is 32665 (FBOOK) and Twitter’s is 21212. You can set up these services straight from your phone or on the web. Leave all other events that would require data for cyber cafes. Cyber cafes are incredibly cheap and usually have 30min, 45min, or hourly rates for less than $2.50, maybe even $2.00. And you may want to keep phone calls short as they are $2.99/min. Don’t be a victim to the thought of “I’ll barely use the data, so I should be fine.” When they say apps run in the background, they mean it, and they consume a lot more data than you might think. Save yourself the headache and save yourself a lot of money.

Things are cheap in Nicaragua for the visitor. It was actually quite heartbreaking to see just what kind of life my family has. To bring things into perspective, I present to you some facts.

1. Beer can cost as little as $0.85, which, if you can stand to drink a beverage that will dehydrate you in the already blistering heat, I say go for it. My drink of choice during the whole trip was Coca-Cola, because water never did seem to come cold enough.
2. Food here is always fresh and local. Think about it! You are not paying to have someone bring in the food from another country. IT IS ALL THERE. And it is also cheap…for us. Twenty dollars really can get you so much. How much does the average Canadian family (say of four members) spend on groceries per week? Maybe around $150.00? Take that amount and think of it feeding your family for a whole month, if not more. Sounds great, right? Now think of how difficult that money is to come by, considering most homes are single income… Yeah…

And now for the kicker:

After speaking to one of our cousins’ wife, she was telling us how they had afforded to buy their home using the money earned by selling shoes that never quite made it to shelves, or were claimed. Think of how Winners sells brand name clothes for cheap because of defects in the stitching, missing buttons, etc. You know, the little things that don’t really matter. So a friend from the US would send down boxes of shoes, and she would sell them locally. When I asked, she told me that to buy the lot cost them 8,000 Cordobas, Nicaraguan currency. The materials to build the house cost another 8,000 Cordobas. This is in Esteli, one of the larger cities in Nicaragua. But let’s play a guessing game to see what that amount of money translates to in dollars.

For the total of 16,000 Cordobas, to buy yourself a lot and then build a home of approximately 800 square feet, what would be the equivalent cost in a consumer home electronic?

Would it be:
a. Nintendo Wii – $149.99
b. XBOX 360 250GB Kinect Bundle – $399.99
c. iPhone 4 32GB – $779.00
d. iMac 27-inch: 2.7GHz – $1,699.00

You might be shocked that I didn’t go any higher. Well, truth be told, I wouldn’t want to attract that much attention to my own home, depending on the location. But if you picked “c”, the iPhone 4 32GB model, you would be slightly over. The exchange rate that stuck with me the whole trip was 22.3:1. So for 8,000 Cordobas, that was around $360.00. So you could either own a vacation home in Nicaragua for the price of two XBOX 360’s for one of your LAN parties, or one iPhone 4, from which you might even be reading this very blog post. Kind of makes you think, hey?

Now, this entry is not meant to guilt you, but rather expose you to the reality of the kind of life you’ll be seeing if you take a trip down there. I have heard that one can spend nights in some cheap hostels for about $8.00, and transportation itself is very cheap and there are many options: mini-taxi, tricycle, motorized bike, motorcycle, mini-bus, you name it. Souvenirs are also very cheap, so you really won’t need to worry about how much you’re spending on gifts to bring back home to family and friends. Just don’t get too comfortable with how inexpensive most things are. Spend only for what you need, and if you feel you have some to spare, donate to the locals. You have no idea how much a little bit for us means a lot for them.

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Jean, aka Jeryes, is a long time Yellowknifer with bucket loads of ambition but with absolutely no direction. Dreaming of one day becoming either a musician, a designer, a writer, or a teacher (to name a few), he spends most of his days in the online universe correcting people for their misuse of punctuation and spelling errors. He is also allergic to cats.

Photo Credit: Damon_Torgeson