Make This a Holiday from Credit

Four Tips to Avoid Holiday Debt:

A recent KC Star article on November 27th highlighted four great ideas to help you avoid a "New Year's Debt Hangover"!!

1) Use the 1.5 percent rule: Don't spend more than 1.5 percent of your total gross income on holiday-related expenses. If you're in debt, consider spending less than 1 percent.

2) Pay Cash: Using cash involves a type of psychological pain that consumers don't feel with other forms of payment, said Farnoosh Torabi, the author of the new book "Psych Yourself Rich." Studies have shown people spend 20 percent more with credit cards, she said.

3) Stick to a list: Lists help shoppers stay on task, which can save time and money, Torabi said. A list also narrows your options, whcih is a great benefit psychologically. "Behavior experiments show that when consumers narrow their options, they make better decisions," she said. Your list should include a price range for each item, such as a sweater between $20 and $50, she said.

4) Shop online: If you're worried about impulse purchases busting your holiday budget, stay out of the malls. Sit down at the computer for a goal-oriented session of online shopping. That way you won't be susceptible to the in-store sights, sounds and smells that lead to impulse buys.

USE THE FORWARD FEATURE ON MY NEWSLETTER TO SEND TO A FRIEND AND POST A COMMENT BELOW ABOUT YOUR "COMMITMENT TO" OR "EXPERIENCE" PAYING CASH FOR CHRISTMAS.

WHEN YOU DO, I'LL ENROLL YOU FOR A $30 GIFT CARD DRAWING ON DECEMBER 15TH!!

Flight to Safety

In the last few years, investors have been pulling money out of stocks…….and going to the “sideline” for cash equivalents like bonds, CD’s and money market accounts. This is commonly referred to as “market-timing” and causes the average equity investor to experience lower annualized rates of return. “Market-timing” one of the four “negative investor behaviors” and a deadly trap.

Mark Matson and 400 other “Investor Coaches” across the country like myself are committed to educating investors that properly diversified, rebalanced and allocated portfolios can help a person avoid “negative investor behaviors”.

Matson Money is the co-advisor firm responsible for the portfolio design for my clients investments.

Look at the above NY Times graph showing “outflow” of investor $$’s from US equity mutual funds. On the flipside, the graph below it shows the increased “inflow” of money to Matson Money over the same time periods of 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The NY Times article is here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/business/22invest.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=business

Investor’s appetite for education and academically proven investment strategies is leading them to greater peace of mind and working with Investor Coach’s like myself and Mark Matson.

If you haven’t already seen the presentation “Separating Truth from Myth…the Story of Investing”—I invite you to see it from me.

If you have seen it, and want to see it again, get in touch with me and bring a friend too. I’ll provide the food and drink! Then I’ll send you home with more educational material that will knock your socks off.