Seven Deadly Sins That Are Harmful to Your Financial Health

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1. Not paying yourself first-The first payment made from any paycheck or business withdrawal should be toward your personal savings or investment program. Most experts recommend saving at least 10%. While this may seem like a lot, most individuals can defer some spending in order to meet their personal objectives. Consider having a portion of your paycheck directly deposited into a separate savings or investment account that is not connected to your ATM or debit card. Automatic saving is a cornerstone to financial wealth building.

2. Not taking advantage of your employers’ benefit plans-This includes not taking advantage of or not maximizing the employer’s match in your 401(k) plan. No one can afford to turn down free money. It also includes not taking advantage of other employer benefits such as Health Savings and Flexible Spending accounts which can dramatically cut the cost of insuring care for your family.

3. Borrowing to meet ongoing expenses or to pay other debt-If you find yourself falling deeper into debt just to make ends meet, it’s time you face facts, you need a budget.

4. Stealing from your retirement-if you find yourself raiding your retirement while you are still working, you need to set time aside and create a budget.

5. Hiding and not setting goals-Post your goals and review them Every Day. Not knowing you have enough saved for your children’s education, your own retirement, or any other goal that you are looking to achieve is detrimental to you and your family’s future plans. Act now and take control of your life.

6. Bad Debt-taking on debt just to achieve a boost in lifestyle. Long after the initial good feeling of owning something new has worn off, you will still have the monthly payment. Think of debts as receiving a monthly “decrease” in your earnings since you will have less disposable funds available to do the things that are important to you in the future.

7. Not being Happy-Our culture is pervasive with the “I will be happy when” syndrome. Surveys show that a significant portion of the population report that they would be happy if they could increase their income by 20%. This perception seems to remain true at all income levels. People caught in the 20% trap can never be happy because, even if the objective is reached, there will always be another 20% more needed to remain happy. Happiness is a choice. Look and be thankful for things that make you happy everyday.

Learn to change your mind about anything-It’s easier than you think!

5 Easy Ways to Start Asset Protection Planning

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This past few years, we have watched a lot of financially distressing scenes. It might be one of your close friends who had housing loans but couldn’t pay because they got laid off from work and now the bank has seized not only their house but the car and the cash in the bank. We also witnessed that financial woes do not only hit the small time businesses with bad credit history but even top conglomerations and companies caved in and made a run for their money during the worst of the recession. That to most of us, was truly unexpected. Banks closed and insurance companies declared bankruptcy. You might even be a victim.

Asset protection, though not an easy process, is very possible and is gaining top attention in the financial realm.

In short and simple terms, I’ve listed 5 very basic but important steps to get yourself and your property insulated from unwanted litigations and liabilities:

1. List your current circumstance. This includes not only what you have but also what you’ve borrowed. Leave no stone unturned. There might be some property given to you or stocks you’ve bought in some start-up company. If you have to, review your financial capacity and credit history with your bank and make regular updates to your list. Such in depth knowledge on where you’re at financially would greatly come in handy.

2. List your goals and objectives. In what direction are you wanting to go? More investments perhaps? Or putting up trust funds for your children? How would you want your wealth to be divided? These are some questions that you have to answer. Be as detailed as necessary, include timelines and dates if you need to. This list will ultimately determine which Asset Protection plan would best suit your goals.

3. Check the market. Personal knowledge on what are the latest trends in the public would be of great help. For example, knowing how your friend eventually fixed his credit problems, or being active in online forums that discuss what worked best for some. Though ultimately, a sound expert advice will be your deciding factor, it also does not hurt to know and get an idea of the strengths and weaknesses and the difference of one option against another.

4. Find Expert Advice. Think first then leap later. Get to hear what’s on the minds of financial experts. A word of caution though, not everybody who says they are a financial “guru” is actually one. Legal advice from lawyers who are in the asset protection practice is always welcome. Or, if you can afford it, then you can hire your very own specialist (costly, but this might mean saving your business in the end!). Do go over the various federal and state tax laws, exemption laws and even bankruptcy laws. Discuss thoroughly the pros and cons of a single proposal and make sure that it matches the objectives that you have planned.

5. Act Now! It’s one thing to plan, but more important than that is to follow this up with action. Procrastinating could be your worst enemy. Never wait until it’s too late and creditors are knocking at your door.

So it’s high time to shield your wealth. I have to warn you though, for your protection, never skip step #4 if you don’t want to be faced with fraud or tax-evasion charges and be in worse state than where you were in before.

Ways to Expand Your Poker Knowledge

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Over the past few years, and especially of late, the popularity of online poker has been rapidly increasing. Current statistics show that there are as many as 100,000 new people signing up to play online every month. As more and more players enter the picture, the competition gets tougher. No matter how good you think you are, you will at some point or another always run into someone that is better than you. To ensure that you stay at the top of your game, it is important that you are always looking for new techniques and information to help you improve your skill at the game. Even the most experienced players can usually always benefit from brushing up their skills, and most do, that is how they stay ahead of the game. Mistakes in poker can be very costly, and it is in your best interest as a player to avoid making them whenever possible. The more knowledge and skill you have, the less likely you will be to make costly errors in your game play.The most obvious thing to learn is the rules of the game. It is important to be familiar with all of the rules and terminology before you ever really begin to play. If you start to play a game without knowing the terminology, you are going to be lost. Every beginner should start building their poker skill and knowledge with this step.Next to knowing the rules and terminology of the game, you also need to learn about calculating odds and betting. Calculating odds will help you determine your chances of winning a particular game. Everyone needs to learn the ins and outs of betting successfully, unless they always want to leave the game empty handed.There are many sources that can help you in your poker education. Many online poker gaming sites offer online poker schools. These schools are designed mostly for new players to learn the basics of each game, which is a good way to learn the rules and terminology.It also would be helpful to research article databases for information as well. Many of these articles are written by poker players, and can offer valuable insight as to some of the mistakes they have made and how to avoid them. Articles can also provide you with helpful hints and tips that you can use to develop of beef up your playing strategy.There are also many valuable books that have been written on the game of poker. Some of these books may be found online as e-books, and many of them may be found for free in your local library. The internet can be a huge source of information on the subject as well. You may also benefit from visiting online poker forums where you can chat with and ask questions of other players.If you have friends or family that play the game, they can also be a good resource. They could play a few games with you and offer insight that could draw attention to your mistakes, maybe little things that you weren’t even aware of.The more you learn about the game of poker, the bigger the advantage you will have over other players. All it really takes is commitment to learn, and a little bit of spare time. Who knows? You could turn yourself into a poker pro!Remember, you are your best critic. You should always analyze your game and look for things that you can tweak to make you a more successful player.

Custom Poker Chips

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Casinos have long been using custom poker chips for their clients playing pleasure. Custom chips are not only for gazing upon, the customization serves a purpose. When a casino opts for customized chips, they are not only branding the chip to their establishment, they are also protecting themselves from thieves.The type of chips used, which are usually clay composite chips are nearly impossible to duplicate in themselves. Adding customization to the poker chips makes them a much more secure playing option, which thwarts most of the would-be chip counterfeiters.The cost of these secure chips is a little more expensive. However even with the increased cost, the combination of the higher end composite chip plus the one of a kind logo imprinted on the chip makes up for itself in the money saved from those who would try and make knock offs of the casino’s chips. Without these precautions, casinos around the world would go bankrupt virtually overnight.With the variety of custom designs available, casinos can insure that they have a one of a kind chip which appeals to the players and provides the needed security. Design options are only limited to the imagination.Of course, casinos are not the only ones who are opting for personalized poker chips. Many players have found that the customization of their poker chips gives their games an added appeal, playing with flashier pieces that cater to the owner’s sense of style.If you’re looking to get customized chips for your weekly poker game, then you’ll be pleased to find you have several options, which range from inexpensive to extravagant.On the low end of the monetary spectrum, players can make their own customized chips by simply placing stickers on existing chips. Next up the chain, players can opt to use a graphics program to create one of a kind graphics then print them off using an inkjet printer onto sticker paper. You may also purchase chip labels from an online poker supply store.If designing and applying your custom logos, you can purchase a set of 500 composite clay chips with recessed centers for around twenty five cents each. Look for specials at poker supply retailers, and at online auctions.On the high end of chip customization, you can order your chips brand new with either hot stamping or a custom label for up to two dollars per chip.

The Clay Chips – A Must For Professional Poker

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Poker is a great game which entails a lot of excitement and fun. There is great amount of enthusiasm and zest required for this game. The joy becomes half in case you do not have the best quality chips to play on. So there is great way to enjoy the game and it is by use of good quality chips. The clay chips are the best for the people who want to have the professional feel. You can get the details about the various chips which are available for playing poker. You can get the most wonderful information on the internet. There are also a lot of poker websites which give virtual poker. So you can also join forums and connect with other players.Are you an enthusiastic competitor of poker? If subsequently, you should have the finest materials for playing the sport. For many folks, you ought to pay money for only the greatest class chips. If you don’t know what the best quality chips are, then you arrive to the proper place. Poker players discover it gives a additional professional feel to their sport when they make use of terracotta chips. These chips are formed with clay. You can also decide on for plastic poker chips however they do not give you with that specialized feel when live poker and will not hold up to stable practice.Do not even consider that poker clay chips will construct your triumph or will assist you in your approach. You are yearning a great deal. This extraordinary type of poker chip merely gives you a fine sensitivity when you’re playing and aside from this is also longer lasting and more durable than plastic. Thus if you for all time play poker with a collection of friends, you ought to think about getting clay chips.Single thing to remember when acquire clay chips is they are not formed with 100% clay.They are assorted with a small quantity of resin to make them extra tough. Wholesome clay is high valued and would also be quite fragile if not mixed with a sturdy component like resin.When you pay money for poker chips prepared of clay, an imperative consideration is to come across at the heaviness. The supreme heaviness of clay poker chips is less than 10.5g per chip. Whatever thing heavier than this will be a slight heavy? Casinos use poker chips that weigh around 10g. So if you enjoy playing in casinos and you want to feel an identical feeling, buy poker chips with a similar weight.