1. Have a second source of income.

2. Don’t stop investing.

3. Buy store brands.

4. Beef up your emergency fund.

5. Pay cash.

6. Pay down debt.

7. Dust off your resume.

Have a second source of income.

There is probably no other single piece of advice that will give you the sense of security that diversifying your income streams is able to provide. When you are not dependent on a the performance of a single company for your daily bread you can breathe a lot easier with the knowledge that you will at the very least be able to cover your basic expenses. Your second income stream should also ideally be something you enjoy doing as well. For instance if you are an artist, consider selling your art or if you like writing you can freelance for a writing site to bring in some extra cash.

Don’t stop investing.

There is a tendency to pull to the sidelines when things get a little volatile in the financial markets but instead of coming to a complete stop, try diversifying your portfolio. There will always be wise investments to be made, the trick is to find them and then have the stomach to hold steady until the market settles.

Buy store brands.

You can save a bundle on your grocery bill and even on personal care items by using store brands and less heavily marketed names. In most instances there is not much difference in the quality of the product anyway so you may discover a change you can make permanently to save yourself some money.

Beef up your emergency fund.

An emergency fund is supposed to provide a cushion in the event that your situation takes a turn for the worse and you are without a main income stream. This fund ensures that you will be able to pay your bills and take care of your important commitments for a few months, so it is usually recommended that you save about three to six months salary in an easily accessible account.

Pay cash.

When you stop using credit cards you are better able to keep a handle on how much you spend. Research has shown that credit card users spend on average about 20% more than those who pay with cash. This is because using cash registers that your available balance is decreasing, whereas swiping a credit card with the flexibility to pay at a later date (albeit at a cost) leaves only a dull impression that you must be able to pay the cost of your item back. The built in sensitivity that accompanies paying in cash is great to heighten your awareness of your spending in tougher times.

Pay down debt.

Getting rid of debt obligations not only lessens your debt load and improves your credit rating, it also frees up cash that would have otherwise been dedicated to installments. This cash can now go to savings and earn interest instead of helping to slowly chip away at paying interest.

Dust off your resume.

It pays to be prepared. When you are operating in an uncertain environment the best you can do is take care of the things that are in your control. Resumes that are skill based do well because they highlight your flexibility and different companies can see how they would be able to harness your skills. Focus on the positives and keep your resume up-to-date and ready if you need to use it.

You may not be able to dictate the way things around you occur but you can certainly control your reaction to them and you can put things in place so that you and your family will be prepared for whatever comes your way.

Natalia Jones has an Advanced Diploma in Financial Management (ACCA) and has worked in investment banking for the past five years. For more personal finance advice check out her profile at http://www.helium.com/users/499051/show_articles?channel=6 or follow her Financial Fertilizer Blog at http://financialfertilizer.blogspot.com/ to watch your money grow and grow.

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P46 – In cases where the tax payer has no P45, either because it is lost, damaged or invalid or if they are being employed for the first time, they will be asked to fill out a P46 form. This will notify HM revenue and customs of the new employment, and the information will be used for the formation of a new P45 once they leave that job.

P60 – P60 are forms which are issued at the end of each tax year and contain information regarding a tax payer’s total salary that year, along with any tax deductions, Income Tax and National Insurance deducted, Student Loan repayments and statutory payments such as SMP, SAP and SPP. This then provides the most comprehensive and detailed report of taxable income and non-taxable outgoings and is so crucial for calculating the amount of tax owed each year. P60s are not given to those who leave their jobs before the end of that tax year. P60s cannot be reissued, so if they are lost or damaged it may be prudent to look into obtaining a replacement. p

P14 – The P14 is handled by employers and contains information for each employee’s salary and deductions for each year and is filed with HM revenue and Customs at the end of each tax year. This means that they too have a record of tax payers’ earnings and can therefore monitor tax payers’ earnings and check for inconsistencies. It also means that they have back ups should employers, officials or employees request the information.

PAYE – PAYE stands for ‘Pay As You Earn’ and is the method by which most employees pay their tax. This method deducts tax as it comes in and will be reflected in wage slips. Alternatively the self employed can set it up online to deduct tax automatically.

Tax Return – Each year, UK citizens, mostly self-employed but also occasionally employees, are required to fill out a tax return. This is used in order to declare exact earnings as well as other outgoings. For the self-employed and those who own their own businesses only net profit is taxed and money reinvested into the business or supplies is exempt. This encourages investments and investment and protects struggling businesses. Filling out a tax return requires careful consideration of all outgoings and profits as if it is done incorrectly you may end up paying more than necessary, or alternately paying not enough can result in it being claimed back and you may be subject to a charge. This is where P60s can come in handy as a reference point for earnings. Those who have lost or damaged their P60s may want to look into a replacement.

Understanding the difference between payslips will be useful irrespective of whether you are a salaried individual or a self employer person. Get the right wage slips before you work on tax returns.

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The recommended way to obtain a free copy of your CR is through AnnualCreditReport.com, which is the ONLY authorized source to get your free annual CR under federal law. AnnualCreditReport.com is very different from FreeCreditReport.com which you have probably seen on television. Be wary of services that offer a trial membership or request your credit card number. There are no hidden fees or trial memberships with AnnualCreditReport.com.

If you do not want to use the AnnualCreditReport.com request form, you can also write directly to the credit bureaus to request a free copy of your CR. With AnnualCreditReport.com or writing directly to the credit bureaus, you can obtain a free copy of your CR from each of the three credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax) once every 12 months.

In addition to AnnualCreditReport.com, there are 4 other ways you can get a free copy of your CR.

1. You Were Denied Credit, Insurance, or Employment

Federal law also says you can get a free copy of your CR if you have an application denied because of information in your CR. To get a free copy of your CR, you must request it from the credit bureau within 60 days of learning you were denied. Contact the agency who denied your application to learn which credit bureau furnished the report, and submit your request to that credit bureau.

2. Unemployed and Looking For a Job

If you are unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days, you can get a free copy of your CR. Contact the credit bureaus and let them know you are job hunting and you would like to receive a free report under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

3. Receive Government Assistance

If you are on welfare, you are entitled to receive a free report. Simply request a copy of your CR from the credit bureaus.

4. Victim of Identity Theft

You can also receive a free copy of your credit report if you are a victim of identity theft and have inaccurate information on your credit report such as accounts that do not belong to you or addresses where you have never lived.

Nicole K. White, Esq., an attorney and an identity theft consultant, established Kinsey Law Group, P.C. to help consumers resolve their financial matters in the areas of Consumer Law (consumer disputes, credit report errors, debt collection abuse/harassment, debtor defense in debt collection suits, and identity theft), Estate and Health Planning (wills, living wills and advance directives, burial directives, powers of attorney and trusts), and Guardianship Planning for Minors. To learn more about how consumers can protect their finances, visit http://www.kinseylawgroup.com. This article is solely for informational purposes and is not intended to, and nor does it, constitute legal advice. Copyright © 2009.

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You will have to take the time to do the research but it will be well worth it in the end if you find something that you are looking for to help you with what you are trying to accomplish.

There is also a website called grants.gov that you have the ability to search for grants that are available to you. On this website you can create a profile, find grant opportunities, apply for grants, track my application, applicant resources and search the FAQ’s. On this site there are also announcements of new opportunities this week and
important notice for applicants that has quite a bit of useful information. Something new to the site is information about a Recovery Grant that you can read more about on the grants.gov website.

With so much free government grant money to be utilized why not check to see if you are eligible for any of the grants that are being offered. Good luck.

Final Tip: By researching and comparing you will find Free Government Grants Money available for your very specific condition or situation. Nonetheless, you are welcome to take advantage of the resources already listed in our website, we have done all the hard work for you.

H. Milla runs the Free Scholarships And Grants website – where you can check out different government grants resources. Also, you can get all information you need to get free government grant money, money by the way that you will never have to pay back. Visit for further information.

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Need extra income? The following items have helped me earn extra income and I hope they’ll give you ideas on how to make extra income. As any mother of a teenager (especially a boy) knows it’s hard to keep food in the house and I’m a single mom on top of it. It helps if you have a goal. Mine was to help put food on the table and if any extra to save for a rainy day.

Note: If you don’t have internet access at home then use your local library. You can use a flash drive (you can buy one pretty cheap) to download pictures off your home computer. Then take to your local library and upload to site you want to advertise your items for sale on.

Ways to find items to sell.

-First start with things around your house you want to get rid of. I had an older treadmill and a single mattress (that was rarely used. It was from the top of bunk bed that we were getting rid of) that I just wanted to get rid of and I wanted to save money by not having to pay to get rid of (what happens if you live in condo). The treadmill was still working and I put it on Craigslist for free and within minutes people were calling. It was picked up the next morning. Same thing with the mattress. I was going to put out for trash and my son said why not put it on Craigslist so I did. This time I didn’t put my phone number cause I found out the first time that people will call at midnight to see if still available. My email was full within 5 minutes of posting and the mattress was gone within a couple of hours. I also felt good that I helped a single mom of 5 who needed a mattress desperately.

-Craigslist-look for free or low cost items (that are close by) to resell. I bought an acoustic guitar for 20.00 and resold it for 75.00 (I also happen to know brand names of guitars so that I knew it was a bargain). I only look for items that are close to home unless I know that the seller will hold it for me and it’s worth the time and gas money to travel.

-Dumpsters at townhouse/condo complex’s. People that are moving or just buying new tend to put things out next to a dumpster or on the curb. They don’t want to be bothered selling things…they just want to get rid of things (sometimes they’re not so old). I saw a coffee table that was in great condition so I threw in back of my car and posted on Craigslist (which is free) and sold it for 45.00.

-Thrift stores. Look for items that you know their worth such as collectables or antiques and resell on Craigslist, eBay or Amazon. People love collectables. I know and have sold books (purchased for 0.25) which I listed on Amazon-which is a great place to sell books. You just put in barcode of book and sit back.

-Garage sales/Flea markets. Great place to find bargains. People want to get rid of stuff. I purchased a bike for 5.00 at the end of the day. Spray painted it and resold for 20.00. I also purchased a wrought iron door knocker for 2.00 (later found out I couldn’t use it cause I live in a condo and they wouldn’t approve it). It had an engraved date and initials on back so I don’t know if that was what made it valuable. I put it on eBay and it sold for 72.00. Now that was a surprise.

Cheryl is a freelance writer and webmaster of http://www.cheapnfrugal.com
Reprint permission granted with this footer included. Copyright © 2009.

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As a result, more employees may find that health-savings accounts (HSA) have been added to their benefits packets this year, in some cases replacing HMO and PPO offerings.

HSAs are tax-free accounts tied to an insurance policy with a high deductible of $1,250 for an individual and $2,500 for a family. After the deductible is reached, policy holders receive comprehensive coverage.

To ease the burden of those out-of-pocket costs, participants can contribute, pre-tax, up to $2,650 for an individual and $5,250 for a family into an HSA. Withdrawals from HSAs are tax-free as long as they are used for medical purposes.

Unspent HSA money automatically rolls year to year and those funds can either earn interest or be invested into participating mutual funds for greater returns – potentially building a tax-free nest egg for healthcare costs.

Consider it the 401(k) plan for healthcare

Victoria Craig Bunce, director of research and policy at the Council for Affordable Health Insurance, said employers can save between 25 percent and 30 percent on health premiums by switching to an HSA. Those savings usually translate into lower premiums for employees – savings that employees can use to maximize their health savings accounts.

A study by Mellon Human Resources and Investor Solutions in May indicated that 7 percent of the over 360 employers surveyed already offer HSA plans to employees and 32 percent plan to offer them in 2006.

While it sounds like a win-win for both employers and employees, it’s still a hard sell for some companies. With some current healthcare deductibles as low as $150, employees may get put off by HSA’s much higher ones. And there’s something disconcerting about paying the entire cost of a doctor’s visit up-front, rather than the standard $15 or $20 co-pay.

David Bauer, past chairman of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of New York, said in New York, many carriers have filed HSA offerings but despite interest from employers, clients are still cautious about signing up for these products.

“With these high deductibles, employers are skeptical about HSA renewal the following year,” he said.

He added that the perception that HSAs are for the “healthy and wealthy,” rather than the average wage earner, is also proving to be a hurdle for early adoption.

Wave of the future

But advocates insist that HSAs, which only became available in January 2004, are the wave of the future.

“It’s common that people are afraid of change,” said Dr. Stephen Neeleman, chief executive of HSA provider HealthEquity, and co-author of The Complete HSA Guidebook. “In 1981, when people began opting for 401(k) plans from traditional pension plans, we saw slower adoption.”

Neeleman added that of the 800 businesses HealthEquity services, over 90 percent of employers also contribute a portion of their cost savings towards partially funding high deductibles – making HSAs an increasingly attractive option.

Consumers may also want to consider the extra control they have over the type of healthcare they receive through an HSA, said Tom Richards, senior vice president of products at CIGNA.

HSA participants are no longer bound by referrals to receive medical care and, in some cases, physicians are willing to negotiate lower prices for up-front payment because it saves them the trouble of dealing with insurance companies.

Richards added that HSAs are also appealing because of their portability – if an employee leaves his company, he can transfer the funds to his new company’s HSA. Considering the benefits, CIGNA expects overall consumer driven plans to account for 3 percent to 5 percent of its market next year, he said.

Not for everyone

HSAs, however, aren’t for everyone. It’s generally a good idea to sit with a financial planner to see if the savings really do add up. Keep in mind that while savings are accumulating in the first year, if there is a sudden expensive health emergency, you may not necessarily have the funds to cover it in your HSA. That mean you’re responsible for those out-of-pockets costs.

But analysts expect HSAs to become an increasingly common choice for employers.

Peter Delano, senior analyst at research and consulting firm Tower Group said that HSA assets will reach between $10 billion to $26 billion by the end of 2010. Just don’t expect traditional healthcare plans to fall by the wayside, he said.

Tushar Mathur writes regularly about Personal Finance and Investing at Everything Finance (http://www.everythingfinanceblog.com). He also writes about Invest In India at http://investmoneyinindia.com

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If you are having a tough time making ends meet and find it difficult to meet your monthly obligations, take action. Contact your utility companies to see if you may be able to pay less on your bills the next few months, or even ask to be put on levelized billing if it will make your payment lower. If you have cable or satellite, have it disconnected. When you are in financial straits, you can do without movies and a few extra shows.

Cell phones are another sometimes unnecessary expense. However, if you have a landline you may want to consider having it disconnected, and just using your cell. Doing both is a waste of money. If you have the internet and do not use it except to surf and play games, let it go for a while. These luxuries are fun, but do cost you. At this point, you need to save every penny you can.

Have a few things around the house you no longer need or use? Sell them on eBay, or have a garage sale. You can make an extra hundred bucks or more, and it will come in handy. Sell jewelry you do not wear. Save on water and electricity by running your washing machine or dishwasher only when you have a full load. Taking shorter showers also helps you save.

Credit cards can be evil in the hands of some people. They can actually put you in financial ruin. If you have them, stop using them and have only one for emergencies. Pay them off as quickly as possible, beginning with the one that has the highest interest rate.

The shape that your personal finances are in is largely determined by your lifestyle and spending habits. Don’t try to live above your means. Eat at home more often – eating out really costs you. Try to save gas by doing all your errands while you are out, and getting the groceries you need for a week at a time.

There are hundreds of ways to get your personal finances back in good shape. Every little penny adds up, so cut corners everywhere you possibly can.

Evana Richards is an avid writer for months on skincare and personal finance related articles. Visit her newest web site on Hello Kitty Checks and Hello Kitty Checkbooks showcases her passion for the hello kitty product lines.

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Everyone knows that the media can make or break public attitude and no more so than here in the United Kingdom. The latest spin doctors are predicting this quarter to produce evidence of an economic upswing but my advice is, keep that belt on the same notch for a while.

Take a few pointers on frugality and see how you can apply them to your own lifestyle to ensure you get safely through the recession.

Put the credit card on ice. Literally pop the offending item into a Tupperware, fill with water and freeze it. You’ll forget about it in a few days and learn to live on what you have instead of what you’d like to have.

Say yes to veggies

Grow your own. The soil’s great around the United Kingdom. Put your name down for an allotment and get your wellies on! Besides, home grown tastes best and you might even enjoy it.

Get closer and even more personal

Little expenses like hair cuts and pedicures eat up household budgets as do cards and going to the gym. Do it yourself. Get the scissors out, wedge your knee firmly between your loved ones knees and give him the trim of his life and instead of the gym, chase him around the house.

Eat at home

Restaurants eat your money. You can cook up a great spread for half the price at home. Lay the table, light the candles and cozy up with your loved ones over the family’s favorite or arrange a round robin supper where you only produce the dessert!

Give up the luxuries

That little cafe Latte in the coffee shop, the g-string in the mall, the ice-cream cone and the phone calls to friends in crisis – give them up! They may not seem important at the time but believe me, they soon add up! Drop the money in a tin and watch it grow.

Focus on what’s important

No one has to be totally stringent. Just learn to treat yourself in a different manner. Give your man a foot rub and ask him to massage your shoulders instead of going out to dinner. Get the kids baking with you in the kitchen instead of buying all those supermarket treats. Trade pedis with a girlfriend and start a supper club!

Once you get the hang of it, saving is easy. It’s just hard to start it off. Sit your family down and ask them to come up with ways to save on costs like turning the lights off every time they leave a room, cutting a minute off their showers, wearing their jeans for another day, getting friends to call them back. They’ll soon learn and you’ll soon save.

Jane van Velsen offers search engine marketing solutions to SME’s that incorporate article campaigns, blog management, website management and growth, online content, editing online and printed magazines, newsletters, press releases, strategies and general copywriting.

She is a published author of novels, children’s stories, poetry and articles and more recently, radio presenter and screen writer. Jane also ghost blogs and writes. With over fifteen years ad agency experience in the UK and South Africa she has a solid marketing background that enables her to interpret briefs and produce exactly what the client requests.

http://www.therightwriter.co.uk.

http://www.ja64.wordpress.com.

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To better understand how money and the economy works, think of money as a form of energy, like electricity, and the economy is like your house. When the electricity stops flowing, your house goes dark. Similarly, when the money stops flowing, the economy goes into recession or depression. The money is still there. When people stop spending then more companies will fail, more people will be laid off, and more people will cut back their spending. It creates an endless downward spiral. Our economy is driven by spending, or the flow of money.

Take a look for a moment at how we got where we are in our economy. There were many causes. People were overspending and relying on credit cards to keep them afloat, mortgages were being sold to people who couldn’t afford them, and other businesses were making bad decisions that put them into peril. Everything came to a head at once and everyone panicked. Houses were foreclosed on, banks stopped lending money, and businesses laid off employees.

People are scared, so now come the financial experts telling people basically what they want to hear – how to get out of debt. They advise people to cut back on all of their spending and put everything they save toward paying off their debt. This doesn’t help anything because without spending the economy won’t be lifted up. The electricity has to flow for the lights to come back on.

The solution to the problem is entrepreneurialism. The one piece of advice that the financial experts do give is to only spend money that you have. The implementation of that advice is what needs to change. Instead of forgoing the cup of coffee as the experts tell you to do, go out and make the extra money to pay for it. If you want to take a vacation this year that costs $1,000 then figure out how to make an additional $1000 this year. Living a smaller life doesn’t help anybody. It doesn’t increase happiness and it doesn’t contribute to a stronger economy. Figuring out new ways to make money leads to increase for everyone involved.

Here’s a simplified example of how this works. The people who quit going to the local coffee shops so that they could save money start going again to buy their $3 coffee every morning. Business picks up so they hire back 3 people and they can open a new store. These people now have money to return to the local sandwich shop for lunch which gives them the ability to hire more people and open a new store. This keeps building on an upward spiral and before too long the economy has recovered.

It isn’t as hard as you might think to create a small business that will bring in the extra money that you need. You just have to have the nerve to do it. You may have even had some entrepreneurial ambitions before but never took that first step to make it happen. One good place to look for a new business idea is to look at the things that you already do for your friends or neighbors. Is there something that you could probably make money doing? If you are the person who picks up lunch for everybody at work then you could start a lunch-time delivery service . If you do odds and ends for your elderly neighbors or help them with their housekeeping, you could start a handyman or housekeeping service. The ideas are endless. The point is to take something that you already do or a skill that you already have and package it as a service to make money.

Network marketing is another option. You start up a new business by building an organization to sell another company’s products and earn a commission from every sale you make and from every sale made by your team. The great part about network marketing is that you own your own business that you can run from your own home without a lot of overhead or product development. Everyone who joins your team is also an independent business owner responsible for themselves. The advent of the Internet has made network marketing a very real option for a lot more people. The Internet gives everyone the potential of turning a home-based business in network marketing into a global business.

The answer to the current economic recession, depression, or whatever label you want to put on it isn’t to stop spending. That’s how we got to where we are. People went from one extreme, overspending, to the other extreme, no spending. To dig out of this slump we need to return to responsible spending backed by the ability to earn the money that we need. Building your own business, full-time or part-time, is the only way for you to be completely in control of how much money you make. There are nearly an infinite number of ways to get started in your own business, either by turning a skill into a money-making venture or by getting involved in something like network marketing and selling another company’s product. The important thing is to decide to do something and take that first step.

Wayne Woodworth is a network marketer and affiliate marketer in the wellness and personal growth industries. He is a big believer in securing your own future by creating your own wealth through a business or businesses that you feel passionate about. You can find out more about Wayne and how to take control of your financial future at http://www.diversifymyincome.com

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