Joy Olivia Miller

Archive for the ‘Money Issue’ Category

With so many Americans being affected by the current credit crunch, myself included, people everywhere are struggling to not only make ends meet but simply to hang on to what they already have. The key to such financial stability is not in credit cards, but rather staying current on your bills with the help of payday loans which can make all the difference.

Know the Facts About Payday Loans

Despite what you may have heard about payday loans, you deserve to know the facts before you pursue any kind of financial options. These loans are also known as cash loans, cash advances and paycheck advances. They are relatively small loans compared to those operated by big banks and as such, they are meant to be that needed push to help get you through the month, especially in times of financial strain.

They are entirely separate from your bank and credit meaning the entire process is handled by a lender. With this separation of bank and credit status, many people who normally could not qualify for a loan can apply for a payday loan and get the necessary help they need.

The notion of quantifying the costs for customers in order to illustrate how much money they are currently wasting or will be wasting if they do not do business with you is a key element in the process of getting a customer to buy from you. This sounds obvious but can be overlooked by many people attempting to trade with a customer.

This process allows someone not only to demonstrate how much money can be saved but also alleviates their concerns about spending money on one’s particular product or service.

Various areas may be addressed during this part of the process however it is not always easy to uncover where a customer’s money is being spent.

Getting customers to realise the value of one’s solution has to begin with asking the right questions; in order to do this one needs to identify the customer’s typical costs and then decide whether or not they could be reduced or eliminated through the use of one’s product or service.

A good example of this would be health care where outsourcing has become a hot topic, as well as with business people and politicians.

There is a natural compulsion to use lower-wage workers abroad who have the same skills as those at home, although this brings with it the unexpected.

The pros of this are that savings will be made in direct costs and staff may be able to be eliminated from the payroll.

The cons are, depending on the industry, that the internet may go down, there will be a lack of rapport between the patient and doctor, there is a lack of accountability, and there would be no confidentiality.

Another good example of this is the construction industry.

Selling bricks is not all that exciting, but it is possible to quantify costs. For example, take someone who sells bricks to homeowners building new houses and construction companies creating new neighbourhoods.

It is very difficult to convince either of these parties to use bricks because they are more expensive than other building materials.

However, presenting the argument in a different way changes the picture:

Bricks hold heat better than other materials so in the long run costs will be saved on heating bills

As opposed to rendering, which needs to be replaced after years of wear and tear, bricks last a lifetime

Studies have shown that, everything being equal, a brick house will sell for fifteen per cent more than a house with rendering

For construction companies, bricks are easier to work with and easier to store than other materials.

In summary using this cost justification system, it is possible to translate the features of a product into considerable benefits and thus largely override the raw, up-front cost of the product; value can be imparted to a customer other than front line savings. However, it must be remembered that coming from the outside it is always easier to see and understand the concept and after all, it is their money that is being spent.

For better clarification a payday loans is really just a cash advances. It is designed specifically to get you out of a jam should you encounter some cash flow problems or an urgent matter may arise and the cash you need needs to be obtained super fast. The loan that you will receive is a short term loan and must be paid immediately after you receive your monies via your salary.

All companies that deal with payday loans require you to be permanently employed. They need proof that you have a source of income that is available to you on a regular basis. Your bank statements should neatly fit this requirement so that the process is carried out smoothly and efficiently.

Make sure you deal with reputable payday loan companies. Go through their website and make sure you understand what it required of you before putting your request through. You don’t want to be placed in a position whereby you are handing over your personal info as well bank statements to a complete stranger.

Nobody can fault you for having past debt problems as no one is perfect and therefore eliminating you as an applicant simply because of your bad financial history can really be traumatizing. People are glad that they can have an avenue available to them that will not leave them in a precarious position yet again.

A good piece of advice is to always pay back your loans at the specified pay back date. If you fail to do so then you are simply rocking up unnecessary expenses. The interest charges accumulated will be high so make every effort to abide to the rules stipulated in the contract.

A seamless and hassle free process is place with the use of online payday loans. The internet is a widely used medium whereby you can make a connection with the payday loan company if they have a website in place. All correspondence is neatly carried out via internet queries and if you choose all your queries can be handled telephonically. This relieves you from crowded offices and time consuming ques.

Isn’t it nice to know that there is a place you can turn to in time of your needs? Quieting angry creditors, meeting unexpected medical bills, avoiding late payment charges can all be done through instant payday loans.

When is the right time to start inquiring into your aging parents’ financial well-being? And, more importantly, when is it too late?

As your parents get older, it’s not too uncommon for their mental capacity to start to slip, and this can have an effect in all areas of their lives – including finances. It’s essential to talk to your parents about their finances before a crisis arises. Ideally, your parents should have an incapacity plan in place long before any concerns arise about their ability to make their own financial decisions.

What should this plan include?

1. If your parents have a Revocable Living Trust, it should contain provisions for a successor trustee or disability trustee to take over in the event of incapacity and manage the property that’s been transferred into the trust.

2. Whether or not they have a trust, your parents should each have a Durable Financial Power of Attorney.

This allows them to appoint an agent to manage any assets that have not been transferred into a trust. Depending on your parents’ needs, the Power of Attorney can be tailored to allow their agent to engage in Medicaid planning and to manage retirement accounts.

3. Consider beginning the transition before your parents’ mental capacity begins to slip. If your parents are receptive to it, you might want to suggest establishing a joint account, acquiring online access to their financial accounts, or otherwise becoming involved in their financial life before there’s an urgent need.

What if your parents have already lost the mental capacity to make a disability plan? If there’s no incapacity plan in place, and your mom or dad has lost the ability to pay his or her bills, manage his or her bank accounts, or otherwise remain financially independent, the solution is to have a court appoint you or another trusted loved one to serve as conservator to take care of your parent’s money and property. While this is not the most appealing option – it can be costly and time consuming – it is an effective last resort for making sure that your parent’s financial well being is preserved.

“I’d come and see you but you aren’t covered by my insurance.”

“My insurance will cover most of the $15,000 treatment so I’ll do the treatment.”

“My pills are cheap compared to natural supplements so I’ll stay with the pills even though I hate the side effects.”

“My insurance will cover only 13 visits per year to see you but they’ll pay for the surgery so I’ll have the surgery.”

“I have great insurance coverage so I’ll stay with the medical care.”

“I have insurance so I might as well use it seeing as I pay for it.”

What do you tell yourself when it comes time to choose how to care for your health? Do you let someone else or some other institution determine what you will do if you get ill?

Steve chose to have a hip replaced even though he felt better under chiropractic care. But his insurance plan covered only 13 visits to the chiropractor per year. “I want to have money to retire-I don’t want to give it all to the chiropractor. The insurance will pay for the surgery.” But after the surgery he had more pain and his quality of life diminished to the point where he gave up all his recreational activities and spent his retirement years sitting at home taking pain medication daily. He also became obese and developed diabetes due to his inactivity. He had money to retire, but he stated he hated his life now because he felt miserable.

Mary chose to have chemotherapy at $15,000 per dose to try to manage her auto-immune disorder. She chose the chemotherapy over working with a natural practitioner because of her insurance coverage.

Jason took 5 different prescriptions daily to manage his chronic diseases. Each drug gave him a side effect that caused him to take other drugs to manage those side effects. In the end, he took 10 different drugs daily. He became legally disabled due to the inability to work because of the drug side effects mostly. He wanted to be free of suffering, but natural care was not covered by his insurance so he chose to continue to suffer with his medical drug regimen because his insurance paid for the drugs.

What about you?

If money was not a factor and time was not an issue, would you care for your health differently than you do now? What if you could be healthy today and not have to pay large amounts of money? What if you could be free of the side effects of medical drugs and treatments?

The High Cost of Medical Care

It is no secret that medical care is expensive. The average annual physical is between $1,000 and $3,000. A general 7-minute office visit averages $150, and medical drugs are astronomical in price in the United States. And the leading reason for bankruptcy in the United States is medical bills.

Even medical insurance coverage is too much for most people, even if a percentage of the premiums are paid by an employer. Almost half of the people in the United States do not have medical insurance. President Obama is working on a policy to allow all citizens of this country to have medical insurance coverage-it’s a great undertaking for the president; it has over $1 trillion price tag attached to it.

In 2003, it was estimated that 74% of the population took at least 1 prescription drug daily, with the per capita statistic being 10.8 (this means that everyone in the United States takes an average of close to 11 prescriptions each day-if you don’t take 11, then someone else is taking 22). The average per capita cost for these prescriptions (out of pocket) is $501 per month. What would you do with an extra $501 per month?

The average annual per capita expenditures for out-of-pocket medical care overall is $5,670 or 15.3% of one’s income (this does not include insurance premiums which average $23,842 per year for a family plan). For some, they don’t even see $23,842 per year.

With medical care, disease management is the focus. Drugs, treatments and other care have the focus of keeping the disease under control-to keep it from interfering with a person’s life too much and to keep them working. The diseases tend to get worse with time; for some, between the disease itself and the side effects of drugs, they are unable to work or participate in life so they become legally disabled.

It should be noted that the United States far exceeds other countries in medical costs. The United States is also one of the most diseased countries using the criteria of obesity, hospital admissions, life expectancy, infant death ratio, those on low-income medical insurance, and those without medical insurance.

The Middle-of-the-Road Cost of Natural Care

Natural care encompasses visits to a chiropractor, acupuncturist, practitioner of some kind of non-medical care, and supplements. Homeopathy is not included in this section.

Although the population spends an average of $20 billion annually on natural care, the majority of people do not see natural practitioners. It is estimated that only 33% of the population take natural supplements or seek the care of a non-medical practitioner.

The average person taking natural supplements spends between $250 and $500 each month, with some paying much more. The average cost to see a chiropractor is $65 per visit; the average cost to see a Naturopathic Doctor is $50 to $200. Although these “office visit” fees are still considerably lower than to see a medical doctor, the costs of natural supplements still cause many to limit the number of supplements they take, or they may not take them at all.

Depending upon the practitioner, the focus of care may be either to improve a person’s quality of life or to manage a disease with natural supplements instead of with medical drugs. For the most part, herbs and vitamin/mineral supplements help with the person’s well-being, but healing may take a long time.

As most of the population takes at least 1 medical drug daily, taking supplements without talking to someone who is educated in both medical drugs and natural supplements could lead to health problems occurring. Most medical drugs will interact with vitamins, minerals and herbal supplements. If you take a medical drug (even just Tylenol® or ibuprofen), do not take any natural supplement without first verifying with a qualified practitioner that it is safe to do so.

The Low Cost of Homeopathic Care

When referring to homeopathic care, there are two distinctions: Classical Homeopathy and Modern Homeopathy. Basically, Modern Homeopathy works with disease management using homeopathic remedies; Classical Homeopathy works towards restored health and vitality.

Both practitioners charge an average of $350 for the initial visit and between $80 and $100 for follow-up visits. Homeopathic remedies/medicines are usually included with the visit; if not, they average $15 each.

If a person sees a Classical Homeopath, they spend, on average, $650 per year but save $1,000 on medical expenses per year. Modern Homeopathic care can cost the same but the savings for medical expenses is lower or absent.

The length of time a person is under care with a Classical Homeopath is an average of 1 month for every 1 year the person has had a chronic condition; if you are a highly sensitive person or have reactions to multiple stimuli (drugs, substances, emotions, etc), then the length of healing time may be double.

For a Modern Homeopath, length of time varies as homeopathics that are not selected according to homeopathic principles and the Laws of Cure do not help with healing-they manage diseases but the diseases tend to get worse because they are not healed with the selected homeopathics.

Conclusion

So, if money is a factor, best to choose Classical Homeopathy for healing. All fees will be out-of-pocket, but you save a lot of money in the end, diminish your suffering, and work towards being free of the diseases. Would you spend $650 if you could save $1,000 in the end? Would you give yourself time to heal if you know that you could be healthy in the end?

When it comes to your health, dreams and well-being, time is not an issue and money is not a factor. You can be healthy and vibrant. You can achieve all your dreams. You can do it all. You can be in control of your health-not your insurance company or your doctor or anyone else. YOU.

An old saying is that “if you don’t have your health you don’t have anything.” See a Classical Homeopath and you can have health, time, money and your dreams; here is no need to go without one of these just so you can have the others. Decide to have it all!

Make the right decision for yourself.

Best wishes,

‘Money stress’ and ‘money anxiety’ can at times be overwhelming for certain people — especially those who don’t have a fixed income, e.g. self employed, but also for many who do. Stress levels over money can easily escalate to cause most of the usual symptoms of anxiety prevalent in other recognised forms of anxiety disorder. It has both surprised and perplexed me that money as an issue in itself is not recognised as a major factor in stress and anxiety. Neither is it given due consideration along with other forms of anxiety disorders, such as generalized anxiety, social anxiety, anxiety over phobias, post traumatic stress disorder, et cetera.

From personal experience, there was an almost two year period in which my life was plagued with symptoms of anxiety due to the stress I was experiencing over money issues. If I had needed to approach the UK National Health organisation for help, I would have been offered only basic assistance directing me toward debt counselling agencies, to which and I had already gone myself. There is no specific counselling available that gets below the surface to reach those issues really being faced with anxiety and stress over money.

Fortunately, with my life coaching experience I was able to get to the root for myself, and even wrote an ebook that I now distribute to help other sufferers.

When considering the lack of specific help regarding ‘money anxiety’ and stress through public healthcare channels, it crossed my mind that anyone working in that sector would not personally relate to having ‘no fixed income’, therefore could find difficulty empathising. On further reflection, I don’t think this is the root of the problem. Having spoken to one or two counsellors, I realised they actually have their own issues around money, are also inclined toward stress and anxiety, but seemed hesitant to talk about it.

I wonder is it possible that many more people than we realise actually have misgivings about money and avoid talking about it? Is it also possible that many of us fear that impending sense of ‘not having enough’, (which fear is at the root of all anxiety and stress about money), and tend to run from it? Food for thought!