It's Dec 19. Today I had planned to go Christmas shopping - it's getting close to the wire! But it started to slush (you know what this is if you live in Vancouver) and after going for a short walk and getting soaked and cold, I decided to leave the Christmas shopping until tomorrow when [...]
I've been doing a lot of work the past three weeks helping clients prepare budgets. I think it's that time of year. People start to freak out around December - I know I do. All this money going out - I'm going to be destitute! That thought doesn't help when you're already stressed out about [...]
Lately I've been thinking about procrastination. Why? Well, I haven't blogged in a while and so I've been thinking about why this is so. I think I love blogging but my posting record does not bear this out. My friend and coach just gives me the raised eyebrow when I start making all these excuses [...]
It is pretty darn easy to get married. All you really need is a license and hey - it only costs $100! Of course some people have fancy weddings and yes, they take a lot to organize and can be costly. But you get a choice in doing that. You don't get the same choice when [...]
I recently met someone who has the following strategy. He works on a contract basis for six months and makes good money. He pays off the debt he accumulated when he wasn't working and then he quits and gradually builds up debt until it gets to be unsustainable and then he goes and works again. His [...]
I've been getting some very strong reminders lately about the importance of planning. Very strong. The main reminder I have been getting is that if you don't plan adequately for certain stuff in life, things can go very wrong, On the flip side, by doing just a little work upfront, life can go [...]
I recently did a set of spending plans for a couple that is separated. They are trying to sort of the how they are going to share parenting arrangements going forward. Their individual financial situations depend on what they decide. Are they going to share parenting or is one parent going to be designated the [...]
I recently went to the Economic Update that CPABC (that's Chartered Professional Accountants of BC) puts on every year. I go every year as it is free professional development (well, almost free as it consumes my time) and I always think that I might learn something. This year I learned that the Economic Update works [...]
When I realized my marriage was over, one of the first things I started thinking about was how my life was going to change and not only change, but change for the worse. Everything was going to be harder. I was becoming a single parent for half my waking hours and I was starting that [...]
I hate spending money. My Scottish-Dutch genetic makeup combined with my upbringing in a Depression impacted family has turned me into a person that gets anxious any time I head to the cash register. You know how some people call shopping “retail therapy”? Well, shopping has never been that for me. The act of spending [...]