crisis suggestions

The forecasts by economists (and by economists I mean GMA and other government slugs) and financial leaders are so confusing that we are left more dumfounded on what’s really happening. The government says we’re doing okay, but others say that we better brace ourselves. I’m not really that worried. Filipinos aren’t afraid of tightening our belts. We’ve gone through much worse. We’ve lived through the Marcos regime, the Asian Financial crisis, El Nino, La Nina, and even Kris Aquino’s love life and Erap, not to mention the sex scandals (saved in flash drive, memory cards, and, would you believe, available in dibidis ) that every struggling wannabe seems to have. Nothing can really affect us. These are all entertainment for us.

Nevertheless, Money Smarts has this list of suggestions in prepping our finances. Be sure to check back the site later and read the comments, which I’m sure is filled with a lot more tips.

1. Save more aggressively and shop more responsibly. If you used to save 20 percent of your salary every month, see if you can raise the notch up a little bit.
2. Postpone vacations. Make staying at home a little bit more exciting for spouse and kids with simple and creative activities.
3. Postpone big purchases.
4. Pay off credit card debt faster. Just by doing that, you let your finances breathe so much better.
5. Manage telecommunications cost. Texting and mobile phone usage can be a quiet financial termite, and so can Internet connection.

A comment there says to look for second source of income or sideline. So far, we’re currently doing everything on the list .We hope to finish number 4 by the end of the year. Life will be so much better being debt free.