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mostlysignssomeportents · 4 years ago

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Taxes are for the little people

If you wanna do crimes, make them incredibly complicated and technical. Like the hustlers that came into the bookstore I worked at and spun these long-ass stories about why they needed money for a Greyhound ticket home.

Those guys shoulda studied the private equity sector.

Private equity's playbook is to borrow giant sums by putting up other peoples' companies as collateral (yes, really). Then they use that money to buy the company they mortgaged, and pay themselves a huge dividend.

Then they sell off the company's assets and pay themselves even more money. That leaves the company in a state of precarity - assets they once owned, like their buildings, they now rent. If the rent goes up, they have to find the money to cover it.

All of this forms a pretense for mass layoffs, defaulting on pension obligations, lowering product quality, stiffing suppliers and borrowing more money. If the company doesn't go bust, the PE looters can flip it to *another* PE company, that does it again.

Whenever you see something really terrible happening to a business that once offered useful products and services and paid decent wages, it's a safe bet that PE is behind it. Toys R Us, Sears, your local hospital - and that memestock favorite, AMC.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/04/12/mammon-worshippers/#silver-lake-partners

Private equity goons make their money in two ways: the first is by pocketing 20% of these special dividends and other extractive policies that hollow out business.

This is money at PE managers get paid for spending their investors' money. It's a wage, in other words.

But thanks to the "carried interest" loophole (a hangover from 16th-century sea captains that has nothing to do with "interest" on loans), they get to treat these wages as "capital gains" and pay far less tax on them.

The fact that we give preferential tax treatment to capital gains (money derived from gambling), while taxing wages (money derived from doing useful work) at higher rates really tells you everything you need to know about our economic priorities.

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/29/writers-must-be-paid/#carried-interest

The carried interest loophole lets PE crooks treat their salaries as capital gains, are taxed at a much lower rate than the wages of the workers whose lives they're destroying.

On top of the 20% profit-share that PE bosses get every year, they also pocket a 2% "management fee" for all the "value" they add to the companies they've taken over.

This is *definitely* a wage. The 20% profit-share at least has an element of risk, but that 2% is guaranteed.

But PE bosses have spent more than a decade booking that 2% wage as a capital gain, using a tax-fraud tactic called "fee waivers." The details of how a fee waiver don't matter because it's all bullshit, like the tale of the needful Greyhound ticket.

All that matters is that a legal fiction allows people earning *eight- or nine-figure salaries* to treat *all* of those wages as capital gains and pay lower rates of tax on them than the janitors who clean their toilets or the workers whose jobs they will annihilate.

Now, the IRS knows all about this. Whistleblowers came forward in 2011 to warn them about it. The Treasury even struck a committee to come up with new rules to fix it.

But Obama failed to make those rules stick, and then Trump put a former tax-cheat enabler in charge of redrafting them. The cheater-friendly rules became law on Jan 5, and handed PE bosses hundreds of millions in savings every year.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/12/business/private-equity-taxes.html

The New York Times report on "fee waivers" goes through the rulemaking history, the technical details of the scam, and the gutting of the IRS, which can no longer afford to audit rich people and now makes its quotas by preferentially auditing low earners who can't afford lawyers.

But former securities lawyer Jerri-Lynn Scofield's breakdown of the Times piece on Naked Capitalism really connects the dots:

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2021/06/private-inequity-nyt-examines-how-the-private-equity-industry-avoids-taxes.html

As Scofield and Yves Smith point out, if Biden wanted to do one thing for tax justice, he could abolish preferential treatment for capital gains. If we want a society of makers and doers instead of owners and gamblers, we shouldn't penalize wages and reward rents.

There's an especial urgency to this right now. As the PE bosses themselves admit, they went on a buying spree during the pandemic (they call it "saving American businesses"). Larger and larger swathes of the productive economy are going into the PE meat-grinder.

Worse still, the PE industry has revived its most destructive tactic, the "club deal," whereby PE firms collaborate to take out whole economic sectors in one go:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/05/14/billionaire-class-solidarity/#club-deals

We're at an historic crossroads for tax justice. On the one hand, you have the blockbuster Propublica report on leaked IRS files that revealed that the net tax rate paid by America's billionaires is close to zero.

https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/08/leona-helmsley-was-a-pioneer/#eat-the-rich

This has left the Bootlicker-Industrial Complex in the bizarre position of arguing that anyone who suggests someone who amasses billions of dollars should pay more than $0 in tax is a radical socialist (so far, the go-to tactic is to make performative noises about privacy).

At the same time, the G7 has agreed to an historical tax deal that will see businesses taxed at least 15% on the revenue they make in each country, irrespective of the accounting fictions they use to claim that the profits are being earned in the middle of the Irish Sea.

That deal is historical, but the fact that it's being hailed as curbing corporate power reveals just how distorted our discourse about corporate taxes has become.

As Thomas Piketty writes, self-employed people pay 20-50% tax in countries that will tax the world's wealthiest companies a mere 15%: "For SMEs as well as for the working and middle classes, it is impossible to create a subsidiary to relocate its profits to a tax haven."

Piketty, like Gabriel Zucman, says that EU nations should charge multinationals a minimum of 25%, and like Zucman, he reminds us that the G7 deal does nothing to help the poorest countries in the Global South.

https://www.lemonde.fr/blog/piketty/2021/06/15/the-g7-legalizes-the-right-to-defraud/

These countries and the EU have something in common: they aren't "monetarily sovereign" (that is, they don't issue their own currencies *and* borrow in the currencies they issue).

Sovereign currency issuers (US, UK, Japan, Canada, Australia, etc) don't need to tax in order to pay for programs - first they spend new money into the economy and then they tax it back out again.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/06/10/compton-cowboys/#the-deficit-myth

These countries can run out of stuff to buy in their currency, but they can't run out of the currency itself. Monetarily sovereign countries don't tax to fund their operations.

Rather, they tax to fight inflation (if you spend money into the economy every year but don't take some of it out again through taxation, more and more money will chase the same goods and services and prices will go up).

And just as importantly, monetary sovereigns tax to reduce the spending power - and hence the political power - of the wealthy. The fact that PE bosses had billions of tax-free dollars at their disposal let them spend millions to distort tax policy to legalize fee waivers.

Taxing the money - and hence the power - of wage earners at higher rates than gamblers creates politics that value gambling above work, because gamblers get to spend the winnings they retain on political influence, including campaigns to rig the casino in their favor.

This discredits the whole system, shatters social cohesion and makes it hard to even imagine that we can build a better world - or avert the climate-wracked dystopia on the horizon.

But for Eurozone countries (whose monetary supply is controlled by technocrats at the ECB) and countries of the Global South (whom the IMF has forced into massive debts owed in US dollars, which they can only get by selling their national products), tax is even more urgent.

The US could fund its infrastructure needs just by creating money at the central bank.

EU and post-colonial lands can only fund programs with taxes, so for them, billionaires don't just distort their priorities and corrupt their system - they also starve their societies.

But that doesn't mean that monetary sovereigns can tolerate billionaires and their policy distortions. The UK is monetarily sovereign, in the G7, and its finance minister is briefing to have the City of London's banks exempted from the new tax deal.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-06-08/u-k-pushes-for-city-of-london-exemption-from-global-tax-deal

Now, the City of London is one of the world's great financial crime-scenes, and its banks are responsible for an appreciable portion of the planet-destabilizing frauds of the past 100 years.

During the Great Financial Crisis AIG used its London subsidiary to commit crimes its US branch couldn't get away with. The City of London was the epicenter of the LIBOR fraud, the Greensill collapse - it's the Zelig of finance crime, the heart of every fraud.

UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak claims banks are already paying high global tax and can't afford to be part of the G7 tax deal. If that was true, it wouldn't change the fact that these banks are too big to jail and anything that shrinks them is a net benefit.

But it's not true.

As the tax justice campaigner Richard Murphy points out, the risk to banks like Barclays adds up to 0.8% of global turnover: "The big deal is that the 15% global minimum tax rate is much too low. Suinak has yet again spectacularly missed the point."

https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2021/06/09/how-big-is-the-tax-hit-on-banks-from-the-g7-tax-deal-that-sunak-fears-really-going-to-be/

Image: Joshua Doubek (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IRS_Sign.JPG

CC BY-SA: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

#pluralistic

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talabib · 5 years ago

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How To Handle Your Finances Like A Grown-Up.

Just how grown-up do you want to be? If you’re in your twenties or thirties today, you have the unique opportunity to choose for yourself. No one is going to force you to settle down and become all serious.

But there are a few things you need to deal with as an adult, and one of them is handling your personal finances. Maybe you just graduated and need to pay back your student loan? Or perhaps you’ve realized that your life could become more convenient if you had an online bank account? Or you’ve started wondering how to fulfill your dreams, like buying your first car or financing a cruise in the Caribbean?

No matter what your financial situation might be, this post will guide you, and you’ll discover that taking charge of your money is much easier than you might think.

Take control of your financial life by costing your goals and reprioritizing your expenses.

You don’t have to be a Wall Street trader to know that the global economy has been a bit dicey lately, but that doesn’t mean your finances can’t be in order. In fact, it’s never too soon to start planning your financial life, and it’s really not as hard as you might think.

Here’s how you can get started. First, determine how much money you’ll need to fulfill your dreams. Maybe your goal is to shed all your credit card debt or buy a new car, but whatever it is, if you’re going to realize your dream, you’ll need to know how much it’s going to cost.

For instance, say you want to buy a new $30,000 car. Sellers tend to require a down payment of about 10–20 percent, meaning you’ll need between $3,000 and $6,000 in the bank to bring your new baby home.

Once you’ve figured out the dollar value of your dream, you need to start saving toward it. But to save money you first need to know how you spend money.

Start by looking at your normal expenses. This is best done by keeping a diary for a month and writing down the details of all your expenses.

Eventually, your spending habits will be clear and you’ll know what you need to change to free up some money to save. For example, maybe you buy a lot more books than you actually read or are overpaying for cable.

Once you’ve worked out your spending, you’ll be amazed at how much potential for saving there is, even if you currently feel like you’re barely making ends meet.

Now that you know how to start saving, it’s time to explore a financial topic that many people find more intimidating: debt.

Pay off your credit card debt straight away and, if necessary, negotiate a lower rate with your lenders.

Are you in debt? If you are, you might be one of those people that just pays the minimum amount necessary every month and tries to avoid thinking about it the rest of the time. If that’s the case, you might want to rethink your strategy. In fact, all credit card debt should be paid off as soon as possible, because it costs a fortune!

For instance, say, like many people, you have $3,500 of credit card debt at an interest rate of 17 percent. Since you don’t have much money, you’ve been skating by, paying the minimum amount required.

The trouble is that at this rate you won’t pay off your debt until age 65! And by then, you will have paid a whopping $11,162 in total – $7,662 of which is pure interest. So, credit card debt is expensive and you should get rid of it as soon as you can.

But if you’re in more serious debt and struggling to pay your bills, you should speak with your lenders. While it might be scary, a conversation with the bank is exactly what’s called for. After all, they have an interest in making it possible for you to pay back your loan, and they’ll likely be more flexible than you think. They may agree to reduced monthly payments or a lower interest rate.

If you’re not up to doing this on your own, you can even hire a credit counselor, preferably a non-profit one. Both the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies and the National Foundation for Consumer Credit will help borrowers negotiate with lenders. You might also find help from unions in your area.

But regardless of how you do it, if there’s any way you can pay off your debt, you should make it a top priority. Next, we’ll explore how to go about doing just that.

Use your savings to pay down your debt, refinance your loans and pay your bills on time.

Besides talking to your lenders, there are also three other principles you should keep in mind to effectively manage your debt.

First, if you have any savings at all, the best way to invest them is by paying down your debt. This should be a no-brainer since you already know how expensive credit card debt is, and the same goes for car loans.

If you compare the returns you can expect from investing in stocks to the interest rate of your debt, the better investment is obvious. If your car loan comes with an interest rate of 17 percent, you’d have to find a stock that would promise a return of at least that much to make it a better investment than paying off the car loan – and good luck doing that. In other words, your debt likely costs you more than most investments can produce.

Another strategy is to transfer loans with high interest rates to loans with lower rates. Such a transfer is typically known as refinancing and, for obvious reasons, it’s often a good idea. By refinancing you’ll get a lower interest rate – say 8 percent instead of 18 percent – and will, therefore, reduce the cost of your loan.

So, if you’ve got a car loan or some credit card debt that you can’t pay off right away, just apply for a low-rate credit card. This will allow you to pay off your previous creditor with a new loan that demands a lower interest rate than the original.

And finally, always pay your debts on time, because stalling is never a good idea. How come?

Well, in this day and age, it’s not difficult for lenders, landlords or employers to peer into your credit history. And if you have late payments, they’ll protect themselves by demanding higher interest rates or denying you opportunities, so it’s better to be seen as a reliable debtor.

But debt isn’t everything, and next up is an exploration of the world of banks and how to choose the right one.

Choose a bank that insures your money, offers online banking and has ATMs close by.

Many people choose a bank just because it’s local or because their parents use it. But these aren’t exactly the wisest criteria.

Instead, you should first make sure that the bank insures your money. In the United States, most banks are covered by what’s called federal deposit insurance, which protects your money – generally up to $100,000 – if the bank goes bust.

This is guaranteed by a governmental agency known as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or FDIC. So, when choosing a bank, be sure to look for the stickers that denote FDIC certification or just go to the FDIC website and check if your account is covered and what the limit of the coverage is.

You should also look for banks that offer online banking and have nearby ATMs. That’s because these tools are essential for managing your finances. After all, online banking lets you easily manage your money whenever you want, but it also helps you keep tabs on all your account activity. It’s important to check your transactions every week to determine how much you can spend, but also to spot any errors.

Say your paycheck of $500 was deposited into your empty account yesterday, but your insurance company accidently charged you $800 instead of $400, and now you’re $300 in the red. If you don’t bother to check your transactions, you might never discover this.

Another thing to keep tabs on when choosing a bank is the distribution of its ATMs. That’s because you can withdraw money from your bank’s ATMs for free. So, if you choose a bank that has lots of ATMs, you can save money by avoiding fees.

But maybe you don’t want to just plant your money in a bank account and would rather invest it to get a positive return. Well, investment advice is right around the corner.

To easily diversify your investments, go with a mutual fund.

If you only follow one rule for your investments, it should be “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”!

This simple guideline can go a long way, and it’s easy to diversify your investments by putting your money in a mutual fund.

A mutual fund is basically a pool of money to which thousands of people contribute. That money is then invested in different securities, like stocks and bonds. Investing in such a fund is highly beneficial because even small investments will be thoroughly diversified.

This is important because investing all your money in just a couple of companies could mean losing everything if they fail. But with a mutual fund, the money is spread across many stocks, meaning that if one plummets, you still have all the others to prop you up.

So, mutual funds are a good choice, and you can buy shares in them in all kinds of places like brokerage firms, banks and mutual fund companies. But the last option is the best. That’s because mutual fund companies are firms that specialize in selling such funds, and they usually offer some great perks.

If you invest in a mutual fund through a brokerage firm or bank, you’ll often pay steep fees and find yourself held to high minimum investment requirements. With mutual fund companies, on the other hand, you’ll pay low fees and won’t have to invest very much if you don’t want to.

Not just that, but if you stick with one mutual fund company, you’ll get a monthly overview of all your investments, making it easy to move your money between different funds.

OK, now that you’re squared away on savings, debt and investments, let’s move on to the often tricky field of insurance.

When it comes to insurance, it pays to shop around.

Most people pay way too much for insurance. To avoid being one of them, you need to do a bit of research on insurance providers.

That’s because different insurers can charge very different premiums for identical policies. One study found that a young man could buy identical car insurance policies with premiums ranging from $808 to $3,441! So how can you best shop around for insurance?

For starters, specialist websites will compare the databases of insurance companies for you. They’ll then provide you with a free list of cheap policies. Buying a policy suggested by one of these sites won’t cost you any more than buying one from an insurance agent.

You might also choose to talk with a couple of agents. After all, since they tend to work on commission, they’ll be eager to make a deal and can be flexible with premiums and options.

But finding a cheap policy isn’t the only important consideration. It’s also key to know how much coverage you need. Otherwise, you might end up paying for unnecessary insurance.

So, while you might think it’s a good idea to buy lots of small, seemingly cheap insurance policies – just to be safe – this isn’t necessarily a good idea. That’s because you might end up paying a lot of money for coverage you already have.

For instance, say you’re on vacation and decide to rent a car. You might spend $10 a day for collision insurance without realizing that you’re already covered by your credit card or your own car insurance, which happens to extend to rentals.

This is why it’s always worth mapping out your current coverage before buying new insurance.

Seize control of your personal finances in your twenties and thirties. Save for your future goals by paying off all the debt you can, making diverse investments and choosing the right bank and insurance for your needs.

Action plan: Do some ATM research!

You probably don’t pay to use your own bank’s ATMs but might well be charged a fee for using those of other banks. It could cost you as much as $3 per transaction, and since banks aren’t too keen on explicitly informing customers about these fees, it’s essential to do the research yourself. Just imagine the hundreds of dollars you could save every year simply by favoring your own bank’s ATMs!

#How To Handle Your Finances Like A Grown-Up.

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pipepencil02-blog · 5 years ago

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$ 50,000 Mortgage Loans For 15 Years Month-to-month Payments Calculator.

$ 50,000 Mortgage Loans For 15 Years Regular Monthly Settlements Calculator.

#toc background: #f9f9f9;border: 1px solid #aaa;display: table;margin-bottom: 1em;padding: 1em;width: 350px; .toctitle font-weight: 700;text-align: center;

Content

Do You Required To Borrow Money?

Making a decision Whether You Need To Be Borrowing Money

Do You Really Required To Spend The Cash In All?

Can You Conserve Up Or Make Use Of Some Financial Savings Instead Of Loaning Money?

Excellent Money Loaning Versus Bad Money Loaning

Do You Need To Borrow Money?

In complete consequently, there is additional personal tax for Jeremy to pay of ₤ 2,325 per annum as an outcome of obtaining the cash from the firm. One more developing sector of the temporary loan market is guarantor lendings. Targeted at individuals with poor credit records as well as youngsters without a credit report, guarantor loans generally provide a means of borrowing up to ₤ 7,500 over one to 5 years, with a second borrower ensuring the loan.

Deciding Whether You Must Be Borrowing Cash

" Financial fears can result in sleep loss, anxiety and also even depression," she said. "Our research study demonstrates that youngsters in Britain are not dealing as well as are needing to obtain simply to manage. More requires to be done to support individuals; whether that's providing much better financial education and learning in schools, working with companies to provide their young team economic education or perhaps offering financial obligation support as well as advice. Additionally, in Denmark several loan providers offer interest-only finances and will finance the purchase of home outside Denmark. Adverse rates of interest have led to the similarly odd phenomenon of financial institutions paying debtors to take financings. What isn't made up is payment to any type of prospective new borrowing or credit, indicating that as soon as your financial payment to the trust deed has been made, there is restricted cash money left over monthly.

Do You Actually Need To Invest The Cash In Any Way?

If you're looking to borrow a larger quantity of money-- as much as ₤ 8,000 for instance-- then you 'd possibly wish to take into consideration getting a personal loan. In this manner, you're allowed to obtain all the money and also you pay back a specific amount every month.

Can You Save Up Or Make Use Of Some Savings Rather Than Loaning Cash?

When you accept a loan from us you'll be required to make one payment each month back to us no matter which loan provider has actually put up the cash for your loan. We disperse funds, supply declarations and also deal business assistance. Your loan contract with us is different from our agreement to investors.

How can I make 50000 instantly?

P C Financial Services Pvt Ltd (Cashbean) uses completely unethical means to make you repay, their tele-callers literally give you threats of bringing down your credit score to make you repay. My suggestion, please avoid cashbean !! Cash bean is not a scam. It is legit.

It is very important that you look at this initial so that you can prevent being punished for being rejected.

Also, unlike a traditional loan, the interest doesn't most likely to the financial institution or an additional business lending institution-- it goes to you.

This implies that you should not look for charge card or loans unless you are relatively particular that you will have the ability to be approved by them.

Many credit-based items have a list of standards that you can take a look at before you use.

This will certainly then make it harder for you to secure other forms of credit in the future and also can typically become a little a vicious circle.

Modifications to rates of interest as well as refinancing is commonly not supplied however located no instances of property seizures. It is kept in mind that a lack of transparency around the loan conditions "gas uncertainty concerning Chinese objectives" towards debtor nations. Financial obligation catch diplomacy is utilized to define a type of diplomacy based upon financial obligation executed in the bilateral relationships between countries with a typically claimed adverse intent. The term is currently most frequently related to the international lending methods of the Peoples Republic of China by the country's doubters. They need to additionally give additional assistance in the form of lower interest rates on borrowing above the interest-free buffer and repayment prepare for those that would gain from them.

By taking assets off the banks' hands, it enables them to increase borrowing. It reduced the rate on the "price cut home window", a tool for financial institutions to obtain from the Fed, as well as encouraged them to use it freely. It suggested that banks could dip right into their funding buffers, worth $1.9 trn, as well as their liquidity buffers, another $2.7 trn, to provide to homes and also companies, which assisted ease their governing restrictions. Then, on March 18th, the Fed announced it would start getting short-dated industrial paper, to provide straight support for big business.

Of course, there are thousands of different individual loan choices, so ensure you examine the APR and also rates of interest to make sure that you're obtaining the greatest deal. Look into borrowing from a credit union if you're on a low earnings and also you require to borrow a little amount for a short time. Lending institution are 'mutual' organisations, which exist to aid regional individuals save and borrow at inexpensive rates. After taking his ₤ 8,000 wage right into account, he has the equilibrium of his ₤ 11,000 personal allowance offered to balance out versus the benefit in kind, leaving ₤ 3,000 taxable at 20%, which corresponds to ₤ 600. Nonetheless, this benefit in kind likewise presses complete income up to ₤ 49,000 per year, which exceeds the greater price tax threshold, and gives him additional dividend tax obligation of ₤ 1,725.

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It additionally relaunched a facility to lend directly to "primary suppliers", a group of economic firms that do not have direct access to regular Fed loaning channels. You may be offered lendings as part of your college's economic aid deal if you use for financial help. ] shows that China typically provides financial debt write-offs for zero-interest lendings only whilst interest-bearing loans are discussed individually on a loan-by-loan basis with only the changes in the payment duration transforming.

It began on March 12th when the New York City Fed, a branch of the reserve bank, made $1.5 trn (a sea of money) readily available for repo procedures. Along with cutting interest rates on March 15th the Fed introduced it would buy up $500bn-worth of Treasuries as well as $200bn-worth of mortgage-backed protections.

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As noted above, under the Short-term Loaning Act, this is permitted for the failing of profits. Fitch had actually assigned a credit rating of BBB- with an adverse outlook to these notes. The State had actually applied to Moody's Investors Solutions for a rating on the notes, but had not received one as of the day of the aborted issuance. As of this writing, the State has had to delay the bond sale because Illinois's treacherous financial scenario will require it to pay steep fines to offer the financial obligation.

While short-term interest rate are less than those for long-lasting debt, they can still be a significant expense for cash money strapped local governments. Unlike risky payday or title fundings, personal installation financings enable clients to borrow money based upon their general economic picture. Their backstop is the Federal Book, America's lender of last resource. It has headed out of its way to ease the blockages in the economic system by motivating financial institutions to provide.

The deal will progress when market problems are more desirable or it may progress under the Federal Reserve Bank's MLF, defined below. At the city government degree, some regions have already acted to remove fines for late property tax settlements, effectively prolonging the settlement target date, therefore substantially delaying the invoice of profits. The Chef Area Board approved a strategy to waive the 1.5% rate of interest monthly on late real estate tax settlements that usually would be due on August 3rd up until October 1st. In addition, there also could be hold-ups in the invoice of state revenue sharing funds and/or decreases in the quantity of earnings offered. This might compel city governments, including towns and also institution areas, to borrow funds in anticipation of receiving incomes at a later date.

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experiencingmyjoy · 6 years ago

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Walking Within Wisdom #15 September 3, 2019

“Fear and debt drive this system. We are hammered with messages that terrify us into believing that we must pay any price, assume any debt, to stop the enemies who, we are told, lurk at our doorsteps.” ― John Perkins, The New Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

So I have REALLY enjoyed the work Anahita Joon and Aaron Glassman, it has certainly provided me with some wonderful new wisdom.

A couple of weeks ago I was able to listen to Anahita and Aaron interviewing John Perkins, a man I have met several times through the Pachamama Alliance https://www.pachamama.org/ and my social entrepreneurship work. What seems to be happening for me is that much of the wisdom I am listening to has really powerful messages talking about the same things.

Yesterday’s wisdom of Ubuntu Contributionism followed by today with John Perkins is such a clear example. So many of us want to head to the same destination, this destination as John Perkins describes, an “environmentally sustainable, just and fulfilling world for all species” (by the way that is part of the Pachamama Alliances mission :-)) What if we all could agree that this is actually the destination we are headed? What if we could all put this destination in our collective GPS’s? Well, I will let that stir for a while and tell you all about this fabulous interview with Mr. Perkins ;-) Despite cutting pages of notes, this is another long segment, so go grab a drink and a snack (hopefully something sustainable!) and get ready for some wisdom!

If you would enjoy watching the interview itself you have a couple of more days to enjoy the replay here: http://iconicleadersrise.com.pages.ontraport.net/day-2

If you don’t know who John Perkins is here is a short bio: As Chief Economist at a major international consulting firm, John Perkins advised the World Bank, United Nations, IMF, U.S. Treasury Department, Fortune 500 corporations, and leaders of countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. He is a founder and board member of Dream Change and The Pachamama Alliance- non-profit organizations devoted to establishing a world that future generations will want to inherit and the author of the New York Times bestseller, Confessions of an Economic Hitman.

Anahita and Aaron started by asking John who is an Iconic Leader to him … John described iconic leaders as people who are really stepping out and facing the truth, the truth that we are at a time in history where we have seen thousands of years of exploiting people and the resources of the world. We are clearly still living in an exploitative time.

We are destroying ourselves, destroying the essence of being human creating what John calls the death economy, an economic system that is consuming itself into extinction. This has happened in small ways in history like in ancient Mayan society, but never on a global level. We are in an incredible time in history, where Iconic Leaders are here to face these things, not gloss over them, and come up with real solutions.

It is time to move toward “life economies” instead of hierarchy. We need to have an economic system that regenerates itself that doesn’t hurt the earth and look toward indiginous communities for guidance.

Anahita asked about being in a state where “I care and I am in overwhelm feel like I could collapse”

John then described… We need to recognize there are two realities, objective reality and perceived reality… Perception is what creates our reality. Once people accept this perception, it creates a paradigm shift… John calls this “touching the jaguar” You can not run from that which you fear, you have to run to it and touch it, touch the jaguar.

The Jaguar represents fear of change… Most of the world doesn’t have the luxury of thinking about these things - because they have to put food on the table. We HAVE to change and do it in a way that will impact every species on the planet…

John told his personal “touching a jaguar” story… He explained that on 9/11 he was in the rainforest… He got back to NYC and decided he must write a book about his experiences as an economic hitman, and was inspired to write it “as a confession” If you are going to be a whistle-blower, you don’t tell anyone you are doing it, the CIA wouldn’t want him to be a martyr after all!

John then went on to explain, how do we touch the Jaguar? By writing, speaking, working with organizations like the Pachamama Alliance or Dream Change, raising a child, influencing school system… that IS touching the jaguar… He described a friend of his who is a carpenter, he is only willing to work for you if you are willing to use sustainable products… That is touching the Jaguar

Anahita described how she was consciously spending her money in her 20’s and would spend $100 on a sweatshirt that was sustainably sourced and created... Her friend would go to target and buy 3 sweatshirts for $65… Her friend would say, look I saved so much money and she would say I am not trying to “save” money, I am ethically spending my money. It was really hard for her to be surrounded by that level of “consciousness”

John then went on to explain that this level of consciousness is not meant to be easy, buying that $100 sweatshirt was touching the jaguar… You were investing in the child you didn’t have yet… We need to tell the good companies why you bought from them AND tell the companies why you didn’t buy from them. Most CEO’s want to do the right thing, they just don’t know how to do it without losing their job!

John continued by describing how we have certainly moved far away from cooperation, this movement towards nationalism is a difficult and scary one… Moving toward the right wing is a response to desperation… People around the world are disappointed, discouraged and frightened. When “we” are in this state we run toward authoritarian rulers who will tell us what to do and how to be. DESPERATION AND FEAR forces us to look for answers, they can come from either side of the aisle. It is just looking for answers in different directions.

What we are seeing is an underlying discontent which opens the door for real consciousness change.

Milton Freidman won the nobel prize for economics in 1976. His Nobel prize theory, to maximize short term profits no matter what the social or environmental cost. Freidman described, if you maximize short term value, social and environmental issues will take care of themselves. He touched the jaguar and it changed perception/reality. This is what has triggered everything that we are dealing with today. He put the nail in all of our coffins. Political leaders, business schools, corporate leaders 100% bought into his theory. It is time we reversed it, that is why it is so important to encourage iconic leaders today!

John is a history buff he explained during the American revolution in 1774, we thought the British were invincible. George Washington - remembered an ambush that killed many men… Their strategy hide behind trees… George Washington then adopted the same “hide behind trees” strategy and won - the British are not invincible… Hiding behind trees was a total perceptual change and it shifted everything basically overnight… We can do this too… We need to be creative! We need to utilize the Shamic idea of “we have all the answers to all the things we need, we just need to open our minds and hearts to accept it…”

How does John believe we need to address all of these crisis’s? He explained, revolutions always try to get stopped by those who think the status quo is exactly where they need it to be. That is what is happening right now… People in power today can see what is happening, it is a revolution and they are trying to put the breaks on to stop it. Like in martial arts, we need to take strength from the opposition… When someone comes at you with an attack, rather than fighting it, use their energy. We should take energy from them and use it to fuel us to do the work we were put here to do. Let’s take energy from it instead of getting discouraged by it.

John concluded by saying, “Pachamama is speaking to us so clearly, rising waters, melting ice caps - mother is twitching but she hasn’t shaken us off yet. If we listen we can work with her, be partners so she will not shake us.

Look to your passions and skills - we are all headed to the same destination

Creating an environmentally sustainable, just and fulfilling world for all species we can all take different routes to get there… go with your love and bliss and do it together

#walking #wisdom #inspiration #Iconic Leadership #john perkins #pachamama alliance #pachamama

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considermycat · 8 years ago

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Finished #reading Adults in the Room: My Battle with Europe’s Deep Establishment, by Yanis Varoufakis.

This is a gripping account of Varoufakis’ 162-day term as Greek finance minister, as part of the Syriza government that came to power in early 2015. Varoufakis, subjected to brutal criticism both in office and subsequently, gives his side of the story on the attempts to renegotiate the ruinous bailout deals that previous Greek governments had entered into with the “troika”: the EU, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

At the heart of Varoufakis’ argument is his insistence that Greece was bankrupt, not merely suffering a shortage of liquidity, and that consequently a more radical restructuring of its debt was needed, rather than the “pretend and extend” approach taken by the troika – the consequences of which were to crush the Greek economy and prevent the economic recovery necessary both to repay its debtors and to end the humanitarian crisis inflicted on its people.

The first two Greek bailouts, Varoufakis argues, had not been about saving the Greek economy at all: they were about saving European banks from their huge exposure to unsustainable Greek debt:

This was the beauty of the Greek bailout, at least for France and Germany: it dumped most of the burden of bailing out the French and German banks onto taxpayers from nations even poorer than Greece, such as Portugal and Slovakia. They, together with unsuspecting taxpayers from the IMF’s co-funders such as Brazil and Indonesia, would be forced to wire money to the Paris and Frankfurt banks.

The debt was not reduced, but transferred (in effect) from European banks to European taxpayers, saving the former, but putting Greece in an impossible position: economically crushed by bailout terms that were impossible to implement (a point that senior troika figures concede to Varoufakis), but with debt restructuring now equally unachievable given the political impact once voters in creditor states realised what had happened to their money:

In my view Merkel and Schäuble had no intention of going to their parliament to support debt relief for Greece, a move tantamount to confessing that the first two bailouts had been given under false pretences.

In Varoufakis’ view, the aim of the bailouts was never to get Greece back on its feet – “For the troika, getting its money back would have been nice but, in the grander scheme of things, was of secondary importance” – but to make a salutary example of the country in order to ensure other eurozone countries toed the line in future.

The bad faith of the troika was compounded by the refusal of the Greek political establishment to admit to the reality of their country’s bankruptcy:

Upton Sinclair once said, ‘It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.’ In this case, the income and wealth of the Greek ruling class depended on their not being convinced of Greece’s bankruptcy.

Varoufakis had agreed to join the new Syriza government because he was confident that the new prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, would support his strategy to renegotiate Greece’s debt while tackling the endemic corruption and tax evasion that have beset Greece throughout its history. As the story unfolds, however, it becomes increasingly clear to Varoufakis that Tsipras is going to end up caving in to the troika – as, indeed, eventually happens. Varoufakis leaves office, vilified both at home and internationally.

Varoufakis is brilliant at putting you “in the room” as he reports his encounters with the troika, the Eurogroup, Tsipras and other Syriza figures, and so on. He’s clearly writing with one eye towards future historians, with much of the reported speech being taken verbatim from recordings he made at the time. (To be honest, the verbatim dialogue sections are less successful to read than Varoufakis’ non-verbatim summaries of private meetings.) Whether this book will succeed in vindicating him remains to be seen; but any future criticisms of Varoufakis will have to take account of what he describes in this book: the fundamentally impossible bind in which Greece found itself; the hypocrisy and outright duplicity of other EU politicians; the backstabbing and loss of nerve among Syriza ministers.

On a more human level, probably my favourite aspect of the book is Varoufakis’ evident love and respect for his wife, Danae Stratou. The book is full of references to Danae and to the support and encouragement she provides to Varoufakis, particularly at his most vulnerable times:

Arriving home, I was at last delivered from a state of loneliness that no amount of adrenalin can compensate for. Danae had returned from Austin, having completed our move in spite of the prize-worthy bureaucratic incompetence not just of Greece but of the United States. During the frenzied three days that followed the fact that we were still unable to spend any proper time together mattered little. It was enough to know she was near.

This book makes for uncomfortable reading as the UK embarks upon Brexit negotiations. Indeed, at times it’s hard even for dyed-in-the-wool Remainer like me not to think “we’re well out of this.” Varoufakis rejects this, describing how he answered British eurosceptic friends puzzled by his rejection of Brexit:

‘We want our country back!’ was their wholly legitimate demand. ‘So do we,’ I would respond. But to take back our countries, I would explain, we need to reclaim common decency and restore common sense across Europe. Just as no one country can tackle climate change by itself, the task we face cannot be achieved by solitary nations. ‘Would the weak in Britain suffer less after Brexit?’ I would ask. ‘Would the weak in Europe be better off ?’ Or would reinforced borders and Europe’s disintegration favour the deep establishment and the political monsters its failures have spawned?

For Varoufakis, the suffering inflicted on Greece demonstrates the need, not to abandon the EU project altogether, but instead to oppose its “illiberal and anti-democratic” tendencies, so tragically clear in this book, with more pan-European democracy.

#reading #yanis varoufakis #finished reading in 2017 #adults in the room #library #economics #politics

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sserpente · 8 years ago

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Words: 2364 Warnings: kidnapping (duh), violence, mentions of rape

A/N: Boomer’s back! I missed our cheeky Aussie, did anyone else? Just a quick side note—I thought a lot about how to write this Imagine, for obviously, Amanda is a coloured woman. Given that many RCs are not, I want to hereby remark that it is in no way mentioned whether the Reader is Amanda’s biological daughter or adopted, so I can be sure all of my readers can enjoy reading the same. ♥ Don’t forget, we’re all beautiful just the way we are!

University had been all but exhausting today. With two of your professors complaining how you had not handed in an essay that had been due today, all you wished for now was a hot bath, a good book and maybe a jar of chocolate cream to calm your nerves.

Being Amanda Waller’s daughter wasn’t easy, after all. While other students faced everyday problems like break-ups, financial problems or not being able to decide what to wear for the next party, you kept finding yourself in life-threatening situations.

Not that you wanted to be a part of her Task Force X madness in first place, especially not when you had heard that she basically forced alleged super villains to cooperate by putting a bomb in their necks. No, there was no alignment with the government on your part, for you had made clear you wanted your jobwise career to go in a completely different direction—writing was what interested you. Books, scripts or poems, you did not care. Wherever there were words, you read them, devoured them with your eyes.

A sigh escaped your lips. Amanda had been reluctant at first, wanting only the best for you, despite her harsh attitude sometimes. Deep inside, however, and so you knew, she loved you dearly and would do anything to protect you—even if that meant that she had to admit to one weakness. A weakness that could be leveraged.

You frowned uneasily when you suddenly heard a strange rustling in the bushes next to the empty path you were walking on. It was twilight already, the street lanterns not yet turned on and the sun saying her last goodbye before disappearing on the horizon to be replaced by the moon. A full moon.

There was no time for you though to admire the wonders of nature, for the creature hurtling out from behind the bushes startled you to the core. You wanted to scream and to run away, shout for help, anything. But you were frozen on the spot, your hands clutching your bag tightly as your lips parted in shock.

The creature, as you figured only the fraction of a second later, was a man storming towards you, his movements too quick for you to recognise his face as he wrapped his left arm around your waist, his right hand covering your throat, ready to squeeze your windpipe at any moment.

“Yuh scream an’ yah’ll regret it dearly.” A throaty voice, thick with an Australian accent, whispered hoarsely in your ear, a hot breath brushing against your skin. You swallowed thickly, your eyes widening in horror.

Self-defence, self-defence, self-defence! What was that move your former self-defence teacher had showed you when someone grabbed hold of you from behind, threatening to strangle you? No matter how hard you tried, you could not remember. Instead, you felt the stranger—a muscly man with rather shabby clothes—drag you back behind the bushes.

He’s going to rape you, he’s going to kill you… Your fearful thoughts were the last thing going through your head before you felt a light sting in your arm, a hostile liquid surging through your veins. Then, there was nothing but darkness.

“An’ I said I had a plan, craziness. Yah wait fah me where I told yuh tah. Nah, she won’t. She ain’t gonnah blow our fuckin’ heads up. Not if she wants her lovely lil’ daughtah back. I have. I’ll know all of Waller’s lil’ secrets by dawn, now shut up an’ call me when yuh done.”

It was his voice that ripped you from a dreamless and unpleasant sleep, your body still fighting the intruding liquid that had drugged you, forcing you into unconsciousness.

Your head was drowsy, your mind clouded. It took you a minute to recall what had happened.

You had been walking home from university—all alone—until a man had suddenly grabbed you and abducted you, bringing you to God knew where. Had he raped you already? Where you going to be held hostage? Was he alone, were there others?

Immediately, you felt yourself panicking, your pulse quickening as your heart was in your mouth. Your rose rather clumsily from an old battered leather couch, taking in as much of your surroundings as possible. Maybe you weren’t too far from home. Maybe you’d be able to cry for help, to call the police and describe them what it looked like in your environment…

Your hope was soon crushed when your captor hung up the phone and let it slip into one of his pockets—there were many. If you wanted to secretly snatch it from him, you would have to be lucky. Unfortunately, however, he seemed to read your thoughts as he followed your gaze to his grey leather coat.

“Don’t even think about it, luv.” It was when he stepped into the light and you were to see his face for the first time. Fear and shock washed through you. Dark beard, unnaturally blue eyes… You knew this man. It was Digger Harkness aka Captain Boomerang, one of the lackeys Amanda had forced into her Task Force X program.

As for now, you were dealing with a dangerous and probably mad super villain who threw boomerangs as sharp as knives, killing people like it was a sport in the process.

Instantly, you began to shiver, attempting to move away—only there wasn’t much room to do so.

“Stop freakin’ out, I won’t hurt yah as long as yah cooperate.” He said with a malicious smirk, showing off a golden tooth as he did.

Cooperate. How would you cooperate? You had overheard him saying something about Waller’s little secrets. Was that the reason he had kidnapped you? Did Amanda know?

“I… please… I don’t know anything about Amanda Waller’s plans… my mother doesn’t involve me in—“

Interrupted by a sharp pain on your left cheek, your head was forced to the side. You realised with a start that Boomerang had smacked you.

“I’m not in a playin’ mood, luv. Save yuh lies fah the cops when I’m done with yah. Now,” He sat down on the couch next to you, positioning himself so you couldn’t get away. Please, God, let me get out of this alive.

Your breath was shaking when you finally turned back to him, forcing yourself to look him directly in the eye, even though it scared the hell out of you. That man was intimidating but you were not going to show him any kind of submission.

“I have a couple a’ questions fah yuh an’ if yuh answer them nicely, yah’ll make this a lot easier fah both of us. I’m not gonnah lie, yuh’re a pretty lil’ thing, I wouldn’t want tah mess up that beautiful face a’ yours.”

“Please… don’t… don’t hurt me… I-I… I will try to help but I-I don’t know anything about my mother’s affairs. She’s…” You suppressed a sob, “She’s very discrete when it comes to stuff like that.”

The Captain’s eyebrows rose and for a brief moment you feared he would slap you again.

“Carin’ mothah, huh? Makin’ sure her precious lil’ daugthah doesn’t get intah any trouble. Sucks fah her she didn’t put up any effort tah hide yah properly then. Yah clearly know who I am so yah know somethin’.”

Shivering, you bit your lower lip, attempting to move away once more. Being this close to him made you nervous but as soon as he noticed, he wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling you even closer to his muscly body. You could feel the weight of his heavy and deadly boomerangs underneath his grey leather coat.

“I-I only know about her Task Force X project. That she gathered a group of… of… vi-villains who were supposed to ensure the country’s safety from th-threats but… it-it got out of hand…” You stuttered, avoiding making any more body contact than necessary.

Boomerang scoffed. “Yeah, it got outtah hand, cos’ we made a move an’ stood up against this crazy bitch. Where’s Flag? Is he still trackin’ our whereabouts?”

Flag?

“I-I don’t know who Flag is.” Your sob was audible this time. If you didn’t get it together and tried to regain your composure, you would start crying in front of him. You couldn’t possibly give him the answers he desired and you were scared of the consequences that would pose to you.

“Flag. Rick Flag, the colonel? Idiot with three degrees an’ in love with a possessed archeologist?”

You shook your head, once more expecting him to punch you. The painful blow never came.

When you looked up, you watched Boomerang rolling his eyes before he grabbed your waist even tighter, his fingers digging firmly into your skin. You gasped at the sudden force, sure that he would leave bruises.

“What about Deadshot’s daughtah, is she safe? Does Waller know where she is an’ if yes, is she gonnah leave her alone? I kinda owe him a debt.”

Your lips parted in surprise. “Deadshot has a daughter?”

The Captain quirked one eyebrow. “An’ guess what, Waller still sent him out there, knowin’ his offspring could end up as an orphan.” He spat, his voice heavy with disgust.

“What? But… but it’s all secured!” You exclaimed, unsure of what to believe now. “My mother’s soldiers fight in groups and they are provided—“

“Do yah even know what’s goin’ on out there, luv? There’s a fuckin’ witch tryin’ tah blow this whole place up an’ take ovah the world an’ yah tellin’ me yah didn’t know? What kind of mothah is that crazy witch? She sent us on a fuckin’ suicide mission an’ yah know what? She doesn’t give a fuck whethah we’re gonnah make it out of there alive.”

“She… she wouldn’t send out her soldiers knowing that they couldn’t stand a chance.” You muttered, not quite believing his words. You were frowning know, finally daring to look him in the eye again, for you had concentrated your gaze on his golden necklace.

Boomerang’s face somewhat softened. “Well, clearly, she does. Reckon yuh beloved mummy didn’t tell yah about how many people she killed tah ensure the ‘national safety’.” When your eyes widened even more and frightened, disappointed and desperate tears came rolling down your reddened cheeks, he finally seemed to realise you indeed knew nothing about any of what was going on.

“I don’t… I mean I chose not to be a part of this. She asked me to join her but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to, not after what I had heard about her putting life-threatening nanites in the necks of… it’s… I-I’m sorry this happened to you. I know you… you do bad things but… no one should…” A whimper escaped your lips when the Aussie let go of you.

“Yah really don’t know anythin’, do yah?” All of a sudden, there was a soft and soothing tone in his voice, warming you from the inside out. How could this criminal go from deadly and aggressive to calming and gentle this quick?

“Please… please let me go, I don’t want to be a part of this.”

“I can’t let yah go, luv. As long as I have yah, Waller ain’t gonnah blow our freakin’ heads up.”

You whimpered once more, hugging your knees in an attempt to comfort yourself. Boomerang looked down at you, his blue eyes almost glistening with pity as he watched your pathetic state.

“Okay, look, here’s the deal. Yah stay here with me until we found this bloody doctah the Joker forced tah deactivate Harley’s nanite, so we can be sure tah be safe when we leave the country. But yah gonnah have tah stay in this apartment, alright? No funny business, no phone calls, no nothin’, an’ I won’t hurt yah, yah got me?”

You hesitated. Your mouth opened to reply but there was no sound escaping your lips. He was offering to let you go unharmed, even if he would do so a little delayed. Was it possible? That you would indeed make it out of this alive? Tears formed in your eyes—it was both relief and fear that washed through you now, causing the salty water to wet your cheeks.

“O-okay.” You finally replied, your voice almost breaking in the process.

Sighing, Boomerang pulled you in a tight embrace, pressing your face against his chest and resting his chin on your head. You were terrified, tried to push him away to no avail until you noticed he was indeed just hugging you to try and… comfort you?

“I’m sorry. I won’t hurt yah anymore. Yah gonnah be fine, alright? I’ll protect yah.” Involuntarily at first, your eyes fell shut as you finally relaxed and leaned into his touch, his muscly arms around you granting you a feeling of secureness. When was the last time Amanda had hugged you like this?

It was then you realised you had been wrong about those so-called villains all along. Perhaps Boomerang was tricking you into believing you were safe, perhaps his friends were on their way now to off you on the spot but for now, you couldn’t help but believe him.

He was but trying to save his own life, after all, getting free from the clutches of a woman who threatened to end his life if he didn’t act her way. It disgusted you deeply that woman was your own mother, that she had never told you about her dark schemes. You loved her, that much was for sure, but right now, you were disappointed—and you wanted to talk to her, ask her to stop this.

The sudden softness in Boomerang’s eyes startled you as he gently grabbed your wrists and helped you on your feet before wiping away a lone tear on your cheek and for a brief moment even made you forget that that man—murderer, bank robber and fugitive—had kidnapped you in first place. You had the strange feeling that you were his guest now, more so when he suddenly smiled at you.

“Are yah hungry? Cos’ me Spaghetti Bolognese is the best thing yuh’ll have evah eaten.”

#captain boomerang #captain boomerang imagine #captain boomerang x reader #captain boomerang x you #jai courtney #dc #dc imagine #suicide squad #suicide squad imagine #george digger harkness #digger harkness #digger harkness imagine #digger harkness x you #digger harkness x reader

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aaltjebarisca · 6 years ago

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What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle)

If your car were to break down tomorrow and need a couple hundred dollars’ worth of repairs (plus towing costs), would you be able to afford it? Do you have to carefully track when your bills come to ensure that they don’t overdraw your checking account when they do? Do you anxiously await your next paycheck so that you’ll be able to eat something other than ramen? If so, you might be stuck in the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle.

Evidence seems to suggest that the majority of Americans are similarly struggling. One 2017 study from Career Builder says that 78% of U.S. workers live paycheck to paycheck. When you live in this cycle, all of your money goes toward your basic costs of living, leaving you little to none leftover to put into savings and causing you to worry about whether you’ll make it to your next payday.

Not only is this an incredibly stressful way to live, but it puts you at risk for serious financial troubles if you end up needing money for something outside of your everyday budget. What can you do when you barely have enough to cover rent, let alone contribute to your 401(k)? And how do you break out of this cycle?

Why Are So Many Struggling to Save?

It’s not just people who are irresponsible with money who have trouble. While very few of us are perfect spenders, there are many factors that can lead a person to live paycheck to paycheck. Consider those living in high-cost areas who spend half their income on housing expenses and have to allocate the rest toward paying for groceries and other bills. Or, consider workers in low-wage jobs with few prospects for advancement.

There are many reasons why people struggle to break out of this cycle. Some people are simply bad at managing their money or never learned good financial habits, while others have limited means or too many financial burdens for their money to keep up.

“Some are simply ill-equipped to manage their own money, while others are affected by stagnant wages and fewer benefits,” explains David Bakke, writer for personal finance blog MoneyCrashers.com.

Figure Out Where Your Money Is Going

Todd Kunsman, founder of the personal finance and investing website InvestedWallet.com, knows firsthand what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck. Luckily, he was able to get out of the cycle by paying attention to his finances. He started by creating a spreadsheet that tracked all of his income, expenses and bills.

“This gave me the big picture and helped me realize some quick wins of where I could stop spending and save a few bucks. It might not be much, but it is a start,” he says.

How does he think he ended up in this cycle to begin with? While he counts having a low salary as a contributing factor, he adds, “the majority of my situation was by not evaluating my financial decisions. I had two student loans out of college and little in a savings account. I immediately got an apartment. One year after working, I got a brand new car. Now I have two student loans, a car payment, rent, utilities and still very little saved. Quickly, I ended up only having about $20-50 each paycheck which would go to food, gas and maybe some leftover could go to savings. Oh, and I still had a few hundred on a credit card too. Financial disaster waiting to happen!” he says.

When you’re going over the numbers of what you spend your money on, try to think critically about the types of things you’re spending money on, and whether you could be more sensible in the future.

Bakke also advises people to get a budget and work on reducing expenses first, then to start aggressively tackling credit card debt, so you aren’t wasting money paying interest.

Alex Tran, a digital marketing strategist for Hollingsworth, a national e-commerce and logistics company, used to live paycheck to paycheck. She said that people who want to get out of that cycle should be obsessed with where their money is going.

To do this, she suggests downloading your bank’s app and signing up for services that allow you to see your credit score and create a budget for free.

“Check your accounts every 2-3 days, make sure your credit report hasn’t changed drastically, categorize your spending in Mint (this will help you determine your budget and if you’re going over it). Once I became less afraid to see my bank accounts, I knew what I should do with my paycheck and 10 years down the road, what I could do because I decided to save rather than spend,” Tran says.

Work on Your Situation

At the start of the budgeting process, a lot of people will focus on minimizing smaller expenses, such as a daily coffee run, which is a good start. But when you’re looking for ways to improve your financial situation, you should evaluate every aspect of your budget, including some of the bigger things that might take more effort to change, such as your income and housing costs.

Lots of people wish they were in higher paying jobs, but it can be hard to make that a reality. However, keep in mind that with your finances, you’re playing the long game. Just because you can’t get a new job tomorrow doesn’t mean you can’t start working on skills to build your resume.

Kunsman says utilizing free or low-cost resources allowed him to switch jobs from email marketing to digital marketing and start earning more.

“I started taking free courses from Google on paid advertising, SEO and analytics. I also read a bunch of marketing blogs, started a blog and looked for other ways to learn more. Doing this led me to get a job at a marketing agency, which accelerated my skills and salary to the next level,” he explains.

Use the internet to your advantage. There are countless free, reliable resources available to anyone with an internet connection that will make you more marketable and teach you how to be successful in your search for a better-paying job.

If a big portion of your budget goes toward housing costs, look into ways you could spend less. While it’s not always ideal to have to downsize your living space, the money you save moving into a smaller apartment could end up being worth it. If moving isn’t possible, consider bringing in a roommate.

Get a Side Gig

“I am the queen of side gigs,” Tran says. “I teach yoga, work a full-time job, do marketing projects/freelance on the side and write for various publications because it’s my passion. I find things that I can easily commit to and not stress over. I do things that are fun and bring value to my life.”

If a little bit of extra money each month would provide enough of a cushion for you to start saving for the future, it may be worth it to take on a side hustle.

With the abundance of gig economy apps out there, it’s easier than ever to score part-time work. If you love dogs, consider walking dogs for cash on the weekends using an app like Rover. If you have a car and some free time after work, you could spend a couple hours every weeknight driving for a ride-hailing app. Or, if you have a hobby that you’re skilled at, look for ways to monetize it through freelance work.

“This can also protect you in job loss, where you still have some income coming in and are building a buffer of funds during a job search,” Kunsman says.

Ask and You Might Receive

Not having money can be a cruel Catch-22: Sometimes, you don’t have enough to cover your bills, so they’re marked late and begin accruing fees, making it even more unlikely that you’ll be able to pay them off.

Avoid this punishing spiral by being unafraid to ask for help when you need it. It may seem unusual, but many times your creditors will be willing to work with you; after all, they’d rather have you pay your bills than have to send you to collections. If you know your payment is going to be a little late, talk to them ahead of time to let them know what’s up, explaining your circumstances. They may waive the late fee or push back your due date. The key is to be proactive and talk to them before it becomes a problem.

Likewise, figure out if you qualify for any social programs or government help. Situations like yours are what they’re there for.

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it. Check out government programs like unemployment, food stamps, subsidized housing, etc., if you are eligible. Look for low-cost business courses at community colleges, senior centers, libraries and community centers to improve your skills. Attend networking events and reach out for better career opportunities,” recommends Sharon Marchisello, author of the personal finance book “Live Well, Grow Wealth,” which is based on her experiences living frugally, saving, investing and retiring early.

When Tran was trying to break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle, she was always looking for programs or deals that would help.

“Find low-income or income qualified deals. For example, in Seattle and New York, we have income qualified housing. If you make middle-income, you can qualify for reduced housing in these areas. There are also deals for internet, cellular/landline phone service, food programs (EBT), reduced rates for students and low-income [people] at parks and museums, education stipends and grants, and much more. You just need to look for them,” she says.

Be Ruthless About Cutting Costs

Do you really need cable? In this day and age, probably not. What about Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime? Oh, that one might hurt a little more. Opting for a cheaper phone plan? Life will go on, but it might be a little less enjoyable now that you can’t watch funny cat videos anytime, anywhere.

If you’re really serious about carving extra room in your budget to start saving, that money has to come from somewhere. Start by looking at all the things you regularly spend money on, and find areas where you could cut back. You don’t want to make your life miserable – if you really need a streaming service subscription, maybe limit it to just one, with the cheapest plan available – but you do seriously need to consider whether certain amenities are worth the budget space.

“Take extreme steps in the short-term. Maybe you cut the cable and get your TV needs from Netflix alone, which is a huge money saver,” Bakke says.

Additionally, see if there are lower cost swaps you can make. Look for cheaper car insurance or trade in a gas-guzzling car rental for a more fuel-efficient model. Limit yourself to eating out once a month or go out for lunch instead of dinner to get better deals.

Pay Yourself First

“Most people get paid, pay their bills, spend a bit, then save whatever might remain. Many times there is not much left to save, if anything. Instead, put a savings plan in place and save a percentage of money first, then pay your bills,” Kunsman says.

By making your own savings your first priority when you receive your paycheck, you not only ensure that you’re building a safety net, but you make it less likely that you can reason with yourself as to why you need to spend those leftover dollars on something rather than tucking them away for the future.

Even if you’re only able to contribute a little bit, you’ll slowly be building up that safety net, which could end up being a vital part of what gets you out of the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle. Ellie Thompson, CEO of Money Therapy, a financial consulting company located in Washington, D.C., explains why.

“Starting an emergency fund is essential to getting out of your paycheck-to-paycheck cycle. Why? So you can pay cash for your unexpected expense instead of reaching for your credit card, furthering yourself in debt. Start funding an emergency account that you put money in every month until you reach $1,000. You can start with small amounts – even $25 a month can make a difference,” she says.

The Bottom Line

Getting out of the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle is easier said than done. These are just some of the ways people have helped themselves out of the cycle, but depending on your situation, your experience may vary.

However, remember that achieving financial security happens like anything else: one step at a time. Just because it feels overwhelming or even impossible doesn’t mean it’s not worth trying. Having just a small emergency savings fund can prevent a flat tire or leaky roof from becoming a financial disaster – and that is money well saved.

Have you ever lived paycheck to paycheck? Do you have advice to share? Tell us in the comments below.

The post What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle) appeared first on ZING Blog by Quicken Loans.

from Updates About Loans https://www.quickenloans.com/blog/break-out-of-the-paycheck-to-paycheck-cycle

0 notes

aaronsniderus · 6 years ago

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What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle)

Why Are So Many Struggling to Save?

“Some are simply ill-equipped to manage their own money, while others are affected by stagnant wages and fewer benefits,” explains David Bakke, writer for personal finance blog MoneyCrashers.com.

Figure Out Where Your Money Is Going

“This gave me the big picture and helped me realize some quick wins of where I could stop spending and save a few bucks. It might not be much, but it is a start,” he says.

Bakke also advises people to get a budget and work on reducing expenses first, then to start aggressively tackling credit card debt, so you aren’t wasting money paying interest.

To do this, she suggests downloading your bank’s app and signing up for services that allow you to see your credit score and create a budget for free.

Work on Your Situation

Kunsman says utilizing free or low-cost resources allowed him to switch jobs from email marketing to digital marketing and start earning more.

Get a Side Gig

If a little bit of extra money each month would provide enough of a cushion for you to start saving for the future, it may be worth it to take on a side hustle.

“This can also protect you in job loss, where you still have some income coming in and are building a buffer of funds during a job search,” Kunsman says.

Ask and You Might Receive

Likewise, figure out if you qualify for any social programs or government help. Situations like yours are what they’re there for.

When Tran was trying to break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle, she was always looking for programs or deals that would help.

Be Ruthless About Cutting Costs

“Take extreme steps in the short-term. Maybe you cut the cable and get your TV needs from Netflix alone, which is a huge money saver,” Bakke says.

Pay Yourself First

The Bottom Line

Have you ever lived paycheck to paycheck? Do you have advice to share? Tell us in the comments below.

The post What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle) appeared first on ZING Blog by Quicken Loans.

from Updates About Loans https://www.quickenloans.com/blog/break-out-of-the-paycheck-to-paycheck-cycle

0 notes

mostlysignssomeportents · 5 years ago

Text

Sacrifice banks to save businesses

Richard J Murphy is well-poised to talk about the economics of the pandemic and post-pandemic; he's co-founder of the Green New Deal, Director of the Tax Research Network, and a political economy prof at City University London.

His longread on how the pandemic will either wipe out businesses and workers, or banks and landlords (and if the former, eventually the latter) is also a must-read:

https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2020/05/05/people-and-jobs-or-wealth-the-government-has-to-decide-which-to-prioritise-and-there-is-only-one-right-answer/

As Yves Smith writes, "Murphy’s argument, in essence, is that [banks and landlords] are toast under any scenario, and they can’t be allowed to weigh down the productive sectors of the economy."

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2020/05/people-and-jobs-or-wealth-the-government-has-to-decide-which-to-prioritise-and-there-is-only-one-right-answer.html

Here's the argument, best as I can summarize it: property values in the UK are grossly inflated.

(in Danny Dorling's 2014 "All That is Solid," there's sobering stats on this, with something like 60% of all UK wealth being property in the London area)

http://www.dannydorling.org/books/allthatissolid/

Related to inflated property values: 85% of all bank-loans are collateralized with property.

tldr: The rent's too damned high, and if it wasn't, the banks would collapse.

On to businesses and workers: businesses are paying too much rent. They're going to come back from the crisis burdened with debt and with too-high operating costs. If they continue paying rent at prices that can sustain the landlords' debt service, they will fail.

If they fail, workers' jobs will disappear, and that will trigger a collapse in property prices and then the banking sector.

So, as Smith says, either we save workers and businesses and sacrifice landlords and banks, or we'll lose workers, businesses, landlords and banks.

Murphy's argument, then, is that lawmakers should declare statutory rent holidays, and reduce rents by 80% thereafter, and nationalize the banks when this causes a wave of defaults on property-collateralized loans.

Murphy points out that if you let landlords fail, there will still be properties that businesses can operate out of and workers can work at that can serve the productive economy.

But if you let businesses fail, the businesses just disappear, and they don't come back, and neither do the jobs - and then the landlords are wiped out and the banks fail anyway.

He says that nationalizing the banks can even save landlords, through "a right to a statutory reduction in loan liabilities so that the sum secured on a property cannot exceed its market value, whatever that might be in the future...subject to periodic reviews."

Other landlord-saving measures:

* "Statutory bank (and other) loan deferral arrangements of two years"

* "Interest only arrangements...subject to the right to roll it up as part of the balance if it is necessary for the borrower to get through this"

Murphy sees no alternative: "right now most businesses in the UK cannot be profitable unless major costs and cash flow outgoings are immediately removed from their overheads."

Today, HMG is "preserv[ing] the appearance of value and wealth that is implicit in our overinflated property values at present, which also underpin all UK banking" at the expense of "the ability of this country to make a living."

The reduction in property values is inevitable. Once the property market thaws, the prices will tumble for new rents/sales, Murphy says "the old ones should follow suit."

"If we want an economy that generates income in the future then the blunt fact is that we now have to trash our balance sheet. Or rather, we have to accept that it has already been trashed and now deal with the consequences."

Irrespective of whether the government intervenes, the bank losses will vastly exceed their capital reserves, by many multiples. 85% of loans are collateralized with grossly overvalued property whose prices are about to tumble. All those loans will be underwater.

"Every single bank in this country, and across the world in all likelihood, will be insolvent. No bank will survive without nationalisation."

Part of this will involve wiping out part of the highest-value deposits.

Murphy says that any depositor whose "beneficial ownership cannot be proven" should be wiped out. And any claims "from a tax haven there should also be a considerable haircut."

He also predicts that come what may, the UK's £6T in pension wealth will be devastated, as so much of it based on property speculation (but he points out that the property will still be there when it's all over, at much lower values).

But he says that keeping pensioners afloat requires keeping the productive economy going (so it can afford a new, liveable state pension), and that requires that we wipe out banks now, rather than waiting for them to take businesses and jobs down with them.

The pandemic forces us to reckon with the fact that "value creation does not come from financialisation, or balance sheet manipulation...it comes from work, which produces value as a consequence of the inherent worth of the activities undertaken."

Murphy believes we can rebuild society, "if we recognise there is no magic way to do so: financialisation as a source of value creation [is] a myth. It is work alone that generates value, and even then it can only do so if we respect the constraintsnature imposes upon us."

And to reiterate, Murphy says that the medium-term choice isn't between banks/landlords and businesses/workers - rather, it's between saving ANY of them, or letting them all collapse.

#pluralistic

84 notes · View notes

mikebrackett · 6 years ago

Text

What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle)

Why Are So Many Struggling to Save?

“Some are simply ill-equipped to manage their own money, while others are affected by stagnant wages and fewer benefits,” explains David Bakke, writer for personal finance blog MoneyCrashers.com.

Figure Out Where Your Money Is Going

“This gave me the big picture and helped me realize some quick wins of where I could stop spending and save a few bucks. It might not be much, but it is a start,” he says.

Bakke also advises people to get a budget and work on reducing expenses first, then to start aggressively tackling credit card debt, so you aren’t wasting money paying interest.

To do this, she suggests downloading your bank’s app and signing up for services that allow you to see your credit score and create a budget for free.

Work on Your Situation

Kunsman says utilizing free or low-cost resources allowed him to switch jobs from email marketing to digital marketing and start earning more.

Get a Side Gig

If a little bit of extra money each month would provide enough of a cushion for you to start saving for the future, it may be worth it to take on a side hustle.

“This can also protect you in job loss, where you still have some income coming in and are building a buffer of funds during a job search,” Kunsman says.

Ask and You Might Receive

Likewise, figure out if you qualify for any social programs or government help. Situations like yours are what they’re there for.

When Tran was trying to break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle, she was always looking for programs or deals that would help.

Be Ruthless About Cutting Costs

“Take extreme steps in the short-term. Maybe you cut the cable and get your TV needs from Netflix alone, which is a huge money saver,” Bakke says.

Pay Yourself First

The Bottom Line

Have you ever lived paycheck to paycheck? Do you have advice to share? Tell us in the comments below.

The post What to Do When You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck (and How to Break the Cycle) appeared first on ZING Blog by Quicken Loans.

from Updates About Loans https://www.quickenloans.com/blog/break-out-of-the-paycheck-to-paycheck-cycle

0 notes

talabib · 4 years ago

Text

How To Handle Your Finances Like A Grown-Up.

No matter what your financial situation might be, this post will guide you, and you’ll discover that taking charge of your money is much easier than you might think.

Take control of your financial life by costing your goals and reprioritizing your expenses.

Once you’ve figured out the dollar value of your dream, you need to start saving toward it. But to save money you first need to know how you spend money.

Start by looking at your normal expenses. This is best done by keeping a diary for a month and writing down the details of all your expenses.

Once you’ve worked out your spending, you’ll be amazed at how much potential for saving there is, even if you currently feel like you’re barely making ends meet.

Now that you know how to start saving, it’s time to explore a financial topic that many people find more intimidating: debt.

Pay off your credit card debt straight away and, if necessary, negotiate a lower rate with your lenders.

In fact, all credit card debt should be paid off as soon as possible, because it costs a fortune!

But if you’re in more serious debt and struggling to pay your bills, you should speak with your lenders.

While it might be scary, a conversation with the bank is exactly what’s called for. After all, they have an interest in making it possible for you to pay back your loan, and they’ll likely be more flexible than you think. They may agree to reduced monthly payments or a lower interest rate.

But regardless of how you do it, if there’s any way you can pay off your debt, you should make it a top priority. Next, we’ll explore how to go about doing just that.

Use your savings to pay down your debt, refinance your loans and pay your bills on time.

Besides talking to your lenders, there are also three other principles you should keep in mind to effectively manage your debt.

And finally, always pay your debts on time, because stalling is never a good idea.

How come? Well, in this day and age, it’s not difficult for lenders, landlords or employers to peer into your credit history. And if you have late payments, they’ll protect themselves by demanding higher interest rates or denying you opportunities, so it’s better to be seen as a reliable debtor.