Where you live is a major determining factor in what types of disasters you are likely to face. However there are some basic preparations you can make that will help you survive most natural and manmade disasters. Essentials such as food, water, and shelter will help you survive. Comfort items such as electricity and light will make survival less stressful. While there may not be a way to stop disasters from happening, prepared people will be in a better position to care for themselves and help others.
In order to minimize the loss of life, most towns and cities have created emergency plans. Sirens are placed in strategic locations to announce a major evacuation; the emergency broadcast system is in place in the event that power and electricity has been cut off. Most areas have a designated shelter as well as stockpiles of food, water and medicine.
At a minimum you can make sure you are familiar with the resources in your local area. The Red Cross is an excellent place to start gathering information relevant to your area. It is a good idea to be familiar with the State and local plans for emergencies likely to affect your area. It is an even better idea to take that information and develop your own plan.
If you are prepared for an emergency you won’t be caught in the long lines of hapless individuals who rush to the supermarket to stock up on food, water and other essentials. These include candles, batteries for the radio and the flashlight as well as fuel for the generator.
Areas subject to flooding, chemical spills, forest fires, and hurricanes should may require citizens to evacuate. In other areas you may be better off staying in place. Being prepared to do either is the best decision. To accomplish this you will need two sets of emergency supplies. One for a stay in place plan and another for a grab and go plan.
Most of the supplies you’ll need for either of these plans can be purchased at local stores. Another way to get the supplies and equipment you need is to shop online. These pages have the supplies you’ll need for both plans. Feel free to use them as a reference for cost comparison, or to order your supplies.
There are tons of resources to help you organize yourself and your family for emergency situations. In fact, I think there are too many. It is easy to become overwhelmed and not get anything done because you don’t know where to start. A great guide that I use and one that will take you step by step is a book called Making the Best of Basics. You can get this book at Amazon.com for around $27. This book is like having an encyclopedia of preparedness with the exception that it is organized in a way that allows you to build incrementally starting with the most important preparations.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Establishing a Commitment For Change- Getting Out of Debt
Establishing a Commitment For Change- Getting Out of Debt
By Ron DuBoisWhen was the last time that you stopped to visualize what your life would be like without debt? Take a moment before continuing on to visualize this scenario; your debt has all been paid off including your mortgage, you have begun to save and have accumulated wealth for your future financial goals and you are living without the constant worry of debt or monthly budgeting. To actualize this visualization, you must establish our reasons for financial change and make a personal commitment to take required action.
Establishing Your Reasons for Financial Change
The first step in the process of becoming debt free is to understand what your personal motivation for change is. If you are not motivated to make changes and willing to commit to the process, you will have trouble achieving the results that you are seeking.
Ask yourself the following questions to better understand what your level of personal commitment is to making this financial change:
• What will change within your life when you become debt free?
• If you did not have any debts, what financial goals would you save towards? Your future financial goals are a significant piece of your motivation for change.
• How committed are you to working through the process necessary to become debt free? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to work through the financial process of becoming debt free?
• How you will you feel if you don’t achieve your future financial goals? Or, how will it feel if you have to drastically reduce or change your financial goals?
• What obstacles may get in your way of achieving these financial goals?
To take the concept of personal commitment to financial change further, it is important to understand more fully what the consequences are of not becoming debt free and of not working towards achieving your personal financial goals. For so many of us, carrying a consistent balance on our loans or credit cards has become common practice. But, are we really aware of the financial, personal and health consequences we are causing for ourselves by carrying such debt?
Financial
How is carrying consumer debt balances affecting your financial health? Consumer debts can include credit cards, personal signature loans, home equity lines of credit, auto loans and your mortgage. Unlike other consumer debts, a portion of the annual interest that you are paying towards your home’s mortgage may be tax deductible. Even though you are potentially receiving some tax benefits for carrying a mortgage, paying this debt off quickly will reduce the overall amount of money that you pay towards your home as you will be reducing the total interest paid.
It is estimated that the average American has in excess of $6,000 in credit card debt and that this number is rising annually. Not only does rising debts increase our monthly payment requirements, but it increases the amount of total payments made towards the purchases over time due to the interest that each credit card company applies to our unpaid balances.
Health
Financial pressures can increase stress felt by the body. While most of experience stress on a daily basis from a variety of sources, most of us are not aware of the potential damage this is causing to our health. Stress is often referred to as ‘the Silent Killer’ as many health symptoms go unnoticed until it is too late to address them.
Prolonged stress has been linked to the following health issues:
•Heart disease
•Heart attack
•Stroke
•Increased blood pressure
•Decreased immune system function
•Obesity
Poper stress management, including the management of one’s financial health can reduce or prevent many of these health conditions.
Creating Your Own Commitment for Financial Change
Now that you have considered some of the reasons behind why you should create your personal commitment for change, it is important to actually create an official document. Those individuals who write down goals and commitment statements are significantly more likely to achieve them.
You can become debt free! But, you must understand why you are willing to make this financial change. And, you must make a realistic personal commitment to taking action.
About the Author: Debt got you by the throat? I will help! My book, Turning Debt into Wealth, is the perfect guide to gaining control over your finances. Save time and money, slash Your Debt starting today! Help is waiting for you at Turning Your Debt Into Wealth
Source: www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=466644&ca=Finances
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Take Control, Part Five
To Succeed, You Must Let Others Control You at Times
Control is so far from being bad that a person who is sane and in very good condition does not resent good, positive control and is himself able to administer* good, positive control to people and objects.
A person who is not in very good condition resents even the most casual directions and is actually not capable of controlling people or objects. The latter person is also inefficient and has many difficulties with work and with life.
When a person cannot control things or when he resists things controlling him he involves himself with difficulties not only with people but with objects. It is also apparent that people with control difficulties more readily become ill and fail in other ways.
How do you feel when people give you orders or directions?
For example, if you are a business owner or executive, you need to let your staff members control your time. For example, they may need to set your appointments or control where you go and who you see. If you don't let them control your time, you can become overwhelmed and inefficient.
As another example, a husband asks his wife to handle the family finances. Yet when she tries to control his spending, he argues about it. He spends the money however he likes despite his wife's efforts to control spending.
The couple's credit goes bad. They constantly fight. They blame money problems for their marriage problems when the real problem is with his inability to be controlled.
You see examples of this every day. A young man leaves the Army because he hates being bossed around. He tries to work at a car dealership, but leaves because he hates being bossed around. He fails at several other jobs as he hates control. He can't even stand driving a truck as shippers want to control him.
If you have a problem with control, you might feel a reactive irritation or anger when someone tries to control you. You may think being controlled is a sign of weakness or failure. You see no benefit to being controlled.
Yet if you decide to let someone help you, you must then let them control you.
For example, a dental patient needs help with her bad teeth and lets the dentist control her dental care. A failing basketball player needs help with his shooting and lets his coach control his practice routine. A business owner with low profit accepts help from a consultant and lets the consultant guide his actions.
If the person who is controlling you also knows how to use control, as described in the previous four articles on control, you succeed.
Receiving Good, Positive Control
Positive control is not forced on you. You trust that the person wishes you success, not harm. You know his or her control is for your benefit.
Positive control from others can improve all parts of your life. For example, a good accountant controls you to stay on the right side of the tax laws. If you are a professional singer, your agent controls you to improve your income. If you are an employee, your boss controls you to improve your performance.
Husbands and wives must give and accept control from each other. Parents need to let their children control them at times. Even managers must let employees control them when it is right for the group. Positive control moves you in a positive direction. You end up with more money, success and joy than if you tried to keep control a one-way street.
You happily accept control when you know it is for your benefit.
We all need to give and receive control to get the most from life.
Summary: All Five Steps to Taking Control
“The whole feeling of self-confidence and competence actually derives from one's ability to control or leave uncontrolled the various items and people in his surroundings.” -- L. Ron Hubbard
1. Take a look at all your areas of worry and stress. Make a list of the situations in which you feel a lack of confidence or competence. Include all aspects of your job or life in which you need better control. List your concerns down the left side of a page. Leave room next to each problem to write solutions.
2. Now check if some of these problems are far outside your zone of operation. Last week's article, “Take Control, Part Four” addressed the need to stop trying to control these problems. Write, “Stop trying to control this” next to each of these. You can still have some influence on these matters if you wish, and you may extend your responsibility and sphere of control some day. Yet for now, if it is not your responsibility to control it, stop trying.
3. For the remaining problems, ask yourself if you should be letting someone else control you somehow. If so, write what types of control you need to accept, even encourage, from others. Plan to tell them.
4. With the remaining problems, write if the problem is with you starting something, changing something or stopping something. This was covered in “Taking Control, Part Three.”
Then write down what you could do. How could you start it or change it or stop it? What else could you do?
5. Carry out your plan for each problem and you will take control of your success, your life and your future!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
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