Sasha Says… – Page 60 – Family and Home. Money Matters. Life in General. And More.

Mistakes Or Not, These Financial Issues Can Be Crippling

February 13, 2018 No Comments

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How did your finances get in such a dire state? I made a mistake! You cry out in the hope that admitting you made an error will solve the problem. But of course, it doesn’t, and that’s why you need to avoid making the mistakes in the first place. There are various errors in judgement that will end up costing you a fortune and will put your finances in a difficult, somewhat dicey position of recovery. So, what mistakes are we talking about here? We’re glad you asked because once you realise what these errors are you should be able to completely avoid them.

Blood In The Water

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Do you know where loan sharks get their name from? Sharks are attracted in the wild by blood in the water. Supposedly, they can smell it from miles away. The name is particularly apt for a loan shark because they too feast on someone who is in desperate need of help and support. The difference is of course that a shark doesn’t pretend to offer first aid whereas a loan shark does. They’ll tell you how much the loan could help you providing you with the support that they can see you desperately need. They’ll offer you reassuring words about how it’s completely affordable and even give you friendly tips about how to make sure you can pay it back.

The problem is that this is a business and for a loan shark, it’s actually better if you pay it back later. This rises the interest to the point where they get big bucks from you and a lot more than you previously borrowed. A lot of people falsely assume that those who borrow from loan sharks do so for silly reasons such as a family trip to Hawaii. However, that’s not true, and most instead do it so they can cover the expense that they didn’t see coming but that they do have to pay. Or, they simply use it to pay off the bills that were a little larger than normal monthly charges. It’s easy to slip into a trap like this and far more difficult to climb out.

Before you turn to a short-term loan company, do make sure that you have exhausted every other possible option. Even paying on a credit card may be better than spending money on a loan company because at least with a credit card, you’ll typically know what type of interest you’re looking at before it grows out of control.

I’m Fine

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Arguably two of the most dangerous words in the English language and not just because they are often uttered moments before someone explodes in anger. To explain how these two words can impact your finances, we need to explore an example. Let’s say that you are involved in a car accident. Now, for many people, the first thing most people would do is either contact their lawyer or head to the doctor, particularly if the incident wasn’t their fault. However, some people don’t like to make a fuss, or they just don’t like these kind of jolts out of their daily schedule. And, if the insurance company is going to cover the cost of the car, there’s nothing to worry about right? After all, you feel fine apart from an aching in your back, but that’s nothing. That will surely go away in a couple of months right?

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Perhaps it does but then a year or two later it returns, worse than ever. Now, at this point, you might put two and two together, realising that the accident did cause a problem with your back. It is only then you decide to contact a lawyer. Firms like Lopez & Humphries PA see this all the time. The problem is that by this stage there’s not a lot they can do. A back injury could have been caused by a variety of incidents, and it’s very difficult to prove it was a result of the crash. Particularly, if you didn’t go and see a doctor. You see the problem? That’s why you should always contact both a legal rep and a doctor after an accident, typically in that order.

You might say, okay I’ve been injured, and it’s clearly long term but how is that going to impact my finances? Well, people suffering from serious long-term injuries often need more medical care which costs more money. On top of this, there’s the issue of debt. You may not realise this, but people with serious long-term injuries are far more likely to experience debt at some point in their life.

No Service History? No Sweat

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Finally, sometimes, a crippling blow to your finances can just be due to a bad financial investment, and that’s certainly true in the case of second-hand cars. If you speak to a financial expert, they will usually tell you that buying a brand new car is always a bad monetary move. The reason? Well, it’s the depreciation. After owning a car for just a couple of years, the price of the vehicle drops far below what you bought it for. The only exception to this rule is if you accidentally buy a car destined to be a classic. But then the car is only valuable if you keep it in good condition. This means it can’t be a runaround vehicle.

This might all be true, but if you buy a car second hand, you run the risk of purchasing a dud. A vehicle that will cost you a fortune over the years in repairs and other problems. Eventually, that vehicle becomes a financial nightmare that you just want to get rid of. You can’t think of course because then you’ll have no car at all.

That’s why you always need to consider a second-hand car purchase carefully. Check around and make sure that it hasn’t been damaged seriously and that there are no signs of severe problems. If in doubt, hire a guy from a repair shop to check it for you, and they’ll tell you whether it’s going to be a money pit.

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Brain Wave, Health and medicine

Health First, Business Second

February 9, 2018 No Comments

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All entrepreneurs and freelancers have a reputation for being go-getters. They always give 110% no matter what the situation is like and how many obstacles they face. However, what if one of those obstacles were a health issue? Do you think that you would be able to continue giving maximum effort and energy to your business with failing health? Even if you were able to continue working at full speed, it probably wouldn’t do your overall health and well-being any good. So, even if you have your very own business to run, you still need to make sure that your health always comes first. Your mantra should be: health first, business second.

To help you follow that mantra, here are some pointers that all freelancers and entrepreneurs need to consider.

Never Miss Appointments For Work

Think there is something wrong with you and that you might be coming down with something? If so, book an appointment with your doctor and make sure you attend. There are many entrepreneurs out there who blame their busy lifestyles on hardly ever seeing their doctor. It’s really important that you do, though. Otherwise, a health risk, like the ones listed at medicinenet.com could develop and by the time you get it seen to, it could be too late.

Your Laptop Could Affect Your Health

Many entrepreneurs and freelancers are glued to their laptops. These handy machines help with admin tasks and are what they do most of their work on. But it is vital that you use yours correctly and take regular breaks as there are a few health issues associated with overuse. If you need to wear glasses, make sure you get some blue-light blocking ones from spektrumglasses.com so that you your sleep isn’t disrupted. You should also invest in some good-quality office furniture so that you don’t give yourself back problems by slouching over your laptop. It’s also necessary to be wary about repetitive strain injuries. Taking regular breaks should prevent this.

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Take Time To Rest And Destress

Lots of entrepreneurs are guilty of working too much, and this can cause to them suffering from stress-related health problems. To make sure that you aren’t troubled with stress and its related illness, such as high blood pressure, it’s critical that you take plenty of time away from the office to rest and chill out. Try not to work overtime too often so that you have your evenings to yourself and can forget about work.

Watch What You Eat

When we are very busy, it can be all too easy to get through the day on snacks or unhealthy convenience food. Eating all of this junk will be a bad idea for your health and weight. So, make sure you watch what you eat and get plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables in your diet. It’s also a good idea to try and squeeze some exercise into your daily routine so that you can maintain a healthy weight.

Repeat after me: health first, business second! That’s the best way to stay healthy at work.

Brain Wave, Entrepreneurship & Business Talks

Why Clients Are Much Better Than Employers Any Day Of The Week

February 6, 2018 No Comments

When it comes to freelancing or becoming self-employed, the pros and cons of working for yourself will be argued over ad nauseam. There are real downsides, including the prevalence of stress amongst freelancers. However, for some, the argument is settled by one factor above all else: the idea of working for an employer vs. working for clients. Some people might not see the difference, so we’re going to go into the indisputable reasons that having a client base is much better than having a boss.

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You can set your own terms

When you decide to offer your services out to the market, you get to set the price. There will undoubtedly be clients who want to try and find some wiggle room or get you to provide extra services, but it’s up to you at the end of the day.

They don’t have all the power

Employers and clients both pay you. Legally, they are obligated to. But employers are a lot more likely to flaunt those obligations, even unintentionally, in little ways that end up costing you. When you’re paid late, it could mean you have to spend using credit, in which case you end up losing more money in the end. To anyone caught in that cycle, finding a personal attorney for wage theft is an easy recommendation. Late invoice payments are a concern for some freelancers/self-employed business owners, but the client doesn’t have all the power in that relationship. The contract does, and it’s riskier for them to try to ignore it than to simply eat the costs.

You can say no

If a client tries to take control of how much you get paid and which services you offer or they have failed to pay on time in the past? You can simply say no to them. You might be hesitant to say no to a client in your early days, but don’t just think of it as turning down money. Think of it as not choosing to spend your time on a less profitable income source that gives you more trouble. Other clients will come.

It’s your methodology

Similarly, clients can’t tell you how to work, where to work, how to dress or make any of the other demands that employers can. You should try to work in a way that makes sure you deliver what you promise, but how exactly you get to that conclusion is up to you.

It’s all about value

To clients, you aren’t just another employee. You are a professional service provider, so long as you get your branding right. In real terms, that means you are genuinely more likely to feel more valued by a client than by the average employer.

Freelancers and the self-employed have to consider the wants and needs of their clients seriously at all times. However, they are not beholden to them. If you want to guarantee yourself fair relationships with a little more power on your side, you’re a lot more likely to get with clients than employers.

Brain Wave, Family and Home living

Peace of Mind: Creating a Minimalist Bedroom

February 6, 2018 No Comments

We’re beginning to understand more and more about what we need to be happy, calm individuals. In an ever chaotic world, one of these things is making sure that we have a relaxing space to unwind after a long day. More and more people are adopting the philosophy of minimalism, which has the tagline of ‘less is more.’ Instead of having a bedroom that’s full of belongings and loudness, our spirits will be better served by calming decor and practices. Below, we take a look at how you can turn your own bedroom into a minimalist haven.

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Get Rid of Clutter

To begin with, you’ll want to go through your bedroom and get rid of anything that doesn’t need to be there. We’re all guilty of hoarding more stuff than necessary. We buy one thing, then another, and before we know it, we have more items in our home than we know what to do with. If our bedrooms are overloaded with material items that we just don’t need, then it’ll be hard to enter into the relaxing headspace we need for a full night’s rest. So get rid of the junk: you’ll feel liberated afterwards!

Focus on the Essentials

It’s easy to get bogged down with taking care of all the things that’ll make your bedroom look great. But remember, a good bedroom takes care of the essentials first, and then builds out from there. As such, you’ll want to focus on the bed and lighting; the things that are conducive to rest, basically. Check out the best mattress provider, and make sure that your lighting isn’t too harsh. You want to create a calming atmosphere where you can unwind with a book, as well as get a great night’s rest.

Limit the Tech

A busy mind is the enemy of rest. And there’s nothing that keeps our minds as busy as technology! While it might be tempting to lose yourself in your smartphone from the comfort of your bed, it’s important to remember that you’ll be undoing all of the good work that lying down is supposed to do! It may sound bold, but a ‘no tech’ policy in the bedroom will do wonders for your state of mind, and in the process create a calming, relaxing bedroom. At the very least, make a vow not to use your technology too much before you go to bed; leave a minimum of two hours. You’ll feel and sleep much better if you do!

Peaceful Vibes

You can add a few extras to your room to in order to make it extra peaceful. Things like candles, incense, sweet scents, and more will all up for the comfort levels. Works of art are encouraged, too. Having a clean, organised bedroom, one filled with items that feed the senses is key to creating a relaxing, minimalist bedroom. Make the changes, and you’ll soon find that your home is working for your state of mind, and not against it. In a week, you’ll wonder how you ever lived any differently!

Brain Wave, Careers, Freelancing and Self-Employment, Money matters

Investment options for the self-employed

February 4, 2018 No Comments

As a self-employed person, finding a suitable option for a financial pension is indispensable. Government and corporate funds offer a wealth of choice. Here are some other investment options you can consider.

Stocks are the star of the market

This security is the best known in the market. Blue chips are suitable as a beginner-entry and long-term investment option.

Stocks also offer dividends. This is distributed annually. Stocks could be used to generate a passive additional income. Careful adherence to principles and strategies can minimise risk and generate profits. Particular attention should be paid to IPO’s something of a double edged sword a company’s Initial Public Offering is often an incredible opportunity but one fraught with risk, the until now private company has clearly been doing well enough that it anticipates a positive reception however it is not uncommon for bounces early as the market has no historic trend data making technical analysis impossible.

Stock CFDs

With CFDs, (contracts for difference), you take a position on the value of the underlying asset such as a stock, currency pair or commodity.

When you trade CFDs, you do not physically own the underlying instrument. You only speculate on whether the financial instrument you are investing in will rise or fall. For this reason, CFDs are generally free from Stamp Duty. As a rule, CFDs are traded off-exchange.

CFDs can be a superb opportunity for the self-employed investor as they require only a small start up fund to make large trades due to the power of leverage, simply put you can keep the bulk of your money in your savings or other investments and still use it to trade. However it should be noted that with the potential for big risk there is also a potentially huge reward. If you’re left holding a bet when the market moves against you you can end up losing far more than your initial holding deposit.

Diversifying your portfolio: funds

Funds have the advantage of diversification. Many investors put their money in a variety of securities. A distinction must be made between active and passive funds. With active funds, your portfolio will actively be managed by a fund manager who will be able to respond appropriately to the prevailing economic climate. Passive funds on the other hand, have the advantage of lower costs and the chance of a long-term high return.

Exchange-traded funds

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs), for example, invest the collected assets in a specific index, such as the DAX, Dow Jones or Nikkei 225. This purchases the stocks that are in the corresponding index, ie the performance of the ETF is equal to that of the index. Savings plans make it possible to pay a fixed amount at regular intervals.

The ups and downs of the stock market are important in determining your profit. At low prices, the investor buys more shares for the same money than at high prices. If the index or market should collapse, there is the opportunity of a manual purchase at favourable prices. Nevertheless, risk cannot be switched off, and losses are always possible.

Bonds are an alternative to credit

Companies use investment bonds when they need capital and the sum cannot be borne by a single financial institution. The money needed is divided into many small bonds and offered for sale to the public in the market. In addition to annual interest gains, price gains are possible upon payment of the debt at the end of the term.

Creditworthy companies with an attractive interest yield are viewed by many as a potential investment opportunity, especially when market interest rates are low.

Finding the right product

Ultimately the level of risk steps up in hand with the level of reward, for a self employed person you may find that you’re asset rich, but cash poor for this reason margin products often look attractive, however these are inherently risky, other product fads such as cryptocurrency trading carry even more risk.

Brain Wave, Health and medicine

Why Dry January Shouldn’t Just Be For January

February 2, 2018 No Comments

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Dry January is over, and we are sure that many of you are ready to crack open a bottle of wine for the weekend to celebrate. However, dry January shouldn’t just be for one month.

It might seem like a difficult task, but by reducing your alcohol intake by a large proportion or even quitting altogether, you will see a whole host of amazing benefits to your health. The idea of detoxing the body of these chemicals could be something you take into your future and implement into your lifestyle for good. We aren’t saying you need to seek out the nearest drug and alcohol treatment centers for the issue, but just take a minute to think about how your body would benefit from cutting the booze.

In The Short Term

You may have noticed if you did take part in dry January that you had many different benefits to your health during this time. These health benefits could include:

Sleeping Better

Drinking regularly can affect your ability to sleep because drinking disrupts your natural sleeping cycle. You will notice if you ever drink a glass of wine before bed, you fall asleep quicker and this is because alcohol is a relaxing drug. It will allow you to fall asleep quicker than you would naturally however in turn this can disturb your sleep cycle and cause you to wake up a lot during the night. By drinking less, you will notice a marked increase in your quality of sleep, and energy the next day.

Your Appearance

Not drinking can make your skin glow and also make you look much more awake during the day. The reason for this is that alcohol is a diuretic which dehydrates us and causes us to lose water from our bodies. This can make the skin look older and dull. By cutting out the drink, you will have more water retained on your skin cells, and therefore look better.

Long Term Health Benefits

Now that you know the short term benefits of drinking less or no alcohol, we can look the difference it could make to you if you quit for a long period of time.

Cancer Risk

Alcohol is known as a carcinogen, which is a substance that can cause several types of cancer. Alcohol specifically is linked to seven different types of cancer including mouth cancer, so cutting out this drink can reduce your risk significantly.

The Liver

We all know that alcohol is bad for our liver, but you may not realise just how bad it can be. Excessive intake of alcohol can damage the liver by disturbing the way our liver interacts with glucose. The function of the liver is to turn glucose into fat and send it around the body for storage. However alcohol stops this from happening and means the liver is stuffed with fat. This can cause liver failure and ultimately, death.

Lower Risk of Diseases

One of the great advantages of not drinking is that your risk of loads of difference diseases will go down. For example here are some of the diseases you will be less at risk with:

Heart disease
High blood pressure
Sexual dysfunction
Thrombosis
Lung cancer
Stroke

So, before you crack open the wine this weekend, having a think about keeping up your good habits for a while longer.

Brain Wave, Travel and Attractions

4 Must Visit Beautiful Beaches in the Philippines

February 1, 2018 No Comments

There’s nothing more stunning than the Philippines, with so many islands and beaches to choose from it’s a wonder anyone ever comes back from their holiday. You could spend an eternity exploring the scenery and enjoying the activities on offer. It really is a destination that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime.
Have you been dreaming about beach holidays in the Philippines? There’s good news because we have taken a look at all of the beautiful beaches in the Philippines and narrowed it down to the best four beaches that you absolutely have to make time for during your Philippines travel.

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1. Boracay, Aklan

It really does have something for everyone, whether you’re interested in sunbathing all day and hitting bars and restaurants in the evening or you have plans to indulge in water sports – it’s all there. The area’s most famous beach is White Beach, and it was once known as the world’s finest beach. The island itself has been named the best in the world, too. The perfect time to visit is between November and May as monsoon season runs from June to October. There are no direct flights, though, so you’ll need to grab a boat.

2. Coron Island, Palawan

This area isn’t as busy as the other beaches as it isn’t a hotspot for tourists, however, going off-peak is a great way to avoid crowds altogether. Once you fly into Busuanga you can grab a bus or van to Coron. It takes around 45 minutes, but do know you can’t stay overnight – so if you’re planning a proper trip you’ll need to stay in Coron, Busuanga.

3. Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte

4. Mactan Island

The best time of year to visit is between January and Mary, you can expect rain in the remaining months. Though that’s no guarantee that you won’t see rain at all while visiting, it’s one of the Philippines wettest regions.

Don’t forget to try some of the local food. Filipino culture is rich and their cuisine is incredible – don’t miss out on the whole roasted pig, pancit, lumpia, kare-kare, singang, and more. While you’re there, why not try the infamous Durian fruit. It’s known as the king of fruit, but it’s also known for being banned from hotels due to the stench. While it may be overpowering on the nose, the fruit itself is delicious – it’s sweet, it’s savoury, and it’s creamy. It’s truly a unique fruit that anyone travelling the Philippines must try for themselves.

Looking for travel deals Philippines? Visit booking.com flight codes to get the best deals on your trip to the Philippines, no matter which beaches you want to check out. Why not visit them all? Whether you take an extended trip or keep going back for more.