How to Start a Business With No Prior Experience

Having your own business has a lot of benefits, but it can sometimes feel overwhelming on where to even start. I just want to share with you some things that have worked for my husband and me and hopefully give you enough advice to where you'll know what you need to do next:

1) Know why you want to have a business.

Having a business is very different from being an employee, and you have to have enough drive to get you through when things get tough. Otherwise, it's very easy to give up when results don't initially appear. Everyone's "why" is different, and sometimes it changes as your life situation changes. The point is everyone needs a reason to motivate them.

2) Educate yourself by reading practical business books.

Sometimes when you're new in business it feels awkward just approaching an owner at random and asking, "How did you do it?" Starting out I didn't know that most business owners usually don't mind telling you their story, as long as you're not going to use the information to become a direct competitor.

So in the beginning I did the next best thing, which was browsing business and financial books at retail bookstores and libraries. There are going to be authors that "click" with your goals and personality, but a few of my favorites include Napoleon Hill, Robert Kiyosaki, Dan Miller, Dave Ramsey, and John Maxwell. I also read autobiographies of business owners, which can be useful in learning how they think.

3) Find a good mentor or mentors.

The best way to become successful in business is to get around other successful business owners. You can do this by working for one (preferably a small business where you get time with them) or by joining a local business group.

4) Don't limit yourself to one business or income source, especially with the Internet.

I personally believe there is more business opportunity out there than there ever has been in history. Right now, I'm only 24-years-old and have at least 7 income sources that I personally work on. That's not including my husband's job and projects he works on. When you "diversify your career" as I call it, not only do your finances become more stable but you make more money. It takes time and you have to be patient, but it works.

5) Realize that developing a solid business or set of businesses is a process.

You need to go through a time where you educate yourself before making the leap into business. Every business owner makes mistakes and has failures, but if you do what I suggested in the previous steps it will help your chances.

6) Enjoy the rewards of your work.

A really great moment is after a lot of work, things begin to pay off more than you ever expected. For us, I'm going to be able to stay home when we have kids. We've also been able to give what used to take us 1/3 of the year to just earn at our jobs. Being a business owner is very fun in a lot of ways, and it's wonderful when things get stable.

Life is short and very precious, and I want to encourage you that if you want to do this, start taking steps in the right direction. You don't have to know everything, and you're always going to be learning something new. Taking action now is a whole lot better than having regret 10, 20, or 30 years down the road. I wish you the very best and hope this has been helpful to you!

More Tips:

• I personally don't suggest to people that they go into debt to start a business. Not only does it hurt your business financially from the very beginning, but it takes away the opportunity to be creative and figure our a way to full it off. In business, your mind is a whole lot more valuable than initial capital!
• Be sure to talk with your tax accountant and make sure you keep good records. Doing this from the very beginning is very helpful, especially if you're coming from a situation where you've always been an employee.
• Don't get frustrated from the initial lack of instant results. I've had situations where the financial payoff from effort into my business didn't show up until weeks or months later.

How to Create Income Using the Internet

As someone who makes more than half my income from the Internet, I can tell you that it has a lot of advantages if you're willing to do the work. For most people, it's not something you can just do overnight (it took me 5 years for my Internet income to surpass my job income) but it's not impossible to do either.

1) Getting Started:

If you're brand new to Internet business, I'd recommend starting out in some type of online sales such as Amazon or Ebay just to get your feet wet. You can grow these businesses as big or as little as you want, and they're a great environment to make beginner's mistakes without a lot of risk. Like any business, there's a learning curve to it. Just be patient and learn, and even the average person with no prior business experience can make a nice side income.

2) Try Online Surveys:

These are not bad when you're starting out and want extra money, but the only disadvantage is they do still take up your time. They're very flexible, but to make a decent income you're going to feel like you have another job. I now have this limited to a couple of favorites that pay well and pay quickly. Never pay to enter into these or for a "list" of possible survey companies. That is a scam in the fact you can find the same information on your own.

3) Residual Income Sources:

Ideally, you want Internet income sources that pay residual income. This means you get paid over and over again for a single initial effort. Most jobs don't offer this, and it makes the Internet very appealing.

An example is if you're an expert in a particular field and want to write a short e-book to help people. You only have to write the book once, and if it's popular it can become an income source to you month after month each time it's downloaded. Sites like Lulu.com and others allow you to sell books at no upfront cost to you. They just get a commission every time a book sells.

It just takes some time and experimenting to figure out what will sell. You also have the option of building residual income from freelance writing sites who make money from advertising and share it with their writers. Ehow.com is one of these and is very good.

4) Do More Than Just One Thing:

Overall, to make the most money on the Internet you just need to do more than one thing. Pick some side businesses that you enjoy, and it's really not an extra burden to you. I'm in the middle of repositioning my career to where most of the things I do are online. I like the flexibility and the ability to make more money over time than a traditional job. It does take time and effort, but I think it's worth doing.

More Tips:

• Legitimate network marketing companies are also an option if you enjoy working in group environments. Just check them out with the Better Business Bureau and make sure you understand how they work. Again, just expect to put as much time into them as you would a traditional business if you want them to work for you. You can make money over time, but it's not overnight.

How to Get Out of Debt

When it comes to managing your debt and getting it paid off, there really is no magic quick-fix. Having a system and a plan will help you however, but I don't mean "shuffling" your debt. You can try chasing lower interest rates and moving your balances from card to card, but it doesn't solve the real problem. Here are some starting ideas and resources to help you solve the root of the problem of debt:

1) Realize Debt is a Product, Not a Necessity:

Debt has been so highly marketed to my generation that it is just sad to me. People who don't know any better get themselves so leveraged in debt that almost all of their paychecks are going toward monthly payments. A layoff would wreck their finances within a month.

2) Make a Decision that You Want to Change:

When I first graduated from college, my husband and I felt the financial pressure of a similar situation. We made up our minds that we weren't going to keep living that way. I think making the decision to change is really half the battle. Debt is also something that's difficult to just "try" to fix. If your heart's not in it, no plan will work for you.

3) Cap Your Overspending:

You can attack debt on two fronts. The first is to get yourself to the point where you're living below your means and don't have to keep borrowing. This can require something as small as eating at home more and packing your lunch to selling the car you have because the payments are taking up a lot of your cash. Doing this is really hard in the beginning, but as you get your finances back on track you'll be thankful that you did it.

4) Pay Off Your Existing Debt

Next you need to have a system of paying off your existing debt. My husband and I got Dave Ramsey's book The Total Money Makeover, which has a great way of doing this. You can read more details in the book, but the idea of paying off smaller balances first and working your way up (called the "debt snowball") does work. I'm not the spreadsheet type, so the more practical the system the more easy it is to stick with it.

5) Find Ways to Increase Your Income:

A great side-effect of wanting to pay off debt is it made us more determined to find extra ways of making money. Our overall household income has nearly tripled from when we first got married. That is exciting to me because after we're out of debt, that money is going to be available for us to buy a home, fund our retirement, and allow us to do a lot of good things we couldn't have done otherwise.

6) Realize that Getting Out of Debt is a Process and the Advantages of Getting Out of Debt are Worth It:

As I said earlier, mainly what you need is just the desire to get out of debt and the willingness to do what it takes to get you there. For most people it won't happen overnight, but the rewards are worth it. I think it's amazing what a person can do when they have their financial freedom, and I'm personally looking forward to it. I hope you put some thought into it and make that decision for yourself as well.

How to Understand the Breakdown of a FICO or Credit Score

Knowing what makes up your credit score, also known as a FICO score, can help you determine what situations can cause it to go up and down. Here is what I've found listed as the breakdown of a credit score on www.myfico.com:

A credit score is currently made up of five components:

1) Payment History: 35% (This usually goes back between 7-10 years on your report; score drops if you pay late, quit paying, have a bankruptcy or foreclosure.)

2) Capacity (Amount You Owe): 30%

3) Length of Credit History: 15% (Includes unused accounts.)

4) Types of Credit: 10% (Mortgages, credit cards, student loans, etc.)

5) New Credit: 10% (Inquiries and requests for more credit.)

Ethically, if you have credit you should pay things on time and should automatically have a good score because of this.

If there is inaccurate information on your credit bureau, you do have the ability to call the reporting company and have it fixed within a certain time frame.

Companies that claim they can "fix" your credit for a fee however are scams. Time is really the only other thing that will clean a bad score up if a person makes good with past mistakes.

Another thing to realize is that the FICO should never be used as a pulse for your overall financial health, though it's often portrayed that way.

I've known people who would be to the point of bragging about their "great" credit score, but they're just barely keeping their head above water when it comes to debt in comparison to their income. To have a great credit score for a long period of time, you have to stay in debt. That's just the nature of how it's measured at this point, and income and wealth aren't even factors in it.

Obviously, there's no reason to mess up your score on purpose if you already have debt.

Honor your word and pay your debts. However, don't stay in debt for the sole purpose of having a high score. Remember that debt is a product, and sometimes it's more in the banks' interests than it is yours for you to have a high FICO your whole life. It's something you should at least consider when it comes to your financial decision-making. It's more important to have an overall game plan than to let any single piece of information rule all of your finances.

More Tips:

• Sometimes people are surprised to learn that many wealthy people out there have a FICO score of 0, and not just because they were born rich. Some got out of debt (or never got in) and gradually lost their scores over time. They also took the money an average person pays out in interest payments and invested it for their own families. This is short-term sacrifice for long-term gain. It's just debt is so highly marketed that the FICO has taken on almost an emotional attachment to it for some people. This can do more harm than good if taken to extremes.

How to Find Ways to Pay for College

It's difficult when finances interfere with your desire for an education, but you need to plan your decisions well if you want to win. With the costs of a college education rising roughly 7-8% a year (compared to general inflation at around 4%), I can definitely understand why many adults can feel divided on the issue of going back and some recent high school graduates hesitate.

Growing up knowing that my parents could not fully afford to pay for my college education, I had to do a lot of planning to be able to go. After going through the whole process, I hope I can offer advice on things I did right as well as thing I wish I'd known about earlier:

1) Stop by the financial aid office of the college long before you plan to start.

With many forms of financial aid, you need to give yourself plenty of time to apply. If you're not aware of it already, you should definitely fill out a Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) to find out if you qualify for any federal or state grants. You can find more information about this at www.fafsa.ed.gov

2) Apply to any scholarship the college offers that fits you.

It's tedious sometimes, but think of it as getting paid a lot of money to fill out some forms-the more you fill out, the more the odds are in your favor that you'll receive some of them. It is also good at this time to research any off campus scholarships or tuition reimbursements through your job. Be careful when researching scholarships on-line and definitely never pay for a service that claims they can do all the searching for you because you can do the same thing yourself for free.

3) Even if you've never bought anything on-line before, it is worth checking the Internet for your textbooks.

Allow plenty of time for the book to get to you if you use standard shipping(at least 2 weeks if possible) as media mail seems to get slightly slower due to high volume during textbooks seasons. E-mail the merchant ahead of time before you order and request postal insurance to protect your purchase if it's over $20.

4) Consider getting your "core" classes at a smaller community college.

If I had not gotten scholarships to a 4-year university, I would have done this. Most states have standards where larger universities will accept credits from community colleges. Often you can get the same courses for half the price and then move on to your major at a more expensive college. This takes some research, so you may have to make some phone calls and talk to people at both locations to make sure things will work out right without any hassles.

5) Find a job that provides tuition reimbursement.

This can vary by field, but companies such as UPS often offer tuition reimbursement to even part-time employees as part of a benefits package.

6) Borrow only if you need it.

Student loans are very low interest, but they can still impact your cash flow as you pay them off. It's better to try to have some money saved up or work while you're going to school if you can handle it. It's harder at the time, but you'll be in better shape long-term.

7) Consider your purpose for returning to college.

Learning is a very worthwhile thing to do in life, and I'm definitely in favor of people going to college if it helps them achieve their goals and dreams. What you have to be careful of however is spending a lot of money in relation to what you're going to get back in return. For example, I've had friends spend $100,000+ on a education and end up with $20,000/yr jobs in that field. That's obviously a harmful situation financially. There are ways of turning it around, but I think a person should factor that into their decision-making.

More Tips:

• Unless you find them helpful, I was able to do without study guides for most subjects. In most cases, the actual textbook will be needed however. Don't risk not getting them and later finding out you need them for assignments.
• If you're really on a tight budget, sometimes college and university libraries will keep spare copies of the textbooks that you can't check out but can use inside the building.

How to Learn How Money Really Works

Even after 12 years of public school and 4 years of college, I never had a class focused on practical personal finance. I know a lot of other people in their 20s and 30s have had similar situations and have ended up with debt up to their eyeballs, without realizing how harmful it could be to their life until they'd already done it.

So how do you get yourself back on track? I think it comes down to two things, which are being willing to learn new concepts as an adult and being able to apply them. It honestly has taken my husband and I about five years to turn our finances around for the better, and this is basically what we did:

1) Read a Variety of Financial Books:

I mainly mean books in the personal finance and business section of retail bookstores, and not just theory-based textbooks. Different authors have different advice, and most likely after reading several books you'll find a few that "click" with you. Probably the three top authors I really like are Dave Ramsey, Robert Kiyosaki, and Dan Miller. I read other authors as well, and after several years of this my whole concept of money has changed for the better.

Be willing to keep a open mind however. For example, the first time I ready Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad, I honestly thought he was a little nutty. The second time I read it, it made a lot more sense. One of the bad "side-effects" of a college education if you're not careful is an arrogant attitude toward new ideas, and I had to keep myself in check when I first started looking into this topic.

2) Create a Budget and Manage Your Expenses:

The mention of this used to make me cringe because I'm definitely not the spreadsheet type. The thing is however is most people don't know when and where they're losing money without having some way of keeping track of it all. The simpler you can make it, the more likely you'll follow it. If you're married, it also helps you work together and start having common financial goals. It makes your relationship better and reduces a lot of common financial stresses. Taking the time to do this is just smart.

Along the way, you'll naturally find things you can probably change. The good thing is sometimes just being aware of a potential problem will go a long way in helping you solve it.

3) Develop a Plan to Quit Getting Into Debt and Pay Off Existing Debt:

For a long time, I really did think that debt was required to function financially in society. The funny thing is however that the more debt my husband and I have paid off, the more money seems to flow into our lives. This is why it's important to not skip reading advice from other people with experience. It's hard to get out of debt without a system or plan of doing it.

4) Look at Ways to Diversify Your Income:

For Generations X, Y, and younger, we need to factor in the fact that the work world is completely different from what our parents and grandparents experienced. The problem is schools have not really changed to train students what to really expect. We're mostly still taught to pick one career and completely stake our future on it. What often happens with people is they will major in college for one thing and end up doing something totally different. It doesn't make going to college a bad thing, but that situation needs to be factored in upfront.

By "diversifying your career," I'm borrowing the investing concept of spreading our your investments to decrease your risk. If you literally spread out your career across a job and one or more side careers, you decrease your risk of a corporate layoff or downsizing from ruining your finances. If you're willing to do this, you really do have an advantage over people who stake everything on their jobs.

5) Use All the Previous to Develop a Long-Term Plan:

Your finances are going to change at different stages in your life, so you'll have to adapt your plans to fit your current situation. The overall principles will generally stay the same, but you may have to juggle certain aspects of your finances to make them work as efficiently as possible.

How to Understand Overdraft Protection

After working in the financial field for several years, I've found there are both a lot of advantages and disadvantage to overdraft protection according to your individual situation and your bank. Overdraft protection is not necessarily a bad thing to have on your checking account, but you should definitely look into the details of how your bank handles it. Long-term, it may cost you more money than it's worth, especially if you manage your finances well.

1) Look at the Pros of Overdraft Protection:

The biggest legitimate situation I've seen where overdraft protection comes in handy is for people who have direct deposit for their paychecks. People do normal things like buy gas and lunch on pay day, thinking they have money in their account when there's been an error in it getting deposited on time. It's not something that happens often, and really a better solution would be to keep enough cash on you for everyday expenses so you don't have to guess if the money is in there or not.

2) Factor in Online Banking:

There's also the issue of online banking that doesn't truly reflect your available balance. This is something I think many banks need to work on within reason because people think they're okay when they're really not. By the time they catch the mistake, they've already been hit with automatic fees. To solve this, try to keep a buffer of money in your account that you don't really intend on ever spending just in case something happens.

3) Find Out How Your Bank Process Debts and Credits:

According to how a bank processes debits nightly, some even put the largest amounts first (to supposedly keep people from bouncing their house or rent payment) but then have several smaller balances that hit soon after (with overdraft fees being attached to each one).

That honestly doesn't sit right with me, even as a person responsible with money. It makes the bank seem more like it's doing it that way to get as many fees as possible, not as a service to the customer (since one bounced check would be easier to clean up than several smaller ones when bank fees are factored in). It's definitely a question you should ask your bank when considering a checking account with them in the first place. Most won't tell you either way unless you ask.

4) Realize Some Banks Will Still Hit You With Fees Even With "Protection":

Based on our particular bank and the fact we have our finances under control, my husband and I did not opt for overdraft protection due to the fact the bank still charged fees even if you had it (they were just less). Unless we planned on going under a lot, it just wasn't worth it. With other banks it may be different. Ours had the option of either pulling from a savings account (which has a maintenance fee of $7 a month just for sitting still under a certain dollar amount) or from a bank credit card (we've stopped going into debt).

5) Last (and Most Important), Consider the True Sources of Your Overdraft Issues:

If you're going under on your checking account a lot, overdraft protection is not really the solution to your problem. You have to get yourself out of the cycle of spending more than you have and hoping things will "float" until money is really there. If you try to play games with this stuff, you're always going to lose.

It does take time and the willingness to sit down and figure things out, but a practical budget will help you more than anything. It's not so much about limiting you than just knowing what you have out so you don't go under. I hope that advice is more helpful to you.

How to Make the Most of College Classes

After spending a lot of time, effort, and money to get into college, one of the strangest things I've seen people do is treat it like a chore instead of something valuable. The closest thing I can compare it to is buying a high-performance sports car and never leaving your driveway. If you're going to college for the wrong reasons and with the wrong attitude, a degree alone is not going to mean as such as you may think.

Whether you're financially paying for it now or later, you need to be a smart consumer when it comes to your education. If it helps to imagine yourself "paying admission" every time you enter a classroom, then approach it that way (though sometimes I wanted my money back when it came to certain instructors!) For the most part however, thinking of it from that perspective helped me when I was in college. There are also other things you can do which will help you:

1) Take the Time to Be Prepared.

At the beginning of the semester, most instructors will give you an outline called a syllabus. This is so each meeting you'll know where you are and where the class will be heading. Preparing could just mean looking over and reading the chapter before the instructor discusses it. This will make the lecture portion a way of making your learning more solid, as opposed to going in hearing everything for the first time. This will also help you if you have a different learning style (like reading over hearing, etc.)

2) Think and Ask Questions.

Have you ever been in a class where a student is asking questions for the sole purpose of getting attention? Being an active learner is not about showing other people how smart you are-that comes across as fake. If you have a genuine question however, don't be afraid to ask it. Remember, you're paying your instructors to help you learn.

3) Go the Extra Mile, Beyond What the Average Person Does.

I'm not saying to do this with everything because it can get overwhelming. If it's something you're interested in however, go a little deeper into learning more about it than the average person. It's this quality that separates the experts from the people who have a basic knowledge of a subject.

4) Put Quality Into Your Work.

With class projects, you're always going to have people who want to do the minimum to get it done. Breaking out of that attitude will not only make you a better grade in that particular class, but it's a good life lesson to carry outside the classroom. Plus I think a lot of other people have that inner desire to do well. Don't let the fear of standing out stop you from that. There's a saying I've heard a few times that "a rising tide raises all ships." You'll be helping someone else in that classroom along with yourself, whether you realize it or not.

5) Take Notes and Remember to Review Them Later.

What worked best for me from a test-taking standpoint is taking notes in class and then later typing them up. If you combine this with being prepared, you'll be seeing and hearing the same information multiple times. Repetition in different forms leads to real learning, not just memorization and later forgetting.

6) Enjoy the Experience of Learning Something New.

Obviously there's going to be certain classes that have serious material, but in general try to have as much fun as you possibly can. The best classes I remember most are the ones where everyone was able to learn and laugh at the same time.

I hope these tips have been helpful to you. Good luck and best wishes for your future!

More Tips:

• While you're in college, take advantage of resources your college or university offers. You're paying for them anyway, but you sometimes have to do some research into what is available to you.
  

How to Begin Managing Money in Your Home-Based Business

Just like for your personal finances, creating good money management habits for your home-based business is vital to your success. Fortunately it also does not have to be extremely complicated either. You're going to learn things on your own along the way specific to your business, but I want to offer the following tips that will get you off to a good start in general:

1) The first thing you need to do is to get a separate checking account to deposit your profits and take out your expenses.

The person doing your taxes will thank you, plus you have an easy way of tracking whether you're making a profit and how much.

2) Start saving and organizing your records.

This is also a great time to talk to your accountant to find out what receipts you need to be saving throughout the year. Keep these all in one place, such as a filing cabinet in your office.

Remember to set aside about 25% of your profits for taxes so you're not caught off guard when that time comes around, especially if you're making a great immediate income. If state sales taxes applies to what you're doing, you'll need to get information on that as well.

3) Find ways to lower and streamline your expenses when possible.

After you've settled into a pattern of business, usually within the first few months, there's also some other basic things you can do to help manage your money better.

The next thing I did personally with my businesses was look at my expenses. Without sacrificing quality, I began searching for ways I could get my shipping supplies in bulk so it was cheaper per item to mail everything. By that time I had the business volume for that to make sense whereas before buying a lot may not have been a great decision.

4) Pay off debt as soon as possible so you can grow stable.

You'll find from my other articles that I'm not a fan for going into debt to start or operate a business. If you absolutely had to borrow to start your business, one of your first goals should be to pay any loans back as soon as possible. Otherwise you're focus is always going to be divided.

People tend to make more desperate decisions in cases where they're trying to make enough money to pay back loans and grow at the same time. If you start debt-free and reinvest your profit back into your business for awhile, you'll be stable and grow faster. You also won't have the risk if the unfortunate occurs and the business fails--it doesn't make the situation any less sad, but it at least won't hurt your family's finances.

5) Develop a plan to budget your business income.

As your business grows, your approach to money management will gradually change. You may be able to create different budgets for marketing and advertising. It may even turn into a situation where you need more help beyond just your own efforts.

More Tips:

• Be sure to get outside help when you need it. Take the time to find advisers that you feel comfortable sticking with as your business develops. There are good people out there that can walk you through the process, and it's not something you should be expected to learn overnight.
• Don't be afraid to learn new things about finance. As a last parting piece of advice, the best thing you can do as an owner is always be willing to learn something new on a daily basis. This more than anything can lead you to managing both your business and personal finances very well.

How to Combine Bank Accounts After Marriage

With financial problems being the number one cause of divorce, combining your finances is a very important part of coming together as a married couple. There may be a part of you that fears it, but keeping your finances separate will hurt you long term. I honestly don't think you can look at sharing your finances in purely logical terms-what's in your heart has to be in the equation as well. In this article, I will share tips on how to make the transition easier.

1) Before you get married and physically combine the bank accounts, there are some things you can do while you're engaged.

I definitely suggest pre-marriage counseling and attending some financial classes. These will help determine your attitudes about money and make sure you're in agreement over your goals. Neither of you are going to be perfect or expect the other person to be, but it helps to know your strengths as well as areas you need to work on.

Shortly after getting married, my husband and I attended a day-long auditorium-style class taught by the author and financial counselor Dave Ramsey and later took a 13-week course of similar material. There are similar resources everywhere in the country. It's just a matter of admitting to yourself that you need it, and nearly everyone does since finances are rarely taught in school.

2) When you physically began combining the accounts, it's a good idea around the same time to create a budget as a couple.

This does not have to be anything overly-complicated or limiting. You just need to know on a monthly basis where your money is going.

There's also nothing wrong with having "fun money" for each of you to spend for yourselves, but with a budget you know you're not accidentally spending money for the electric bill, etc.

3) There's also the issue with "your debt" and "your spouse's debt" become "our debt."

You have to work together to clean messes up if you want to be a financially stable couple and later family.

If you take this attitude that your spouse should clean up their own mess without any help, the problem likely won't get solved. It's in working together that you can get a lot more accomplished and hold each other accountable.

More Tips:

• All of this is not going to happen overnight, and you're not going to do it perfectly starting out. That's okay though as long as you keep trying. The result after thinking this way for 3 years for us is a stronger marriage and better finances than we had as individuals.
• If you really feel strongly about not combining finances, you may need to explore the underlying reasons why. Money itself is likely not the true problem in those situations.

How to Change Careers Smoothly

I believe that a person should work toward a career that makes them happy, but you need to do it responsibly and never on impulse. There aren't a whole lot of things more miserable than being in a job you dislike and still needing the income, but there are some things you can do to fix the situation. I want to share with you some tips in this article on easing the transition.

1) Analyze why you want to change careers.

For some people, it may be an income situation. Your existing job isn't fitting your financial needs, and you're slipping backwards. For others it's a personality or values issue that's causing a deep inner conflict that grows over time. Then there are situations where the need for change is not pressing, but you just know you can do better in life.

My point is your motivation is going to have a major impact on your approach. You also don't want to move from one mistake right into another one if you have no idea why you want to change.

2) Take a look at your income and expenses.

Sadly, many people in our culture do not have a lot of savings set aside for situations like this, which is something that needs to happen anyway as a buffer if you're laid off from a job you like.

If you have the ability and the time, you need to look at ways of reducing your outgoing expenses on a monthly basis by getting out of debt as much as possible. Sell some stuff you don't use anymore if it will help you create any sort of a financial buffer.

Taking these steps to prepare will help reduce the pressure. The last thing you need is a career distraction and financial distractions at the same time.

3) Consider doing what you want to do part-time and easing into the change.

This has worked great with me personally. It is initially harder because you're coming home after working and then working some more, but a lot of times you're more motivated because you're doing it for yourself and your family.

Many careers can be done on a self-employed basis, especially if you have experience. As you get more and more comfortable, the transition from the old career does not seem to be as hard of a financial struggle.

Keep in mind the time frame may be 6 months or longer, but it's short-term hassle for long-term gain compared to just jumping into something that may or may not immediately take off.

More Tips:

• Taking a few hours to really explore how you want to spend your career can greatly help you. It won't be time wasted by any means.
• Never ignore the situation because you think you don't have time for change. Statistics say the average person spend 70,000+ hours of their life in some form of a career.

How to Prepare for an Impending Layoff

Growing up I watched my dad get laid-off several times, and I seen first-hand the emotional and financial stress it can put on a family. This article will help you be better prepared in case a layoff ever occurs where you work. It is my hope you never need it, but you need to know how.

1) First, you need to realize that there's usually two areas a layoff will hit you--your finances and your emotions.

If it has just happened to you, there needs to be a time where you give yourself some time before making major decisions.

2) There are several things you can do to stabilize your finances in case of a layoff. One is to get out of much debt as possible.

How to do that can be a whole other article in itself, but I personally suggest reading books by financial advisor Dave Ramsey. There are other good authors out there as well, but his books are what helped my family.

By reducing or eliminating your debt, you reduce the amount of money in the form of payments that is leaving your household. In an emergency situation, you can survive on a small amount of money longer without any issues.

3) Another related thing you can do is increase your income through a small, part-time business.

Take inventory of your skills and see if there's something you can do on the side for extra income. The Internet has also opened up a lot of opportunity for normal people to work a day job and then run a business from their home in the evenings.

My philosophy is this: In investing, the conventional advice is "never put all your eggs in one basket." Yet many people are betting their financial futures on only one income source. Even good jobs and good companies have problems, and there's no reason not to have back-up income if you have the means to create it.

If possible, you also need to have a small cushion of money to serve as an emergency fund. Ideally this needs to be 3-6 months of your expenses, but realize this takes time to build. Usually you need to get out of debt first to be able to do this.

4) From an emotional standpoint, it often hurts to get laid-off, especially if you were great at your position and liked it.

People develop friendships on the job as well, and you miss people. Realize that this is not necessarily something you'll immediately bounce-back from, but you also don't need to cling to it either. The best thing you can do is make the best of the situation and try to use it as an opportunity to do something new in your life.

If you're a spouse or other family member of someone who has been laid-off, be supportive of them and encourage them. Men especially tend to take their self-worth from their jobs, and every working person needs someone to be there for them as they go through the process of getting something new.

More Tips:

• Make sure with children to explain on their level what has happened when if you are laid-off. They need to understand and it doesn't help them if you're stressed but try to pretend nothing is wrong around them. They pick up on that.

• You may find that your side-businesses eventually bring in more money than your job--there's nothing wrong with crossing over to being a business owner if you like it better. That's how a lot of business owners start out.

• Don't make the mistake in thinking your job is secure. Most companies do care and don't like laying people off, but it can happen anywhere. It can be an unexpected event for the company as well as you.

How to Make Extra Income

When you train your mind to look for opportunity, it is amazing how much income you can make solving the problems of others. There are a lot of great ways out there to make money, both short-term and long-term. The Internet in general has opened up the ability for an average person to do really well, and fast-paced lifestyles have opened up the opportunity for other people to fill new needs in service-based side businesses.

Here are what I believe to be some of the fastest and easiest ways to make money. Not all of them are glamorous, but they can help you gain extra income for a better life:

1) Sell Online:

Whether it's Ebay, Amazon, or your own site, the ability to have a store that never closes is why this appeals to a lot of people. You can make extra money while you're physically at work or even asleep. They do take work, but they're flexible enough to fit into most people's lifestyles. Just do some research ahead of time so you know you are selling something in demand.

2) Start Your Own Writing Business:

You can do this more than one way, based on your skills and background. There's article writing for sites such as Ehow.com, Helium.com and Associated Content. There's also the option of e-books if you're an expert in almost anything. I personally do both and enjoy it. You can find resources on how to do this for free at Web Writer Central.

3) Clean Houses:

I know people who make great money doing this. Basically you can do this by word-of-mouth and build up as many clients as you can handle. If you're willing to do the work and build a reputation, you'll never have a shortage of customers.

4) Paid Surveys:

I used to do these quite a bit before I transitioned into other things, but they're good for $5-10 a survey. It just takes time finding sites that are legitimate and worth doing. I know Pinecone Research is probably the best one I've ever came across, but I'm sure there are others as well.

5) Mow Lawns:

This is more of a summer side job, but again it's something you can build up into a steady stream of income if you have enough clients. This is assuming you have your own mower or have the ability to use one belonging to the home owners.

6) Have a Yard Sale:

My husband and I did this when we wanted to jump start getting out of debt. It's amazing the stuff we all have and rarely use. Certain things you may want to try looking up on Ebay first, just because it may get you more money. At yard sales, you have to assume that people are there to get a bargain. This is mainly to make a little extra cash and clean at the same time.

7) Babysit:

Most of us have friends with children who would like to have a break every once in awhile. They would most likely rather have someone watch them that they know as opposed to someone they have to screen. Just let people know you're available and charge a reasonable rate.

8) Offer to Teach Something You Know:

I've had some wonderful older people ask me if I would teach them enough about personal computers to get them caught up on how to send e-mail, download photos from a digital camera, etc. If you have any type of skill that's in demand (computers, foreign language, music, etc), you may be able to turn it into extra money.

9) House sit/Pet sit:

Pick up people's mail and take care of their pets while they're traveling. This can be fun and pay well.

10) Build Web Pages for People:

If you have this skill and do it well, it's another field that has a lot of demand. You can do it on your own time and charge a rate based on the complexity of the web page. You can market this to individuals, churches, businesses, schools, and other community organizations.

11) Build a Web Page for Yourself:

Design a site about something you're passionate about and sign up for affiliate programs such as Google Adwords and Amazon.