With summer in full swing and energy prices soaring, I though I would offer my top energy savings tips for summer.  Most of these tips center around reducing your electricity usage in and around your home.  So, without further ado, here are some money savings ideas: Read the rest of this entry »

Everyday countless would be entrepreneurs search for the latest get rich quick online business opportunity or multi level marketing program in hopes of striking it rich working from home. The vast majority of millionaires are self made and most of them started out with nothing and built successful enterprises. One of the most prevalent ways to make money by working from home is by way of an Internet based business. With the large number of people seeking their fame and fortune online, most people set themselves up to fail. Statistically, only a small fraction of people starting an Internet based business actually making any money. What follows are my top three reasons most people fail when starting a home based business: Read the rest of this entry »

For anyone who owns a computer, especially a machine running Microsoft Windows, you know that getting online and “surfing” the Internet can be a risky proposition. Anytime you launch Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or any other web browser, you open yourself up to possible viruses, spyware, and other malicious exploits designed to reek havoc with your computer and operating system. Many people also use wireless routers to avoid having to run Ethernet cable. While this solution is convenient it can provide an easy way for unauthorized access to your system without your knowledge if you don’t take proper security precautions.

Below are my top ten Windows computer safety secrets you can use to help maintain a secure computing experience: Read the rest of this entry »

As many of you are already aware, the United States Internal Revenue Service is in the process of issuing millions of checks as part of the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008. These payments average $600 for individuals and $1,200 for those filing jointly. Anytime money is involved, it tends to bring out the criminal element ready to take advantage of unsuspecting citizens. The Economic Stimulus Act is no exception. Over the past several days, I have received dozens of official looking emails that appear to be from the Internal Revenue Service asking me to click on a link in order to expedite receiving my rebate. Below is a copy of the email I recently received: Read the rest of this entry »

The desire to work from home is often mentioned as a top reason for going from being an “employee” and striking out on your own working for yourself. When you do make the leap from just having a job to full fledged entrepreneur, it requires a disciplined approach to your daily work in order to keep things on track. You no longer will have a supervisor or manager watching you every second and telling you what to do and when to do it. Success as an entrepreneur requires you to have self motivational skills to get things done and management your work time effectively. What follows are my top success and time management tips for the newly self employed home business owner: Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re like me, you probably have received tempting zero percent credit card offers in the mail from time to time. These offers usually loudly proclaim that you are “pre-approved” for a new Visa or MasterCard with a special 0% “introductory” interest rate. This rate is usually dependent on you agreeing to transfer the balance of one of your other high interest rate credit card accounts. While these offers can definitely save you money, they can also be traps which can cost you far more money in the log run than you expect. Below are five potential traps to watch out for if you decide to take the zero percent interest rate plunge: Read the rest of this entry »

Your credit score is the most influential factor in determining whether you will be approved for a loan or mortgage and the interest rate you will have to pay. Your credit score or FICO (the term refers to the company, Fair Issac Corporation, which created the method used to calculate credit scores) is a measurement that the credit reporting bureaus use to predict your creditworthiness and helps creditors determine whether to grant you credit. Your score can be any where between 300 to 850. The higher the number, the more credit worthy you are and the lower the interest rate you will pay. Since having a high credit score number directly correlates with the amount of money your loan or mortgage will cost you, it obviously pays to maximize the conditions that will give you the highest score possible.

Below are six ways to maximize your own credit score: Read the rest of this entry »