PFHToday I’m doing something different. I have a few financial books that I will be giving away on any given Monday for FREE! All you have to do is send me an email at vdm17 [at] yahoo dot com with the words, Personal Finance Handbook in the subject line. One email will be chosen at random and the winner will be announced the following Monday. (I will accept email entries up until March 16th at 11:59 pm).

This giveaway is not limited to USA, I’ll be happy to ship overseas because you guys use money over there too.

Why am I doing this? Dave Ramsey often says: “If you want better, you have to do better”. Sometimes we sit around and wonder why we’re struggling financially, but we don’t change our behavior with money. Of course, there are exceptions, don’t send me hate mail, I know the cost of living has our assets on life support. However, for some of us, the majority of the debt we have is because of the person we see in the mirror. Now, don’t lean over to look at your spouse’s reflection. We have to be responsible with the choices that we make with our money.

I’ve made stupid mistakes with money, partly because I didn’t know any better and the other part was just stupid, I’m still paying off those mistakes. No one taught me how to handle my finances. I did what I saw normal people do and I got into the habit of making payments on stuff.

One day I was introduced to someone who taught me that my emergency fund isn’t dependent upon the credit line that Visa or MasterCard extends to me, but it’s dependent upon my ability to manage my money. I was taught that a debt free life is possible, but I would have to change my lifestyle. I was taught that today, “I would have to live like no one else, so that later I could live like no one else!” (Another Ramsey quote).

Knowledge is power, but first we have to learn how to manage our money wisely and stop making the same mistakes that keep us from reaching our financial goals. Now that I know(ledge) better, it’s my obligation to turn “my mess into my message*.”

*Quoting Sanyika, The Financial Fitness Coach