You are 22 years old. You have just spent the past four years paying tuition, room and board, books, food, utilities, transportation, etc. The worst part is that it is all getting more and more expensive beyond peoples’ expectations. Where does that leave you? In a mountain of debt upon graduation. For some of us that means letting our debt dictate a less than optimal career.

If you are a college student (or know a college student to pass this onto!), what is one area that you directly control? The amount of money you make. Why does that matter? Every dollar you make is one less dollar you will have to borrow!

One thing to remember, though, is that you shouldn’t write off expensive colleges because you fear debt:

” Not applying

Getting out of debt can be quite painstaking and if you have family members to depend on you it is the worst. This is what happened with Paul. He was the sole bread earner of the family and had his parents living with him. Paul had 4 credit cards which he used only when he was without cash.

Presently, he has enrolled for a debt consolidation program so that he can become current with his bill payments once again. It may appear to be quite surprising that despite being financially responsible, a debt consolidation program was in store for him. So, how did he fall into the debt trap?

If it isn’t obvious by now, I love my dog and even think that they can save you money in the long run.

Well, HLR got a new dog. So now we are a two dog couple! :)

My dog, Roxy, is the black and white one. Her dog, named Prince as he came from the SPCA, is getting renamed once we get to know him a little better.

Here are pics of each, you can click to enlarge them:

Adorable little guys. But

I’ve written an article on why startups are a good idea during a recession and another article on how to fund a business.

Both of these articles came to mind when I read about Costco’s rise to glory in the early to mid 80’s.

How did they do it?

Raising Money

In 1983 they opened the first Costco, in Seattle, financing the business with savings and credit cards.

A lot of personal finance blogs chastise the idea of financing a business using debt, especially high-interest personal debt like credit cards. However, I respectfully disagree with all of their