Financial Smarties: Face Your Fear by Knowing Where You Stand

If there is one thing that you can do to improve your financial picture it’s to know where you stand. Financial challenges can be hard to face and it can be easy to bury our head in the sand and ignore the facts.  Now is the time to get a handle on where you stand.  Don’t be afraid. You may be surprised and things may not be so bad - but we don’t know until we face it.  Take some time, write out a list of the following:

• Name of Loan or Credit Card

• Total Amount Owed

• Interest Rate

• Minimum or Monthly Payment

• Due Date

• Term Left on Loan

It doesn’t have to be fancy or in a spreadsheet.  It’s just a list to know where you stand.  We’ll do more with the list down the road, but for now, take a deep breath and give yourself a pat on the back for facing your finances.  It’s a big step and one that many don’t (or won’t) do.