10 ways to attract cash, get out of debt - and live like a king
YOU can earn more money, pay off your debts without chopping up a
single credit card and live high on the hog day after worry-free day with real-world
advice from ordinary people just like you.
And you don’t have to invest a million dollars in high-risk stocks, put
off buying clothes for your children or stop treating yourself to nights on the town
to turn your finances around, either.
 All you have to do is listen to some common-sense tips offered up
by men and women who decided to stop slaving their lives away for greedy bankers and
collection agencies and start working and spending smart for a change.
By applying one or more of these simple principles in your life, you’ll soon find
yourself strutting around town with cash in your pocket, shopping when you want to shop
and buying what you want to buy and still paying every bill on time.
Here are 12 of those “real world” strategies from the breakthrough financial
report, 55 Fun Ways to Make More Money, Get Out of Debt - and Live Like a King,
(Derek Clontz/4-Page Media, Inc.).
1. Get serious about suing somebody. A fascinating new study suggests
that the average American will be the victim of negligence or an accident that legally
qualifies him to receive money on three different occasions over the course of his life.
But only one in 10 will take legal action. The bottom line?
If you’re hurt in an accident or by someone’s negligence, don’t be
“Mr. Good Guy” or “Mrs. Milquetoast.” Get the best lawyer you can
afford and demand the cash settlement you deserve. Pay off credit cards, write a check for
a new car to avoid finance and interest charges, splurge a little and invest the rest of
your windfall. In one fell swoop, your financial future may be assured.
“I was so deep in debt I was sure bill collectors were going to chase me into an
early grave,” said Melinda Rashama, of Trenton, N.J. “If I hadn’t slipped
on that wet floor in the movie-plex, I’d probably still be in debt today.”
2. Help friends - for a price. This little-known but excellent
strategy will not only earn you the extra money you need to pay down bills, it might
develop into a lucrative - and easy - new job.
Tell friends and relatives who are in business that you’ll send customers their
way - for a percentage of sales. Chances are you’re going to refer people to them
anyway - you might as well get a cut of the profits.
“It’s the American way,” says Mary Strehln, who started out sending
customers to her brother’s lawn service for a 5 percent cut of the profits and now is
on the unofficial payroll of 22 other small businesses in Minneapolis.
“I average $600 a month just keeping my ears open and not being afraid to express
my opinion. If I’m standing in line at the supermarket and hear someone say he needs
a new sofa or car repair or whatever, I chime in with a recommendation, and give them a
business card for the company I’m recommending. It’s the easiest money I’ve
ever made.“
3. Shill for companies in return for BIG-TICKET FREEBIES like cars, major
appliances and lifetime supplies of foods and personal-care items.
 Make a habit of writing glowing
letters and testimonials for products you use every day - cars, shampoo, computers,
refrigerators, soft drinks, food, motorcycles, bedding, you name it.
You’ll be surprised to find out firsthand how lavish big companies can be in
rewarding people for testimonials - a lifetime supply of soap, a new laptop computer and
even a new range, refrigerator and car are not out of the question.
“I bought a pre-owned 1996 Toyota Corolla from a dealer here in town and was so
happy with the car and the salesman that I wrote a letter to the owner,“ says Fred
Tolert, of Gaffney, S.C.
“Two days later he told me to drop by the lot because he had ‘a little
something’ for me. That little something was a 2002 Lincoln Navigator - and free oil
changes for life. All I had to do was agree to let him use my letter in his
advertisements.”
4. Get yourself EVEN DEEPER in debt. It sounds crazy, but study after
study confirms that you can expect to earn an extra $1 million over the course of your
career - more than enough to get out of debt and live high on the hog - after you earn and
apply your 4-year degree.
Unless you’re just too old to go back to work, taking out student loans to pay for
more education makes good financial sense, financial experts say.
“I took out $60,000 in student loans and it sure paid off for me,” says
Leslie Playor, of Birmingham, AL. “I used to make $300 a week working in a
dry-cleaning plant. Now I’m an environmental engineer making $1,200 a week - and the
benefits are incredible.”
5. Start eating smart, “tubby”. A mind-blowing 80% of
Americans are overweight. If you fall into that category, and statistically, you almost
certainly do, you can slash your food bill - and flush out the flab - by changing the way
you eat.
Remember: When you buy food that someone has prepared and packaged in any way,
you’re spending two to 20 times what it will cost you when purchased whole and raw.
Sure, you can buy a package of premixed salad greens for $3.
But you can purchase them separately and toss them yourself spending the same $3 - but
instead of having just one salad, you’ll have ingredients enough to make five or six,
slashing the price.
“Everybody’s talking about ‘whole-food diets‘, which revolve around
foods that are uncooked or only lightly cooked, such as vitamin- and enzyme-rich fruits
and vegetables,” says Roger Lafayerre, of Princeton, N.J.
“I switched from my old meat and potatoes diet and instantly whacked $100 a week
off my family’s food bill. Not only that, my cholesterol and high blood pressure
returned to normal, and my doctor took me off prescription drugs.
“That leaves me with another $75 a month to spend on things I really want, like
that new fishing rod I’ve had my eye on.“
6. Spend $20 to $50 a month to the world’s most important charity - you.
Don’t say you don’t have $20 to $50 - chances are good you‘re spending that
much or more for home delivery of a daily newspaper that you could be reading free at
work, borrowing from a friend or perusing at the public library.
Be ruthless in looking for ways to find your “charity cash” - and invest it.
Remember: You don’t have to sink a million in the stock market to realize a handsome
return. Call a stockbroker and don’t be shy - tell him you’ve got a $20 -or $50
- a month to invest.
He’ll help you build a financial future that, until now, you probably thought was
beyond your reach. “I started out investing $40 a month n 1998 and my $2,400
investment is worth over $10,000 today,“ says Jakee Carentine, a single mother of
five from St. Louis.
“I thought a stockbroker would laugh at my plan to invest $20 a month. But he
didn’t - and today, even in a down market, I’m way ahead. And to think I used to
live paycheck to paycheck.”
7. Rake in the riches that are in front of your nose. To do that,
stock of quick-and-easy money making activities that are available to you that you
aren’t taking advantage of.
“Washing one car a week at the going rate of $25 can net you $100 a month in extra
income,” says Fred Johanes, of Raleigh, N.C., who paid off all his credit card debt
by doing just that.
“Cleaning windows or bathrooms - chores people hate to do themselves - are big
moneymakers, too. My wife charges $25 to $50 per house or apartment and that’s
another $100 to $200 a month in extra income.”
Tim McCreighten, of St. Louis, started out cleaning a neighbor‘s toilet for $10 a
week in 1998 to help pay off a credit card. Today, “Tim the Potty God“ employees
60 workers - and lives in a $400,000 home.
8. Start a “Skinflint’s Club” - and rally the troops around a
collective “crash cash diet.”
It sounds dull but its fun. First, round up as many friends and acquaintances as you
can find who want to take control of their finances. Second, get together and schedule
regular weekly or bi-weekly meetings to discuss ideas and support one another.
To get started, simply make a note of every penny you spend for two weeks, and then
take a look at the result. Depending on your income, you might want to “slim
down” from spending $400 a week to spending $340 a week.
When the club meets, everyone can discuss their own spending patterns and offer
suggestions to one another for cutting them down to size. It’s not only a great way
to socialize and have fun, the result could be the financial freedom you crave.
“My Skinflint Club has 12 members and together we’ve slashed $1,200 a week in
frivolous or dumb spending from out household budgets,” says Sammy Klower, of
Spartanburg, S.C. “We’re working on getting out from under high interest debt
now, and on bringing our food budgets into line.
“At the same time, to reward ourselves, we’ve all added money to our
recreation budgets. We’re taking control of our finances and having more fun than
ever at the same time.”
9. Crown yourself “King - or Queen - of Garage Sales“ - and hold one
every week without fail. Go door to door or run a small ad in a newspaper
offering to clear out garages, attics and basements for free.
Leave the junk on the street for the trash collector and keep the good stuff for your
garage sale. “One garage sale isn’t going to improve your finances - but one a
week sure will,” declares Amy Seener, of Chattanooga, TN.
“I hold a garage sale every Saturday morning and spend every Saturday afternoon
cleaning out someone’s attic or garage. That gives me a week to clean the items
I’m going to sell and also to research my prices. I average $100 to $150 a week, more
than enough to make my car payment and pay for my weekly crab legs and beer bill at Red
Lobster!“
10. At a complete loss over the best way to bring your finances under control?
Consult a bankruptcy attorney and find out precisely where you stand financially.
The consultation is free and the attorney can quickly tell you what you need to do to get
out of debt. Bankruptcy usually isn’t necessary - and most attorneys will be more
than happy to put you on the right track because they know you’ll refer them when
your friends or relatives get into trouble.
“I was ready to commit suicide until I talked things over with a bankruptcy
attorney,” says Candace Moreger, of Houston. “He put things in perspective in
five minutes flat. I didn’t have to declare bankruptcy, but by following his
suggestions, I climbed out of debt pretty much painlessly. And I’m living better than
ever.“
11. Expect cash and good fortune to come you way - and it will.
Dramatic new studies show that good luck abounds for people who cultivate a positive
attitude and keep an open mind about themselves and their future.
If you need help, sign up for a free “positive attitudes” class at your
nearest library or community college - and get off your duff and go. “Once I learned
to keep a positive attitude, I started seeing where I had been missing one lucky
opportunity after another,” says Fred Blemerman, of Virginia Beach, VA.
“Now that I’ve opened my eyes, good things happen to me almost every day. I
got a new, higher paying job because I heard a man talking about the opening while I
exercised at my gym.
“And you might not believe this, but I find money on the ground all the time. I
expect good things to happen and thy DO happen. I encourage everyone to do the same.”
12. Liquidate. Do you really need to be making payments on three TVs,
four stereos, three computers, two cars, a new bedroom suite and all the other junk you
and family members keep buying on credit?
Sell everything you can part with or turn it all back over to the people you bought it
from, not sometime in the future, but right now, today.
Shelling out $400 a month on a car? Give it back and you instantly increase your cash
flow by a staggering $4,800 a year. To get where you‘re going, walk, ride a bike, use
public transportation, rely on friends, or buy a cheaper car.
“Want a $200 raise? Get rid of something that costs you $200 a month in
payments,” says Marge Retwenger, of Kansas City.
“Be ruthless. I got rid of my new car and bought a clunker for a monthly savings
of $320. I told the appliance company to take back my $2,000 refrigerator and bought a
used model at the thrift store for $50, saving my monthly payment of $40 a month.
“Now I’ve got money to spend on me and things I really like. It‘s like
winning the lottery every day.”
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