Income versus Expenses

Income versus expenses – which one do you think about most? Income represents money that is credited to you and expenses signify the financial obligations you are responsible for paying. Income is typically provided as a result of your own hard work and expenses are usually created by your decision to purchase certain products and/or services. 

Are you more concerned with earning more money, or with having less debt? Have you been trying to figure out what to do with the finances you make, or have you been working on a plan to properly allocate funds to cover your present expenses? What do your income and expenses look like when weighed on the scale of your financial reality? Are you presently earning more income than you are shelling out cash to cover your expenses, or are you trapped in the juggle game because you have more household bills than dollar bills? Do you even keep track of your finances to know exactly what you have and what you need to take care of this week or this month?

Tracking your income and expenses is a key foundational principle to establishing, maintaining, and improving your personal budget. So, before I ask you to track your finances or inquire about how you are currently track them, I’d like to encourage you to take a stab at a short financial resource I have created and use with my clients. It may look extensive but it is really just a short game that will allow you to see if your tracking skills are at their prime, or if you need to dust off that blank checkbook register you have sitting idly on your desk.

THE CHECKBOOK REGISTER GAME

Instructions:
Morgan and Michelle are twins who have had identical financial experiences. However, one of the girls has properly recorded her financial transactions while her sister’s checkbook register reveals errors that are causing inaccuracies in her account balance. Your job is to find out which sister’s register is correct, as well as the four errors in her sister’s register.

Summary:
Morgan and Michelle began with an opening balance of $50.00. On April 15, 2009, the girls both received and deposited their weekly paychecks from Macy’s in the amount of $213.00. On that same day, they transferred $100.00 to their savings accounts. On April 18^th, the girls used their debit cards to purchase sneakers from Footlocker for $54.99. On April 25^th, an automatic payment in the amount of $65.00 was deducted from their accounts from State Farm for their automobile insurance. Finally, the girls wrote check# 500 in the amount of $20.00 on April 28^th to give to their cousin, Ann Smith for her birthday.

Morgan

D-Deposit   AP-Automatic Payment   ATM-Cash Withdrawal   DC-Debit Cards   FT-Funds Transfer   SC-Service Charge   TD-Tax Deductible    BP-Bill Payments

NUMBER OR CODE	DATE	TRANSACTION DESCRIPTION	PAYMENT FEE WITHDRAWAL (-)		DEPOSITS CREDITS(+)	$ BALANCE
						.00
D	4/15/09	Macy’s			$213.00	$213.00
		payroll deposit				$213.00
FT	4/15/09	SunTrust (Savings Account)	$100.00			$100.00
		transfer to savings				$313.00
DC	4/18/09	Footlocker	$59.94			$59.94
		new sneakers				$253.06
AP	4/25/09	State Farm Insurance	$65.00			$65.00
		automobile insurance				$188.06
500	4/29/09	Ann Smith	$20.00			$20.00
		birthday gift				$168.06

Michelle 

D-Deposit   AP-Automatic Payment   ATM-Cash Withdrawal   DC-Debit Cards   FT-Funds Transfer   SC-Service Charge   TD-Tax Deductible    BP-Bill Payments

NUMBER OR CODE	DATE	TRANSACTION DESCRIPTION	PAYMENT FEE WITHDRAWAL (-)		DEPOSITS CREDITS(+)	$ BALANCE
						$50.00
D	4/15/09	Macy’s			$213.00	$213.00
		payroll deposit				$263.00
FT	4/15/09	SunTrust (Savings Account)	$100.00			$100.00
		transfer to savings				$163.00
DC	4/18/09	Footlocker	$54.99			$54.99
		new sneakers				$108.01
AP	4/25/09	State Farm Insurance	$65.00			$65.00
		automobile insurance				$43.01
500	4/28/09	Ann Smith	$20.00			$20.00
		birthday gift				$23.01

So, how did you do? Did you immediately recognize that the transactions in Michelle’s checkbook register were properly recorded? Were you able to locate the four errors in Morgan’s checkbook register? They were:

1.       Morgan forgot to record $50.00 in her opening balance.

2.       She recorded the funds transfer to her savings account as a credit instead of as a deduction from her account balance.

3.       Morgan deducted $59.94 instead of $54.99 from her account to record her purchase of sneakers from Footlocker.

4.       Morgan recorded the wrong date for check# 500. She wrote 4/28/09 instead of 4/29/09.

Morgan's checkbook register provided her the false security of thinking she had $168.06 available for her use when the reality was that her account had been reduced to $23.01. Can you see how small discrepancies can make all the difference in your financial world? Good! Now, allow this short exercise to move you into action.

It's Over!

It’s over! Say it with me:  my days of living in the middle are over! My days of being stuck in the muck of financial mediocrity are over! My life as a worker-thinking person is over. I will no longer be imprisoned by my past, I am retiring from enabling slave minded men and women who have no interest in changing, and I am no longer afraid to hope for better and pursue my best as the person God already knows I am. 

We’ve spent the past three weeks analyzing our lives and considering the thoughts that make up who we are and where we are today. Together, we’ve learned some things about ourselves that we hadn’t realized before, and we have committed ourselves to making changes that we were previously unwilling to make. In essence, we have taken the first and very necessary steps to embrace the financial freedom that has always been ours in Christ.

So as we leave this week behind, I urge you to remember the three money mentalities we’ve discussed because their relevance will continue to reveal themselves, not only in your financial experiences but in your decisions and relationships with others. For those of you who are new to the blog, you can always check out the Money Mentality Monday posts from the past three weeks to familiarize yourself with them. 

Now, on to new and exciting things! Next week we will begin to study financial principles, planning, and possibilities. We’ll continue to cultivate our bossy minds to assert the financial maturity and discipline that will ensure we become exposed to every unbelievable opportunity that awaits us. I’m excited about the next step on our journey and I hope you are too!

Thirsty for Consistent, Forward Movement

Have you ever watched the animated movie, Finding Nemo. It's a tragic, yet comical little story that centers around a father fish, Marlin who, while still grieving the loss of his wife and all but one of his unborn guppies ends up on a frightful journey to try to rescue his only living offspring, Nemo, after a fishing boat captured him in a net. As a result of his previous loss, this father fish had attached himself to fear the way a newborn baby attaches herself to her milk bottle. Still, tragedy struck again and Marlin found himself in a situation that forced him to decide whether to turn back or press forward. He had to decide whether he was going to go back home and grieve the loss of his only son or allow his fears to be transformed into the courage he needed to press forward and find him. Along the way, he became acquainted with Dory, an imperfect, forgetful, yet lovely blue fish who became Marlin's guide and encourager. At one point, Dory sang, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. As annoying as Dory's little jingle was to him, it succeeded in inspiring Marlin to forget the past and press towards the possibilities of the future. Dory motivated Marlin to keep moving consistently forward.

Prior to meeting Dory, Marlin was lost and afraid. He was frustrated and confused. He frantically searched for what was  most valuable to him, but he needed direction and he needed to know he wasn't alone. Marlin didn't know what to do or where to go until Dory offered her knowledge and talents to the mission. Together, they survived the ups and downs of the journey. They incurred scars, and faced uncertainties and setbacks, but guess what? As a team, they met their goal. They found Nemo. In the end, the father and son were reunited with a stronger bond and a brand new friend!

Similar to Marlin, some of you may be stuck in the middle, trying to decide whether to stop hoping for a better financial reality or to use your fears to propel you into the courage you need to press forward and swim, swim, swim your way into financial freedom. Well, I am here to be your personal, blog-writing, Dory. I am here to be a guide and an encourager who has knowledge and talents to offer. I am here to help you to accomplish your mission, and together you and I will face the ups and downs that are sure to present themselves as you endeavor to move consistently forward until you have endured every setback and conquered every fear that has been causing financial freedom to elude you. And who knows, perhaps we'll become friends along the way.

So, what are your questions and concerns? Don't want to post them here? Feel free to email me at cmbriscoe7312@gmail.com.

Purposefully Bossy!

LAST WEEK'S CHALLENGE

Last Wednesday, I challenged you to join me in living for someone else and earning income with someone else in mind. Did you do it? How did it go?

Like many of you, my family lives on a pretty strict budget. Yet, last week we included funds in that budget to pay a pass due utility bill for a single parent. Could we have used it to add towards our financial responsibilities? Yes! Was it a sacrifice to invest them in a stranger? Absolutely! Still, and as I mentioned last week, part of what makes a boss a boss is borne out of his or her ability to be the change they want to see even before they can see the change manifesting itself in his or her own life. Last week, my husband and I decided to be an answer to someone else’s problem. We were determined to offer ourselves, our lives, and God’s reflection to someone who may have needed it more than we will ever know, and we are determined to do more of it.

THIS WEEK'S CHALLENGE

Since you and I have firmly decided to shed ourselves of the worker money mentality, this week’s challenge will serve as confirmation that we are moving towards the boss money mentality. In other words, today we are going to be purposefully bossy. As a man or woman who is accepting your responsibility to be the boss, I am asking you to give yourself the right to demonstrate your freedom by doing something bossy. Do something that bosses do, and do it with a bossy mind.

For example, bosses employ others. Perhaps you can give your neighbor’s child an opportunity to earn $5.o0 today for raking the leaves in your front yard. Bosses help to make other people’s dreams come true. Maybe you can buy your co-worker a ticket to an event he has always wanted to attend. Bosses challenge those around them to reach their potential. So, it’s possible that you could sit down with someone you love and offer them an hour’s worth of education and/or training in one of your many areas of expertise. Try treating someone to lunch, networking with an acquaintance who needs to secure a business opportunity, or calling a friend to let her know how much you value her.

These are the types of investments bosses make on a consistent basis because they realize their position and influence to cultivate the minds and actions of others. They know that their efforts create a breeding ground for growth that fosters change in hearts, as well as in our communities.

Now, it’s your turn. Lift your head up, pull your shoulders back, strut your stuff, go out and choose to be purposefully bossy. Don’t forget to come back here and share your bossy experience.

It's the Little Things

Rome wasn’t built in a day…poverty doesn’t have to last forever. What do you see in these two expressions? We can’t achieve greatness overnight, nor should we be bound by that which has been the norm. It is the consistent, intentional strategies of men and women who seek to progress from bearing a worker money mentality to a boss money mentality, and it is the tenacious attitude and actions of this worker that keeps him or her from ever returning to an enslaved mind.

It’s the little things that matter most if your goal is to kiss the worker mindset good-bye and move forward to become the boss. It is the purposeful steps of a man who considers every detail of his life important that enables him to find his way and fulfill his dreams. It’s the idea of having a say in the workings of his destiny that leads to his pursuit of knowledge and expertise. Day by day and step by step, the worker who is interested in becoming the boss that he knows he should be must discipline himself to think and do according to the future, not the past or the present. He has to pay close attention to the little things that make up his overall beliefs and actions.  

What do you do as soon as you wake up each morning? What is your first thought upon gaining consciousness? How do you approach each day? Does an alarm clock wake you up and send you scrambling into your day, or do you wake up with a calm heart and clear mind that has a plan for the day? Do you consider who you are, what you want, and where you want to go in the midst of showering and getting dressed, or do you wake up early enough to absorb these things in silence…to seek the mind of God and His priorities for your life? Do you move through the day doing as you’re told or rebelling against the orders of others? Or, do you accept your responsibilities and enjoy the small moments that come and allow you to explore opportunities to build onto your dream?

It is the simple thoughts, the practical ideals, and the small moments that determine whether you make the decision to become the man or woman God ordained to excel and show forth His glory, or whether you will settle for continuing to do what you already do well. The worker is vulnerable because he isn’t lazy, selfish, or incompetent. As a matter of a fact, he periodically reveals glimpses of greatness, and that is what threatens his ability to experience the fullness of who he is meant to be. You see, the danger in being a worker lies in the reality that you can get lost in the excellence you demonstrate at present, and the recognition you receive from admirers.

The worker makes slaves feel better about their situations because he once shared their plight, and he gains the trusts of bosses because he has proven faithful in enhancing their businesses. In other words, the worker is often loyal to a fault – he prioritizes being relatable to slaves and reliable to bosses above prioritizing his own responsibility to offer the best of himself to each by first offering the best in his own life and to his Creator. 

We can never truly be who we need to be for everybody else until we can first be that in our own hearts and minds. We have to first ask ourselves the questions, what is true internally that I am not realizing and applying externally? What has kept me from really believing that God within me is greater than everything outside of me? Why am I able to encourage and celebrate the ascension of others but unable to motivate and discipline myself to do the same for me? Why haven’t I forgiven myself and others for the pains of my past, and why can’t I press wholeheartedly into my future?  

Leaving the worker in you behind necessitates that you begin to take small, even steps forward. It requires you to think specific thoughts and discipline yourself to do certain things on purpose, every day. It requires you to balance your financial transactions every day. It requires you to go to work on time every single day. It requires you to offer your best to your college education every day. It requires you to read books and magazines in line with where you want to go every day. It requires you to write simple notes pertaining to your vision every single day. These are the little things that count because collectively they develop your values and shape your lifestyle. Together they speak back to you what you think and believe about yourself and your dreams.