Money Matters: A Simple Guide To Help You Make Ends Meet

By John Michael Campbell

This book is intended for common people. Those individuals who, for the most part, do not follow the stock market and how it does everyday. People who could care less when the federal chairperson is going to speak on the United States monetary policy. You have no idea what a two hundred day moving average is and probably have never done your own income taxes. If this described you, then this book CAN help you. In the pages that follow, you will be introduced to basic, everyday, “Money Matters”. Everyday money problems, that are given everyday money solutions, in simple to understand terms. Be warned now that you will need "stick-to-it-tiff-ness" a phrase I pick up when I was young which means that when you start something you need to continue working at it until it is completed. Be assured, there are ways to increase the amount of money that you have to spend, by simply changing some of your spending and savings habits.

I am not a stock market guru, who has the answers of when to buy and when to sell. I am not a Certified Public Accountant, though I do have a degree in accounting. This is definitely not a get rich scheme. What I will present is a simple and sure way for you to make ends meet, save a few dollars (more is better in this case), and enable you to understand simple everyday finances. We will also look at what you CAN DO NOW to become more financially secure. Through proper and reasonable budgeting, "Forced" savings, and other tried and true ways of managing your money, you will have additional money to do things that you currently cannot afford to do.

Whether you just want to make it from payday to payday, want to save money to purchase your own home, or just buy that expensive toy that you have always wanted, you will find some ideas that will help you reach your goal in the pages that follow. No matter your education level, your job (yes, it is necessary that you work and earn money to get what you want), or your circumstances, my book will offer at least one way for you to improve your life financially. The amount you will save from using one of my suggestions will pay for the cost of this book.

Our current school system does not teach a person how to budget, invest, and plainly speaking "make ends meet". Most of my friends are hard working, Monday through Friday (with several Saturdays thrown in) stiffs. This book is written with them in mind. I am one of these working stiffs. I am not independently wealthy, retired, nor do I buy a new car every two or three years. I own my own home, and am, for the most part, debt free. I plan to retirement at the age of 66 and will have enough saved to do so without disrupting my average/modest life style. This was done through planning, dreaming, budgeting, worrying, saving, making mistakes, investing, and basically dealing with life day by day.

I believe that everyone should be responsible for themselves, their actions, and regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in, adapt and create a better life for ourselves. “Money Matters” is based on this belief and using experience, (you know what that is – it is what our parents told us was the best teacher), to show what really works and how learning from our experiences can help you!

I have read financial books, articles, and magazines. I have attended school/college, seminars, presentations, and researched the Internet. I have learned by making mistakes, and found several practical, everyday, solutions that have taught me what actually works. In this book, I will present these truths to you and perhaps you can avoid some of the mistakes I have made.

In closing, my sole purpose in writing this book is to show you how you CAN make your life easier. In addition, I have tried to present this information in a simple fashion so that it is understandable to all. I hope you enjoy this, my first book, Money Matters.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John Michael Campbell
• Release date: Aug 17, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370268740

John Michael Campbell

John Michael Campbell 7770 N.W. 39th Street Hollywood/Davie, Florida 33024 [phone] E-Mail: [e-mail] Web: www.moneymatters-personalfinance.com/ Part Time Small Business Accounting, Operations, and Consulting Summary of qualificationsWorking knowledge of Quicken and QuickBooks Pro. (Non-Profit & For Profit) Thirty years of administrative experience. Experience in all aspects of employee administration including: - Payroll, health, dental, life, and disability insurance - 401(k) administration - Workers’ Compensation - Employee Handbook - Set-up, implementation, and revision of policies and procedures Experience in all aspects in the operation of a business - Accounts receivable and payable - Invoicing/Billing - Inventory/Supplies - Contracts, Contracting, and Grants - Liaison of both non-medical and medical providers and vendors Work experienceAugust 2004 to Current - Owner John M. Campbell, L.L.C. – Accounting/Bookkeeping-Consulting Company November 2004 to Current Accountant – Broward County Film Society, Inc. dba: Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival & Cinema Paradiso June 2012 to Current Accountant – Government Process Services, Inc. Construction Permit Expeditors/ Land Use January 2013 to April 2015 Board Treasurer – Broward County Film Society, Inc. March 2010 to December 2014 Accountant – Downtown Development Authority Fort Lauderdale Saint Patrick’s Day Parade & Festival June 2008 to December 2009 John M. Campbell, L.L.C. – Instructor – Certified through the Broward County School Board Florida – Continuing Adult Education – QuickBooks PRO I & II November 1990 – August 2004 Internal Medicine Associates of Plantation, Plantation, Florida Title: Facility Administrator Humana Medical Plans, Inc. Miami, Florida October 1988 - November 1990 Title: Facility Administrator November 1987 – October 1988 Title: Contracts Manager (International Medical Centers purchased by Humana Medical Plans in 06/87) International Medical Centers, Inc., Miami, Florida February 1985 – November 1987 Title: Manager – Membership Services October 1984 – February 1985 Title: Supervisor – Membership Services February 1984 – October 1984 Title: Provider Operations Manager September 1981 – February 1984 Title: Bartender/Lounge Manager Lord Pembroke’s Pub & Mother McCree’s Tavern August 1976 – September 1981 Title: Air Traffic Controller, Federal Aviation Administration Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center, Miami, Florida January 1973 – December 1975 Title: Air Traffic Controller, U.S. Army United States Army, Ft. Benning, Georgia Education Embry Riddle University, Florida Bachelor of Science – Aeronautics (Cum Laude) Broward College, Florida Associate Degree - Accounting (National Honor Society) Altoona Area High School, Pennsylvania References References and Letters of Recommendation available upon request

Book preview

MONEY MATTERS

A Simple Guide To Help You Make Ends Meet

John Michael Campbell

Copyright 2016 by John Michael Campbell

All Rights Reserved

Smashwords Edition

Contents

Preface

Chapter 1: The Basics

Chapter 2: Budgeting Your Money

Chapter 3: Your Savings

Chapter 4: Mutual Funds

Chapter 5: Useful Tools

Chapter 6: Money Management

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

Appendix E

Appendix F

Appendix G

Appendix H

Preface

This book is intended for common people. Those individuals who, for the most part, do not follow the stock market and how it does everyday. People who could care less when the federal chairperson is going to speak on the United States monetary policy. You have no idea what a two hundred day moving average is and probably have never done your own income taxes. If this described you, then this book CAN help you. In the pages that follow, you will be introduced to basic, everyday, Money Matters. Everyday money problems, that are given everyday money solutions, in simple to understand terms. Be warned now that you will need stick-to-it-tiff-ness a phrase I pick up when I was young which means that when you start something you need to continue working at it until it is completed. Be assured, there are ways to increase the amount of money that you have to spend, by simply changing some of your spending and savings habits.

I am not a stock market guru, who has the answers of when to buy and when to sell. I am not a Certified Public Accountant, though I do have a degree in accounting. This is definitely not a get rich scheme. What I will present is a simple and sure way for you to make ends meet, save a few dollars (more is better in this case), and enable you to understand simple everyday finances. We will also look at what you CAN DO NOW to become more financially secure. Through proper and reasonable budgeting, forced savings, and other tried and true ways of managing your money, you will have additional money to do things that you currently cannot afford to do.

Whether you just want to make it from payday to payday, want to save money to purchase your own home, or just buy that expensive toy that you have always wanted, you will find some ideas that will help you reach your goal in the pages that follow.

No matter your education level, your job (yes, it is necessary that you work and earn money to get what you want), or your circumstances, my book will offer at least one way for you to improve your life financially. The amount you will save from using one of my suggestions will pay for the cost of this book.

Our current school system does not teach a person how to budget, invest, and plainly speaking make ends meet. Most of my friends are hard working, Monday through Friday (with several Saturdays thrown in) stiffs. This book is written with them in mind. I am one of these working stiffs. I am not independently wealthy, retired, nor do I buy a new car every two or three years. I own my own home, and am, for the most part, debt free. I plan to retirement at the age of 66 and will have enough saved to do so without disrupting my average/modest life style. This was done through planning, dreaming, budgeting, worrying, saving, making mistakes, investing, and basically dealing with life day by day.

I believe that everyone should be responsible for themselves, their actions, and regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in, adapt and create a better life for ourselves. Money Matters is based on this belief and using experience, (you know what that is – it is what our parents told us was the best teacher), to show what really works and how learning from our experiences can help you!

I have read financial books, articles, and magazines. I have attended school/college, seminars, presentations, and researched the Internet. I have learned by making mistakes, and found several practical, everyday, solutions that have taught me what actually works. In this book, I will present these truths to you and perhaps you can avoid some of the mistakes I have made.

In closing, my sole purpose in writing this book is to show you how you CAN make your life easier. In addition, I have tried to present this information in a simple fashion so that it is understandable to all. I hope you enjoy this, my first book, Money Matters.

John M. Campbell

Chapter One

The Basics

This chapter will introduce you to some basic ideas that I need you to understand before they are used later in the book. The first and probably the most important idea is that you only make so much money each day (or every week or per pay period) and this is what you must live on. Not real mind boggling however, MOST people live well beyond their actual paycheck. The second part of this idea is that you have monthly bills that if you don't pay on time will get you in trouble (I Know – Been There – Done That). Let us put these ideas into one sentence that can be remembered easily:

There are only two ways to have more money:

Make more money

— or —

Pay out less money

Most of us cannot control how much we make each payday so short of getting a second or even third job we are stuck with our current paycheck. We can however, control what we spend. By making good choices and purchases, you can make the money you do earn, go further.

NOTE: We are going to put a name on this idea and others in the book. Let us call this idea "Control". Every time you read the word control, think of the idea above, not the dictionary's definition.

The next idea is as simple as the first. We know what we make and we know what monthly bills we have. What we need now is something to help us get from payday to payday so we can pay all our bills with the money we have. That something is called a budget.

The dictionary defines budget as an itemized summary of probable income and expenses for a given period of time. What this means to us is we want to create your budget that fits your income (paycheck) and your expenses (bills) for a period of time (we will use a month) and put this on paper.

Most people I know cannot tell me where they spend their paychecks. Surprised, you shouldn't be. Yes, most of them can tell me the amount they paid for their monthly bills such as the rent, the car, gas, the electric, phone, and perhaps their grocery bill but when you sit down and add up all of the dollars they know they spent, they come up short. Usually, it is between five and ten percent of their paycheck. Think about this for a moment and realize that if you make $20,000 a year that means that you can’t tell me where $1000 to $2000 dollars was spent! If you earn more than $20,000 per year, the I don’t know what I spent it on amount is larger. For me, $1000 is a lot of money and certainly worth my time and efforts to find and keep!

Have you ever sat down and figured out what your entire paycheck was spent on? Every penny. Sorry! I get carried away sometimes. Now I am not saying, that the unaccounted money wasn’t spent, of course it was, but on what. Could we, since we have no idea what we spent the money on, just as easily not spent that money! Just take a moment and think what you could do with an extra $1000 to $2000 per year.

I hope that the thought of extra money has grabbed your attention. What we need is a tool that will help us account for all the money we make and how we spend it.

Enter the budget...

The budget will not only help you pay your bills on time but account for all the money you spent (including the five to ten percent missing from above). Having this