This blog is one day early due to commitments tomorrow. Busy, busy, busy!
Clark Howard came to Appleton last night. No, you say! Yep. He was sponsored by a local credit union and he appeared on stage at a local high school. Your mom and I (along with Grasshopper No. 3 and Collin) went to the presentation in a driving April snowstorm. So did the other silly 700 fans that filled the auditorium. He certainly has captured the attention of all classes of Americans.
I try to discern the fascination with Mr. Howard. It think it is fairly simple. As consumers we are all getting screwed every day with deceptive business practices and he has some fairly simple solutions. So he makes a living helping people navigate the mine field of devious ploys.
Why did I pay $10 per person to see Clark. One of my basic laws is “you always learn something” and the subject matter interests me.
Now you ask, what could the Zen Master possibly learn? Well, I have resisted looking at my credit report because I figure it really doesn’t apply to my financial situation. I don’t do loans. I don’t need to apply for credit (I get 50 solicitations for credit cards each year). I’m not about to refinance my house! But, according to Clark Howard, the credit report is used for everything including insurance rating (home insurance, auto insurance and property insurance). If you are a credit risk, you pay higher insurance rates. So I might be paying higher rates because some “nimrod” has tarnished my credit rating. My goal today is to apply for one of my free annual credit reports through a website Clark disclosed. Even an old Zen Master can learn.
Clark’s favorite word? Save! The word is “SAVE”. Save. Save. Save.
Saving is multi-dimensional. It means putting some of your earnings away on a continuing basis. Use 401k’s, health saving accounts, Roth IRA’s and regular bank saving accounts. It also means finding the best deal for your telephones, TV’s, and insurance. It means spending on things you need and avoiding the “wants”. It means avoiding credit cards. It means building equity in your home (don’t do home equity loans). You get the idea.
For a guy (Clark Howard) who bought a small travel agency at age 25 just as air fares were being deregulated, built it into a total of 5 agencies by age 31, then sold it for enough money to retire, he did pretty good. The question will always be “was he lucky or was he good”. Maybe both. He did siezed the opportunity. He continures to sieze opportunity.
My goal is to make back the total of $20 I spent on tickets. Stay tuned!
Love,
Dad