Want to advance your career? Saying “no” may be the key.
“It’s wonderful to be the go-to person to a point — until you find you’re totally overwhelmed, exhausted, resentful and in a time crunch,” said Susan Newman, author of “The Book of No: 250 Ways to Say It — And Mean It and Stop People-Pleasing Forever.” “Setting workplace boundaries means you will be doing better work and not spreading yourself all over the lot.”
Here’s how to get there:
1. Track your yeses.
You can’t set a boundary you don’t know you have, so watch yourself for a week, Newman said. Where do you say “yes”?
Do you agree to lunch with that coworker on the day of a major presentation?
Do you accept another project on top of the eight you already have?
Do you volunteer to change the printer’s ink cartridge for a harried coworker?
Do you work on the Saturday of your daughter’s recital?
2. Figure out your priorities.
“Every time you say yes, you’re giving up something,” said Newman. So get your priorities straight:
Do you need to be everyone’s best friend or be the last person to leave work each day? Or is it more important to choose projects that will advance your career and give yourself time to do them?
“You should always ask yourself, ‘Are these things moving me forward and gaining me respect, or is it just one more piece of busy work?’” she said.
3. Share them with your boss and coworkers.
Now that you know, let everyone you work with know in a clear, friendly way, said Debra Mandel, author of “Your Boss is Not Your Mother: Eight Steps to Eliminating Office Drama and Creating Positive Relationships At Work.”
“It’s valuable to inform people that you’re changing your approach to work,” she said. “You can simply say, ‘I know I’ve been overworking myself and so I’m going to start taking a little more time.’”
Scared to say it? You’re not alone. Some changes may be easier than others. Declining lunch with a coworker may be less frightening than declining a project from your boss.
So invite your boss into the decision-making: Of the 10 projects on your plate, which are highest priority? Can you work late during the week in return for having your weekends to yourself? Keep reminding your boss that you’re doing this to improve your work performance.
4. Keep doing it.
Now that you’ve set your boundary, your work is done. Right?
Wrong.
Expect your boss and coworkers to test you. Can’t you come out for drinks after work just this once? Can’t you take 10 minutes — OK, maybe 30 — to talk your coworker down from her latest crisis — even though you have work to do? Can’t you take on this one extra project? It’s a one-time thing, your boss swears.
“Keep setting boundaries,” Mandel said. “Usually people want to have healthier relationships, and they’ll adapt.”
Question: I just received a job offer, but I feel the salary is too low. How can I negotiate a higher salary?
Answer: More money. Let’s be honest, we all want it. So how can you get it?
When it comes to negotiating your new job offer, you walk the fine line between coming off like a savvy employee looking to maximize your worth and being greedy. Here’s what you do.
1. Know what you’re worth.
Knowledge is power. It’s much easier to negotiate if you know where you stand relative to others in your field. Your first stop should be the Yahoo! HotJobs salary calculator. Also check with friends and family who may work in your field or at your level. See what they make.
Once you have that information in hand, here’s what you might say:
“From the information I’ve pulled from salary surveys, a financial analyst with four years of experience in Cleveland makes between $65,000-$75,000. I feel that your offer of $62,000 is low. Based on my experience and accomplishments, a salary of $70,000 which falls in the middle of the range would be more appropriate.”
2. Think beyond salary.
Salary may be cool, but the job offer is king.
Often, companies have fairly set salaries based on pre-determined compensation “bands.” For instance, they may never pay a four-year accountant more than $62K per year. However, there are a host of other benefits you might have more luck negotiating:
Signing bonus
Relocation allowance
Clothing/car allowance
Vacation days
Year-end bonus
Medical and dental benefits
Profit sharing/401(k)
Flexible work hours/days
Company computer/phone
Some companies may offer these benefits and might be persuaded to up the ante for you — if you ask. Think about it this way. If you make $104,000 a year, and you can negotiate an extra week of vacation, you just gave yourself a $2,000 raise.
Here’s what you say: “I understand that you can’t raise my salary, but at my former job, I had three weeks of vacation. I’d like to see if it’s possible to get an extra week of vacation each year.”
3. Just say it.
Don’t beat around the bush, don’t hem and haw, and don’t think that you should feel bad about negotiating. Once they are ready to have the talk, many job seekers ruin their chances by not being assertive.
Bad: “I was wondering if perhaps you might consider offering some type of compensation for my move. I mean if not, it’s no big deal, but hopefully you have a few extra dollars. Maybe?”
Good: “Since I’ll be moving from Pittsburgh to New York, I’ll be incurring substantial moving expenses. What type of relocation assistance do you offer?”
Negotiating your offer is never easy, but with the right approach it could turn into some extra cash. Good luck!
The key to making a mid-career transition is to understand that you don’t have to do it in one big step. By taking a number of small steps, you’ll get where you want your professional life to be without causing an income gap or wreaking havoc on your personal life.
The Starting Points
Here are some sound ways you can approach a big career transition.
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Explore your network. It may be that you respect your company, and a new line of work within it would provide the change you crave. If you like the way you and your fellow employees are treated, that’s a primary asset you’re not guaranteed to get elsewhere.
Volunteering to improve on the way things are done — even outside of your current position — is often said to be the surest route to promotion. You may be unduly busy for a time, but having a goal you’re working towards can provide you a lot of energy.
Go forth and conquer. If your current job is sapping your enthusiasm for life, then quitting outright may seem like the only choice. And it can be the right choice, provided that you A) are in a position to get by in the short term without a steady income, and B) can use your connections to explore your desired line of work.
Expand your own expertise. Your current job requires its own refined knowledge and core skills. One approach is to seek work in an industry where these can be put to use. Identify the strengths your experience gives you, write a resume that speaks to these traits in a broader context, and explore fields where your skills can be put to good use.
Go to school and learn. Gaining entrance to a new line of work often requires a higher degree or certificate. Whether you want to become an engineer, investor, nurse or chef, earning a degree is the premium means of gaining a foothold in your desired industry. Fortunately, in today’s internet savvy world, all manner of degrees are available from reputable online colleges and universities.
The Education Advantage
One enormous advantage of studying online is that you can build your own class and study schedule, so that you don’t have to worry about commuting to campus, and allowing you to keep your current job.
Many online schools offer degree programs that let you work at an accelerated rate — many online business programs, for instance, let you earn your MBA in as little as 10 months. If you’re searching for a truly fresh start in a line of work with lots of upward mobility, then take the time to explore. Discover if the degree you need is available online and look at potential schools. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Whatever challenges your path to a new career may hold, there are resources available to help you meet them. Don’t hold back — think actively about what’s best for you. Get started toward your future today.
Time it takes: 7 minutes
Know how lenders see you. Take seven minutes to download a free credit report at annualcreditreport.com. (For year-round monitoring, get a report from one of the three major credit bureaus every four months.) If you spot an error, notify the bureau (online, by phone or by mail) and the creditor (call and also send a letter). You won’t find your credit score here, so when you request a report from Equifax, pay $7.95 for your FICO score, the most commonly used score. The range is 300 to 850 - 700 and above is good.
More CNNMoney.com:
• From Dream to Reality: 5 Plans
• Eight Forecasts for Your Financial Future
• How Boomers Really Feel
Raise your credit score
Time it takes: 8 minutes
It takes time to recover from major credit lapses, but you can do two things fast that will improve your credit score. Both will lower the size of your outstanding debt as a percentage of your total borrowing power.
1. Pay down a balance. 2. Call your issuer and ask for a higher credit limit. And don’t spend it.
Triple the return on savings
Time it takes: 10 minutes
Do you have cash going nowhere in a checking or savings account? Bank money-market accounts typically pay less than 1%. You can open a savings account with HSBC Direct that recently paid 5.05%. No minimum balance is required.
With your driver’s license and Social Security number handy, visit hsbcdirect.com and click on Sign Me Up. You’ll be walked through screens to enter personal information. Want to fund your account immediately? Have a check with your bank account number and routing code handy to authorize an electronic transfer.
Stop junk mail
Time it takes: 5 minutes
Call 888-5OPTOUT to remove your name from credit issuers’ mailing lists. The result of that five-minute talk with a computer? Fewer temptations and a mailbox filled with letters, not offers for pre-approved cards.
Most important, you’ll cut the risk of an identity thief raiding your mailbox or garbage can and applying for credit in your name. Stolen paper mail accounts for 9% of identity fraud cases, according to Javelin Strategy & Research.
Note: Because we’re talking credit bureaus, you’ll have to provide your Social Security number. It’s okay.
Freeze your credit
Time it takes: 25 minutes
Doing this prevents anyone from issuing credit in your name. (You, of course, can temporarily lift the freeze when you need a loan.) Nearly 30 states allow freezes even if you haven’t been an ID theft victim. In some states you’ll pay about $30 to place or remove-temporarily or permanently- the freeze. Go to consumersunion.org/securityfreeze.htm for instructions.
Haggle down your credit rate
Time it takes: 8 minutes
Dial your issuer and ask for a lower rate. If your credit score tops 720, do not be satisfied until your rate is less than 10%, says Curtis Arnold of CardRatings.com. Your biggest weapon: Make it clear that you’ll stop using the card if the issuer refuses. Our reporter, helped by the fact that she’s been a good customer for seven years, got the rate on her Discover card cut by four percentage points.
Upgrade to a better card
Time it takes: 30 minutes
Rewards, rates and fees change often. So search CardTrak.com to make sure you have the best deal. Among the lowest-rate cards on the site recently: Simmons First National Bank in Arkansas (800-636-5151) offers a fixed rate as low as 7.25% with no annual fee to consumers who have excellent credit.
Add to your 401(k)
Time it takes: 3 minutes
You signed up for your plan right after you found the office vending machines. Now do more: Raise your contribution by a point. Save 10% of a $50,000 salary in your 401(k) and you’ll have $1.4 million in 35 years, assuming 8% returns and 4% annual raises. Ramp that up to 11% and you’ll earn around $140,000 more.
Call your plan or visit your 401(k)’s website. At 401(k)s administered by Fidelity, for example, raising your contribution takes all of three minutes.
Manage like a pro
Time it takes: 4 minutes
If you have a diversified portfolio, a run-up in one asset class can throw your mix out of line, increasing risk and eroding returns. An unrebalanced $10,000 portfolio of 80% stocks and 20% bonds would have grown to $21,620 over the past 10 years.
If you’d rebalanced annually, you’d have $22,213, or $593 more - and taken less risk to get there. Retooling a 401(k) is easy: With a big plan administrator like Fidelity or Hewitt, rebalancing online takes minutes. In a taxable account, simply direct new money into the lagging fund categories.
Buy a forever portfolio
Time it takes: 25 minutes
Putting together a complete fund portfolio was once a time consuming chore. Nowadays target-date funds, which adjust the stock and bond allocation to smooth returns as you near a “target” retirement year, do it for you in minutes. Many 401(k)s offer them.
For direct investments, use the low-cost options from Vanguard (800-851-4999) or T. Rowe Price (800-638-5660). At vanguard.com, click on the tab labeled Research Funds and Stocks. Find the fund that corresponds to your planned retirement year, then download and look over the prospectus. Next click on the Buy This Fund link and follow the instructions. Have your checkbook ready to deposit funds electronically.
Find promising funds
Time it takes: 5 minutes
You can cut through the 8,000 or so mutual funds out there by sticking to the MONEY 70. Or run a screen for similar funds at morningstar.com (click on the Funds tab and go to the Mutual Fund Screener link). Pick a category, and then limit expenses to less than the category average. Next screen for funds whose managers have five years of tenure or more - greater experience is linked to better performance. Cut funds that failed to beat their five- or 10-year category averages.
Track your returns
Time it takes: 35 minutes
It’s a pain to figure out how your investments are doing, especially if your money is scattered among several accounts. Spend 35 minutes setting up the portfolio tracker at portfolio.morningstar.com (you must first register at the site) so that you can start calculating your own rate of return. For a Web tool that can be clunky, Morningstar’s tracker is particularly well designed and easy to use. You will, however, have to update it when you reinvest dividends or buy more shares.
Find out if you’re paid enough
Time it takes: 15 minutes
Before you can make your case for a raise, you need something to measure yourself against. Salary.com offers Salary Wizard for free. Plug in your title and zip code and you’ll get the median pay in your area for comparable positions. Or spend 10 minutes filling out a questionnaire with more variables, such as the size of your employer, and get 12 pages of data by buying a Personal Salary Report for $29.95 to $79.95 (the price varies by title).
Run a retirement plan
Time it takes: 5 minutes
On the road to riches, the key question is whether you’re on track for financial independence. So pull out your retirement and investment account statements, plus projections for any pensions. Running that simple math can be surprisingly valuable: Researchers have found that people who plan for retirement have a higher net worth than those who do nothing.
Estimate your life insurance
Time it takes: 35 minutes
How much coverage is enough? For a fast ballpark estimate, multiply your annual income by five. With 35 minutes you can use the detailed calculator from the Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (life line.org). You’ll be asked for your assets and debts, plus answers to tough questions like how long your family would need income after your death. If you find you need more coverage, get a quote on a term policy in five minutes at accuquote.com.
Learn your tax bracket
Time it takes: 20 minutes
Knowing what rate you pay on the last dollar you earn can help you to, among other things, pick a taxable vs. a municipal bond fund. Pull out your most recent 1040 and look for taxable income (line 43 in 2006). Adjust for any big changes in your income or the deductions you expect to take this year, then find where you fit in at irs.gov (search for “2007 federal tax rate schedule”).
To choose between a muni and a taxable fund, divide the muni’s yield by 100% minus your tax rate. If that number is higher than the taxable yield, go tax-free.
Escape late fees
Time it takes: 6 minutes
Why mess with checks and trips to the post office? Why risk a late payment when, according to Consumer Action, 85% of credit-card issuers impose penalty rates that average 24.5% if you’re late on one or two bills? Pay bills online at your bank. First register at the site. Then gather your bills. Many bank sites have a pull-down menu of merchants; select yours and enter your account number. Or plug in the name, address and account number manually.
Write bounce-proof checks
Time it takes: 9 minutes
The median fee for bouncing a check recently hit $27.50, according to Bankrate.com. Call your bank or visit its website to sign up for overdraft protection. With that service, the bank will cover your check with money from a linked savings account. It may cost you $10, but that’s less than half the charge for insufficient funds - not to mention what the payee demands.
Get bank alerts
Time it takes: 4 minutes.
Avoid bounced checks and spot ID theft early by having your bank notify you when your balance falls below a certain level or when there’s unusual activity in your account. Citibank, for example, offers alerts via e-mail or text message. To activate them, log into your online account and select Account Info and then E-mail and Wireless Alerts. You can add up to two e-mail addresses and a mobile-phone number for alerts. Use the menu of options to designate what updates you want.
Pay less in auto insurance
Time it takes: 7 minutes
Simply raising your deductible can save you up to 30%. With an old car, drop your collision and comprehensive coverage when the car is worth less than 10 times what you pay for the insurance. Or shop for a lower premium at insweb.com, an easy-to-navigate comparison site. You’ll be guided through five screens of information such as driving history, car make and model. A few minutes later the site will give you the lowest quote from its database (which doesn’t include all the biggest insurers). Agents will also e-mail or call you with quotes from other insurers.
Double-check your taxes
Time it takes: 35 minutes
Next April remember this: Before you seal the envelope or tap the key that whisks your return to the IRS, spend 35 minutes looking for easy-to-spot errors. Overlook a dependent (the one at college may count) and you could owe an extra $1,000 in taxes. Transpose your Social Security number and your refund may never arrive. Did you sign your return?
Keep more of your paycheck
Time it takes: 30 minutes
A generous tax refund means you are overpaying the government. To have fewer dollars plucked from your paycheck, claim more exemptions on your W-4 form (to see if you can, use the withholding calculator at irs.gov). Print out a W-4 at the IRS site or from your company’s intranet. With last year’s tax return, a pay stub and a calculator handy, filling out the worksheet on page 2 takes about half an hour.
Get a tax break for day care
Time it takes: 35 minutes
Make this the fall that you finally sign up for a flexible spending account for healthcare and dependent-care expenses. Your boss takes pretax dollars from your paycheck; you tap the account for contact lenses, day care and the like.
Pay less for your cell
Time it takes: 1 minute
Know what your employer hates? Raises. What he likes? Perks that cost him nothing. At some firms, employees qualify for cell-phone discounts of up to 20%. To see if you get a Verizon discount, go to verizonwireless.com/getdiscount and plug in your e-mail address; for AT&T, go to wireless.att.com/home.
Cut drug costs
Time it takes: 16 minutes
Many employers use a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) such as Medco or Caremark to administer prescription drug coverage. Call your PBM or go to its website (have your prescription drug coverage card handy) to check mailorder prices and sign up.
No more waiting rooms
Time it takes: 15 minutes
Can’t get in and out of the doctor’s office in 35 minutes? You can see a physician’s assistant or a nurse practitioner in about 15 minutes, or so, says MinuteClinic, one of the largest of the chains of walk-in medical centers cropping up in pharmacies or stores such as Target or Wal-Mart. That’s fine for basic ailments like earaches, strep throat and pinkeye. Your insurance may not be accepted, which could leave you footing the entire $59 ear-infection fee. But you can stop by at lunch and not miss hours, or even a day, of work.
Burn more calories
Time it takes: 30 minutes
Nibbling an extra 100 calories a day will pack on 10 pounds in a year. Doing moderate exercise for 30 minutes a day will prevent that gain - and save you money. Obese Americans spend 26% more out of pocket on health care than normal-weight workers, according to a study in Health Affairs. They also take nearly twice as many prescriptions and earn $1.42 less per hour.
Be like Buffett
Time it takes: 35 minutes
It takes seven seconds on a high-speed Internet connection to download Berkshire Hathaway’s annual report (available at berkshirehathaway.com/reports.html). Reading Buffett’s letter to shareholders might take a full 35 minutes. The wisdom therein could put your investing head on straight for 35 years.
Save for college
Time it takes: 35 minutes
A state 529 college savings plan is the best way to invest for your kid’s higher education. With one check, you can buy a diversified portfolio that becomes more conservative as your child nears school. See Money Magazine’s guide to 529s in every state (link below).
Stick with your local 529 if it’s a Money pick. But if your homegrown options are fee-laden and offer no local tax breaks, go with the Utah Educational Savings Plan (800-418-2551; uesp.org). Click on the Forms tab and download the program description and “form 100.” Figure on 15 minutes to read, 19 minutes to fill out the agreement, one minute to fax.
Automate your savings
Time it takes: 10 minutes
If a $10,000 minimum investment is keeping you out of mutual funds, you have a quick work-around. Lots of funds let you in for much less if you agree to have your investment automatically taken out of your bank account. With T. Rowe Price’s automatic asset builder (troweprice.com), you can invest in T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth (TRBCX), T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX) and many other exemplary funds with just $50 a month.
Get credit, even in a crunch
Time it takes: 15 minutes
Apply for a home equity line of credit. Don’t tap it now unless you must (average rates are 8.75%). But in an emergency - say, when you’ve lost your job - you may find it tougher to qualify. Start by calling your bank, but go to bankrate.com to compare its offer with those from other nearby lenders.
Read your mortgage
Time it takes: 30 minutes
Only now are many borrowers with risky loans finding that they misunderstood the terms. First pull out the one-page Truth in Lending Disclosure your lender gave you: The APR on it is the best estimate of what you are paying. Lower rates mentioned in other loan documents are likely come-on offers. If your rate is variable, scan the adjustable-rate disclosures section of your mortgage for the date it changes and the highest it can go. Examine every page for the words “prepayment penalty.”
Stop overpaying on your mortgage
Time it takes: 9 minutes
If you carry private mortgage insurance but now have 20% equity in your home, see whether you can cancel. Your mortgage servicer (the phone number is listed on your bill) usually must oblige if your down payment and principal payments exceed 20% of your home’s original value. Many will do so if rising prices have pushed your equity to 20%.
In this case, canceling will take longer: Most mortgage companies require an appraisal, which costs around $300. But at homegain.com, realestateabc.com or zillow.com you can get an idea of whether your home value has risen enough to justify a call.
Create an insurance record
Time it takes: 29 minutes for a 2,200 sq ft home
Walk around your house with a camera. Shoot closeups of your jewelry, artwork and other valuables. If disaster strikes, this proof of what you owned will speed your claim and help you get a better settlement. Keep copies of the video or photos in your safedeposit box or elsewhere outside your home.
Curb impulse buys
Time it takes: 10 minutes
By one estimate, two-thirds of all purchases are unplanned. To keep impulse shopping in check, ask the clerk to hold your wished for item, then take a 10-minute stroll. Next ask yourself whether you truly need this sweater/video game/golf club and how you’ll pay for it.
Spend consciously
Time it takes: 35 minutes
At the grocery store, you’re up against tempting displays and smells in every aisle. To avoid being ambushed, you need to follow a strict plan. Take 35 minutes to make a shopping list that follows the layout of the store (no straying) and calls for stocking up on sales items. To see the specials at stores nearby, enter your zip code atmygrocerydeals.com.
Slash recurring charges
Time it takes: 10 minutes
It seemed like a good idea - for just $16.99 a month, you could rent three DVDs at a time as often as you wanted. But how often is that really? Scan your credit-card statement for those automatic monthly charges you normally just pay. Ask yourself whether you’re getting your money’s worth. How often do you go to the $75-a month gym? How about that cheese-of-the-month club? Cancel what you’re not using.
Boost your mileage
Time it takes: 7 minutes
About half of car owners don’t test the air pressure on their car tires often enough, according to the Rubber Manufacturers Association. The recommendation: Do it once a month or before any long trip. The payoff: Properly inflated tires improve your fuel economy by 3.3%. You can buy a pencil tire gauge for less than $10. Check the pressure when your tires are cold. If they need air, head to a gas station within a mile of home.
Find it cheaper online
Time it takes: 30 minutes
Before you buy anything on the Web (or at a mall), spend a few minutes at a comparison shopping site. Shopping.com and Shopzilla.com both scour the Net for bargains at a large number of online stores, but their results can vary. Looking to buy a Garmin GPS for your car? Shopping.com found one from a top retailer for $357.95; Shopzilla’s find was $212.54.
Demand a lower cable bill
Time it takes: 15 minutes
Okay, it’s not as simple as that - but almost. Call and complain that your bill is too high; repeat your message calmly (”This just isn’t worth it to me anymore”). Make sure to casually use the words “satellite dish” (as in “I wonder how that compares with a satellite dish”) or maybe “phone company.” This strategy translated into a $20 monthly discount (for a year) in our test.
Save on drinking water
Time it takes: 4 minutes
At $1.50 a pop for a gallon of bottled water at the supermarket, the desire for healthy hydration adds up. By purchasing a water filter, you can cut your family’s water costs to 19¢ a gallon. Order a Brita Riviera pitcher at amazon.com for $27. Replacement filters good for two months are $9 each.
Six 35-second solutions:
Time it takes: 35 seconds
1. Say no to a new store credit card.
With rates typically above 20%, interest can wipe out that initial 10% discount. The new credit application will hurt your credit score, and you’ll have yet another temptation to spend.
2. Check yes to reinvesting your dividends.
If you’d put $10,000 in an S&P 500 index fund in 1997 and reinvested dividends all along, you’d have $22,446 at the end of 2006. If you didn’t, you’d end with just $19,147.
3. Say no to an extended warranty.
It’ll cost you $30 to $200, and with electronics so reliable nowadays, you’re unlikely to need it. Besides, if your computer breaks in two years, you’ll want the new model, not a replacement.
4. Fill your tank with regular.
Premium gas is about 8% more expensive, and no matter what the manufacturer says, cars don’t need pricier gas to run smoothly and resist wear.
5. Swipe your debit rather than credit card.
If your purchase will further fatten your balance on a high-rate credit card, you’re better off paying with the money that’s in your bank account. If asked, say “credit” rather than “debit” and your debit card will be processed over the credit-card network. You’ll have more liability protection and less chance of paying a fee.
6. Delete any e-mail asking for account information or your social security number.
It may be a scam. No reputable financial services firm will ask.
“David Bach” “The Automatic Millionaire”
I’ve spent a lot of time teaching Americans how to get out debt. From television appearances to books to speeches, I’ve tried to proactively address how to fight the credit card companies at their own game.
CardTrak.com reports that the median amount of credit card debt carried by a typical American is about $6,600. But 13 percent of participants in a recent online poll reported balances higher than a staggering $25,000.
Many of these families now have over nine credit cards per household. That’s not hard to believe considering that the average college student now graduates with three credit cards.
Kill Off Your Credit Card Debt
The question for many of these people is, “How do I know which of these cards to pay off first?”
To that end, I developed a system that helps consumers prioritize their debt payment plans for my book “The Finish Rich Workbook.” It’s called DOLP, which stands for Dead On Last Payment, and DOLPing your way out of debt is all about building momentum as you systematically pay off each card, one by one.
Back in a February column, I introduced you to Dan and Sally Eggleston, with whom I’ve been working over the past two years. We met on “Oprah” while taping the Debt Diet series, and the Egglestons have made amazing progress toward wiping out their debt.
Using the DOLP method, they’ve gone from 13 credit cards down to 4; in 90 days they’ll be down to 3. They’ve reduced their $72,000 in credit card debt by over $25,000 so far, and by doing so they’ve also increased their credit score by over 100 points.
Do the DOLP
This same system can help you, too. Like Dan and Sally, you can get a true handle on how much you owe and how to put a payment plan into action in a matter of minutes. Here’s what you need to do get DOLPing:
1. Make a list of the current outstanding balances on each of your credit card accounts.
2. Divide each balance by the minimum payment that particular card company wants you to make. The result is that account’s DOLP number.
For example, say your outstanding Visa balance is $500 and the minimum payment due is $50. Dividing the total debt ($500) by the minimum payment ($50) gives you a DOLP number of 10.
3. Once you’ve figured out the DOLP number for each account, rank them in reverse order, putting the account with the lowest number first, the one with the second-lowest number second, and so on.
You now know the most efficient order in which you should pay off your various credit card balances.
4. Pay as much as you can each month toward the card with the lowest DOLP number. For each of your other cards, make only the minimum payment.
5. Once a card is paid off, cut it up — but don’t close the account! Leave the account open so you have credit you aren’t using, which will help improve your credit score.
Now move the next card up on your list and repeat the process until all your cards are paid off.
Track Your Progress
I had Dan and Sally create a DOLP chart that was big enough to hang in their kitchen. This is a great way for the whole family to keep track of where they are in the process of wiping out their debt, and it serves as a reminder of their ultimate goal and helps them stay focused.
Tracking which cards have been paid off is a huge emotional boost, and propels you toward future progress. Here’s a template you can use to create your own DOLP chart:
Account Outstanding Balance Monthly Minimum Payment DOLP Number DOLP Ranking
Visa $500 $50 10 1
MasterCard $775 $65 12 2
Sears Card $1,150 $35 39 3
Negotiate Interest Rates
Other experts will suggest that you pay off your cards in an order based on the interest rate each card charges. I disagree with this method simply because you should be negotiating a lower interest rate with each credit card company from the very beginning. (See my column “Credit Card Hazards and How to Avoid Them” for details.)
Once you’ve asked for a lower rate, you may end up with pretty much the same interest rate on all your accounts. In Dan and Sally’s case, they were able to lower most of their cards below a 5 percent interest rate — and many of them had been as high as 29 percent.
Breaking a Vicious Circle
Being in debt can be depressing and overwhelming. The more credit cards you have the more bills you have to worry about paying on time, and just trying to stay on top of all those bills inevitably leads to mistakes like late payments.
Late payments can cost you upward of $30 a month, higher interest rates of up to 30 percent, over-limit fees of up to $35 a month — and more stress. DOLPing your debt helps you break this cycle.
For instance, Dan and Sally went from 13 cards to 6 in less than 6 months. It was a huge relief for them, and also a huge motivator because they could see the progress they made so fast.
Patience, Persistence, and Progress
Although the DOLP method is simple, getting out of debt isn’t. It may take months or even years to pay off all your credit card debt. My experience is that it can take twice as long to get out of debt as it took to get in it. But you can do it, and it’s worth the effort.
Today, Dan and Sally’s DOLP chart still hangs in their kitchen, serving as a constant reminder of their progress as well as the work they still have left to do. I’m really proud of what they’ve accomplished to date, and they serve as a great example of how patience and persistence can pay off on the road to financial freedom.
I hope this tool helps you. If you have other debt-management methods you’d like to share, please leave a comment below.
There’s a new workplace etiquette for the new millennium, and, no surprise, it’s all about transparency and authenticity.
The new etiquette is driven by the fact that young people who grew up online don’t know how to operate any other way except transparently. The good news is this means they have great social skills; the bad news is they have no idea that they’re breaking all the old rules.
Here are 10 tips to help people who aren’t used to living an authentic, transparent work life flourish under the new rules:
1. Forget the exit interview.
An exit interview won’t help you, and it’ll probably create bad will. If you have people to thank when you leave a job, do it at lunch. If you have ideas for how to improve the company, offer to consult. Of course the company will decline, because they don’t care. Otherwise you wouldn’t be quitting, right?
Stop focusing on the exit interview and focus on how to quit like a pro. When you get a new job, your old boss is part of your new network. It’s up to you to make sure that parting ways goes as smoothly as possible so that you can shepherd this person into your network of supporters.
2. Don’t ask for time off, just take it.
When you need to leave work for a few hours or a few days, you don’t need to ask for permission — you’re an adult, after all. Make sure your work is in good order and send an email to the relevant people letting them know you’ll be gone.
This will seem discourteous to older people, who expect you to ask rather than tell. So be sure to give a reason why you’re cutting out. People like to know they matter and where they stand.
3. Keep your headphones on at work.
If you use social media tools, you’re probably good at connecting with people and navigating office politics — good enough that spending all day at work with headphones on won’t hinder you.
If you don’t know what what social media tools are, then you’re probably not innately good at making connections and need to take those headphones off before you’re crushed by office politics.
4. Say no to video résumés.
This is one of the dumbest recruiting trends ever.
Any human resources person in their right mind would hate video résumés. If there’s a stack of 100 paper résumés, the hiring manager will spend 10 seconds on each to decide which ones belong in the garbage. So how annoying is it that it takes 10 seconds just to launch a video résumé?
And it’s not just that they’re totally inefficient. Video résumés open up HR departments to a whole new level of discrimination accusations. There’s a reason why newscasters are all good-looking — it’s because we favor the good-looking on-screen. So if you don’t get hit on every time you step into a bar, forget about the video résumé. You probably look better on paper.
5. Invite your CEO to be a friend on Facebook.
That’s right, Facebook is for everyone now. And although the youngest members of the workforce are a little worried that having the adults there will ruin things, adults are psyched to be there. No one wants to miss out on all the fun.
So there’s a good chance that your CEO is registered, and it’s likely that she’ll really want to hear from you about what to do on Facebook, since she surely has no clue.
6. Do reconnaissance on your probable boss.
This tip comes from 20-something Hannah Seligson, whose book, “New Girl on the Job: Advice from the Trenches,” gives great tips on getting through the first years of work — most of which comes down to etiquette.
Seligson recommends you find out all the dirt you can about your future employer, because the best gauge of how a company will treat you is how it treated other employees. So asking people directly is fine.
Remember that it’s often the boss who makes the biggest difference in the workplace, so try using LinkedIn to search for someone who had the job you’re interviewing for. Former employees will always give you the most candid comments.
7. Don’t try to improve a coworker.
If you work with a jerk, just avoid him. We already know from dozens of studies that thinking you can change someone doesn’t really work.
Companies know that getting rid of difficult employees isn’t worth the cost and headache, too. So if the jerk isn’t moving and the company isn’t moving, you need to get moving with your job hunt.
8. Don’t blog under a pseudonym.
It’s enticing to hide your name when you blog, because you don’t want to get fired, or harassed, or held accountable at work for the opinions you have at home. But the truth is that the majority of adults who blog are doing it for business reasons.
Writing a blog that people can actually find among 77 million blogs is very time-consuming. It’s a big commitment to write about what you know on a single topic, but blogging will help your career a lot. So why bother doing it if you’re not going to take credit for it where it matters most — with potential employers who haven’t met you?
9. Call people on the weekend for work.
With the Blackberry going where work has never gone before, it’s no surprise that the lines between work and not-work are blurring. The people who grew up being super-connected don’t differentiate between the workweek and the weekend, so they don’t mind working over the weekend on bits and pieces leftover from the week.
Of course, this also means that people are going home early all week long at random intervals. The result is that the weekend is fair game for phone calls.
If your coworkers don’t like being called on the weekend, they can tell you. But remind them that a flexible work schedule lets you put relationships first all the time, and a work schedule that cordons off five days a week for work and two days a week for a personal life means that the personal life takes a backseat every week of the year.
The best way to get a life is to stop being so rigid about the distinction between time for work and time for life.
10. Be nice like your job depends on it.
In fact, your job does depend on you being nice. The old days of office politics as a means of backstabbing are dead — young people are bringing their team-player, I’m-competing-against-my-best-self mentality from their self-esteem-centric homes into the workplace, and there’s nothing you can do except be nice back.
Anyway, the truth is that the most likable people get promoted, so this is an instance where following the unwritten rules really can save your career.
Juggling a family, career, and your free time is a heady challenge. Those who left the workforce to raise children face potential discrimination by recruiters who see gaps in employment as signs of instability. Many successful professionals who took off time to raise families suddenly find that technology and training requirements have swept beyond their immediate reach. Now what?
Given the high cost and limited availability of child care in the workplace, the lack of wage parity for part-time employees, and tax challenges to the self-employed, it can be tough to find rewarding career options following a parenting hiatus. Some jobs pay well, others pay less so but offer tremendous flexibility and free time. Here are eight interesting, challenging, and manageable options that can lead to a balanced life for working parents:
Executive Recruiters
If you had Human Resources experience prior to your leave, or plan to take courses leading an HR or management degree, executive recruiting offers exceptional schedule flexibility, telecommuting options, and great pay that often includes performance incentives and bonuses–all free from cubicle dependence. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts that human resource and labor relations specialists will enjoy job growth exceeding the national average for all other occupations through 2014.
Accountants
No surprise: free-lance and on-staff accountants are in exceptional demand in virtually every sector of the American economy. Whether you’re looking for seasonal work as a tax specialist, full-time employment as a corporate auditor, or flex-time consulting work from a home office, the accounting field is booming.
If you have bookkeeping experience, a bachelor’s degree in accounting, or have completed training in another field, you can foreshorten the schooling necessary before re-entering the workforce. Ten percent of the 1.2 million accountants who held jobs in 2004 were self employed.
Home Health Aides
Want to join what is predicted to be the fastest-growing occupation through 2014? The BLS says that home health aides will secure the greatest number of job openings. Once you’ve completed basic medical assisting training, you’ll set your own hours working in health-care facilities or at the homes of disabled, convalescing, or elderly people. With a flexible schedule, you can even attend nursing school without disrupting your parenting.
Public Relations Specialist
Put the personal and professional contacts that you garnered before your parenting hiatus to immediate advantage by working in the public relations field. PR specialist jobs will also grow faster than the national average through 2014, the BLS says, but the best opportunities will go to college graduates with PR and communications training.
Medical Records and Health Information Technicians
Everyone who visits a physician, dentist, clinic, and hospital has a computerized record to comply with insurance and legal reporting requirements. Many professionals who maintain those records earn a living without leaving home. You’ll have to take medical technology courses, where you will learn medical diagnosis, procedure codes and how to use the computer software for billing and records. The BLS predicts “excellent prospects” for records technicians affiliated with healthcare serviced or temporary help agencies.
Massage Therapists
Rub someone the right way, and you’ll have career freedom. Certified massage therapists enjoy exceptionally flexible work schedules, working at home, in concert with health care practitioners and spas, or through a combination of serene work environments. Following your classroom training, you may need to seek licensing–depending on your state. About two-thirds of the 97,000 massage therapists who held jobs in 2004 were self employed. Many are working parents.
Marketing Analysts
If you once had marketing savvy, it stayed with you through the diaper changes. Analysts coordinate the work of marketing teams, branding experts, and product developers to create an over-arching sales strategy. Many analysts work at home as consultants; others arrange flex-time office assignments to balance career and family. If you already hold a marketing degree or are willing to take advanced training at a business school, this can be one peach of a career that matures financially.
Teacher Assistants
Since you’ve already put your kids in school, you know how vital teacher aides are to the entire classroom experience. Almost half of all employed teacher assistants in the country work part-time schedules and have completed some formal training. Many community colleges and trade schools offer short-course teacher and teacher assisting training programs that will land you where you’re really needed. Full-time assistants typically receive health care, vacation, and other benefits. Many enroll in accelerated credentialing programs that turn them into bona-fide teachers.
DENVER (AP) — Good thing for Brian Fuentes that the All-Star votes were already counted.
After becoming the first closer in nearly 20 years to blow four straight save chances, the Colorado Rockies reliever was picked for the NL All-Star team.
The struggles also cost Fuentes his job, at least temporarily. Manager Clint Hurdle decided to go with a committee of closers and work in Fuentes when he can pitch in less stressful situations.
“I’ve had 10 good weeks and one bad week,” Fuentes said. “It’s been a real bad week, but that’s the way it goes. Everybody has down times.”
Not since the New York Yankees’ Dave Righetti in 1988 had a major league closer failed four times in a row. Fuentes lost half of the games on the Rockies’ eight-game skid through Toronto, Chicago and Houston.
Before the trip, Fuentes had never blown consecutive chances at a save. He converted 20 of his first 22 chances before things fell apart.
Of course, all the All-Star votes were in before the left-hander imploded. On Sunday, he made the NL team for the third straight year.
Fuentes saw his ERA climb from 1.89 to 4.17 during his slide. His six blown saves on the season were tied for the most in baseball. He blew six saves all last season.
Fuentes still leads all lefties in saves and remains a dangerous option out of the bullpen no matter what role he takes.
“The players voted him in. They think that highly of him,” said teammate and fellow All-Star Matt Holliday. “I have all the confidence in the world in ‘Tito.’ He’s the same guy every day no matter what’s happened the day before.”
Since his last save against the Yankees on June 21, Fuentes appeared in five games, blowing four saves and collecting four losses. In those five games, he gave up 13 hits and 10 earned runs in just 3 1-3 innings. He’d only given up seven earned runs all season before that stretch.
“It’s a tightrope walking without a safety net,” Hurdle said. “It is what it is and he knows he’s responsible.”
Hurdle said Fuentes’ delivery and pitching mechanics aren’t amiss. Maybe it’s just a mental thing, he suggested.
“We had a whole bunch of things go wrong. We just went flat,” Hurdle said. “We had some good bullpen work until it got time to close. The magnification’s on Brian.”
Fuentes, who struggled in a non-save situation just after his demotion by allowing two runs in an inning of mop-up work Sunday at Houston, said his confidence isn’t shaken.
“(The struggles) have been a little bit extended from what I’m used to,” he said. “But I have full confidence that I’ll get back on the horse and I’ll be fine.”
