Moneyplan Sos With Steve Stewart | Budget Wisely | Get Out Of Debt | Pay Attention, Not Interest

#141: Before starting our debt-free journey we had $176,000 in retirement accounts but our net worth was only $74,000. What’s the secret that doubled our net worth in 8 years? We followed Dave Ramsey’s advice: We got on a budget We stopped borrowing money We paid off all of our consumer debt We put 3 months worth of expenses in emergency savings We increased our retirement contributions once we got out of debt  Our plan has us saving for our daughter’s future at least six more years We continue to pay down our mortgage and put money aside for car replacement, new windows, etc.     Find the full show notes at

#140: Wendy had her credit card debt discharged when a collector broke the law. You have rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Listen to Wendy's story and how she was legally able to discharge a debt she owed.  For more information, visit the show notes at

UPDATE: I didn't quite make it in 2014. Listen to my goals from 2 years prior to going pro with Financial Coaching. Full list of resources at  

#138: Are you covered by Health Insurance? It's the law, at least it will be in 2014. Medi-Share is a faith-based option that complies with the Affordable Care Act. Tony Meggs is the President and CEO of Christian Care Ministries. One of the best things they do is help Christians pay each other's medical bills through a third-party system that is pretty amazing.   For more information, visit the resources in the show notes at

#137: Paying attention to our money, physical health, career, family, etc. allows us to reach our goals. Paying attention can be more important than talent and is second only to desire. Why paying attention is so important: Paying attention identifies where we are Paying attention shows us where the goal is Paying attention is the enemy of distractions Identifying where we are is the first step in setting a course towards the finish line. By focusing our attention on the goal we can easily ignore unnecessary distractions like water cooler conversations and Facebook updates. Paying attention is essential to winning. Major benefits of paying attention: Exposes problems and deficiencies Reveals opportunities Measures progress As an older guy with a wife that loves to cook, I have been the benefactor of many wonderful meals. My bathroom scale hasn’t gone below 230 for a few years and diets don’t motivate me. A listener of my podcast shared his success story of using an iPhone app to lose over 130 lbs. I doubt

#136: Over the past year I have received calls and messages from adult children who are concerned for their parent’s finances. Papa has been working hard for decades and Mama was promised that she would never have to work outside of the home again. Papa has been stripped of any financial responsibilities because he wrote some bad checks years ago. Mama took over the household finances since then but has a problem with over-consumption. As a result they have more debt than they have money saved. They have no idea what retirement is going to look like when Papa turns 65. How do you talk to your parents about their money problems? When visiting with aging parents this holiday season, look for signals or cues for the inroads to talk with your parents about their money problems. It’s not comfortable, it certainly won’t be fun, but you want what is best for your parents. Your best bet is to follow the do’s and don’ts of how to talk to parents about their money problems. Do’s: Continue finding opportunities t

#135: Credit cards are against my religion. I shared my beliefs in a webinar on October 3rd. Only a handful of people have watched the video, which I understand; it was an hour long and you have better things to do. But there are other reasons I am bringing this message to you in podcast form today: The Devil doesn’t want you to hear this - credit cards are against my religion.  The Devil is at work There have been quite a few challenges trying to get this message to you:  1.  There were technical difficulties during original Webinar  2.  I’ve had some personal ones to overcome   3.  The delivery system you get this show on in iTunes was not working (with no reason why).  Considering iTunes is still the majority of the MPSOS audience, I take that as an assault on stopping me from giving you this week’s message.  Are Credit Cards evil? No, they are not evil. Electronic payment options are an advance in technology. Just as computers and eye glasses and even the fork was an advancement in technology, electronic

#134: Thomas Stanley found several common denominators when he studied the wealth. Extras: In this episode I feature some of the conversations I had with Pat Flynn from SmartPassiveIncome.com and Dustin Hartzler from YourWebsiteEngineer.com. Good stuff! For more about being wealthy, check out the resources in the show notes at  

#133: The holidays are upon us. The year is almost over. Like it or not, the winter season is in full gear and more money changes hands in December than at any other time. It’s also the best time of the year. College students come home for the holidays, relatives send well-wishes in the form of [See more at ]

#132: How To Pay for Things With Cash: An FPU Graduate's Testimony Financial Peace University is a 9-week course taught on DVD by nationally syndicated radio host Dave Ramsey. The class covers everything from how to control spending with a budget to real estate and investing for retirement. Millions of families have taken this course and [...] The post appeared first on .

#131: It takes a lifetime to learn how money works. With the speed of change, the creation of new financial products and an overabundance of data that can be reached simply by tapping on your iPhone, you would think there are many things I was taught about finances that no longer apply today. For more information, visit the show notes at  

#130: The greatest tool that lets us live on less than we make is an option that has been around for ages: CASH. And it's not going away any time soon. The awesome benefits of paying with cash will make your budget go farther... Read more at

#129: LIVE from the FinCon Expo - find out if you know more about money and investing than financial bloggers. This show was recorded live at #FinCon13 in St. Louis on October 19, 2013. Personal Finance Bloggers competed for prizes by answering a variety of money-based trivia, filling in the blanks, and competing head-to-head in [...] The post appeared first on .

#128: Bob Lotich, Founder of ChristianPF.com (now Seedtime.com), has been a customer of Medi-Share for over four years. He shares the moments when he used them and how much Medi-Share saved him money when he broke his hand. What is Medi-share Medi-Share is a healthcare sharing program, also known as a "Christian Care Medical Sharing" program, where participants [See More at

#127: Where should I save my emergency fund? Should I begin with investing or put money away for my kids? These are the questions of a young couple that wanted to make sure they were saving money in the right places. This episode will give you a clear picture of how your extra money should trickle-down [...] The post appeared first on .

#126: How To Get Away From Credit Card Debt Forever. These 4 Steps slowly weens you away from your dependency on credit cards. The old rules about credit cards no longer exist How long have we been hearing that debit cards are not as safe as credit cards? How many years has Suze Orman scared us [...] The post appeared first on .

#125: God wants you to be rich. How do I know? Because Jesus died to pay our debts - so at least we all get to start with a net worth of zero! Also, Jesus also told us the Parable of the Talents. It's a story of a rich man that went away and left a [read more at ]

#124: There are 4 steps to help make smart purchasing decisions. Being responsible with your money is very important when trying to get out of debt. We all want our money to go as far as it can and wasting money isn't being responsible money managers. The better we use our money the more we have to [...] The post appeared first on .

#123: CBS news reported that 76% of American households are living paycheck to paycheck. Less than half have three months of worth savings. We are sending our kids to college with no money and over a trillion dollars of outstanding student loan debt. Normal in America is being broke. It's time to get weird.It's time to stop managing our [...] The post appeared first on .

#122: What does it take to retire early? Saving a ton of money now and/or building a business that will provide you with a stream of income are two ways to make it happen! The DividendMantra, Jason Fieber, and Kraig Mathias from YoungCheapLiving.com share their stories with us. Saving for retirement in non-retirement options Jason and [...] The post appeared first on .