WHOLE NEW BALL GAME

Football and basketball season are in full gear!  A local football team Winston Salem State Rams just won the CIAA Championship and their basketball team as well as Wake Forests’ are hitting the hardwood running!  These players may be playing for college fans now, but some may be playing for fans in the professional arena in the near future.  Recently ESPN broadcasted its’ documentary “30 For 30 Broke” and it was about professional athletes who signed contracts for tens of millions of dollars and still ended up bankrupt and BROKE!  As I watched the documentary anger rose up in me, not because these athletes were wasting their money on toys, but because majority of the athletes had the money stolen from them by people they trusted.  I have known for years about millionaire athletes going broke such as Mike Tyson, Allen Iverson, Warren Sapp, Sheryl Swoops, etc but it wasn't until this documentary that it started to hit home.  The reason that it bothered me so much is that I know kids who could be in the same situation in a few years.  My husband has been coaching AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) boys’ basketball for six years now and the kids are seniors in high school.  Every one of these kids have signed to Division I schools for basketball and some of them have a real chance at making it to the NBA in a few years earning the same millions that these other athletes on this documentary lost.

Once the program was over I started to think that every other person watching probably was wondering to themselves “how could anyone lose millions of dollars?”  These athletes are just like everyone else who finds themselves in debt they just have more money to be in debt with.  People with hundreds or thousands of dollars are no different than these millionaire athletes when it comes to money management it is just to a different scale.  These athletes may have spent money buying new Bentleys, but the average middle class person is spending their money on a new BMW.  The millionaire athlete may have bought the mansion with the six extra bedrooms they didn't need, but the middle class homeowner is in the average household debt of $47,000 (credit cards, student loans, car loans, etc) and as a result they are falling behind on their mortgage, light bill, water bill, you name it and it is a late payment.  These athletes trusted the wrong accountants and financial advisors and all their money was misused or stolen, but the average middle class adult has purchased whole life insurance and their money is being misused just the same.

The problem is not the amount of money you make it is your behavior with that money (Financial Literacy) that gets you out of debt and creates generational wealth.  When we all learn that we don’t have to spend money we don’t have, buying stuff we don’t need to impress people we don’t like only then will wealth start to accumulate.  Majority of these athletes come from humble backgrounds so when they get these million dollar contracts they just sit back and let someone else handle their finances and it ends up costing them dearly.  Just like these athletes you have a salary that is much more than you had growing up and you have to be diligent on how you handle it or you could end up broke or worse just getting by for the rest of your life.  No one is going to care more about your finances than you will, so pay attention to what you spend and save whatever you can because only YOU can control your financial future!

Eating Healthy On A Budget

With all the recent talk about Medicare not being around in the future it is becoming imperative that those age 50 and under start taking better care of themselves.  This can be a challenge on many fronts, but two that come to mind are exercise and diet.  Exercising becomes difficult for most because of the lack of will power and determination.  It has been many times I have attempted to get up in the morning to exercise only to roll back over and go back to sleep.  Another enemy of exercising is time.  With the busy world we live in it is becoming more impossible to go to the gym or run around a track.

Now food is a different story all together because majority of people can control what they put in their mouths.  Instead of me eating that piece of pork bacon I could choose turkey bacon or instead of that 200 calorie frappucino that I love I could have a nice glass of calorie free water.  People who try to eat healthy often do find themselves fighting an uphill battle thanks to the inexpensive food and quick service at fast food restaurants.  I can get a cheeseburger and 32oz Sweet Tea for $2 in less than a minute!  Unfortunately sticking to this kind of diet will have me at a hospital in the future fighting for my life.  On the other hand it is a perception out there that eating healthy can be expensive.  So how do you eat healthy on a budget?   James Davis, a reader of the blog recently shared with me a link to a blog about eating healthy on a budget and it gave different foods to eat that are nutritious and not expensive. The article pointed out that the best buys were bananas, watermelons, broccoli, romaine lettuce, turkey and tuna.  It also pointed to eggs, but I would leave those out since eggs lead to high cholesterol.

There are other tips that will help you to eat healthier food.  One option is to buy local at farmer markets where the food is fresh and always cheaper than the store.  Buying local helps you give back to your community as well.  Another option is to buy produce in season because this is when the food is at its lowest cost.  You find yourself paying higher prices when you crave strawberries, etc out of season.  Think about growing some of your own food in your yard if you have one.  A garden is a great stress reliever or even a fun project for the kids to help with.  Last, but not least have a meal plan when you go to the grocery store because if you are able to save on other items you have the option to buy even more nutritious items for your home!  Let me know how you save on the food that keeps you healthy.  Now I must get back to my spaghetti made with whole grain noodles, ground turkey, and turkey sausage!