How To Haggle

We're all broke at the moment. Petrol's gone up by 25%, VAT's now at 20%, and food went up 4% last year compared to 2% the year before. As shoppers, we need to smarten up. Haggling's been around for centuries and it's time to take action!

Electrical goods
Check the online price first, as it's often less than in store. Armed with your evidence, ask the assistant in a friendly way if they can match the online price. If they say no, politely suggest that the manager might like to offer a discount. You could get up to 20% off this way. You could also check the prices in other stores. John Lewis and Asda, for example, offer to match prices in other stores, even sale and special offer prices.

Nights out
If you're booking a restaurant for at least six people for a special occasion, call the manager beforehand, say you're planning to splash out on bubbly for example, and ask if you can have a discount on the booze.

Or, when you're booking a private area of a bar or pub for a birthday or a work do, why not ask if you can have some nibbles thrown in? A few bowls of chips or peanuts isn't much to ask in return for a roomful of thirsty customers.

Department stores
At the make-up counter, ask if there's a discount for buying more than one item.

If they say no, ask if there's anything else they can offer - you might get some free samples. Or try buying online instead.

High-street shops
If you're buying two big items, two pairs of jeans for example, ask the assistant if a discount is possible, as the jeans are so perfect. She'll probably get the manager, but stand your ground. They may offer 10% and you could push them up to 20%.

Hire cars
Don't accept the first price. Hire car companies are often grouped together geographically, and are used to fighting each other for custom. Ring and ask for a quote, and hesitate when they tell you the price. Tell them you'll ring round and call back, and they may reduce their price!

Hotel rooms
February is the low season for hotels. Ask for the best price, and if it's still too much, say you'll go to the Premier Inn for £80. The manager might climb down pretty quickly.

Read more »

Become Debt Free in 2011

Being in debt is not a good place to be. Psychologists maintain that debts cause anxiety, lowers performance and induces low self esteem. You may look rich, talk rich, walk rich but deep down inside, you know you are anything but rich. Being in debt simply means spending tomorrow’s money today. Debt mortgages your financial future, reduces your current cash flow and puts unnecessary pressure on your financials, often rendering you incapable of making decisions that will put you back in control of your finances. The debtor is a slave to the lender, so goes ancient words of wisdom. Financial freedom also means freedom from debt. Getting out of debt is one of the first key steps in the journey to financial freedom.

In the world of personal finance, there are two types of debts – good debts and bad debts. Good debts make you richer while bad debts make you poorer. Most people are used to bad debts than good debts.

Good debts are debts incurred in acquisition of assets, investment that generate a net positive cash flow, that is money in your pocket. What this means is that the asset ultimately pays for itself and sends a tidy profit in the direction of your pocket. If an investment leaves you out of pocket, and you need to keep spending to keep it, it is a liability. An earlier article – Assets and Liabilities Definition for Everyday Folks deals with the difference between assets and liability from a financial freedom or rich perspective.

A key point to repeat here is that more often than not, it is not the item or investment itself that is an asset or liability. It is the investor that is the asset or liability. Tom can take an investment and generate net positive cash flow while Dick takes the same investment and turns it into a money loser. Lets say investment property. It is the management team that is the asset or liability. One team can run it down while another team take same property to the next level.

In Nigeria, due to the absence of securities regulations categorizing investors, every Tom, Dick and Harry had access to private placements, initial public offers and margin loans just before the global financial meltdown. This opened the floodgates for inexperienced investors to take the Nigerian Stock market by storm. Margin loans were extended to all comers to buy stocks they knew nothing about and take risks way beyond the limits of their risk tolerance. Financial illiterates took millions of Naira position in stocks hoping to cash in on the never ending bull run. The rest, as they say is history.

Debt is a razor sharp two-edged sword. Because you think something is an asset does not make it one. If you cannot manage it and turn it into an asset, stay well clear until you do (see Invest in Your Personal Financial Acumen). Investing is not an all comers affair. Like surgery, you have to go to medical school, practice on cadavers before you take the plunge to do the real thing.

So good debt is when an experienced investor (stock, real estate, business, commodities etc) uses other people’s money to make more money.

Bad debt is everything else. Consumer debts, buying liabilities thinking they are assets etc. You have a bad debt when you give money to an inexperienced investor to invest for you.

Consumer debt is the biggest culprit. The item depreciates the moment money leaves your hands, right at the check out. It becomes previously owned or second hand instantly. The saddest part is that most of the stuff we spend good money on eventually end up not being used and are given away or end up in the thrash (cash to thrash).

You have to make a quality decision to be debt free in 2011. You have been carrying this weight for far too long. It is time you shake it off and take charge of your financial future for a change. In Part 2, we will look at ways of getting out of debt.

Read more »

Low Self Esteem Symptoms

Do you think you, or someone you know, may have low self esteem? Are you a little unsure if it is low self esteem, low self confidence, or anxiety or depression?

The following low self esteem symptoms may help you decide if it is your self esteem which should be worked on, or another area of development.

If you think someone else may suffer from low self esteem, it may be best to show them this article, and let them figure it out for themselves, rather than try and push your opinions on them. Having said that, some people do need a nudge in the right direction so it is about finding a balance.

Low self esteem symptoms may include the following:

Complaining and blaming others: People with low self esteem often feel their misfortune is someone/something else’s fault and life has dealt them a bad hand. This means they do not assume any responsibility. Yes, bad things will happen in life but you are responsible for how you handle them. Taking responsibility can be scary but is a sign of a self assured person.

Start to notice every time you complain or blame (it can easily become a habit and be done without even noticing). Have a look at the situation and do something constructive or proactive to change it. Or shut up about it!!

Need for external validation: People with low self esteem place their feelings in the hands of others – if they receive praise, they feel good (although this is only temporary). If they receive criticism or someone disagrees with them, they feel terrible. For this reason, avoidance of any conflict is a classic low self esteem symptom.

If this is the case for you, start to base your feelings on how YOU feel…..remember everyone’s opinions are different so what one person will praise, another will criticise – basing your feelings on this will just lead to confusion and a roller coaster of emotions. It can be hard to establish your exact feelings but it will become easier as your self esteem becomes higher. Set your own (realistic) standards and base your feelings on how well you are meeting these, rather than trying to meet other peoples standards.

Difficulty asserting oneself and saying no: Because of a need for validation and acceptance from others, people with low self esteem tend to be ‘people pleasers.’ Their own wants, needs and desires come secondary which sends self esteem plummeting further. Have a look at How to Say No, for tips on assertiveness.

See the negatives, discount the positives: Whether this is related to oneself – physically or mentally, external situations or other people, those with low self esteem tend to be pessimistic. They overlook all the good things about themselves, yet highlight the things which need work.

If you have this trait, begin to change it – as soon as you notice you are saying or thinking something negative, reframe the situation and put a positive spin on things. Imagine yourself as a politician – they can make anything sound good!! This negative talk is a habit…it will take some effort to turn around but it is perfectly possible to reverse the habit and make your natural way of thinking more positive.

Addictions: Drugs, alcohol, shopping, sex, chocolate, gambling….addictions give that short term boost which gives a false sense of happiness and self esteem. They also offer something to complain about and an excuse for not dealing with the underlying issues. It may be at a subconscious level – simply wanting to avoid awkward or insecure feeling leads to repeating the addictive behaviour.

Depending on the addiction, you may need to seek professional help, but simply realising there is a reason for the addiction is a step in the right direction. Acknowledge your inner feelings and express things openly – if you are angry or frustrated, be angry or frustrated, don’t bottle things up. As you become more able to voice your feelings, there will be less need for a distraction and the addiction will be easier to overcome.

Living anywhere but now: Regretting or feeling guilty about the past and worrying about the future is generally a low self esteem symptom. Because people with low self esteem do not feel they deserve happiness in this moment, their emotions and energies go elsewhere in time.

At anyone time, always focus on what you are doing, find the joy in every moment. Have a look at The Vicious Circle of Guilt, Low Self Confidence and Unhappiness and How to Overcome Guilt and Move On if you live in the past.

Low self esteem is not a lifetime state – if you recognise any of the above low self esteem symptoms, don’t worry, simply recognise you may be able to improve your self esteem and make a plan to work towards it.

Read more »

BofA to spin off $5 billion private equity unit

(Reuters) - Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) plans to spin off its last large private equity fund, with more than $5 billion in assets, and has no plans to make new private equity investments, a company spokesman said on Tuesday.

Bank of America, the largest U.S. bank by assets, will spin off BAML Capital Partners into its own unnamed firm.

The firm would then manage the bank's private equity assets for a fee -- winding those positions down over time -- and could begin accepting outside investors.

The assets will remain on BofA's balance sheet until they are wound down.

Company spokesman Jerry Dubrowski said BofA determined the business was "not strategically critical to customers and our clients" and the decision was made to spin off the unit.

Dubrowski said the head of the new firm had not yet been announced, and it was not immediately clear the number of employees that would move to the new firm.

The spin-off is the latest in a series of moves by the bank to comply with the Volcker Rule, a part of the financial regulatory overhaul law passed in 2010 that limits proprietary trading, or investments by banks using their own capital. It also fits with Chief Executive Brian Moynihan's efforts to sell off extraneous business units.

In 2010, the bank spun off Banc of America Capital Investors, a $1.4 billion private equity group to form Ridgemont Equity Partners, under a similar structure.

Read more »

Japan eyes sales tax rise to pay for post-quake rebuild

(Reuters) - Japanese consumers may have to help foot the reconstruction bill after last month's earthquake and tsunami caused $300 billion of damage, further burdening the hugely indebted economy, a newspaper said on Tuesday.

It would be the first increase since 1997, though a sales tax hike had been the subject of fierce political debate before the earthquake struck as one way for Japan to dig itself out of its massive debt.

The government is considering raising the tax by 3 percentage points to 8 percent when the new fiscal year starts next April, the Yomiuri newspaper reported.

"It was clear even before this disaster and the need to secure funds for reconstruction that to ensure a sustainable fiscal situation, some sort of reform of spending and revenues was necessary," said Internal Affairs Minister Yoshiro Katayama.

"The debate over the fiscal situation is not something that began with this disaster," he told reporters.

The government hopes to avoid issuing new bonds to fund an initial emergency budget, expected to be worth about 4 trillion yen ($48 billion), due to be compiled this month.

But bond issuance is likely for subsequent extra budgets which will only make it harder for Japan to rein in its debt, already running at twice the size of the $5 trillion economy.

The mood among consumers about the prospects for jobs and incomes darkened in March after the quake, a Cabinet Office survey showed.

Though the triple disasters of quake, tsunami and nuclear crisis are bad news for the Japanese economy, the damage is not expected to spill over across the region.

The Asian Development Bank's chief economist said he saw little sign of a serious negative impact on other Asian economies.

The government says it has not yet decided how to fund the rebuilding cost but the Yomiuri said it had ruled out raising income and corporate taxes.

"I am aware that the Democratic Party is considering various methods, including this (tax rise). But the government is not considering any specific funding methods at this stage," top government spokesman Yukio Edano told a news conference.

Katsuya Okada, secretary-general of the ruling Democratic Party (DPJ), said on Sunday taxes had to rise to repay new government bonds that will be needed to pay for reconstruction.

A poll by the Nikkei business daily showed about 70 percent of Japanese voters would support a tax hike, but want unpopular Prime Minister Naoto Kan to be replaced.

IMPACT OF NUCLEAR CRISIS

As well as trying to deal with the consequences of quake and tsunami which killed at least 13,000 and left tens of thousands homeless, Japan is struggling to control the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that began leaking radiation when it was nearly destroyed by the natural disasters.

NHK state television said police statistics from hard-hit Iwate Prefecture found drowning caused 92 percent of the deaths and that more than two-thirds of victims were over 60 years old.

Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) said it had started removing highly contaminated water from one of the reactors, a key step to repair the cooling system that regulates the temperature of radioactive fuel rods.

It wants a "cold shutdown" of the plant in six to nine months, setting a timeframe for bringing the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years under control.

French nuclear plant maker Areva said it had agreed with TEPCO to provide a water treatment plant that uses a process called "co-precipitation" -- which isolates and removes radioactive elements from water -- to speed up decontamination of the Fukushima site.

"We have much experience of decontamination . we are ready to put it at the disposal of the Japanese government," Areva Chief Executive Anne Lauvergeon told reporters in Tokyo.

She said TEPCO is hoping to begin the water treatment before the end of May, but she did not know when was feasible. Areva would "try to do this as soon as possible," Lauvergeon added.

The damage to Fukushima Daiichi, and the shutdown of other nuclear power plants, has caused power outages that exacerbate the disruption to manufacturing supply chains and overall economic activity.

Toshiba has cut its 2010/11 operating profit estimate, blaming the disaster. Earnings at cellphone venture Sony Ericsson, due later, were expected to shed light on the size of the earthquake's impact on the cellphone industry.

Chip maker Texas Instruments warned of slower-than-usual quarterly sales growth as it scrambles to restart production after the quake, and said it was unclear when the supply of the silicon and wafers it needs will return to normal.

Japanese corporate confidence plunged by a record amount in April and is seen worsening further, a Reuters poll showed last week.

Read more »