You’ve probably heard it many times before: financial management in the home is primarily about effective budgeting and wisely using the resources you already have.
But we hear from a lot of families who tell us they don’t have a budgeting problem, they have an income problem. They aren’t living extravagantly or beyond their means, but they’re still barely getting by and have nothing extra left over to bless others.
Recent survey data shows that almost 60 percent of families with children under the age of 18 in the home have parents who both work outside the home. That shows just how expensive it is to run a household today.
Regardless of where you’re at financially, today we want to empower moms with some creativity, some determination, and hopefully, some confidence they can contribute to their family’s finances, whether they’re working inside the home or a traditional 8 to 5 job.
Today, we’ve invited author and blogger Crystal Paine to our studios. Her blog www.moneysavingmom.com is one of the most popular personal finance blogs on the Internet, with over 2 million hits each month.
Crystal knows all about that feeling so many moms grapple with – that there’s just not enough money at the end of each month. Early on in her marriage, her husband started law school, and they set a goal for him to complete school debt free.
Their plan was going fine until Crystal discovered she was pregnant, and she had to quit working because she suffered with severe morning sickness.
But… where there’s a will there’s a way.
She started researching everything she could about making money and eventually found her place in the “blogging” community.
In today’s discussion, she’ll lead you through the same process of discovery she put herself through.
She says it all starts with using whatever you have and launching from there. “How much time do you have to invest each week?” “Do you have an hour?” “Do you have an evening that your husband can watch the kids, so you can go to a coffee shop and work on a business idea?”
Block out a time on your calendar for an appointment with yourself. That’s your time to focus on researching ideas, figuring out what you’re good at, and learning what other people are doing in that field that you could do also.
Do you love to cook? Maybe you’d do well in a catering business or make specialty foods local restaurants could buy from you.
Do you love to organize? You might be able to offer your skills to people who need help organizing their home or office.
Do you love to drive? You could run errands for people who need outside assistance.
The possibilities are virtually endless for building a business or even just making a few extra dollars.
And when you build a larger income, you can make a bigger impact in other people’s lives. Use the passions and gifts that God has given you in order to make a difference. All the money in the world doesn’t mean much if you don’t use it for a purpose greater than collecting material possessions.
That’s why we’ll also talk with Crystal about living life with open hands, so you can be a conduit for God to pour His blessings through you to others in your local community, throughout the U.S., or around the world.
In addition to discussing how to find money-making ideas that will work for you, we’ll talk about how to work through setbacks you may encounter and how to find the time to move forward with your ideas when there are so many other responsibilities on your plate.
I hope you’ll join us today on your local radio station. Or tune in anytime online or via our free, downloadable mobile phone app.
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