I am all about living within your means while still enjoying small indulgences, and Hot (broke) Messes: How to Have Your Latte and Drink It Too, by Nancy Trejos is a practical guide to doing just that.

Nancy is a personal finance columnist for The Washington Post , and while she was doling out financial advice to her readers, she was also struggling with debt.

Hypocritical? At the time, yes. But it makes Hot (broke) Messes that much more of a compelling tale knowing that the advice is based on personal experience.

As a reader, not only do we get advice about credit card debt, student loans, impulse buying and emotional spending, and how to have a social life on budget, but we also see Nancy’s journey from hot (broke) mess to financial security.

Have you read Hot (broke) Messes ? What did you think?

I received an advanced copy of Hot (broke) Messes a long long time ago and just recently got around to reading it. Affiliate links are included in my review if you’d like to contribute a few cents to help me out of debt when purchasing. Please see my site policy with any questions.

Hot (Broke) Messes

The Debt Free Manifesto is taken from My Super-Charged Life because it deserves reiterating -and I totally hope to experience all ten reasons why it’s awesome to live debt free before I die.

The Debt Free Manifesto

1. You can spend more quality time with your family, instead of on the job trying to pay off things you enjoyed yesterday.
2. Your marriage is less likely to be marred by the destructive nature of stress and money fights, directly related to spending more than you make, month after month.
3. Through your wonderful example, your ability to teach your children a more responsible and sustainable way to manage money.
4. It frees up your paychecks to do other more important things like: saving, building wealth, and my personal favorite—GIVING!
5. It’s never cool when someone else owns the fruit of your labor before you even labor.
6. You can enjoy the additional freedom of not having to worship at the altar of the “supposedly” all powerful FICO.
7. It feels WAY BETTER to sleep in a paid for home, walk on paid for grass, drive a paid for car, and eat already paid for food.
8. Being debt free gives you more options in life, and opens up doors that society has told you couldn’t be opened. (Psst…don’t listen to them)
9. The act of becoming debt free neutralizes your natural attraction and desire to “need” more STUFF, or at least provides some restraint—until you actually have the money to buy something.
10. A survey done by Forbes magazine states, 75% of the Forbes 400 (the richest 400 people in America) said the best way to build wealth is to become and stay debt-free.

The Debt Free Manifesto

I actually took a slight satisfaction in paying off bills this week because I paid off a credit card and sent in the last payment for my wedding rings and new digital camera. I’ll be paying off one more credit card next week after some money transfers and then we are all ready for our NEW PRIUS which should be here in 2-3 weeks!

• $17 grocery
• $1142 rent
• $39 AT&T
• $366 Bill Me Later
• $42 pharmacy
• $77 NIPSCO
• $65 Sprint
• $791 Banana Republic
• $27 gas
• $279 collections (hubby – NOT ME!)

June 1 thru 4

We took a little Disney vacation, but we’re back and I’m canceling credit cards!

I just cancelled 5 credit cards within 30 minutes. No questions asked. All cards with medium spending limits that haven’t been used in quite some time, but accounts in good standing that the creditors had no desire to keep. I didn’t even get a 0% balance transfer offer.

I’ve read mix opinions on how closing accounts effect credit scores, but my take is that lowering my available cash to something more reasonable makes me more dependable and more likely to be able to cover all of my debts in the eyes of a potential lender.

We have a new car on order to be delivered this spring and want to be a house by 2010, canceling those rarely used credit cards now and dealing with the a potential credit score hit now will pay off in the long run, and I think we’ll actually improve our standing.

Canceling Credit Cards

Even though we did break the golden rule of budgeting by going out to dinner last night when our entertainment fund was empty, my husband and I do cut quite a few corners to save extra money to help with Debt relief.

• We have a piggy bank – loose change ads up, and we’re always reminding each other to empty our pockets into the piggy bank.
• Turn off the AC – our dog doesn’t care that if it’s 55 or 78 degrees inside during the day, so we turn the AC off when we’re at work in the summer, and we turn the heat way down when we’re away in the winter.
• Debt consolidation – we’ve paid off our small credit card balances and consolidated the rest so that we are only paying one bill each month. We’ve taken all those small payments and rolled them into one big monthly payment.
• Full loads of laundry – we only do full loads of laundry so we aren’t wasting water, electricity, and detergent.
• Buy online – the majority of the time, I can find an item cheaper online than I can in the stores, and I’m a whiz at digging up free shipping coupons.
• Coupons – steal your neighbors Sunday newspaper and use those coupons! It may not seem like much, but put that savings in a piggy bank and see how much you have in six months!
• Buy generic – you really can’t tell the difference between catsup and ketchup.
• Cut out pop – not only is it better for our budget, it’s better for our wasteline. No costly pop and juice in our house!
• Mooch – eat dinner with your parents as often as possible. As long as you’re pleasant and chatty, they won’t realize you’re eating their steak and drinking their wine.

I realize that if you’re in big financial trouble, and not just pinching pennies, these solutions won’t do much, but there’s no shame in getting Debt help, so start by visiting Bills IQ. A quick financial quiz will tell you how much you know, how good you are at managing your finances, and provide you with tips and resources to Consolidate debt, make your payments on time, and make your money work for you.

Saving Tips

If you’re in the Chicago-land area, and you’re terrible with money, or just want to try to improve upon perfection, check out Money Smart Week Chicago when begins April 20th and runs though the 26th.

There are loads of events like how to save the environment and money, secrets of being a first-time home-owner, how to be smart at the supermakret, learning from life coaches, and touring the Chicago Board of Trade.

Money Smart Week Chicago

We are on the cusp of a “Come to Jesus” talk about finances and our relationship. We know enough about finances that credit counseling isn’t necessary (although it is there if we need it), but we need to get on the same page about our approach to debt management and our short-term and long-term financial plans.

We can obtain a lot of detailed answers to our financial questions from Care One Credit Counseling, which has been featured in Time, Forbes and on Fox News and start saving money and paying off our debt immediately. There’s nothing worse than thinking you are on the right track financially and then learning that you’re on the dirt road next to the right track, and that’s the situation that we are in right now.

Come to Jesus

My husband and I checked out credit score on Credit Karma this morning and were pleasantly surprised. My husband found the site, and it’s completely free and only takes a few second to get your score.

My husband doesn’t have a good track record when it comes to finances, so I took over about six months ago, got his accounts current and refinanced his car, and his credit score is now in the “good” range. I’ve recently paid off some smaller debts and kept up my stellar payment history to land me squarely in the “very good” range.

Looks like we’re not as far from owning our first home as I thought we would be!

Good Karma

Most people just don’t wake up one day in financial trouble. There are usually signs that you’re headed for a financial disaster. If you recognize the signs, you may be able to avoid disaster and get your finances back on track.

1. Your bank balance or credit cared statement is a surprise – you’re not paying attention to your finances and are probably floating payments and bouncing checks.
2. You have no savings – there’s no cushion to account for surprise expenses.
3. You carry credit card debt – you’re paying more for things by letting interest rack up.
4. You have no discretionary income – paychecks are spent before they are deposited and your fixed income may be too high.
5. You don’t know what kind of mortgage you have – you’re not keeping track of your expenses and may risk losing your home.
6. You’re uninsured – you have no protection should an accident occur!
7. Your business is losing money – you may start pulling some of your personal finances to cover business expenses, further over-extending your paycheck.
8. You’re borrowing form one lender to pay another – paying debt with debt never gets you anywhere.
9. You’ve missed a payment – missing payments can trigger fees and higher interest rates, digging you deeper into debt.
10. You’ve taken out a payday loan – again, paying debt with debt.

Signs of Financial Trouble

If there were a spiritual answer to a financial problem, would you consider it? Do you ever ask a higher power to help you out in a crunch? Tell your self to “think positive”? Try to banish negative thoughts from your daily life? You’re on your way to fully embracing The Sedona Method, and you don’t even know it!

The Sedona Method is a new way of thinking and living that will lead to a new earth full of unlimited opportunities, heightened consciousness, and positive actions and reactions. By utilizing the four ways of letting go, you will be able to transcend the ego that is keeping you bound to negativity, let go of unwanted emotion instantly, and allow your suppressed feelings and energy to dissipate.

After you learn to let go, you’ll be able to break bad habits, release anxieties, improve relationships and create wealth! New, healthy habits can help you manage you finances and not be tied down by bad decisions and financial instability.

If you are having trouble letting go, but know that it is the right way to get your life back on a positive track, order the FREE DVD and CD and learn more about how you can be on your way to a new earth!

A Spiritual Answer to Financial Problems