What Credit Cards Numbers Mean

Take out your credit card(s) and ask yourself a question. Why does the credit card company use the numbers is uses? Just like cheques these numbers have a financial purpose.

I found this infographic today on the mind.com blog and it answers what your credit card numbers really mean and are used for.

Great infograophic below!

5 Ways to Spend Less Now

Spending less is like going on a diet. We rely on will power with out a method or system to reach our goals. And just like most diets we are doomed to failure.

Over time our debt starts to balloon and the only solution is a drastic change of spending habits. Unfortunately, just like crash dieting, the lasting effects of these changes only end in frustration and we eventually give up.

For most of us spending too much is not an illness but is a learned behaviour. The good new is this  behaviour can be changed.

After more than 15 years in the financial industry watching what works and what doesn't, here are 5 proven strategies that work in every day life to spend less and have more control over your financial life.

Financial Problems Start Here

I don't know about you ... but tax time is a time for financial reflection. All I want to know is ... am I making progress or am I falling behind.

Since I run my own financial business, I track everything, the gas for my car, car insurance and the costs to run my office. I also track my personal costs, food budget, hydro costs, and debt costs from the year. Every year I am amazed at how much I spend.

After more than 15 years in the financial industry if I had to pick the most important thing you can do to make your financial life better is to focus on your cash flow. That's right I am referring to dreaded "b word" ... budget

Like weight gain, cash flow problems happen over time. Before we go over some simple ideas on how to improve your cash flow ... let me tell you story and you see if this reminds you someone you know ...

Handling Life Insurance Proceeds

We all will die someday.  Once we are gone we are nothing more than the assets we leave behind and relationships we have developed. Best of all our worries are over.


That of course cannot be said for those we leave behind. In addition to planning the funeral, dealing with the final tax returns, and probating the estate there is the issue of how to deal with the life insurance proceeds.


What would you do with a cheque for 400,000?

Investing in your 40's

The other day I had a someone call concerned that their opportunity to invest had passed them by. There is much to be said for starting early ... but it is not always easy to do everything with kids, mortgage and bills.

Check out this article from Mackenzie Financial Insight Magazine / Website on Investing in your 40's ...