withlovetrading.com

Some of us are blessed with an internal alarm clock. A little voice that wakes you up two minutes before your alarm goes off. This may be a blessing if that little voice also alerts you ten minutes before your son’s soccer game or before the school bell rings. However I don’t have that blessing.

Of course I have the internal ability to wake up 30 minutes BEFORE I have to wake up after only five hours of sleep. Unfortunately that alarm doesn’t seem to carry over into the waking hours. A thirty minute heads up would be handy.

Not having that constant heads up, instead, I wear the super mom cape as I leap over shoes, bags and the cat in a flurry of movement. Knowing full well that the school bell is going to ring in ten minutes and the drive is a minimum of 11 minutes and three seconds if no one is in the cross walk and that light isn’t red. Of course, I will have to drive laps to locate a place I can stop to let my son in. All the parking spots are taken by those nannies with an internal clock.

I thought I had the alarm clock before I had children. As a professional Nanny I was never late for a soccer game, a music lesson, or birthday party. It turns out there are two types of internal alarm clocks. The one reserved for those of us who don’t have children under the age of 18. This one allows you to roll out of bed just before your alarm goes off after a night of 8 hours of restful sleep.

Then there’s the other alarm clock. The one called the mom alarm clock. This internal alarm wakes you up at three minutes before the baby needs to be fed, or two minutes before your toddler wets the bed, or 8 minutes before your five year old wakes up with growing pains. Sometimes these alarms are all in the same night. The mom alarm clock results in a pure hatred of the real alarm clock that wakes you up at 7 am as the children are peacefully sleeping telling you to start your day.

Luckily I have some other time management tips under my cape to keep me on time and organized as a mother. Despite the internal mom alarm clock working against me at night, my children make it to their soccer games and birthday parties, usually with the present and cleats in the bag. Was that the blue bag or the red one?

Kay McFarlane is the designer of the printable mom planner and owner of http://OrganizedFamilies.com. Her time management skills and humor help her make through each week as the busy mom of three children, contractor, student, and business owner. That same humors and skills are shared each week at her website for busy moms.

tips for higher page ranking

Once you decide on owning a pet python, you want to learn more about what your pet is like. Starting from what it feeds on to habits of the reptile. It is important to know about a python’s behavior patterns and how to keep your pet happy.

In the wild, Pythons roam the jungle; their skin provides a perfect camouflage. They are excellent swimmers and swim in search of prey or stalk in water.

Like other wild animals Pythons don’t know how to exhibit their happiness to humans. With experience though, you’ll be able to notice anything ‘out of the norm’ for your python thru its body language … signs that it may be feeling sick or uncomfortable, though this will be a little difficult to see at first.

The two most important things you can do to make your python happy have to do with the SUN and SWIMMING.

The Sun

Most pythons enjoy basking under the sun. Therefore, if you provide your pet a good hide box and a heat spot, it will use the hide box to rest most of the time, or just coil around the heat spot basking. A warm python is usually a happy python!

Swimming (exercise)

Given the narrow confines of the cage we provide them, pythons don’t get much of the exercise they would otherwise get in the wild forests.

The best exercise for pythons is swimming. True, it is not possible to take the python to a swimming pool or an abandoned pond for security reasons.

But you can use a kiddy pool or a large plastic tub to create a python swimming pool.

Just fill the pool or tub with warm water and let your python in it. You will watch it move around happily, keeping its head above the water.

Make it a point to clean the tub or kiddy pool with disinfectants every time.

Swimming is definitely one of the best ways of entertaining your pet python.

Other ways to keep your python happy

Mating your python when it is ready is also another important way you can make your pet Python happy.

The above is an excerpt from the free newsletter on “Python Secrets” published by Geostar Publishing & Services LLC.

To subscribe to the newsletter, click on the link below:

http://www.pythonsecrets.com

Here’s to a happier pet-owing experience!

Jessica Harrison
Geostar Publishing & Services LLC
6423, Woodbine Court,
St. Louis, Missouri,
63109, USA

http://www.pythonsecrets.com
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Jessica Harrison is the author of the best selling eBook “Python Secrets” published by Geostar Publishing & Services LLC.

Get high page rank

When most people think of self-defense, what usually comes to mind is protecting oneself from the physical onslaught from a criminal attacker. And, while this is not, in itself, a problem, it is however, only a small part of being able to be safe and free from harm in Today’s often dangerous world.

The following is a list of the major key skill areas that should be developed if you are truly seeking to be able to avoid or escape from an attacker bent on seeing you as his victim.

Key #1 - General Awareness

It goes without saying that, if you don’t believe that danger exists in the world, or more to the point, that danger will never find you, then you will do little or nothing to insure your safety. In addition, even if you do understand the dangers inherent in your world, which can be assumed as you’re reading this, it’s important to not fall into the trap of believing that the police, military, or government can and should be the ones to protect you. When push-comes-to-shove, and you’re the one facing an enraged attacker directing his wrath at you, you will be responsible for your own safety in those first few, precious, seconds.

Key #2 - Awareness of Surroundings

While most so-called self-defense experts tend to lump “awareness” into one category, the truth is that there are many levels to this “skill of directing the mind where it is most needed.” While Key #1 focuses our attention on the larger world-view of the presence of danger and our personal responsibility for our own welfare, this key is directed at the details of the moment. Here we’re paying attention to “what’s going on around us.” The fact is that, the better our ability to pay attention and recognize danger as it begins to take shape, the greater our ability to avoid, escape, or neutralize its effect on us BEFORE it has a chance to touch us at all.

That’s what Danger Prevention Tactics are all about. And, especially for those of us who want to avoid fighting at all costs, it is the key to defending against most of the dangers that others fall victim to every day. You can read more about this powerful video and mastering the skills of danger avoidance at http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/self-defense-video-dpt1.html

Key #3 - Escaping to Safety

While awareness will not prevent danger from appearing in your world, what it will do is to allow you to respond to it sooner. And this is the powerful secret used by the professionals and experts who regularly face danger literally every day of their lives. No, awareness alone will not save you, but it will allow you to escape from the danger before it gets close enough to cause damage. The trick here is to develop multiple routes to places that you visit regularly. Also, developing the ability to recognize and plan for escape routes out of places like traffic, restaurants, your own home, aircraft if you travel, and the like are all important to your overall safety plan. Remember too to validate all safety information that comes your way as most of what is out there has been written, not by actual survivors, but by people who have the job of writing safety procedures. And, as any expert or survivor will tell you, what sounds perfectly logical in theory, may be completely and totally useless in the heat of the moment!

Key #4 - Distracting the Attacker

The fact that your day is filled with demands for your attention, distractions, confusion, and input coming from a hundred different directions at once, can make even the most disciplined meditation master open to attack by a determined assailant. Add to this, all the trickery and manipulative deception used by various types of attackers, and you can see that it’s virtually impossible to be aware of everything. And that sets you up for the potential of an attack that comes seemingly “out of the blue.” Where distance is required to effectively escape from an impending attack, you may not have this luxury when you suddenly realize that you’re the target of an attacker already standing right in front of you.

But, this still doesn’t mean that you have to jump right to the physical aspects of self-defense. It’s important to remember that, regardless of your martial arts rank, how many tricks you know, or even whether or not you’re carrying a weapon, moving directly to physically fighting with your assailant provides the greatest chance for something going wrong.

Instead, you can use tactics and strategies that involve humor, feigning ignorance, or even faking a heart attack, to diffuse the situation and change a would-be attack situation into one where the assailant becomes an ally. Here, it’s important to remember that we want to avoid mentioning the possibility of an attack but instead, to distract the assailant by redirecting his or her attention away from you as a target.

Key #5 - Dissuading

When you can’t avoid, escape, or even distract the attacker and it appears that they are determined to unleash their punishment on you, you still have one more card to play before having to resort to fighting. At this point, you must become very focused yourself and understand that this is your last chance to stop things from going “too-far.” Here, you must be able to look squarely at your antagonist and, with your words, body language and raw determination, communicate that you will not allow them to carry our their plan - that you will not comply or become their victim.

It’s important to understand that, even though there it’s estimated that there is an assault every 17 seconds in the US, that a full 70% or better of these can be handled by Keys 1 through 5. It only stands to reason that you should know as much as possible about these important areas and make sure that you have several skills in each area that will work to serve you if and when you should ever need them. If you’re looking for a good source to learn more about these important key elements in a sound self-defense strategy, as well as what you’ll have to deal with from your own body and mind’s physio-emotional responses to stress and danger, make sure you read the book, “The Karate Myth: Why Most Martial Arts and Self-Defense Programs Don’t Work and How to Be Safe in Today’s World”

Key #6 - Physically Handle the Attack

When all else has failed, no matter what you believe, think, or wish would have or should have happened, when the fists start flying - the blade comes in to bite into and open your flesh - or the bullets start coming in your direction, it’s time for effective, efficient, and proper physical action. There’s a saying that goes, “Survivors Live Where Others Die.” It’s ultimately up to you, and the actions you take, long before the attack happens as to whether you will be a “survivor” or an “other.” The choice is yours.

Jeffrey Miller is a 10th degree black belt and founder of Warrior Concepts International, a self-protection and personal development consulting company specializing in teaching you how to be a survivor. He is the author of “The Karate Myth” and the “Danger Prevention Tactics” video, among others. For information about sponsoring a seminar, attending a live event, subscribing to any of his newlsetters, or any of his other products or services, visit his website at http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes have trouble understanding business people. That’s because many have a language all their own and mistakenly believe others understand it too. How many have been in a business conversation where we pray others will speak to us like a human being rather than the next paragraph in their head?

Listen to how a financial services manager described his company’s direction: “Our company’s strategic synergy and processes are designed to create a platform where employees can benchmark success in a multifaceted environment stimulating current standards.”

No one could come out of this conversation with even a basic understanding of this company. And this was at a networking event. Using this type of language is counterproductive and inappropriate. It isn’t about how smart you are but what service or value you bring to others.

Let’s look at some more examples that force people to clasp their hands together.

- On Second Thought, Let’s Easel That. Popular, but not everyone is familiar with this training term.
- We Need to Clarify, Rectify and Review. For goodness sakes, this sounds like a medical exam. Just ask for a progress report.
- Let’s Put a Line-of-Sight Out for Our Employees. Is this part of the vision program? Try being direct: let’s start at point A and go to point B.
- Let’s Take This Offline and Put it in the Parking Lot. Cute, but few people actually drive during conversations. State both the reason for the delay and the next step to assure you reach your goal.
- I Need to Get a Pulse on This. Well, put your finger to your wrist. Actually, just ask for clarification.

There are more examples, of course, but perhaps we should table this discussion. We do ask, however, that you give us a heads up so we can continue to think about pushing the envelope. In the meantime, we can straw dog the idea and punch holes in the process to improve the desired outcome. Then we can get back to our original idea. If only someone can remember what that was.

Point is everyone needs to work at being a better communicator. Improved communication helps create many useful things: a real learning organization, for one, and better decision-making processes for another.

When you find yourself using jargon and flowery language designed to impress rather to educate, inform or persuade others ask yourself how you would feel at the other end of the conversation. Then, speak to others like you would like to be spoken too. You know, like a real human being.
For more information, see http://www.browninglafrankie.com.

©BrowningLaFrankie 2009

Darrell L. Browning is a principal and founder of BrowningLaFrankie, LLC, a Philadelphia-based company specializing in helping companies manage crisis situations, train leaders in media and presentation skills and facilitate strategic change through leadership coaching and organizational development workshops.

BrowningLaFrankie are trainers-of-choice for The Wharton School MBA Program at the University of Pennsylvania in crisis communications, media training and business writing. We work with companies and organizations of all sizes both internationally and across the United States. We help companies who need to change–but may not know how–develop strategic plans including assessment, goals and action plans to put you back on the path of success. And if you need specific communication training in media, presentation or leadership skills, we can help.

For more information see our website at http://www.browninglafrankie.com or contact us by e-mail at info@browninglafrankie.com. To receive articles on a regular basis, sign up for our popular ezine or read past issues by clicking on our Contact page, Past Newsletters (bottom right of page) of our website.

Should you have questions regarding BrowningLaFrankie, you may contact Mr. Browning directly at (215) 627-4811 or db@browninglafrankie.com.

Dogs are considered man’s best friend. Throughout the ages and of all animals, dogs have been man’s companion. More than companions, dogs serve a variety of functions. There are working dogs (e.g., police dogs) and dogs that are used as guides for the disabled. Farmers and livestock owners use dogs for herding, and some home owners get dogs specifically to guard their property.

Whatever the primary purpose of a particular breed of dog is, it’s important that it receive proper training. Many dog training professionals will attest to the importance of having a well-trained dog. You don’t have to be a professional dog trainer to train your dog. You can do simple activities to teach your pet how to behave.

Dog training tip #1: Curbing your dog’s digging behavior

As a dog owner, you need to understand that dogs are social animals. When they are lonely or alone, dogs resort to digging. Loneliness isn’t the only reason dogs dig, though. In some instances, dogs that dig are experiencing some sort of nutrient deficiency. To make up for this condition, dogs oftentimes would eat the dirt they dig. If your dog tends to dig a lot, spend more time with him. It also pays to have your dog checked up to make sure that his health is in good condition.

Dog training tip #2: Potty training your dog

A reward-based method works best when potty training your dog. To use this method, give your dog a treat after it potties in the right place. Following up good behavior with a reward will make it easier for your dog to remember doing good behavior.

Dog training tip #3: Repetition is key

Whenever you are trying to teach your dog something — whether it’s a trick or making your dog obey a command — repetition is important. Repetition and consistency are keys that will help your dog understand a command. To test if your dog knows a command after so many repetitions, test him without any assistance. Do this at least three consecutive times to make sure that your dog’s grasp of a command is not simply a fluke.

Dog training tip #4: Communicating with your dog

When training your dog to follow a certain command or do a certain thing, it’s vital that you not just issue the command out. It’s also important that you direct your dog how to perform a command or drill as well as correct your dog if he doesn’t follow the command properly. Be consistent when you are issuing out commands and trying to teach your dog to develop certain behaviors. For instance, if you are trying to teach your dog not to chew on slippers or shoes, do not praise him one day when you see him chewing on a slipper.

Dog training tip #5: Proper timing in training your dog

It’s always best — and professional dog trainers will recommend this — to train your dog when it is still a puppy. When it comes to training dogs, it is indeed true that old dogs can’t learn new tricks. So start training your dog early.

Dog training tip #6: Let your dog know you’re the boss

Dogs are pack animals, which means they follow a hierarchy. Thus, when training your dog, it’s important that you establish yourself as the alpha dog (the leader). Your dog needs to understand that he is the submissive being. Avoid showing any fear when your dog snaps back. Doing so will break the established hierarchy you have with your dog. When your dog is doing his exercises, never allow your dog to stop mid-way or not complete the exercise. Firmly let your dog know that it should do what you, the alpha dog, wants him to do.

Dog training tip #6: Act around your dog

Your puppy will naturally want to chew on things so give your puppy an outlet for his chewing urges. You can give your puppy a chew bone to chew. If your puppy tries to chew on you, yelp loudly, fold your arms and ignore your puppy for about ten minutes. When a puppy becomes too rough on other puppies, the others yelp and tend to ignore the puppy. However, you may need to assess your puppy’s personality because he may react to the yelping by biting more and even harder. If this happens, you may need to apply a more aggressive approach.

Shannon Lueck - I have owned dogs for most of my life and can’t imagine living without them. I’ve put together a site with free information about dogs for dog owners. Please visit: http://www.adogownersdogsite.com/Dog_Obedience_Training_Review.php“

Search Engine Marketing

With ATM cash machines currently costing anywhere from $3,000 to $30,000, there is no doubt that buying one for your business is costly. If you arrange things right, however, buying an ATM can actually be a very sound investment.

Provided that you primarily manage the machine yourself, ongoing maintenance costs shouldn’t be too high. You’ll have to pay for the electricity to fun the machine, as well as around $40/month for a dedicated phone line, and $50 each time the machine is professionally re-loaded.

There may also be a monthly charge (usually $15 to $25 per month), which is required by some vendors but not others. It is important to take these fees into account when considering different machines and doing price comparison research.

Once you have paid all these little fees, however, it is possible to make money on your ATM by collecting a percentage of the surcharge. The average charge for an ATM transaction is $1.60, and as the owner of the machine, all or a portion of this money will go to you.

Depending on your contract with the ATM vendor, and how much of the maintenance work you do yourself, your share of the money can range from 35% to 100%. There is also the added benefit that customers will never find themselves short of cash when making a purchase at your store.

Therefore, installing an ATM machine not only helps your existing business, but can become a fully sustainable or even profitable business in itself.

Jeremy Maddock is a successful webmaster who manages a number of informative websites, including http://www.financeproducts.info/

High Pagerank - SEO

Does your web site make you money?

How long has your web site been running?

One year? Two years? Maybe even three?

Over those three years your web site could have been a turbo-charged money machine, cranking out profits for you and your family night and day, week after week, month after month.

But has it? Or has it just sat there, looking pretty. Maybe lots of graphics and Flash animations. Maybe lots of visitors …

Maybe it just costs you money, because you have to pay for web hosting?

If so, a lot of other web site owners are in the same boat.

But did you know, if you change just one part of your web site, you can make your web site profitable?

Change your headline, for example, and you can increase your response by 500%.

Write 10 different headlines and one may be a winner.

But how do you find the winner?

The answer is, you have to test as many different headlines as you can, until you find the winner.

How do you test? We’ll come to that in a moment.

Other factors that make your web site a winner or a loser are, for example, your offer (do people want your product?), your opening para (paragraph), bullet points, testimonials, close, PS and bonuses.

But consider this.

Say you write 10 headlines, 10 offers, 10 opening paras, 10 testimonials, 10 closes and 10 bonuses.

You now have a MILLION different combinations (10 to the 6th power = 1,000,000) to test, to discover the perfect blend of web site variables!

Headline B works well with opening para A, but not with bonus B. Headline A works well with bonus B, but not with opening para A and so on … up to 10 to the 6th power!

How do you find the best mix out of a million?

Sounds impossible? Right?

In the old days, before the Internet, if you were a direct marketer, all you could do was a “split-run test” (also known as an “A B split test”) - test only two parts of your sales letter at a time.

You’d send out, say 3,000 letters with headline A to 3,000 names on a list. And then another 3,000 letters with headline B to 3,000 different names on a list.

You’d also somehow code each letter (perhaps include a coupon for the reader to fill out to get a discount or free sample), so you’d know which letter brought the highest response.

Then you’d wait. And wait.

Eventually, after a few weeks you’d have your responses, and you’d have a good idea which headline worked best.

You’d then send the best-performing letter to the rest of the names on your list.

Or you’d test the best-performing letter against one with another headline. Again send the letter with headline A (if that was the stronger letter from the first test) to, say, 3,000 names on your list, and the letter with headline C to another 3,000 list names.

Again, you’d wait. And wait …

This was a real pain, but it was the only way to find the winning letter. It took a LOT of time and often a LOT of money.

Enter the Internet. And very powerful web site testing software.

With this “multivariate” (or “multivariable,” “Taguchi multivariate”) software you can now test multiple variables (headline, bonuses, PS and so on) of a web page sales letter at the same time.

You can write, say, 16 headlines, 16 opening paras, 16 sets of bonuses, 16 closes and so on and test them all at the same time.

The software will tell you the best blend of elements that make up the most powerful sales letter. You won’t have to spend months, or even years, doing very boring A/B split testing.

And a dynamite sales letter will turn your web site into a 24/7 money generator.

To find out more about how this amazing new software can transform an underperforming web site that loses you money into a constant money machine, go to http://www.KaizenTrack.com/bletter.php.

There’s a special offer right now, but it’s limited. So you’ll have to hurry.

© 2006 Eldo Barkhuizen BA, HDE

Eldo Barkhuizen, http://www.1stcallcopywriting.com, is a direct response and web copywriter based in the UK. Using tested, powerful strategies he will help you transform your website into a 24/7 money magnet.

Pagerank

The bo staff is used in several martial arts and is essentially a long piece of well polished wood, resembling a pole.

How long a bo would be best for me?

Originally the bo staff was always approximately 6′ long. Modern martial artists however have generally found that a bo a few inches longer or shorter than they are works best for them. When deciding on a length, consider that a longer bo extends your reach, while a shorter bo is easier to manage.

How wide a bo staff would be best for me?

You should be able to close your fist around the center of the staff. Tapering has advantages but should not have a significant effect on the bo staff width you choose. Remember that wider staffs will always be heavier than the equivalent narrower staff.

Which bo staff is right for me?

That depends on what you are using it for.

For Demos:
For demonstrations you want a lighter bo which will allow you greater speed and easier changes of direction and preferably a bo with flash. G-Force makes the lightest bo’s and the Chrome Demonstration Bo Staff and the individually designed Multilens Demonstration Bo Staff are flashy and very slick.
If your demonstration will include ground strikes a more sturdy bo such as the traditional Carved Rattan Bo may be ideal.For Combat Training:
Accidental combat during bo training hurts and unintentionally hard strikes can result in broken ribs and other serious injuries. Softer woods such as White Wax and Rattan are preferable to Oak or Hardwood staffs. The only bo designed for full-speed, full-force combat sparring is the ActionFlex Bo Staff.For Strength and Stamina Training:
A heavier staff will help you increase your strength and speed, giving you an edge during future use. We recommend the Hardwood Bo Staff and the Youth Hardwood Bo Staff for their heavy weights and affordable prices, which is a nice plus since bos do break during training.

Other things to watch out for

Many sites charge a shipping surcharge on bo staffs. Be sure to factor the total cost of the bo including the shipping cost when deciding which retailer to purchase from.

Andrew Castillino has been practicing the martial arts for several years and is employed by Karate Depot Martial Arts Supplies as a writer and product specialist. His focus is martial arts weapons including the bo staff.

Copyright 2006 KarateDepot.com

Permission is granted to publish this article on your site providing links are included and clickable.

Are you having your hands full in getting your dog to quit performing the aria every night? Are you trying to teach your dog the basic aspects of ‘potty training’ and getting nowhere? Does your dog think that he is the master of you? As silly as the last question may seem, unfortunately it happens to be the case more often than not. If you are facing a few behavioral issues with your dog/pup, perhaps it is time to consult an expert of two. I do not mean the doggy school for the only thing that came out of sending my pup to one was an expensive bill. I am talking about the ’secrets to dog training: stop dog behavior problems’.

Getting your dog to behave is not as easy as others may claim for it requires work as well as quite a bit of patience on your part. You need to understand that he is as confused as you are and is just trying to make sense of the silly rules that we humans tend to set from time to time. Just remember, that your dog may just be marking his territory if he pees on your brand new futon. You need to be able to communicate with your dog and you definitely need to stop ‘babying’ him, otherwise he is never going to learn what is right and what is wrong. Remember, hitting him on the nose with your newspaper is not going to achieve anything; there are much better ways to get your point across. One of the best, at least in my opinion happens to be ‘total ignorance’. Believe me; you will be surprised how effective this method can be in getting the point across. Basically, Dogs are very sensitive and tend to pick on any vibes that you may send out, furthermore, they yearn for your attention. So the minute you start ignoring them, giving them the silent treatment, they will realize that something is wrong. This just happens to be one of the teaching tools that you can use to get your dog to behave, there are quite a few more contained in the ’secrets to dog training: stop dog behavior problems’.

This product provides all the information that you will need in order to get your dog to behave and it comes jam-packed with all the teaching methods that you can put to good use. Training your dog will take a bit of time; it is not going to happen overnight. So if you are looking for an easy way out, well, there’s none that I can think of. This product should enable you to deal with any aggressive behavior on the part of your dog. In addition, it shows you how to communicate with your dog effectively and to make sure that he gets the message loud and clear.

I am sure that you must have worked it out by now that dogs are very social and that they do not like being left alone. This product will help your dog deal with this separation anxiety and show you what you need to do the next time you leave him alone. If you are looking for the professional way to train your dog without having to head to the nearest obedience school, well then, this is what you need.

Reuben Wallis takes a closer look at dog training methods with his review on ‘secrets to dog training: stop dog behavior problems’. To know more , click on the ‘secrets to dog training: stop dog behavior problems’.

It is still only September, but now is the perfect time to make some preparations for Christmas and save your time and money.

Firstly I’ll give you some tips on how to save money in a variety of ways and generate some extra spending power for your Christmas treats.

Next I’ll give you some time-saving tips to make all that extra spending as convenient as possible and by the end of October you’ll be ready and prepared and looking forward to a relaxing Christmas time with your family and friends.

So first to money and how you can boost your budget for Christmas preparations and presents. The best way to save money is to cut back on your spending and the easiest way to do that is to focus on the money you spend on things that you wish you didn’t! Things like credit cards bills, insurance, loans, household bills, car expenses etc. All those things that are seen as essentials, but they drain your cash at an alarming rate. What if you were able to cut those expenses by just 10%? I don’t doubt that just that small saving will provide a significant increase to your Christmas budget.

Let’s look at interest payments - a big drain on your resources if you have some debts. Mortgages and loans are a common feature of many household budgets. When was the last time you looked at your mortgage arrangements? If it was more than two years ago, then now could be an ideal time to review your mortgage deal and look around for a new one if appropriate. You could have a new arrangement in place by the end of October if you start now - and you could be saving a few hundred pounds every month if you on a particularly poor deal at the moment - just think, that could add almost a thousand pounds to your Christmas budget over the next 3 months.

Next, credit cards - if you have any debt at all on your credit cards and are being charged interest, then look around now for an interest-free balance transfer deal. As long as you don’t spend any new money on that card, you will cut those interest payments to zero for the next few months - even more cash in your pocket. There is another important side effect of this strategy too - if you need to use your credit card for some Christmas essential spending, then if you have found a deal that offers a zero or low rate on new spending too, you’ll be saving even more money.

Insurance next. I’ve noticed that household insurance has been creeping up in price over the last few years. It was always seen as a low cost item and renewed without much thought, but I’m spending over £700 per year on this expense and I’ve only ever claimed once in the last 20 years - surely there must be a cheaper way? You’ll be pleased to know that there is! The home insurance marketplace is extremely competitive, with all companies trying very hard to attract new customers. Get on the internet and fill out a few quote requests - you may get a pleasant surprise and save yourself another couple of hundred pounds.

Next let’s look at time. We’ve often left our Christmas preparations too late and ended up rushing around the shops at the last minute, struggling through the crowds and finding that all the best items have sold out. Wouldn’t it be nice if you had all your plans in place and could spend those final few days enjoying the Christmas atmosphere without the stresses of last-minute shopping spoiling the fun? Well with a little planning now, that could be you. I’ve just come back from a shopping trip to London and throuroughly enjoyed my day out Christmas shopping in September! I’ve just taken a half day off work during the week and visited all the big department stores in comfort and peace. Harrods, Hamleys, Harvey Nichols - all in relaxed surroundings and no crowds. I had a reasonable list of people and ideas and went looking for items and more ideas, plis I was intent on enjoying myself. The stores were almost empty, the staff very helpful and the cafés had plenty of space for my frequent breaks. I came back with a bunch of great presents and a heap of further ideas for other presents. I now intend to purchase the remainder of my Christmas list using the internet from the comfort of my own home. I’ll save some more money and if I do that now, I won’t have to worry about Christmas delivery schedules.

Plan ahead, plan well and plan to have a peaceful and relaxing time this Christmas.

Sue Barnard authors consumer information for a variety of money saving and personal finance websites. More of her work can be seen on this http://www.finance-team.co.uk website and this http://www.cheap-rate-loans.co.uk website.

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