Archive for the ‘Financial News’ Category

Each day, new data is released in the United States that deepens the gloom and doom surrounding the current “economic recovery.” In the past week we have learned:

• Job openings are at a record low — there are 50% fewer than in 2007
• More homeowners are struggling as option ARMs reset higher
• Approximately one-third of all mortgage holders have a loan balance that’s higher than the current value of their home
• Cities and states are still struggling to find ways to balance their budgets
• People are using far less credit and are saving more, which is great for them, but slows the economy which depends on consumer spending
• Although the unemployment rate is 10%, the number of people who are either unemployed, underemployed, or have given up looking reaches more than 17% of the working-age population
• Qualified people who are finding work are often accepting lower salaries than they earned before they were laid off. 

Read the rest of this entry »

A recent article in Fortune magazine http://bit.ly/6AXo0R indicated that there are fewer deaths during a recession because people apparently “adopt smarter lifestyles in recessions, especially those people with the worst health habits.”

One reason is that as work hours are cut back or people are laid off, they have more time to spend going to the gym, preparing meals, and getting more sleep.

There’s something else happening too. People are becoming much more conscious about how they spend their money. Consumer sales are decreasing because many are deciding against excess and for frugality. Instead of thinking, “It’s only $20!” and making an unnecessary purchase, often the decision is to not spend the $20 and save it instead. That’s good for a person’s economic health. Read the rest of this entry »

I recently had a conversation with a successful business owner about surviving the current economy. We both agreed that there is business to be had, but in these times, a little hustling is in order.

Reaching out to potential clients through innovative marketing, increased networking, restructuring prices, cutting expenses, and other actions can increase profits even in a down market.

A local plastic surgeon, has cut his prices and told me that he had his best month ever in September. He was willing to compromise, and has benefited from his actions.

Read the rest of this entry »

There’s an incredible disconnect between the movement of the stock market and the economic reality for much of the US population.

As I’m writing this, the headline on CNBC.com, just above the market chart, is “Stocks Gain 4% for Week Amid Earnings Optimism.” No doubt about it, the market has been going up, enabling those who are supposedly in the know to assure us that we are on the way to recovery.

At the same time, stories are dribbling out about the economic pressures faced by many people:

• There are over 1 million healthcare-related bankruptcies per year
• Over 47,000 people die each year in the US because they can’t afford health care
• 6.3 people are looking for every available job
• High level jobs are going unfilled because workers lack the necessary skills
• Foreclosure rates continue to rise in many areas
• Unregulated financial products are still in the pipeline
• States are cutting back on funding for education, safety, and other necessary services.

Read the rest of this entry »

One word that can sum up the current state of world affairs is uncertainty. No one really knows what’s going on and all of the old predictive models aren’t working.

For example, this week, an AP article mentioned that economists had expected a cutback in consumer debt by about $4 billion in July. Instead, there was a $21.6 billion drop. Totally unexpected. Good for consumers, bad for the economy which depends on spending.

People seem to be waiting and hoping that the economy will get back to “normal.”  Most people mean get back to what it was, and that just isn’t going to happen. Our economy depends on consumer spending and consumers are tapped out.

Also, because growth of wages leads to increased spending, that push for the economy has leveled off. With all of the job cuts and people finally learning to spend less and save more or pay down debt, no one knows for sure what will happen to our economy. Uncertainty prevails. If anyone predicts the future with certainty, don’t believe them. Read the rest of this entry »

For many years, every time I did energy work with clients, two phrases came up:

•  I release all pain and memory of pain
•  I release all fear and sorrow

Fully aware that if I’m doing something with a client, it applies to me too, I was surprised that the fear and sorrow piece went on for so long. Over the years, all the physical and emotional pain I had lived with had disappeared, yet I was aware that try as I might, fear and a sense of loss persisted.

Because I believe that we create our life stories in order to express hidden emotions, as I observed the current economic downturn, it occurred to me that fear, or a feeling of vulnerability, and sorrow are the creative force behind the current situation. Certainly the daily talk of terrorism has emerged from our collective fear.

A few months ago, I did a teleclass on letting go of fear and sorrow, and followed that with a healing session that  I recorded separately. Somehow, I was deeply affected by those two events and over the last two months have noticed that the fear and sorrow are really gone. In meditation, I’m aware of his sense of equanimity, as I understand it.

What does this look like on a day-to-day basis? I no longer have feeling that there’s something I have to do. At this point, I really do have the faith that whatever I’m doing is fine and that if I don’t push, I’ll get where I’m supposed to be, whatever that is. I don’t feel compelled to do affirmations, visualizations, set five-year goals or push in any way to try to make things happen. I am much more present in the moment.

I’ll admit that I have moments when I wonder if I am risking or missing something by being so laid back. However, I really like this state of being and am willing to wait and see where it goes. Without any effort, new opportunities are opening up.

Somewhat surprising is the fact that I am now doing more website development work, something I haven’t done since 2002. I see this as a way to provide real world opportunities for growth for people who are developing a strong financial consciousness. So it fits nicely with the financial work that I’ve been doing. And I do enjoy the work.

The bottom line: life beyond fear and sorrow is peaceful — and profitable. I just have to get used to the new feelings that I’m experiencing.

I haven’t made the recording of the teleclass available because the quality of the recording was so poor, but the fear and sorrow healing session is available. I received many positive comments about it.

I am the process of updating Prosperity Place with information about the affordable website building and consulting that I’m doing. There is some information about it now on this site.

The hue and cry from people opposing the credit card reform bill is that banks are going to make it harder for consumers to get credit. Fees such as annual fees might be raised, reward points might be minimized, and approval for credit might be harder to attain.

“We are concerned that the Senate bill will have a dramatic impact on the ability of consumers, students and small businesses to obtain and use credit cards,” said Edward Yingling, president of the American Bankers Association.

Who is tight credit going to hurt? The economy won’t recover as quickly because consumers, upon whose backs the economy rests, will be spending less and carrying less debt. So tighter credit might curb spending–and perhaps raise feelings of deprivation–but it’s not going to hurt consumers.

Yes, they might have to learn to do with less–meaning that which they can afford. In the long run, the economy itself will be healthier because the danger of a credit card collapse will be lessened.

When our economy was deemed healthy, the actual financial position of many consumers was anything but. And the cause was often easy-to-obtain credit.

Tighter credit will mean slower growth for small businesses–and some larger ones too. This means the economy as a whole won’t grow as fast, but I wonder if, in the long run, it is better to have a stable economy than a fast-growing one.

What do you think?

Good article on the Huffington Post by Ben Sherwood. Click to read .

Suggestions include:

• Situation Awareness: Be aware of the situation and take action quickly
• Hug the Monster: Grab your fears and turn them into motivation.
• Eat an Elephant One Bite at a Time: Slow down. Divide unwieldy challenges into achievable tasks.
• Know Yourself.

In my book, Build Your Money Muscles, I talk about Financial Vagueness Syndrome (FVS) as a key stumbling block to financial comfort. If you don’t know what is going on with your money, it’s difficult to plan, strategize, and make rational financial decisions.

If you have been listening to the gloomy financial news, then you probably know that one of the main reasons the system is falling apart is that no one really understood the sophisticated financial instruments such as mortgage back securities and credit default swaps that were being traded in the markets.

Recently we learned that when billions of dollars of TARP funds were distributed, no one kept track of where the money went and what it was used for.

On top of that, no one was watching the store. When the SEC was warned about Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, for example, the warnings were ignored. No one really wanted to know what was going on.

You could easily conclude that Financial Vagueness Syndrome played a significant role in the global financial crisis. Has it played a role in yours?  Read the rest of this entry »

Humans have amazing creative powers. Look at what has recently been created in the financial world. An elite group of colluding individuals with a similar goal–to make as much money as possible–have managed to fashion a worldwide economic crisis.

The crisis wasn’t the work of some supernatural force or power. Humans did it.

Now is the time for “ordinary” folks like you and me to form our own cartel that allows us to prosper while respecting the rights of others as we work towards a goal for the common good. We have the same creative powers within us as the greedy wall-streeters, but we can decide to work together so that all can prosper.

How to do this? First, think globally, act locally. Band together with others in your community to form co-ops, develop community gardens, offer support to small businesses, and build outreach programs. You don’t need money to do this, just human energy.

Reach out to others across the world to form support groups, partnerships, and joint ventures. When you connect to others your individual power is magnified. Recently, on one of the weekly teleclasses for the Build Your Money Muscles program, participants inspired each other to action by sharing information and encouragement. Feeling connected stimulates positive action for change.

Spend quiet time with yourself so you can connect to your own inner direction and move beyond the fear that seems to be in the air right now. Deep within you lies strength and power that you can use to create a better life for yourself and those around you. 

Arm yourself with knowledge so you can make informed choices. Spend time each day learning about the world of finance and developing practical financial skills so you can make wise financial decisions and not be swayed by advertising messages or slick sales presentations.

On last Friday’s BlogTalkRadio show (10/25), Personal Power expert Jim Bouchard talked with me about how you can develop the skills you need to develop the ability to act effectively in all situations and how this can affect your prosperity. You can listen online or download. The program is now available as an I-Tunes Podcast–just search for Joan Sotkin in I-Tunes.

On the show, Jim and I also coached one of the participants in the Build Your Money Muscles for Financial Strength & Security program about working through shame and overcoming resistance. I hope you’ll listen and learn from Jim’s wisdom. www.BlogTalkRadio.com/JoanSotkin