Archive for October 2014

By Peter Andrew

President Obama and I are like two peas in a pod. We both have quite a lot of grey hair. Er ... we both live in houses with street addresses that begin with a "1." And, um, we've both in the past had our credit cards wrongly declined. You see? POTUS and I are like brothers from different mothers.

Presidential plastic

Unexpectedly, given his multi-million dollar personal fortune, Mr. Obama's plastic was refused more recently than mine. He was in New York in September, attending the United Nations General Assembly, when he took the First Lady out to dinner. When the check arrived, his card issuer declined the payment.

Presumably after a short conference around the restaurant's payment terminal ("You tell him." "No, YOU tell him." "No way."), some poor sap was sent to inform the President of the United States that he was using dodgy plastic.

By Georgie Miller

One of the measures of a healthy economy is workers' confidence in their ability to leave a job and find other employment. The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) tracks this number, also referred to as "voluntary separation" or the "quits rate." The higher the quits rate, the more people believe that they will be able to find another (possibly better) job quickly.

While the BLS crunches the numbers, they don't analyze them. However, analyses of the most recent Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary (JOLTS) in the Wall Street Journal and elsewhere suggest that the labor market is strengthening. Along with that strengthening may come increased confidence that now is the time to make a career move.

If you're considering transitioning to new employment, here are a few strategies to consider before leaving your current position.

1. Pay off debt

Whether it's consumer debt such as credit cards, or other forms of debt such as medical debt or student loans, having a monthly payment hanging over your head may hinder your ability to leave your current job without something else lined up.

By Justin Boyle

Confession time: I'm an inveterate do-it-yourselfer. I've fixed vacuum cleaners, sink faucets, coffee tables, lawnmower engines -- you name it, I've tinkered with it. DIY efforts are usually successful if you follow the right advice, and the lessons you can learn from fixing your own stuff can stay with you for years afterward.

If you've been cavalier with your credit cards or run up a few big expenses lately, you might need to approach your finances with the same attitude. Here are some red flags to help you spot potential problems and some fix-it tricks that help get things back in working order.

Signs of trouble

It's sometimes a fine line between running rough and beyond repair. If these situations sound familiar, a financial tune-up might help you prevent an emergency:

• Making minimum utility payments. Minimum payments on a credit card are bad enough, but only paying the power company what it takes to keep your lights on month to month and never clearing your account to zero should tell you that something's really wrong.
• Stressing out about everyday purchases. If you find yourself struggling to find the money for a tank of gas or a trip to the grocery store, there's probably some work to be done.
• Buying on credit with no savings. It's true that a perfectly functional personal finance strategy can include a certain level of debt, but it should be kept to a minimum without a savings account or other safekeeping instrument to back it up.