Laura McDonald - 10 Ways to Stay Broke...Forever: Why Be Rich When You Can Have This Much Fun?

Copyright 2013 Laura J. McDonald and Susan L. Misner

Published by John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd.

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Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

McDonald, Laura, 1978

10 ways to stay brokeforever : why be rich when you can have this much fun? / Laura J. McDonald and Susan L. Misner.

Includes index.

Issued also in electronic formats.

ISBN 978-1-118-58653-2

1. Finance, Personal. 2. Budgets, Personal. I. Misner, Susan, 1971 II. Title. III. Title: Ten ways to stay brokeforever.

HG179.M3248 2013 332.0240082 C2013-900797-0

ISBN 978-1-118-58658-7 (ebk); 978-1-118-58660-0 (ebk); 978-1-118-58661-7 (ebk)

Production Credits

Managing Editor: Alison Maclean

Executive Editor: Karen Milner

Production Editor: Pauline Ricablanca

Cover Design: Wendy Mount and Adrian So

Front Cover Image: Jar Mark Viker/Getty Images; Pennies Susan Findlay/Getty Images

Back Cover Image: Adrian So

Composition: Thomson Digital

To our wonderful families, supportive husbands and golden
readers who allow us to go for broke every day... to give it
our all, share our voice and build a community that inspires,
impassions and propels our lives.

Preface

We're baaaaaaack! Only one year after the fantastic response to our first book, It's Your Money, Honey: A Girl's Guide to Saving, Investing, and Building Wealth at Every Age and Life Stage , we are back, and this time not just for the girls!

Our mission has always been to help more women take ownership of their finances and gain control of their financial destiny. This has not changed. Following the publication of It's Your Money, Honey , we were thrilled, gratified and uplifted by the huge outpouring of support from our readership, the financial community and the public at large. What surprised us the most was the volume of wonderful feedback we received from male readers. It seems they have been reading over your shoulders, ladies!

Well, gentlemen, forgive us if we have neglected you. We recognize that just because the financial industry has long been dominated by men, that certainly does not mean that all men have a grasp on their personal finances. As a result, we made sure that this time around, our book focuses not only on women, but on everyone who wants to gain more control over their financial destiny.

The rise in household debt across Canada is a serious issue that affects every woman, man, child and pet. Yes, even our furry friends suffer the consequences. (You know that look you get when you try to substitute a cheaper brand of kibble...) We wanted to tackle the issue of dealing with debt in a way that motivates all our readers to improve this critical area of their life.

Once we decided to focus our new book specifically on debt management, the question we faced was how to approach it. How could we take a potentially boring topic and make it fresh, relevant and motivating for our readers? Inspiration came from an article we published on our website, www.GoldenGirlFinance.com , in November 2011. It was called (you guessed it) 10 Ways to Stay BrokeForever: Why Be Rich When You Can Have This Much Fun? (Kudos to the brilliant gal behind this witty prose, Ms. Tara Struyk!)

The article received hundreds of thousands of views in just a couple days, tons of glowing comments and thoughtful emails from readers (male and female) expressing their appreciation for this clever take on a rather overhyped subject. We realized there would be no better way of approaching our second book and addressing the topic of debt management than to take one of our most popular articles and really run with it. Indeed, the response to our 10 Ways to Stay Broke article is an ideal example of how we engage our readership in a fun and sometimes irreverent way. But there is always message to our madness! Under our charming and witty exterior (if we do say so ourselves), we deliver vital information and tips to those readers whom other financial media fail to reach.

The Task Force on Financial Literacy found that, overall, the commitment to financial education is uneven across the financial sector and its industries. And when financial education is provided, it tends to be technical, overly complex and written in obscure, jargon-filled prose. As a result, it often fails to reach the very people for whom it is designed.

This is where Golden Girl Finance comes in.

Golden Girl Finance is a platform to educate, inspire and motivate people into taking ownership of their finances, by putting a fresh, modern and feminine spin on financial literacy. As the voice of female finance for numerous national online, print and television platforms, as well as through our signature web property www.GoldenGirlFinance.com , the Golden Girl Finance brand reaches millions of readers, engaging and propelling them into financial action.

The same mission drives this book. We hope that by reading these words, you will be inspired to think and feel differently about your personal debt. For one thing, we want to take away the shame and stigma around talking about debt. Struggling with how to get your finances under control can be an incredibly stressful and lonely experience. We want to fling the doors open and shine a light on these dark and scary topics and show you how proper debt management, living within your means and accumulating cash rather than spending it are your keys to living a much richer life.