Credit card companies are jacking up interest rates, lowering credit limits, and closing accounts - and people who have made timely payments are not exempt. So even if you pay off your balance - and that's tough when interest rates are insanely high - there's a good chance your credit limit will be slashed, and that will hurt your FICO score.

Like your home's closets, your financial clutter needs an overhaul every now and again, and the payoff will go far beyond the psychic satisfaction of neatening up.

If you have debt I'm willing to bet that general clutter is a problem for you too.

people's feelings about themselves change when they change the way they handle their money. Once they begin treating their money with respect, their self-respect shoots up as well.

I get so frustrated when people tell me it's unrealistic to create an eight-month emergency savings fund, or have money saved for a home down payment, or pay off their $5,000 credit card balance.

If you're not staying on top of your money, you are putting your financial well-being at risk.

It's not selfish to give TO yourself as much as you give OF yourself