Debi Kuehn believes:
If you build on your own skills,
Rely on your own abilities,
Increase your range of knowledge,
And get help when you need it,
You are the investment that will succeed above all others.

Welcome to the twentieth edition of Kuehn Education Services’ Footsteps Along the Path. The goal of this newsletter is to provide relevant and succinct information on financial management to consumers and small business owners. It is designed to build upon previous issues, developing a clear path to financial freedom. Reader feedback is encouraged.

Please feel free to forward Footsteps Along the Path. If you have received this from a friend or colleague, and wish to be added to the newsletter distribution list, simply provide a response e-mail with this request. The same applies if you do not desire further contact. Your name will immediately be deleted from the list. dkuehn@kuehnservices.com.

In this issue:
* Special Announcement
* Debi Kuehn in the Media
* Article: Parenting Money Savvy Children
* A Knowledgeable Consumer is Powerful
* Seminars Worth Your Time
Visit www.kuehnservices.com

Debi Kuehn in the Media
Russ Wiles, writer for The Arizona Republic, informed readers on September 4th about the wise way to use credit cards. I was fortunate to be quoted in two related articles. To read the piece, “Climbing out of the credit trap” and the corresponding side bar article “Understanding how credit works” please click on the link. Also, September 11th Russ is writing on another popular topic, understanding credit bureau reports. Bobbie Marotta, a Kuehn Financial Education Services’ client, is interviewed along with my advice on bettering credit scores. Russ’ writing is a good educational resource.
http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/0904MyMoney04mainbar.html

Parenting Money Savvy Children
Raising children to be independent and giving adults is a parent’s job. Being responsible with money supports independence and giving. I state in the opening paragraph of www.kuehnservices.com too few children receive training on solid money skills from their parents. The reason is two fold. First, our society values wealth but it does not formally and systematically educate its citizens. As adults we lack training from the public schools and often times our own parents. This parlays into the second reason we don’t aid our children in understanding money; we feel like financial failures. This needs to change.

If you don’t teach your children about personal finance, marketers will. Their message is not financial literacy but consumerism. It is utterly vital that you help your children realize the difference! Consider learning together. A good resource for children of any age is www.jumpstart.org. If you have teenage or college age children, some money management skills to hone are balancing a check book, living on a budget, goal setting, and understanding the pros and cons of credit. Learning together sets an example. Use that library card and read books on personal money management, attend workshops, or schedule a family money management skill session with Kuehn Financial Education Services. Communication is key in the learning process. Make this time together informal with lots of dialogue on personal reaction and input. Realize it is not a NATO Summit meeting. So, grab a pizza and let the conversation flow. If you feel less than a stellar example of financial responsibility, please don’t let this feeling deter you. Teenagers already realize parents are not perfect. They will respect your openness and honesty.

Understanding the hands on aspects of money management mentioned above is only one part of financial literacy. We all have psychological beliefs about money. Most likely you will find your offspring have the same strengths and fears about money that you do. Money is socially learned through family morals, teachings, culture, and religious beliefs. So, before developing an ongoing dialogue with your children, ask yourself a few questions. Are you guiding your children in a healthy relationship with money? What are their beliefs and reactions to money? Are you teaching your children to give? Are you unconsciously sending the message things are more important than relationships? I tell clients that money should flow in this order: 1) people 2) money itself so it begets money 3) things. Now, ask yourself, “Do my financial habits mirror my parents?” Money beliefs, like many other beliefs, are passed on from generation to generation. Consider the phrases “third generation welfare recipient” versus “s/he comes from money”. These groups of people understand money in vastly different ways. Some spend and some preserve money as a result of family knowledge.

How do you deal with monetarily confused adult children? An increasing number of 23 – 30 year olds are not financially independent. A new social term is emerging to describe the trend, “gold collar workers”. Financially uneducated people in their twenties opt to spend wages on $400 purses and $12 martini while still living under their parent’s roof. They find self worth in brand names. If this is your family situation, make a decision right now that your life and the life of your adult children will reflect good decisions. Have an enlightening discussion centering on concrete steps to reach the goal of supporting oneself. Set a specific timeframe in which your adult child needs to be self sufficient and stick to it. Don’t be an enabling parent. Show wisdom and if need be “tough love”.

Parents revel in their children’s successes. They take pride in successive generations bettering the family tree. Take the time to plant great financial roots and watch your children bloom.

(Personal note: I have been involved with developing the competencies for Arizona’s high school financial curriculum. This has lead to exciting opportunities. One of which is to share with high school seniors the importance of understanding money. Please see Seminars Worth Your Time for more information.)

A Knowledgeable Consumer is Powerful
An outcome of living in the information age is dwindling privacy on how we manage our finances. Many editions of Footsteps Along the Path have enlightened readers on credit bureaus, but this is just the start of organizations tracking your monetary behaviors. Specialty consumer reports go beyond your information provided by creditors to Trans Union, Equifax and Experian. These companies are recording your current and past medical conditions, homeowner and car insurance claim history, residential and tenant history, and check writing history. Has your financial situation been negatively impacted by reports in any of listed areas? Are you curious regarding what is attached to your good name? Simply contact the following organizations.

Please keep this information for reference. It will make you knowledgeable and powerful.
Check writing reports:
ChexSystems: ConsumerDebit.com or 1-800-428-9623.
Shared Check Authorization Network: ConsumerDebit.com or 1-800-262-7771.
TeleCheck: 1-800-209-8186.

Auto and home insurance:
ChoicePoint CLUE Reports: ChoiceTrust.com or 1-866-312-8076.
ISO Insurance Services A-Plus Reports: ISO.com or 1-800-627-3487.

Medical reports:
Medical Information Bureau: MIB.com or 1-866-692-6901.

Tenant reports:
ChoicePoint: ChoiceTrust.com or 1-877-448-5732
SafeRent: 1-888-333-2413

Seminars Worth Your Time
October 3: Metro Tech High School career day presentations:
Budgeting to Become a Millionaire
Credit Cards: Heap of Trouble or Financial Foundation
Metro Tech High School (1900 W. Thomas Rd, Phoenix)
1:00 – 1:45 pm Seminar:
Budgeting to Become a Millionaire
You work hard at your after school job to receive a paycheck. Do you think about how you will spend and save your earned money? Every decision indicates how good you are at managing cash. Balancing your spending and income is called budgeting. The sooner you start budgeting, the sooner you will be on the path to become a millionaire. Join Debi Kuehn MBA of Kuehn Financial Education Services LLC as she discusses how to budget and why living on a one since high school has given her a life of opportunities.

2:00 -2:45 pm Seminar:
Credit cards: A heap of trouble or financial foundation for your future
Are you one of the legions of teens carrying credit cards? Or do you want that thin piece of plastic to whip out as a convenience while shopping? Credit cards have the ability to help or hurt your finances. There is more to credit cards than most students think. Join Debi Kuehn MBA of Kuehn Financial Education Services LLC to learn the savvy way to use credit cards.

October 18: Phoenix Women’s Commission’s Economic Forum
A Man is Not a Financial Plan: Women and Today’s Financial Issues
Phoenix College, 1202 W. Thomas Rd., Phoenix
11:00 – 1:00 pm
Open to the public.
Topics to be discussed by Debi Kuehn are:
Should spouses merge their money?
Joint credit: the pros and cons in Arizona (a Community property state)
Home sweet home: the difference between being approved for a loan and being able to afford it!
Two of life’s major financial events: retirement and saving for our children’s college … what if it is not practical to fund both. Which do you choose and why.
Divorce: What you need to know so that you sever the relationship with your spouse and not your financial future.

PH: 623.580.9293

Written by Deborah A. Kuehn, MBA
All rights reserved
Kuehn Financial Education Services LLC is a registered trade name

Issue XX

September 7, 2005

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