Living Beyond Our Means

Well our show on Coaching for Financial Success in a Recession was certainly timely, given the news about Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch last Sunday September 14th.  I asked KRON-TV 4 San Francisco financial expert Erica Sandberg how the announcements would impact consumers, for example would it increase the sense of stress and panic that many are already feeling?

Her answer was “no”, because unfortunately the average person won’t be able to articulate what either firm does, let alone how the fall of both of these companies can impact their personal financial situations. 

According to Erica, most of us just want to know if our banks are secure.  And in general, we want to understand how and why the economy is in the state that it is. 

Even worse, many of us are terrified and paralyzed, because we don’t understand how the economy overall is going to impact our jobs, our livelihoods, and our finances in the months to come. 

We also discussed the fact that many Americans have been living well beyond their means.  According to Erica, most of us on average are carrying around $9,000 in credit card debt, and if we’re going to make it through the recession, we need to wake up and change some key behaviors.

Her recommendations?

• Get a copy of your credit report and see where you stand.
• Take a look at your budget and determine your cash flow.
• Stop using your credit cards.
• Don’t become obsessed with your credit scores, instead focus on paying off debt.
• Work with financial coaches or organizations like the Consumer Credit Counseling Service to construct a budget you can live within.

We took a much deeper dive into many of these recommendations throughout our show, but I’d like to hear some initial thoughts from all of you:

• In general, did last week’s announcements and “Black Wednesday” impact how you’ll be spending and saving money in the months to come?
• What are your biggest concerns and fears within our current recession?
• If you’re a financial coach or expert, what are your recommendations to those people out there who may be living beyond their means?  Anything you’d add to Erica’s list above?

Your Insight on Coaching Host,

Tom Floyd
CEO
IEC: Insight Educational Consulting
Specializing in Management Consulting, Change Management, Workforce Performance, and Employee Development

Coaching for Financial Success in a Recession



Lehman Brothers management consulting financial coaching Tom Floyd KRON-TV 4 life coaching Consumer Credit Counseling Service IEC Erica Sandberg recession managing debt credit card debt coaching podcast Turbo Tagger