Randy Haugen: Students Beware of Credit Cards

I know many students are heading off for their first year of college. Watch out for the credit card trap. It is a fact that every student is going to get hit by all kinds of credit card companies offering to give them credit. We hear all sorts of things like "you need to start building credit" or "you need a card JUST for emergencies." But the fact is, young people don't have to have credit cards. They are better off learning to manage their own money that they actually have by using debit cards. Don't rush right in to using credit. Paying cash isn't a bad thing. Yes, it may limit what you can afford but you will be glad later.

Read what Kiplinger says about students getting credit cards...

The average college freshman has $1,533 in credit card debt, according to a study by Nellie Mae, a student-loan provider. And that figure grows to $3,262 by the time he or she graduates. (Plus many have thousands of dollars in student-loan debt on top of that.) Half of freshmen carry plastic. And by the time they reach their senior year, 96% do -- with two-thirds of seniors carrying four or more credit cards.

So if everyone's doing it, it can't be that bad, right? Wrong. When the bills come due and interest charges pile up, too many students realize they took on more than they can handle. In fact, 7% to 10% of students will drop out of college due to credit problems, says Robert Manning, author of Credit Card Nation. "The initial freedom offered by credit cards may become financial shackles by the end of their college career," says Manning.

Once you start falling behind financially, you could sentence yourself to a lifetime of high rates on everything from car loans to mortgage payments to insurance premiums. That starter credit card your freshman year of college could potentially wind up costing you thousands of dollars down the road.

Read the complete article at Kiplinger.com:

http://kiplinger.com/columns/starting/archive/2007/st0808.htm

© 2007 Randy Haugan Amway Quixtar IBO Financial Common Sense. Reprint provided to Don Wilson Quixtar IBO site.

Don Wilson - The Proper Attitude for Success

I read this quote by Thomas Jefferson and it rang so true to me. Jefferson calls it the "right mental attitude." I believe what Jefferson is really talking about is our thinking. Here's the quote along with a few other success quotes...

Don Wilson - Success Quotes

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude." - Thomas Jefferson

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out." - Robert Collier

"The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen." - Frank Loyd Wright

© 2007 DON & NANCY WILSON, AMWAY / QUIXTAR IBO. Reprint permission given to Don Wilson Quixtar IBO site.

Don Wilson Sports: Tiger Wins Big

There is no doubt who the greatest golfer in the world is. Everybody knows it. And today, he just played like the number one player in the world. He started the day 1 back from the leader and finished the day and tournament 8 strokes better than the number two guys. What a swing. Tiger Woods continues to dominate the game of golf...

Woods erased a one-shot deficit in two holes, then buried Rory Sabbatini and the rest of the field to win the Bridgestone Invitational for the third straight year and send him to the PGA Championship with his game in good shape.

Woods holed a 12-foot par putt on the final hole that kept him bogey-free on a rainy afternoon at Firestone. He closed with a 5-under 65 for an eight shot victory over Sabbatini and Justin Rose, tying a PGA Tour record for most victories at one golf course.

It was the second time Woods has strung together three straight victories at this World Golf Championship, and he continued his dominance in these WGC events by winning for the 14th time in 25 tries.

Sabbatini again was left in his wake.

The fiery South African also lost a one-shot lead to Woods in the Wachovia Championship, then caused a brief stir by claiming later than Woods looked "beatable as ever."

Not on this course. Woods picked up five shots in a five-hole stretch along the front nine, and it was no contest after that. He joined Jack Nicklaus (Augusta National) and Alex Ross (Pinehurst No. 2) as the only players to win six times on the same course.

Read more on Tiger's latest win in the Amway Don Wilson Sports News article:

http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2962189&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines

Source: ESPN

© 2007 Don Wilson Quixtar IBO site.

Don Wilson Sports News: New NFL Hall of Famers

Some new NFL players were just added in to the Hall of Fame. It is always fun to see who gets added. This article talking about the players who were just added also gave a predication of 50 current players who could make the Hall of Fame in the future. You might enjoy reading the list. Some are no doubt going to be added like the number 1 pick, Brett Favre and the number 2 pick, Tom Brady. But check out the article and their complete list of 50...

The Pro Football Hall of Fame welcomes six new members into its exclusive fraternity this weekend.

The additions of Gene Hickerson, Michael Irvin, Bruce Matthews, Charlie Sanders, Thurman Thomas and Roger Wehrli will bring the total number of players enshrined in Canton to 208.

This made us wonder which active players will ultimately walk across the stage at Fawcett Stadium wearing tacky bright yellow jackets and huge grins.

Matthews will become the 36th player from the 1985 NFL season to make the Hall of Fame. Fifty-four players from 1975 and 58 players from 1965 have been so honored. Therefore, it's reasonable to expect that at least 50 players from the upcoming season will land in Canton.

After extensive research, fact-checking, educated guessing and hunch playing, here are 50 active NFL players we predict will someday be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, listed in order of predicted Hall of Fame probability. Perhaps not everyone on this list will appear to be Hall of Fame material at first glance. Some might have to wait a few years to gain entry -- one of this year's inductees, Hickerson, last played in 1973.

Read the complete Don Wilson Sports News article at:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=halloffame/nfl1-10

Source: ESPN

© 2007 Don Wilson Quixtar IBO site.