The majority of Americans are suffering from being in debt, yet these same people power 70% of the economy.  Food for thought.  It’s difficult to believe while many fail to achieve wealth, they have been trained by society to act wealthy whether they are or not.  We believe in telling the truth about money by telling the truth about the myths that we have all been taught that can keep us making decisions based on the wrong things which will lead to unfulfilled dreams, increased stress, and continuous cycle of trying to get different results while doing the same things.

Recent comments by President Barack Obama have seemed to cause no little stir as he addressed the nation’s current economic crisis by suggesting Americans and Corporations alike reconsider how they plan and take trips to Las Vegas. His comments, coming earlier in 2009 in an Indiana town hall meeting and once again as he addressed a crowd in Nashua, New Hampshire this January, have added to the many criticisms on President Obama’s strategy for rejuvenating the job market, reducing the national debt and health care reform. However, despite the many criticisms, Obama’s point about families using set aside vacation dollars, and not college tuition money, to have fun in Vegas shed light on the struggles that many Americans face every day to make responsible financial decisions.

We all  have goals to eliminate debt and a credit card debt elimination strategy is key because it is a huge portion of debt in America.  I recently watched an interesting documentary on frontline called “The Card Game.” It told the story of our current credit crisis through the eyes of the banking and credit industry.

I was surprised to hear the brutal honest truth these people talked about credit card “game” in America.  It was said they specifically went after the less fortunate population who did not have access to credit before.

This new market was specifically targeted and given access to credit and loans they could not afford to pay.  And, because of little or no regulations were in place, the risk for these people and the banks were very high.

The idea was to get these people, most of whom are financially illiterate, to get trapped into these loans and lines of credit so the credit card and banking industry could catch them in a web of debt.  This is the genius of this game, because they made so much money on high interest rates and penalty fees, it is ridiculous.

Now, the credit card companies and banks will tell you that people are responsible for their own financial well-being.  But, though that is partially true, I would like to say they knew they preyed on these people and they ruined a lot of lives just to make more money.  And, in the end who bailed them out…the tax payers?

What is cash management?  Cash defines your true ability to meet your needs and your wants in life.  Cash available to us describes the reality of what we can plan to do today and in the future.  Cash is not a projection or an assumption; instead, it provides truth about where you really are.  Financial success is found in the ability to measure how much cash you keep or invest in being able to keep.  What came in and what went out, that is the question?

• Cash Inflow: Money that came in (Credit)
• Cash Outflow: Money that went out (Debit)

How will you maximize your opportunities for Cash to come in?