The new (Credit) CARD Act took effect on February, 22, 2010. One major provision has new rules for interest rates.
Credit Card issuers cannot increase your interest rates during the first 12 months of a new account. On existing accounts, if your rate is increased, the new APR (annual percentage rate of interest) only applies to your new purchases.

Your existing balance is still charged the old interest rate…. with some exceptions on both of these provisions:

** if the card has a variable rate and the index goes up.
** if the introductory period ends and the rate increases to the standard rate.
** the payment is more than 60 days late.
** payments fall behind in the debt management plan.
** Any monthly payments above the minimum amount must be applied to the balance with the highest APR first.

My take on this. Sounds good… But this one provision alone is confusing and complex. We, the customers, find it difficult to track this process to verify the law is being followed. Sound money management means we review the system for accuracy. Many times I find errors that rob me of my money. Hmm. Why can’t things be more simple, clear, usable and effective?

Solutions are available – when we take control and manage our money. Here’s some ideas.
1. Pay off the entire balance on your credit card every month…. pay no interest, special fees, charges. This means that we do NOT spend more than we earn – a basic financial management principle.
OR…
2. If the balances are too large to pay off every month – develop a specific plan to pay that balance off over time (as little time as possible). Make payments promptly every month and even increase the payments when have extra cash. Enjoy the feeling of peace, happiness, control in your life.
Each of these solutions are simple… But they do require work and focus on a plan.
The Good News: YOU are a BraveHeart Woman --- You can get results!! Make a commitment and do it. It will be one of the best decisions you ever made in your life. I stand by offering to serve you in any way I can .. feel free to email me.

3. Know and understand the other new Credit Card Act provisions, at least the basics, to see if there are any major pitfalls that need to addressed in your individual situation.

You can find the Major Provisions of the new Credit Card Act in my Community, renamed to “Thrifty is Nifty” from “Passion Branding”. Also feel free to contact me with questions. I welcome ways to serve you best. Your questions are the same ones other people have and they will appreciate answers too.

Take your money seriously! You are a BraveHeart Woman … You will accomplish results you commit to!

Barbara Filla
Thrifty is Nifty Community

Hi to all my BHW Sisters,

I saw this comment today, and it inspired me by reinforcing what I believe and feel. Just had to share it with you.

"The noblest question in the world is, What good may I do in it?" Who said it? None other than an American hero, statesman and patriot... Benjamin Franklin.

What good are you going to do today?

It's March, 2010. It's time to "March Forward" - that's what I'm doing. I invite you to join me... as we march together ... doing good for others and for ourselves too. See the P.S. below.

Barbara Filla
Thrifty Is Nifty Community

P.S. Notice my new Community Name - Thrifty is Nifty - in Life, Business, Everywhere. I feel I can do the most good for women and people all over by assisting all of us to use an 'old-time' virtue and habit that has been diminished and almost lost over decades.

My passion and purpose comes from values taught by my parents as a little girl and has stayed with me throughout my life. It's in my "cellular memory"... in my core values, and learning every day - tempered by reality, looking at long term results, peace, joy, fun and lots more... in life, business, everywhere.

Come join me and ask questions you have .... so I can SERVE YOU best. And... your question will help many other people... so you are doing good (a noble service) -- like Benjamin Franklin suggests.

In this fast-changing world – every day and many times a day, it is difficult, actually almost impossible to keep up with things that are important for living our lives, maintaining our businesses…………… 

Many people have deposits in money market funds……… Here's knowledge, facts you want to be aware of.   (Source. www.moneynews.com – website at end of article).

Money Market Funds Can Now Prevent Redemptions

Tuesday, 02 Feb 2010 10:23 AM

By: Dan Weil

Be careful how much cash you put in your money market fund.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has passed a new rule that allows the funds to prohibit redemptions in times of duress.

A fund can now prevent people from taking their money out if three conditions are fulfilled:

• The fund’s share price falls below the fund’s stable net asset value per share.

• The fund’s board of directors approves liquidation of the fund.

• The fund notifies the SEC of its decision to liquidate and suspend redemptions.

The new rules are part of an SEC effort to strengthen money market funds in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. In September, 2008 the Reserve Primary Fund became only the third fund in history to break the buck – reduce its share price below $1.

Investors in the fund then tried to exit en masse, and the fund suspended redemptions.

Some investors are still trying to get their money back.

“We understand that suspending redemptions may impose hardships on investors who rely on their ability to redeem shares,” the SEC wrote in explaining the rule.

“Accordingly, our proposal is limited to permitting suspension of this statutory protection only in extraordinary circumstances.”

The pundits at ZeroHedge.com are aghast at the new rule.

“The next time there is a market crash, and you try to withdraw what you thought was ‘absolutely’ safe money, a back office person will get back to you saying, ‘Sorry, your money is now frozen. Bank runs have become illegal,’” they wrote.

The SEC’s approval of the new rule explains why money market rates are near zero, the Zero Hedge analysts say.

“At this point, should there be another meltdown, money market investors will not, repeat not, be able to withdraw their money purely on the whim of (SEC Chairman) Mary Schapiro.”
© Moneynews. All rights reserved.

http://moneynews.com/Archives/StreetTalk/8/2010/2    February 2, 2010

I suggest you inquire of your financial institutions, brokers and those you use for more detailed information.  If they aren’t aware of this, be bold in questioning until you get full and complete answers.  Your life, your future is at stake and nobody cares about it more than you do.

Take care with your cash and your life.

Barbara Filla

P.S.  The highlighted text are my additions, but no word changes.

This info came to my attention and want to share it with you. http://cli.gs/M9tPAn

The internet is such a fabulous tool. Enjoy blogging and sharing your info, ideas, comments, thoughts……..

Barbara Filla

Merry Christmas to you.

Please click on the attached Christmas Tree Wishes.

Barbara Filla

Thanksgiving is the holiday of peace, the celebration of work and the simple life... a true folk-festival that speaks the poetry of the turn of the seasons, the beauty of seedtime and harvest, the ripe product of the year - and the deep, deep connection of all these things with God. ~Ray Stannard Baker (David Grayson)

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A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all the other virtues. ~Cicero

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For, after all, put it as we may to ourselves, we are all of us from birth to death guests at a table which we did not spread. The sun, the earth, love, friends, our very breath are parts of the banquet.... Shall we think of the day as a chance to come nearer to our Host, and to find out something of Him who has fed us so long? ~Rebecca Harding Davis

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Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving. ~W.T. Purkiser

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You are very special in my heart and thoughts!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

Many things John said were so genius and timeless, I thought. Here they are just a couple (my words added to make a complete thought and sentence in this written format):

Which of these 2 decisions have we made in our life so far? Will we make in the future?
• Are we interested? in change, growth, better life, career OR –
• Are we committed? to change, growth, our dream life, career, business?

When we are “Interested” – We do what is convenient and comfortable for us

When we are “Committed” – we do whatever it takes, which does include pain and discomfort. To achieve anything worthwhile, we must pay a price. There is never a FREE ride for something of value.

Which would you rather have – the pain of Discipline or Pain of Regret?
• The pain of Discipline weighs OUNCES.
• The pain of Regret weighs TONS.

Which will you and I choose for our life, our career, our family, health, happiness, wealth…………??

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

P.S. What other thoughts, ideas from John Assaraf’s presentation resonated with you? Share them with us.

Many Jewels of Wisdom came from Libby Gill at RISE… Her presentation addressed the process to clarify, simplify and execute to get ‘unstuck’. Note this is my partial, brief interpretation. Reviewing my notes was helpful for me, hopefully it is for you also. Now onto Ms. Libby’s wisdom.

When we want to change our life, we have to change our behavior. When we think about change, we can get totally overwhelmed because:

-- We don’t know what to do and how to do things to change what we want for our whole life or even one part we wish to change
-- Previous failures come to mind and it seems like it would be the ‘same old situation’ again.
-- We fear failure because we wonder who won’t love us then. This is our brain protecting us from risk.
There are several more reasons, too many to share here, but just know each of us has our own.

However the 3-step process is most valuable and here it is:

Clarify is Step 1
To develop authentic clarity, we must address our beliefs. When we are open to changing our beliefs, some of which are shared in the previous paragraph, then clarity will come. Beliefs and mindset are similar concepts to me. In Passion Branding Community, several mindset concepts are discussed in more detail.

Clarity that specifies exactly what we want in the form of goals and when is necessary as a foundation for getting what we want.

Simplify is Step 2
With a written list of our specific goals and desires, we must simplify these goals by breaking them into small baby steps, tiny, small goals that allow us to achieve the short-term mini-goals making up a larger long-term goal.

Execute is Step 3
Libby recommends we establish a ‘motto for the year’. That motto is our goal for one year, which we then break down into monthly milestones. It is most productive to focus on each monthly goal, maybe limiting each month with 3 actions steps of highest priority to achieve that goal.

Summary
Simple, effective steps and regular, consistent action assists us to progress toward and obtain what we truly want.
These steps resonate and validate my experience for myself and clients I’ve worked with over decades.

Clear and simple steps lead us to the most effective, simple actions we must take to get the most successful results!

This IS Passion Clarification, Passion Branding and Monetization! I invite you to join us in Passion Branding Community for more information and networking.

I look forward to any other comments and thoughts you gained or have.

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

The first Jewel of Wisdom came from Ellie Drake. Her solution on how we can “Self-Master” ourself, posted recently. Recall that we can overcome and release emotional challenges such as “I don’t like…” and feelings of hurt, rejection, etc. with a one-minute exercise: Breathe, say “thank-you and 1-2-3 -- Let it go”. Become our own “Self-master”.

Second Jewel is Timeless Aging and Beauty –

Do we want it? Can we have it? How? The panelist at RISE was talking about inner beauty that manifests itself as outer beauty.

Several tips were offered of which some are shared here. Meditation along with taking action in these areas were suggested.

- Feel it’s a privilege to be in your body now. Share my heart, love, sincerity, authenticity.
- Move our body.
- Eat healthy and nutritious food.
- Focus on beauty as in ‘inside job’.
- Embrace anti-aging modalities, such as getting toxins out of our body
- Embrace spirituality – be of service and bless people around us.

Ask yourself this question and and reflect on it:
How old would you be -- if you didn’t know how old you are?

A thought I have about this: How old (young) do you want to be – inside - that will show on the outside? We can effect a change, at least some change when choose.

I googled “how old are you” and found some interesting information. The net and its vast info!

Blessings and joy to you every day.

Please add your comments and thoughts about what you remember relevant to Timeless Aging and Beauty Segment of RISE.

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

Am I still on the RISE from RISE and will I continue to RISE? Maybe you want to ask yourself the same question too. For those of us at RISE to recall special thoughts and for those of you who couldn’t be with us, I’d like to share some Jewels of Wisdom – that can benefit us.

Note: The information came to us so quickly and was more comprehensive than I could scribble on my notepad, or remember. So I’m sharing what caught my attention as being relevant and important, along with my thoughts. Hope it resonates with you.

In Ellie’s opening remarks, she talked about challenges of women to ‘support ourselves’. One key principle she shared is that “we have to self-master ourself”.
We women are prone to feel and say, “I don’t like”, or we are quite sensitive to things like comments, rejection, and other things…. probably because of our nurturing nature, that we feel, respond to, and are affected easily by our emotions.

The challenges that we don’t like affect us by putting a stranglehold on our capacity and ability to function at our highest level. They prevent us… from feeling good about ourself, feeling confident, worthy, even from getting that promotion at work. These internal feelings linger in our heart and on our mind, preventing us from focusing on what we are involved in the next moments of our lives.

One-Minute Solution
Ellie suggested we look at these vexing challenges and issues as gifts that give us the chance to RISE UP and move on. Her advice: Breathe, say “thank-you and 1-2-3 -- Let it go”. Become our own “Self-master”.

Let’s take charge and conquer so we can thrive, not survive!

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

Today I received a quote from a friend that I’d like to share with you. It caught my attention, caused me to pause….. Read and share your thoughts.

It inspires us to think, to reflect deep in our heart, to share and discuss in conversation, commit to, develop a new plan and then take action -- For peace, harmony, joy, success, a ‘rich’ life (emotional, mental, physical, financial) – in our personal life, and in our business, country and the world.

Quote of wisdom from Abraham Lincoln, U.S. President:

You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative
and independence.
You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could
and should do for themselves.

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

That was the title of my BraveHeart Women blog on July 12, 2009. I made a decision, gave myself this challenge.

"My Goal - crystal clear, in writing, with total commitment from me:
I am 18 pounds lighter, feel energized, feel attractive and healthy, expressing sincere appreciation and smiling with joy as I skip through the day feeling light as a feather inside and outside."

The Gift has been received. I’m enjoying exactly what I intended – for over 2 weeks now. In fact, it worked so well, was so easy and effective that I commit to losing another 5 pounds – as soon as I return from RISE.

See you at RISE. How about --- each of us finding and committing to at least one goal (a marvelous Gift to yourself) by the end of RISE. Even if you can’t attend, join us with a Special Gift (goal) for yourself. It would be great to share your goal with all of us who made a decision and commitment.

I will gather all of our goals and share them with everyone. Just email me at BraveHeart Women or platinumbt@yahoo.com. Hey, what a neat way to encourage and support each other and enjoy the Gift you will give yourself!

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

Yes, I remember that sunny, blue sky day. Our son working in Minneapolis called us to say, 'turn on the TV - its awful'. I remained glued to watching the rest of the day. I get goosebumps just remembering it, and my pain was non-existent compared to those involved and suffering. We should NEVER forget that travesty -- AND -- the Lesson for freedom and liberty.

We recall that day and time but……. are we and I growing and getting better as people, as a nation and world - from that horrific experience?

** What did we (I) learn from that?
** What action did we (I) take from what we learned?
** Are we (I) still taking action today to protect our freedom and liberty?
*** If not, why not?
** Will our freedom and liberty remain if we (I) do little or nothing?
** What kind of actions can we (I) take every day to remain free and have our liberty as defined in the Constitution?

These are some of the questions that burst forth to me as I remembered yesterday, and saw a 60-minute segment of the events. I was brought back to REALITY – that the good and great in America for all people, including myself – and also for all people around the world – REQUIRES attention and effort. Nothing good comes without effort, energy, work, thought, constant action.

Some of my thoughts of what freedom and liberty requires of every person (and please share your thoughts too):

1. That I become and remain more aware about the ‘whole Truth’ of what is going on in our country and worldwide. To be aware of the truth we need to seek those that tell the ‘truth’.

** With the internet, as well as from other sources, it is easier to find the truth today. We can see and hear actual words spoken by the real person in many cases, seeing their body language, tone of voice and more, their authenticity or not………… and much more.
** We can read the actual written words and documents to validate if the ‘whole truth’ is told.
** Other sources like TV, etc. But we have to make sure they are presenting the ‘whole truth’.

2. Seek to understand the consequences of the ‘truth’ we learn. Is it good or NOT for promoting and retaining freedom and liberty?. Your common sense is an excellent tool for this – you and I – all ordinary citizens – are intelligent and filled with wisdom. We know in our heart, our intuition, and our soul if what is proposed and happening in our country is moving us toward or promoting liberty and freedom or NOT.

3. Take actions often:
** Ask questions often and always: of everyone at the local, regional, state and federal level who are responsible for designing, creating, promoting and approving rules, regulations, and whatever else affects us, the people.
** Ask questions, then listen very carefully, about how the topic or rule or regulation will affect us today, and especially tomorrow and for the long term.
** Determine -- using your common sense, wisdom and more – if what you hear makes sense or not, is reasonable or not, will improve our freedom and liberty or not.

4. Always remain aware and conscious of happenings in the world around us. Remember, freedom and liberty, like all good things – requires continual energy, effort and action from us, the people.

This is just a snapshot – sharing with you my deep respect and love for freedom and liberty in America. I am so very grateful for the opportunity to live in this country – AND I hope every person all over the world has that same experience.

Your thoughts are always appreciated. Let your BraveHeart show everyday for liberty and freedom!

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

I’m learning and re-learning often a valuable lesson about how to be well and healthy in mind, body and soul.

One would think after one or two times I’d stop the bad behavior. No, I repeat it over and over. When will I learn and change my habit?

What's the bad habit?
It’s so easy, comfortable, convenient to plunk myself down in front of the computer – and forget to get up, get away, take breaks. I am working at the computer, not playing….that seems good.

But --- again I notice an uncomfortable feeling in my body – the sitting position is putting stress on my bone structure…. this is a symptom – a warning from my body. I’ve experienced it MANY times before that leads to great physical distress that takes time to recover from…. physical distress that extends itself to my thoughts, feelings and more.

My chiropractor tells that people were not born to be in sitting positions for extended periods of time. Our bodies were meant for more varied types of actions and activities. Patients that come to him most often for treatment with their back and body structure issues are those who work in offices at desks, and at similar sedentary positions.

Time to change now. CHANGE is good in this situation. I commit to change now.

What helpful tips and tricks do you use regarding sedentary work time and staying physically healthy? I truly appreciate your thoughts, ideas and tips.

To the good habits you practice today and everyday.

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community

First, last week in the twin cities of Minnesota was interesting, I enjoyed exploring and learning more about the area. St. Croix County, Wisconsin (next to twin cities in Minnesota) population for year 2035 projected to increase 135% from current - Wow! Spending couple days with grand daughters is always awesome, and looking out over the lake from the shade of huge oak trees, reading a book. Peaceful, beautiful. When got back home, it was lonely.

When I was at the Library 3 weeks ago, I stumbled upon an interesting book title. A quick scan and I knew I wanted to know more. So I share it with you.

I’m not finished with the book yet, but it is a classic on the principle of trust – a Bible on the ‘trust’ principle - for improving in our personal growth, business growth, happiness, and much more.

The title tells all: Trust Rules – How to Tell the Good Guys From the Bad Guys in Work and Life, by Linda K. Stroh, Ph.D. I recommend this book to learn or reaffirm how important trust is and how we can learn who to trust, when to trust and how to trust others as well as ourselves.

I have been and I assume everyone of us has been betrayed by others, and sometimes we may have betrayed or been something less than a ‘good guy (woman)’. The book shares wisdom and simple, effective strategies on trust.

One example, quote on characteristic of trustworthy people: “Trustworthy people demonstrate good values throughout their history”. How can we determine if someone is trustworthy? When we learn what values the person had as a child, we likely understand more about them, as those values generally stay with a person throughout their life. Part of the wisdom here is “Good guys played well in the sandbox”.

Have an inspired day as you connect with trustworthy people, and trust yourself.

Barbara Filla
Passion Branding Community