by Harrine Freeman

1. Direct deposit: Cashing checks at a check-cashing store costs on average anywhere from 1% to 5% of the amount of the check. Use direct deposit for free.

2. Education. Go back to school or take training classes to expand your skills at your current job to get a promotion or salary increase. Then create a savings account, plan for retirement, pay down debts and/or pay for necessary expenses.

3. Budget. If you are in debt, stop using your credit cards and pay with cash. Create a budget for yourself to determine your total monthly expenses and your total monthly income. Reevaluate your spending habits, reduce your expenses and plans or cancel them (cable, phone, cell phone, Internet, etc.). Shop at discount stores or outlets, use coupons, carpool, etc.

4. Savings. You should have enough saved to cover 3 to 6 months of your bill payments. Try opening a high interest online savings account such as http://www.emigrantdirect.com/ or http://www.ing.com/, which earns you on average 4% to 5% interest.

5. Seek Help. Go to the library or do research online for various ways to reduce expenses, gain new skills, and shop on a budget. Some great websites are www.budgetdial.com and www.stretcher.com.

Harrine Freeman is the CEO of H.E. Freeman Enterprises, a credit repair and personal finance services company. She is a member of the American Association of Daily Money Managers, a credit repair expert and the author of, “How to Get Out of Debt: Get an ‘A’ Credit Rating for Free Using the System I’ve Used Successfully with Thousands of Clients.” For more information visit http://www.hefreemanenterprises.com/.

On July 4^th, 1776, the United States of America adopted the Declaration of Independence. And yes, we’ve commemorated the day with fireworks displays since 1777!  So go BBQ some ribs, hot dogs or veggie burgers with your closest friends and family and be sure to teach Uncle Joe the true lyrics of The Star-Spangled Banner (“It’s ramparts, Uncle Joe, ramparts”).  Additionally, show your patriotism and help your country through volunteering, donating to aid organizations, or simply flying the American flag.  Enjoy!

Running late to work, to class, back home?  Constantly putting the pedal to the metal?  Here are some tips on how to counteract your excessive gas use, save a few bucks at the pump, and help the environment: 

1. Use alternative transportation (Click here for SF).  Carpool, Bike, Take the Bus, Walk!
2. Run errands at one time versus going back and forth
3. Chill on the air conditioning
4. Be smart about driving:
   1. Start and stop gradually.  No 0-60 in 60 seconds ya’ll.
   2. Drive the speed limit, not only are you obeying the law, but you’re actually getting better gas mileage.
   3. Clean out your trunk.  Getting rid of excess weight increases fuel economy too!

Check out these and more fuel saving tips at www.fueleconomy.gov.  They also have pretty cool links to find the stations with the cheapest gas in your area.

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Check out what the outsiders have to say about being a Gen Y-er.  Generation Y is from 1978 to 1990 so I guess I just made the cut.  It sounds pretty bad at first, but then they bring in the good stuff…..  You know you like us

Gen Y Myths Debunked
“Are young employees really the slackers, whiners and praise-junkies they’re made out to be? Here’s what the experts have to say.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19070239/

Watch out now!  We are becoming more technically savvy day by day. Check out the new links to the right for our own RSS feed and email subscription for our blog.

Going into debt for graduate school is for a good cause – right?  The student loans are worth the reward in the end - correct?  This article deals with the reality that sometimes enrolling in graduate school does not make the best financial sense.  Take a look and make sure that you are prepared to make the plunge.  For me, grad school was one of the best decisions I ever made.  It was also one of the cheapest: PhD programs in the sciences often pay your tuition.

Sometimes Grad
School Can Be a Big Financial Mistake by Aleksandra Todorovahttp://finance.comcast.net/personalfinance/view.html?x=debt/advice/gradschool&cvqh=finance_gradschool

As you know (or have easily discovered),  I have a passion for increasing the diversity of people in the sciences.  Here is a recent article from Nature Medicine describing the importance of diversity in the sciences, and some ideas of how to go about developing it.

http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v13/n5/full/nm0507-513.html

“If American science is to meet the needs of all of its citizens, its scientists must reflect the diversity of the country’s population.”

Hello, we’ve added RSS Feeds to two cool blogs, Brazen Careerist and Employee Evolution.  These blogs tackle the corporate arena from a woman’s perspective, and from a 20 something’s perspective.  Read up!

I saw this link on an email I received for a diversity event.  I think that the tests are really interesting and I definitely learned about my own biases!  If you’re a big nerd like me you’ll think that taking the tests are fun too.  I guess the next step is that now that I am more aware of my biases, I must consciously work to overcome them and treat people equally in spite of them.  Do you harbor biases that you’re unaware of?  Take the free exam! ( https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/)

Admit it, we all still jam to the Destiny’s Child song about these ladies buying their own car, shoes and jewelry, proudly stating that “I depend on me.”  In addition to singing about it, we sisters need to be about it.  To get your finances in order, check out the book Personal Finance for Dummies by Eric Tyson.  Or, from the Queen of Money Management herself, flip through The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke by Suzy Orman.  A great way to start saving pennies is to borrow these books from your local library!