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| | Headlines from our Quarterly News Letters
| The term describes people who are "addicted" to their
BlackBerries, cell phones, and other hand-held personal digital assistants
(PDA). |
| Webster's New World Dictionary dubbed crackberry the 2006
word fo the year. |
| Other interesting info: |
| Mouse potato and thumb generation are up-and-coming terms |
| The "crackberry prayer" describes the sight of devoted
users hunched over their hand-held tools |
| CrackBerry.com claims to be the "the No. 1 Site for
BlackBerry users |
| The Sheration Chicago offers to lock guests' PDAs in the
hotel safe to demonstrate there's life after e-mail |
| ...another tidbit from MSN Money by Liz Pulliam Weston |
| 1. Use direct deposit - seems logical. But,
one in three people stand in line at a back, or even worse, use a
check-cashing outlet that takes a portion of that check |
| 2. Get overdraft protection - bounced checks are
expensive and embarrassing |
| 3. Put you bills on automatic. There are
three basic ways to do this: direct payment, credit-card chares and
online bill payment |
| 4. Use personal finance software - A couple of
options are out there that are easy to use |
| 5. Set up reminders - credit card bills paid on
line send emails reminders. Financial software features include
reminders for bills |
| 6. Consolidate you credit cards. The more
cards you have the more due dates you need to keep track of - and more
likely you will make a mistake |
| 7. Consolidate your accounts. The more
scattered yur money, the harder it is to track |
| 8. Set up a filing system that works. Have
only one place for bills |
| Below is an excerpt from MSN Money... |
| If you ever use your debit card to pay at the pump, watch
out: Did you know that every time you top off the tank, a chunk of your
checking account can be blocked- sometimes for days, wit the potential to
cause you all sorts of financial headaches and bounced checks? |
| If you use you debit card at a pump that does not require
a PIM, the financial institution that sources you card will block out an
amount - generally $75 - on your card. |
| That amount does NOT unblock as your drive away.
Instead, the hold remains up to 72 hours, until the station does a "batch"
transaction that lets the bank know the actual amount. |
| The length of the hold is up to your financial
institution, the amount is determined by your gas retailer. |
| Each big oil company has a different policy : Shell says
it preauthorizes just $1 for gas purchases. Chevron says it has a $1
hold that ensures a card is active. BP preauthorizes $75, along with
its Amoco and Arco stations. |
| The reasoning behind this policy is that oil companies
don't know how much gas you're about to pump -- only PIN-based debit
transactions are processed immediately - and so they earmark a certain
amount of your money. |
| 1. Start early - Have a conversation
with you kids about what excites them. Cultivate their genius at a
young age by exploring the things they are passionate about. |
| 2. Try some stuff - Encourage your kids
to try things out. Through trial and error, find one plan or product
that excites them into entrepreneurship. |
| 3. Ask questions - Now that you've got
a product, what does it take to get from here to there. Ask you
children to think through what needs to be done. What materials will
they need, what inventory levels are required, who suppliers will be?
How will they pay for the materials? Then discuss raising capital, and
budgeting. |
| 4. Talk about values - what is
important. Share with others. Play fair. Listen. When
finished, print on poster board. Now the company values have been
defined. |
| 5. Make a business plan - Create a
one-page document answering the following questions. What is my
business? Who are my customers? How will customers learn about
me? How am I different? |
| 6. Find you child's leadership style.
Every child has a unique selling point. Make them fell good by
building a leadership platform bases on their assets. |
| 7. Be an evangelist for you business -
Work out a promotional plan with your children. They should be
actively involved in the sales. Use all ideas, don't create barriers. |
| 8. Film a commercial - Kids know about
commercials, it's fun to do, and builds confidence in children to be a part
of the process. |
| 9. Use the Internet - Most children are
internet savvy. Teach them internet marketing strategies. |
| 10. Serve others - Ask you children how
they see them selves giving back to the world. Teach them about social
responsibility - giving a certain percentage of profit to charity, or donate
time. |
How do
you financial practices measure up?
| Children learn what they live. |
| It' not how much you make that matters but
how you make do. |
| Do you look at purchases and determine
whether it is a need or a want? |
| Sweat the small stuff, especially if you
income is limited. |
| You do right by you kinds if you teach them
about money. |
| The mall is a "den of inequity".
People need to stop shopping as entertainment. |
| Financial literacy efforts must include a
passionate plea to spend less and manage debit. |
| Prosperity isn't about stuff. It's a
way to financial security and peace. |
Risk Prevention
by Credit Unions
| What have credit unions done since 9/11
to protect your assets? |
| Post 9/11, credit unions have developed
compliance procedures for the USA Patriot Act and the Bank Secrecy Act.
Credit Unions have worked with their software suppliers to utilize these
resources in the compliance process. Our software provides the
following protection services: |
| 1. Reports track transaction
amounts. |
| 2. All transactions are scanned for
suspicious activity. |
| 3. Checks accountholders against
the Office of Foreign Assets Control, checks incoming and outgoing wires,
flags matches, and alerts compliance officers |
| 4. Identifies unusual debit card
use patterns and other factors to identify fraud scenarios. It
identifies unusually large checks and patterns associated with check kiting. |
Are you and your children financially literate?
| It's that time of year to once again focus on our most
important asset, our children. Our National Credit Union Association
(CUNA) has published guiding principles to apply to literacy efforts.
The principles listd below are separted for youth and parents. |
Youth must:
- have personal goals
- develop a savings habit
- have regular income
- have the freedom to make real decisions and real mistakes
|
Parents must:
- learn the skills to set good examples
- reinforce learning
- articulate commitment to youth financial education
- communicate clearly and repeatedly the value of financial education
- develop and record measures of success
- share financial education success stories and best practices
|
Check Fraud Reminder
| Technology continues to fuel the growth of check fraud. |
| Criminals can buy check-printing kits at the local office
supply store. |
| Criminals can manufacture counterfeit checks on their
home printers. |
| Most counterfeit checks in circulation today imitate
cashier's checks. |
| Criminals use identity theft to open accounts and receive
loans. |
| Most frequent use of counterfeit checks is internet sales
of big ticket items and lottery scams. |
What
do politicians know about credit unions?
| CNUA has launched a new campaign this year within
Congress to promote the importance of Credit Unions and their tax free
status. The campaign is "Look Out of the Little Guy". The focus
of Credit Unions is to support middle-income working Americans, seeking to
improve their lives, but getting by largely paycheck to paycheck.
Reportedly, two thirds of Americans currently live paycheck to paycheck. |
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