The Great Starter Kit Give Away

As a way of saying thank you to readers for offering testimonials about IOU NO MORE, we will be giving away 3 Starter Kits at the end of November. The Kits include the notebook, mechanical pencil, one paper set of IOU NO MORE forms, one IOU NO MORE FORMS LIBRARY cd with all our forms in both customizable and .pdf formats and one envelope/receipt folder.

To be eligible, simply submit a testimonial (review) of the book on Amazon.com and email a copy of the testimonial to info@iounomore.com. Use the word, 'Testimonial' in the heading. Please include your name in the email. You don't need to include a mailing address. We respect your privacy. On Nov 30, we will draw three names randomly from the entries. At that time, we'll announce the names of the winners and we will ask only those individuals drawn to send us addresses where we can mail the Kits. If you haven't read the book yet, this would be a great month to join the revolution!

Mixed Results

Needless to say, as the author of IOU NO MORE, I follow the results of book sales pretty closely. Some weeks I am very encouraged by the results, other weeks are disappointing. Of course, since we don't have national marketing or anything those kinds of ups and downs are too be expected. On the up side, those who buy the book have had good things to say. I've received many positive comments. I am pleased that people are being helped.

The website continues to generated large volumes of hits and I get many requests for the free spending plan. I love hearing from folks so please keep the notes and questions coming.

If your Church, civic group, workplace, school or other organization is looking for a workshop or seminar on handling debt or money management, please consider an IOU NO MORE Live Event. Spread the word.

Momentum is building

From the moment IOU NO MORE was published and this web log was launched, we have said that our intent is to start a revolution. A "Live Free" revolution. And I'm happy to say that momentum is beginning to build. Every day I hear from men and women who have had enough and want to take back control of their finances and their futures.

On one hand, it's sad that so many people are straining under the yoke of debt and financial mismanagement. But, that's the past. We've all made mistakes. No one knows that more than I do. I am encouraged by the number of people who are ready to break the chains and live free.

With that in mind, we at IOU NO MORE are working to put together a discussion board where fellow revolutionaries can meet together to support one another, ask questions, share tips, confess and just talk. So stay tuned, it's coming very soon.

Maxed Out

Last night, Brittan and I watched the docu-movie, "Maxed Out". I am told that the DVD has been one of NexFlix hottest rentals of late. I'm glad to hear that. Everyone should see it.

There were times, when the films left leaning bias frustrated me. For example, the only references in the program to personal responsibility as it relates to getting into debt, come from the smarmy managers of the Debt Collection agency. I find that unfortunate and believe it makes the whole documentary unbalanced.

On the other hand, the film makers do an excellent job of demonstrating the underbelly of the Credit Card industry and the devastating effects on the lives and families who find themselves buried in unsecured debt of various kinds.

Especially poignant are the stories of grieving families whose loved ones concluded that suicide was the only viable escape from their debt crises. These were interlaced with tragic tales of individuals and families who fell prey to unscrupulous sub prime lenders.

Pretty much all the major banks were portrayed as greedy, power broking evil doers who pretty much own Washington and get whatever they want. I doubt that Colombian drug lords could be painted in a more sinister light.

In the end, despite it's biases skewed viewpoints, one clear message comes through; credit card debt is BAD! Perhaps an upside of characterizing Bankers as purveyors of addiction, will be that we will learn to respond to the myriad offers of cards and loans the same way we teach our children to respond to the offers of drugs they hear and "Just say NO!"

See the movie. Watch it with your "baloney detector" turned on. And hopefully, when you're done, some plastic will be executed. I have some scissors if you need them.

Holy Cow, Where does the time go?

I can't believe how much time has passed since I last made an entry for this blog. Any readers probably think I've died. Or emigrated to Australia....

I've been very busy with work, our Church and a few other projects and didn't even notice how badly this spot has been neglected.

When you think about it, our finances get away from us in almost the exact same way. We get busy, don't pay attention and before you know it, the check book is a mess, bills are late and credit cards are at the max.

We have to stay on top of our money all the time, or it will run amok like an escaped zoo animal. It is a restless beast, ready to break free and devour us if given half a chance. But with vigilance and commitment, our finances can be tamed and even trained to do our bidding and give us pleasure.

First Live Event is History

Our first IOU NO MORE LIVE event is now in the books. While the crowd was fairly small, we had a great time together. We laughed a lot and busted more than a few myths about the inevitability of debt. I can't wait for the next event.

Website Issues

One of my favorite parts of the website, Tip of the Week, is malfunctioning. Actually, it has disappeared. Perhaps it's been kidnapped by a Credit Card Collection Company. At any rate, we are working on the problem and hope to have things working properly, soon.