It is no laughing matter to see people making these money management mistakes. Have you made any of these mistakes with your money?

1. They have never worked out the amount of money they really need every week to exceed just paying their bills. They haven't worked out a budget.

The appropriate definition of a BUDGET is: the calculation of the amount of money needed for an organization to function and achieve its purpose. If you are satisfied to just pay your bills, and you never pay yourself first into a savings plan, you will make other people wealthy and you will stay poor. Every vendor that you get a bill from is running their business to make a profit. You should run your business to make a profit. Your income target must include enough profit or the enterprise will go broke and fail.

2. They haven't worked out a way to make more income than they currently need, and then be willing to do whatever it takes to carry out their plan.

By UNDER estimating the amount of income needed to exceed breaking even, they typically set their income target too low and lose more money existing on credit instead of getting busy raising their income. Anyone can discover ways to make more money; it is more often the 'willingness to do whatever it takes' that is the problem.

3. They have a habit of spending more money than they make.

Using your money to buy the 'appearance' of having wealth is a dangerous activity. I refer to this type of spender a Gratification Groupie. This can catch up with you fast and over a short time can drown you in debt. This situation causes constant worry about money and makes for lots of sleepless nights. Money does not buy happiness. However, doing something worthwhile and productive and being appreciated for it will make you feel like a million bucks.

4. They never figure out what they will need in the future and then set aside a little money every week so they can pay cash for the purchase later.

Purchasing things with a credit card because you don't have the money is committing your future production to the credit card company. You are then in economic slavery to the credit company. The correct method to buy things, especially big ticket items, is to set aside a small amount every week until you have enough cash to pay for the item, and then go out and negotiate a big cash discount. The guy with the CASH IS KING!

5. They buy services and products based on WANT rather than on NEED.

Purchasing decisions must be based on how your buying the product or service can help you produce additional income for you. Let's be honest here, do you want the latest cell phone that offers email retrieval and text messaging because your friends have one, or do you need it to increase your work productivity because you are traveling to close the next business deal?

6. They never put money into a retirement savings plan so they have it for use later in life.

Are you counting on the younger workers' future production to supply you with Social Security income when you stop working? Boy, that is a huge gamble! Despite the fact the government reports the annual cost of living is rising 3 - 3.5% a year, the real figure is 8 - 12% a year. You have to make that much more income just to stay even. Why does our government say it is only 3 - 3.5%? Regrettably, it's because the government has to increase Social Security payments every year by the percentage they report. Our Social Security system is already bankrupt and those living on Social Security alone are going in the same direction.

7. They never develop multiple sources of income. If one source disappears they are in financial trouble.

The old saying 'don't put all your eggs into one basket' holds true today, especially in terms of income sources. Locate profitable services or products you can add, or business ventures you can participate in that are ethical, and have a great chance of producing a residual income.

8. They get stressed out about how little interest their bank pays on savings accounts while they are getting killed with much higher interest rates by carrying balances on their credit cards.

If you have high credit card debt, you are better off using excess cash to pay down the debt and stop the high interest payments rather than trying to earn interest from the bank. As you pay off your debt, you should also keep sufficient cash on hand to cover a few months of basic living expenses. Once the debt is gone, or will be soon, then start investing any excess cash where you can get real growth.

9. They get stressed out about 'the economy' in general.

I'm surprised that people are actually more worried about 'the economy' than about their business or household failing financially. They stress over what the media is reporting about 'the economy' when that is something they can't control, while never confronting how they are affecting the economy of their own business or household, which is something they CAN control. An increase in unemployment is no reason to worry. Small business' creation of new jobs greatly exceeded the number of jobs lost in major corporations, according to the latest ADP report. A failing bank is no reason to panic. Banks receive bailouts from the FDIC and other investors. Nobody is standing by to bail out your failing business. That is entirely up to you. So keep promoting your business, put aside some cash, and sleep like a baby while the dire news about 'the economy' rages around you.

10. They expect to survive financially without accepting total responsibility for controlling their financial future.

Money problems have a simple solution. Cut expenses, increase your income, and correctly manage the money you do get. It's not only about how much money you make, it's what you do with it that determines your financial condition.

Proper money management is something educational institutions don't teach. People receive bad advice and false information about how to handle money. So then they make these silly mistakes, get into worse trouble, attempt to solve the problem using credit, create more trouble, and then go searching for debt relief.

Fortunately, there is an inexpensive, proven, money management software system that can reverse the money management mistakes a person has made in the past, and keeps them from making those same mistakes again. It is an old-school system that your great grandparents used prior to the days of credit cards. Very wealthy people understand and use this system today.

Sandra Simmons, President of Money Management Solutions, Inc., has years of experience helping business owners and individuals manage their income to achieve their financial golas. To learn more visit www.moneymgmtsolutions.com