The trip was happening and I knew I couldn’t survive summer in that state. It wasn’t healthy for me to be driven by all that fear. I had to take a look at what I could do to get a grip.

I reminded myself of one of most powerful tools I offer my clients: is worrying and being afraid going to change outcome? In reality, in all my life experience, I know that it doesn’t. Yes, there are real things that can happen in life but, as Oprah says, it’s your fear that has all power.

This one thought helped me to relax and remember something else that was also true. Bottom line, I trust my daughter and although inexperienced, I believe she has a solid head on her shoulders. What ever happens, I know I can deal with it. Furthermore, if I were going to be modeling anything that might have a positive influence on her, I would rather have it be that she learns, no matter what happens, SHE can deal with it.

Ironically, as it turns out, that’s been life lesson of this adventure for her too. As she’s been relating to me on our weekly phone calls, she’s had all kinds of experiences, mostly wonderful, but some challenging, and some scary. As she shares her experiences with me I’m hearing a relaxed, maturing young woman who’s dealing beautifully with life as it unfolds, just as it should be. What more can I ask for?

It’s YOUR life…imagine possibilities!

5 - Account for every penny. You might be sureprised to see exactly where your pennies are going, I know I was. When we spend anything less than $5, we rarely pay attention to it and think of it as trivial - that is until you realize you’ve spend $5 (or less) in 10 different places over course of a week - that’s $50/week give or take, $200/month - that’s almost an entire car payment. One of best investments you can make is in some accounting software such as Microsoft Money (which I use personally) or Quicken. If you’re really tight on finances, get a ledger notebook and keep it meticulously ordered and balanced. Keeping track of your money isn’t nearly as difficult as it may seem. Setting up your software usually takes less than an hour - then at end of each day - it takes about 15 minutes or less to update your transactions (depending on amount of spending and deposits). Some helpful hints: - Use software whenever possible - less work and less room for errors in balancing, also, you can quickly see where most of your money goes with charts and graphs. - Update your transactions daily. If you let it go too long, you run risk of overlooking some transactions and that’s definitely not accounting for every penny. - Save your receipts. This will come in handy when you’re updating your transactions at end of day. Save all your important receipts as well - i.e. high end electronics, furniture, appliances, etc. - If you go on vacation take a small notebook with you so you can jot down how much you spend and where at end of day. When you return home, spend some time updating it in your software program (or ledger). - Back up your records on a CD-R or floppy and save it in a fireproof safe. Try to back up your information at least once every other day. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

These rules of engagement may take a bit of getting used to, but you may find yourself pleasantly surprised at results.