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Publication Information: Copyright "The Dollar Stretcher, Inc." 2001. ISSN 1527-2974
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In this issue:

Introduction

Turning the Tables on Credit Cards
by Meredith Phillips

Real Recipes for Real People
Healthy Home-made Chicken Coating!
by Kaylin White

Plan to Save Time Tomorrow
by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

Insider Information:
Mystery Shopping
by Niccole Rogers

Low Priced Gasoline
Ask Bob: The Auto Answer Man
AskBob@stretcher.com

Tips, Quips, Quotes & Questions

On www.Stretcher.com This Week

Introduction
by Gary Foreman
gary@stretcher.com

Hello to all my Frugal Friends!
Everyone is pressed for time so we'll keep this short. Just a short note to remind you to send in your best holiday ideas. Have a wonderful week!

All the Best!
Gary

Turning the Tables on Credit Cards
by Meredith Phillips

If you are like me, you've heard the warnings against using credit cards and paying high interest rates. So, rather than pay interest to the big companies, here are a few ways I use credit cards to get paid back.

I needed a game plan. First, I cancelled all of my unnecessary cards. Then, I called the companies of the cards I kept and had my credit limits lowered to only what I would need in the near future. Now I was more attractive to other lenders. (They look at your income, expenses, and the amount of credit that is already extended to you. Also, don't apply too often or for more than one or two cards at the same time.) My previous goal had been to pay off my card balance each month, so I was no longer paying interest on any of my cards. Next, I researched and applied for a card with a cash rebate program and one with a reward for the first card use as well as discounts at certain merchants that appealed to me.

The rewards of a particular card should fit your needs. Since I was not planning to carry a balance, APR comparisons were not a factor. Annual percentage rates should only matter to those who plan to carry a balance, which is not a good idea and not our goal here. And I don't have a new car or travel often, so I wasn't looking for something like the GM (TM) Card or one that awarded frequent flyer miles.

When my new credit cards arrived, I was ecstatic! I was planning to attend a baseball game where my rewarded card would get me 10% off in the stadium gift shop and a free t-shirt with the team logo just for using my card one time! The other card gave me 2% rebates for using it at their gas stations, which just also happen to have the lowest fuel prices in town. (A double savings is so attractive!) I could also use the card at other merchants and receive 1% rebates. I save money on my purchases and get gifts and cash in return. Great! I saved on my weekend vacation(gas and souvenirs)and my Christmas shopping(stadium store and everywhere else I shop)!

Through my experiences, I have found that it is best to reduce unnecessary available credit, but always plan to allow room for unexpected expenses. I have also learned that if you carry a balance, you will eat away at any rebate or reward the card use has earned you. Remember, the trick is to make the card work for you.

A recent example of making my card work doubly hard for me: I shop for items that I will get for free (or at a major discount) after rebate. Then I pay for those purchases with my card that earns me cash back. So, here I am with my free or dirt-cheap items, earning "interest," so to speak. I usually end up breaking even when I receive the store or manufacturer's rebate, except for tax, which the credit card rebate covers. Did I mention that I get to keep the free stuff?! I use these items personally, for gifts, and in my yard sales.

Another trick to the game is that you need to plan such purchases so that your rebate checks will arrive near the time your credit card payment is due. After all, we're trying to get ahead of the game, not stuck in a jam or shuffling debt from card to card, racking up fees for cash advances or balance transfers.

Also, a good idea for department store card users is to get the usual 10% off your first purchase (hopefully during a sale), then cancel your account. Only keep and use the card if it offers a reward or rebate program, and only then if you are a frequent shopper at that particular store. Otherwise, try for a card that offers a percentage back no matter where you shop, and use it at your local stores that accept offer the best prices. I frequently use coupons and competitors' ads at stores that honor them, and I pay for my purchases with the cash back card.

My goal (as your's should be) is to keep from ever paying card companies for borrowing their money on a monthly basis(interest, transaction, and misc. fees). Think of these purchases as mini loans. I know, the companies are in it for the money, too. But statistics show that the average teen already carries a balance of over $900 a month, and there are plenty of adults paying interest fees on even more debt. Our fair share is already covered, similar to using a coupon or a senior citizen discount when the person behind you has to pay full price. I believe those of us who need to stretch a buck should have the ways and the means. And I certainly hope these ideas can help.

Meredith Phillips is also known as Ms. Cheapskate. You can visit her web page at http://members.nbci.com/mscheapskate/home.htm for the hottest time & money savers, home organizing & management, web bargains & freebies!

Real Recipes for Real People
Healthy Home-made Chicken Coating!
by Kaylin White
kaylin@realfood4realpeople.com

The time-saving products available at the grocery store are so wonderful for today's busy families! Some days, my family just would not get fed a meal that resembled anything nutritious if it weren't for convenience foods. One product that can save you time, and insure your family a low-fat, tasty main dish, is the variety of meat coating mixes available. They are great- you dump them in a zip baggie with your meat, shake them, place them on a baking sheet, and toss them in your oven. Red's Chicken Coating Mix is just this kind of mix, but you can make it ahead on a day when you have a few minutes, and then use it on those hectic days when you need to simplify your dinner preparation. I like to make several, and have found that they are also tasty coatings for other meats, such as pork chops and cube steaks.

Red's Chicken Coating Mix

• 1 cup Flour
• 1 Tbsp. Paprika
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 tsp. Black Pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
• 1/2 tsp. Onion Powder
• 1/2 tsp. Thyme, dried

Combine all ingredients together in a one gallon zip baggie; shake to mix well. Label and store in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months. Shake well before use.

To prepare chicken, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare baking sheet with 2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil; set aside.

Wash and drain up to 8 chicken breasts OR chicken thigh/leg sections. In a medium bowl, beat 3 eggs with 2 Tbsp. cold water; set aside. Dip chicken pieces, one at a time, in egg wash, then place into zip baggie with seasoning, seal, and shake to coat chicken piece. Place coated chicken parts onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes, or until chicken is tender and juices run clear.

If you enjoyed this recipe, you can receive more free spice, soup & dry rub recipes by sending a blank email to: soup@realfood4realpeople.com or for free daily email recipes, visit www.realfood4realpeople.com or subscribe by sending an email to: realfood-subscribe@yahoogroups.com copyright 2001, Kaylin White/Real Food for Real People All Rights Reserved.

Plan to Save Time Tomorrow
by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

A poet once said, "The most powerful time is when you are alone, thinking about what you are to do rather than the doing itself." You've been reminded many times, "A stitch in time saves nine". Daily Planning is the time you ought to set aside each evening to plan out and take control over the most precious resource at your command, the next twenty-four hours. Done correctly, Daily Planning is not an expense that will cost you time but an investment that will pay you back many times over the time invested.

Here are four important steps to follow each day during your Daily Planning time.

1. Create a To Do list of everything you "have to" do and everything you "want to" do during the next day. If you want to manage it, you have to measure it first. Add actions steps to take care of your commitments and responsibilities but also include other action items to help you to balance your life more effectively and achieve more of your goals in each of your Seven Vital Areas: health, family, financial, intellectual, social, professional, and spiritual.

2. Review every item on your To Do list and ask yourself three questions with regard to each item:

a. "Is this the best use of my time?" If it is, plan to do it. If it isn't, try to figure out a way to delegate it.

b. "Is there a better or more efficient way of handling or completing this item?" For example, combining telephone calls and making them all together.

c. "Is there anything I can do in advance to prepare for this task?" Do you need supplies or information from another to get it done?

Most of the time I cannot delegate my tasks, find a better way to do it, or do anything to better prepare for it, but I can always find a few ways to improve. Whatever those improvements are, add them to your To Do list as action items

3. Review any Appointments and Scheduled events you have planned for the next day and ask yourself the same three questions you asked in step #2 above. As you review each commitment, determine if it is the best use of your time.

Maybe you are scheduled to attend a meeting that has little value to you. Try to get excused. See if there is a better way to handle each commitment. For example, instead of an actually meeting with someone, are you able to fax, email, or call that person instead? Can you do anything to better prepare for it? If you have a doctor's appointment, are there questions you can write down to ask the doctor.

Whatever these improvements are, add them to your To Do list as actions items.

4. Prioritize your To Do list. Place the number "1" next to the most important item on your list. Place the number "2" next to the second most important item. Continue prioritizing the entire list. You now have a To Do list of all the items you "have to" do, but, more importantly, all the items you "want to" do, including action items to help you achieve your goals and better life balance and make your appointments and scheduled events and To Do list items flow more smoothly.

The process of Daily Planning will save you more time in the long run than what you spend to do it and will increase your daily productivity each day.

Dr. Donald E. Wetmore's article, "Crucial v Not Crucial" will help you to easily identify what you really need to get done in your day to increase your productivity. It's free. To get yours now, email your request for: "crucial" to: ctsem@msn.com Receive your free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal productivity and get more out of every day? Sign up now for your free "Timely Time Management Tips". Just go to: www.topica.com/lists/timemanagement and select "subscribe".

Insider Information:
Mystery Shopping
by Niccole Rogers

Making money to shop and evaluate service sounds like the perfect job to most people. Becoming a secret shopper is a dream and becoming a successful secret shopper is a closely guarded secret.

Successful and established shoppers often have one thing in common. As their careers begin to blossom, they designed a secret shopping power plan.

A secret shopper power plan is similar to a small business plan. Power plans consist of identifying goals and methods of reaching those goals. As independent contractors, a secret shopper power plan should contain detailed information, including:

• Mapping work schedules,
• Identifying boundaries, and
• Focusing on financial goals.

Great power plans also help shoppers overcome a major barrier that is often a killer career move. In a rush to establish and build a reputation, new shoppers accept assignments that do not meet or exceed any of their power plan goals. This causes secret shoppers to suffer "burn-out." Assignments should be beneficial for all parties involved in some way.

A new shopper may be inclined to take on a short term assignment that does not directly meet any of their power plan goals. However, the assignment can be used as work experience for the new shopper. Although this particular assignment does not meet any of the power plan goals, the assignment offers an alternative benefit to the shopper.

Another focal point in a power plan is the development of financial statements. This is often overlooked as new secret shoppers have so much fun doing their assignments that they forget about paying taxes on earned income. Unprepared secret shoppers panic during tax season as they search for receipts and records to include in tax forms. Financial statements can also help shoppers stay on track with their power plans.

To find out more about building and establishing a career as a secret shopper, check out the links below.

• National Center for Shoppers & Merchandisers www.justshop.org
• Lead Manager www.leadmgr.com
• Melanie - Shopping Coach http://members.aol.com/jmoreau1/melanie.html
• Sonya - Secret Shopper Tax Consultant http://mysteryshoppercentral.homestead.com/index1.html
• Alisa - "S" Shoppers http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sshoppers
• SuperShoppers Groups www.supershoppersgroup.com
• Amy Lots O Fun www.lots-o-fun.com