By Jeffrey Strain | MainStreet.com

Even the smartest people let stupid costs creep into their budgets.

You might focus on stretching every last dime, but you can sabotage yourself if you rack up costs you could easily avoid. Here are some common expenses that can add up over time:

Traffic tickets: When you’re in a rush, you’re likely to drive too fast or miss a “no parking” sign. Next thing you know, a police officer is writing you a $200 ticket or your car is being towed.

Besides the fines you’re charged, tickets can cause your car insurance rates to rise, raising your expenses long-term. Driving fast also wastes gas and raises your accident risk.

Bank fees: Whether through overdraft penalties or automatic teller machine fees, banks charge customers in many ways. Avoiding these fees requires people to simply pay more attention.

Leave a small cushion in your bank account to prevent overdrafts. Look for banks that offer free checking and savings accounts or better yet, ones that would pay interest on your balances. And try to avoid ATM fees by anticipating your cash needs in advance so you’re not forced to turn to the closest machine if you find yourself in a rush and low on money.

Late payments: It’s easy to forget a bill. But your bad memory or poor organization skills will cost you through late fees and higher interest rates.

Avoid late payments by paying all your bills together on a specific day each month. You can also arrange for your bank to automatically pay your bills as soon as they arrive.

Automatically renewed memberships and subscriptions: Many people sign up for memberships and subscriptions that automatically renew each month with the best intentions. In reality, they don’t end up using them and they continue to be charged.

Review all your memberships and subscriptions and ask yourself if you’re using them. If you aren’t, it’s time to cancel them.

Untapped discounts or negotiation opportunities: While haggling isn’t as common in the U.S. as it is in other countries, there are certain situations in which negotiating a price is not only acceptable, it’s expected. Buying a car is a good example. Still, some people would rather pay the listed price instead of making a lower offer.

People often qualify for discounts because they’re members of clubs like trade organizations or AAA. But they might be too embarrassed to ask about them at the register. If you’re one of these people, find a less shy friend to help you.

Building your credit from the bottom up is extremely important, but you need to make sure you are doing it the right way. You do not want to run yourself into a ton of debt that you are unable to get yourself out of. Coming out of high school and going into college is typically when young adults get their first credit card. Often, parents encourage their children to open credit cards “in case of emergencies.” However, everyone knows that the credit card gets used much more often than just emergencies in real life.

Having a Bank Account – Making sure you have a checking or savings account open in your name is one of the first things you can do towards getting your own credit card. Credit card companies like to see that you may have some type of money and be responsible enough to have a bank account that they should allow you to open a credit card. Either way, having your own bank account when you are younger is extremely important whether or not you are going to be opening a credit card in the near future.

Seeking Out Your Parents – Often credit card companies are worried about allowing you to open your own card. However, if your parents co-sign with you when you are opening your credit card then you may be able to get a larger credit limit. Building credit with your parents as a co-sign and especially if they are going to be helping you pay the bills is a great way to get started with your first credit card.

No Annual Fee/Low Interest – Credit cards like American Express often charge an annual fee just for having their credit card. However, there are many cards that do not require you to pay an annual fee. For your first credit card you really do not want to be paying more than you have to. Paying off the credit card bill can be difficult enough but an annual fee on top of that is just unnecessary. A low interest rate is also important. However, with your first credit card (and if you are opening one as a student) the interest rate is typically higher than you would like.

Do Not Open Too Many – Students sometimes go overboard when they are opening their first credit cards. Instead of just opening one, they continue to open cards in stores, with banks, to get points, etc. and end up with a dozen different cards. Be safe and stick to one or two credit cards, you really do not need so many and later on you will just end up wanting to close some anyway. Plus, keeping track of how much money you are spending when you have several different cards open at once can become difficult and overwhelming.

Get a Card with Rewards – With the abundant amount of credit cards that you can apply for today, you should really be getting a card that offers you some type of rewards. These rewards may be points towards merchandise, cash back, or a card that offers air miles. If you are going to be putting your money on a credit card anyway, you may as well get something back for it.

Pay As You Go – Putting as many purchases as you can on your credit card definitely builds up your credit. However, the key is to pay your credit card off and not have to pay any interest each month. If you are able to, pay off your purchases as you go. Although your bill is not due until the end of the month, paying as you go will take money out of your checking account (so you do not think you have more money than you actually do) and will allow you to stay on top of your credit card bill so that it isn’t a big surprise at the end of the month.

Follow some of these tips (or all of them) and you will definitely be able to begin building your credit. As with any credit card, make sure you really know how much money you are putting on it. Being responsible with your spending will help build your credit the most; building up a ton of bad credit card debt will not.

— By Hannah Waters, Geezeo.com

Photo by: mensatic

If advancing into college is the next stage of your life after high school (which for some it may not be) preparing yourself along the way is crucial. You cannot just walk into school one day your senior year and fill out a college application and make it work…you have to be thinking about college throughout high school in order to build your college application and make it work to your advantage.

Do Your Homework – Although homework typically does not count towards your grade once you get to college, it is a huge part of your grade in high school. It might surprise you how much you can increase your grades just by getting your homework done each night. In the grand scheme of things, it will help you when the report card comes out to be on the honor roll (or even better in the National Honors Society) and be able to brag about this on your college applications.

Extracurricular Activities – People stress this in high school all the time and talk to you about how important these classes and activities really are. When you are in high school you think these classes are just a waste of time. However, they show your prospective colleges that you can do more than just school work. Engaging yourself in school activities and different classes adds to who you are as a person and can give the college insight into what you like to do. Things like being a peer leader, team captain, on student counsel, writing for the school newspaper, or participating in different sports/clubs can definitely help you out.

Take AP Classes – If you have found your strong suit in high school such as Chemistry, Math, or English…then be sure to take Advanced Placement (AP) classes in order to further your education on a higher level. If it is too easy for you to get A’s in your College Placement (CP) classes, then you should push yourself even further. It will look much better in your application if you are able to show off an A in an AP class! Also, once you take the AP class, you are able to take an AP test in order to earn college credits. Although not all schools accept these college credits, if a school does it can be of great benefit to you and allow you to bypass certain classes in college.

Prepare for your SATs/ACTs – Not everyone is good at taking standardized tests. Everyone is different, but if you have no prepared at all then you have nobody to blame but yourself. You do not necessarily need to spend a ton of money on a class. Even buying a few books and reading through them and taking the tests can help you grasp a better understanding of what these tests will be like. Hopefully your scores will reflect in the effort you put towards preparing for these tests.

See Your Guidance Counselor – Making an appointment with your guidance counselor for them to look over an essay or how you filled out your college application may help you. They will be more than happy to help you with at least one (if not all) of your applications to make sure that they are reflecting who you are as a person and what you have to offer.

You must make sure to think of your college application as a resume that will show schools what your life was like in high school. Thinking of your college applications as your resume will help you understand that the colleges would like to know as much as possible about you (just as an employer would). College applications are extremely time consuming to fill out, but if you have prepared yourself throughout the past four years of high school you will be able to write it down on paper with no problem.

— By Hannah Waters, Geezeo.com

Photo by: Doctor Bob

Happy Earth Day!

To celebrate Geezeo sent a shirt to Jason Sadler, the man behind IWearYourShirt.com. We thought it would be great for him to wear ours today since Geezeo wants you to save green (money) and live green, too! Here’s our design. Check in with Jason to see where he’s heading today wearing our shirt!

Make a super-cool pillow
Sew it into a little skirt for your toddler
Make a quilt
Donate it to a worthy organization — for less fortunate people, or even animal rescue (who use old shirts to line cages)
Cut it up and use it for cleaning rags (saves you the literal and environmental cost of paper towels)
Use duct tape to make a one-of-a-kind shopping tote
Make yourself a halter top
…or even get yourself ready for summer by turning your shirt into a sexy bikini.

Whatever you do… don’t just throw it away! Throwing it away is like throwing away money.

With the cost of college education on the rise, parents are finding it difficult to find the money to afford a college education for their children. Instead more and more students are forced to look to student loans or a cheaper education just to make ends meet. Making sure to start saving for your child’s college education as soon as possible will help a great deal when the time arrives.

Here are some reasons to start saving today…

1.) Start Young – Starting when they are young in anticipation that they will go to college is extremely important. There are many children that decide not to go to college, if your children choose that path then you have already saved some money towards your own retirement or something else you may want in the future. Making sure you have a separate account to save for your children’s college education means that you won’t feel the need to take money from this account if it is mixed in with your other money in savings.

2.) Increasing Cost – The price of a college education is not going to drop any time soon. As each year passes, college becomes more and more expensive. Although you can get discounts for in-state education and state schools, funding a college education can be costly and at times unreachable if you are not prepared ahead of time.

3.) Difficulty Getting Loans – Although loans and scholarships help many students get through their college years, student loans are becoming more difficult to get as federal and state funding is cut back. If you are unable to get a loan, you may have your children look at less expensive schools in order to help them get the education they want. Having some money in savings for their education can definitely help them through the next four years of their life, especially if they are unable to get that loan they were hoping for.

4.) Saving Over Time – Saving money over time is less painful than saving when the time arrives. Putting a little bit of money away each week or month for your child’s education will help in the long run. Although there are going to be times where saving money might be difficult, even putting a little bit of money away for your child’s future will be beneficial.

5.) Have Them Help – Having your children help you save will lessen the impact on your wallet. Maybe they are not paying for tuition, but if they are putting away some savings for their own education, they can pay for books and supplies each year of their college education. Books are extremely expensive every semester; even having your children put some of their savings towards some part of their education will be beneficial to you and help them understand the value of money.

Although these are five reasons that saving early can definitely help when it comes to your child’s college education, there are always many more reasons that people have for saving early and saving often! Make sure that if you plan to help your children with their education past high school that you definitely begin saving as soon as possible. And remember, you are not alone…many other people are having tuition woes as well!

— By Hannah Waters, Geezeo.com

Photo By: Jane M. Sawyer

This is part two of our interview series with race car driver Danny Bopp. You can win the Geezeo-emblazoned, autographed hood of his car later this month. More info here.

Danny, you were unable to compete in the ARCA RE/Max Series race on April 19th due to lack of funds. I’m sure you were very disappointed. Yet, at the same time, that’s exactly what we’ve been discussing: pursuing dreams frequently requires monetary hurdles, too. Knowing this won’t slow you down. What’s your next move?

Well, you are right, there are many obstacles you must face, and at times it is disappointing. My next move is to take a step back and analyze why I was not able to overcome this, and continue new and improved strategies that I am sure will work. I am currently meeting with new potential sponsors, as well as new race teams to drive for.

Today we’re talking about multiple channels of income to support a larger goal/dream. When you don’t meet a benchmark, how do you personally bounce back and stay focused?

Not making a standard to me means there is an avenue or angle I have not taken or focused on enough to see the results I need to see. Disappointment is part of the challenge, and not everyday is going to be perfect. Realizing that everything does not work out the way it should now can actually become a blessing in disguise at a later time.

As we discussed last week there are real-world costs associated with pursuing a dream. To work toward your racing goal you’ve aggressively pursued other income channels, all of them entrepreneurial. What sorts of projects do you do? How do they fund your main objective?

I actually began modeling and acting around the time I started racing, at twelve. I learned at an early age what it takes to be my own brand as well as own my own business. I believe a person has more independence and responsibility when running their own business. Racing is very much in the same manner. You have to learn marketing, business development, and accounting. Pursuing a dream is a self-motivating lifestyle.

If you weren’t a race car driver, do you think you’d still pursue small business ventures?

Absolutely. I love everything about what it takes to run and manage a business. Along with driving, I have other avenues that I firmly believe in that I may still begin if my schedule allows.

What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned as an entrepreneur? What are the benefits?

There are pros and cons to both. By working a stable job, you have a steady income, possibly a 401K, etc., and with being an entrepreneur the stability is not there, but there are many leadership skills you must acquire to stay on top of trends and your finances. The biggest lesson I have learned is to always be courteous and respectful to everyone you meet. You never know when your paths may cross again.

What advice would you share with someone who is starting a business in order to support a larger goal?

I believe the proper education is necessary, but can only take you so far. It is up to the individual. It really comes down to common sense. Do you have what it takes to start a business, is there a market for it, or is it the right time to do so? Planning and preparing is key to any business or dream.

We fully agree. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us, Danny.

Natalie Ellis defied the odds to make more than a million dollars in the U.S. with her non-spill dog bowl invention.

The social networking system says it’s finally ready to sell an upgraded version of Twitter to businesses.

Here are six surprising ways Twitter can make you rich, too.

Buying, neutering, and feeding your dog can be expensive. Follow these tips and save. See also: How Much Does Your Best Friend Cost? Avoid Cruel Pet Abandonment.

Teach your kids how to steer clear of debt. Follow these tips to prepare them for financial independence.

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