My thinking about this is “if I can’t afford it, then I won’t charge it” knowing that even if I don’t know what my credit score is, I don’t worry about interest rates any more than I worry that I wasn’t able to buy that cute dress for my daughter which I can’t afford.

For now, the only things I charge are my gadgets. Heh, corny

No offense meant if you are one, if you can afford these dresses, why not? Woot for you

What irks me most is when when people name-drop brand-names of things that they use like their cheese or maybe what? soy sauce? (like it is gonna make their food more flavorful than those cooked using cheaper and local brands) even if NO ONE is asking. Duh?!

I’m sure you’ve met one or two with this trait. Why some will even go to great lengths to say HOW MUCH they bought such and such.

I found this fun quiz which you can take to see if you are brand conscious or not.

Are you game to take the quiz?

When she told me about the seminar I have to attend first about all things regarding insurance business:  health insurance leads, the right terms, how to talk to people, I have to say I was having second thoughts because I have homeschooling children,

Lost opportunity to earn I know. Maybe next time

Where we are staying, a big hypermarket from a big company of malls just opened up. We decided to check it out one time and although we found the usual stuff being sold in their other outlets, it is still a bit reassuring for some that such an outlet exists within a few minutes from where we live. With school children, one does not know when there is an emergency urgency to get something for school to be used the next day.

On the other hand, I feel that the small businesses in the vicinity of this big store, meaning a few minutes ride and drive, are threatened. Good if these have business insurance to back them up in times of need.

I hope these smaller businesses won’t fold up like how I see happening in the rural areas.

Of course, it is not just about having a glib tongue which will make one successful in this choice of career. Hard work, determination and drive are some of the key strong points to master which can also be said true to other career choices.

Attending sales training is also one way to improve one’s capabilities.

In everything else, tact and respectfulness are two ways to start the ball rolling with potential clients.

Me? I may not have the “it” to become a salesperson but I definitely know a good buy when I see one

Children younger than eight easily believe what the ads are telling them. I know because I have two children in that age bracket. They think that just because a product is seen on television endorsed by good-looking children mean that they have to get those products on our next trip to the supermarket.

I do not subscribe to their wishes easily. Not because the children in a TV ad are eating vegetables as a result of the use of artificial flavoring mean I must have that too. Not because beautiful children with beautiful smiles use a certain brand of toothpaste mean I have to get that for them too. We gotta be more practical than believing in TV ads that aims to make a profit.

How can my children have a higher IQ by just drinking a certain brand of milk if I do not teach them how to use their thinking skills?

For me, good products do not need blatant advertising.

These products being advertised do not just center on food items which are most often than not bereft of nutritional value, but extends to clothes, toys, must-have electronic gadgets, events, and other consumables.

Excessive materialism and believing in products because of advertising are just a few things we can teach children regarding consumerism. Not everything should be carried from the supermarket aisle all the way to the ringing retail pos systems or in other words, cash register.

So what should parents do?

• Teach your children the value of money. That not everything that looks good are really good.

• Teach the children to distinguish what is important for them to have because they need it, not because other have it too. Teach between needs and wants.

• Stop the children from developing the power to pester you. They may whine, beg, cry, shout and do you favors to get what they want from you but then again, ask them the question “Do you really, really thing?” “Would your survival depend on whether you have that thing or not?”

• Teach about discernment. Why eating fruits for snacks are better than eating those sugar-laden crunchy food and salty chips is a start.

• One more thing, as parents, they should also see that you practice what you preach them about consumerism. If you start with this, the rest would probably be easy.