5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Deciding to Secure a Payday Loan
Deciding to secure a payday loan requires a methodical approach by the borrower to determine whether or not it truly is the solution to your financial problem. Remember – a payday loan is a short-term, not long-term, solution to a financial emergency.Here are 5 questions to ask yourself before completing a payday loan application:1. Will I be able to pay off the loan in the given timeframe? Usually, lenders require borrowers to repay their loan when they receive their next paycheck, which is typically a two-week timeframe. Sometimes, lenders will require that you hand them a blank check for them to hold and they will deposit that check for the amount that you borrowed when the time comes. It is imperative that you not only have the funds available to repay your loan, but make sure you intend on actually repaying the loan, as not doing so will seriously hurt your ability to borrow again, not to mention drown you in further debt.2. Do I really need this money fast, or can it wait? This is a pivotal question to ask yourself, as there is an enormous difference between a payday loan and a conventional bank loan. First, if the money can wait, by all means, take out a conventional loan. For instance, if you are moving into a new place in a month or two and do not think you will have the money to put down your first month’s rent or deposit, either save up for it or take out a conventional bank loan. Conventional loans require a longer approval process, but their interest rates are lower, and you will have longer to repay the loan. Of course if you truly do need money fast, payday loans are the best option, as they offer fast approval and almost instant cash.3. Is my credit poor? This is a question that ties-in with the previous one. Bad credit hurts your ability to secure conventional loans, as banks are usually very strict when it comes to lending money to customers with bad credit; they either saddle them with high interest rates or do not approve them, period. This is important to keep in mind, because if your credit is very poor, securing a payday loan may be your only option. Payday lenders rarely check your credit history, and even if they do and find out that you have a poor credit score, they will approve you anyway.4. Am I looking for as simple a solution as possible to my financial situation? If the answer to this is “yes,” then look no further than a no-fax, online payday loan. The reason this is an important question is because not everybody has the time to worry about gathering all documents necessary to complete a loan application at a payday loan store, let alone a bank. There is no need to worry about meeting stringent requirements in order to obtain a loan, as payday lenders simply only require that you have a job or a steady income source, be at least 18 years of age, and have a checking account.5. Am I dealing with a trustworthy and responsible lender? This is something to ask yourself before filling out an application, either at a store or online – mostly online, however. There are a lot of scams out there on the Internet, and you have to be very careful in whom you give your information to. Companies that require an upfront fee to process your loan are ones to AVOID, as these are known scams that have unfortunately conned many people. Always remember to research companies thoroughly. A suggestion would be, if you choose to secure a payday loan through the Internet, to deal with a site that has processed thousands of applications and is well-known in the industry.It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to do your homework and be methodical when thinking about securing a payday loan. Remember to ONLY deal with reputable, well-known payday loan sites such as OneHourCash that match borrowers with lenders and offer a safe, simple process to secure a payday loan. Deciding to go with a payday loan is a big decision – it is not a choice to make on a whim. If you do your research, act responsibly, and deal with reputable companies, taking out a payday loan may be a worthwhile means to rectifying your financial situation.
Using Multiple Sources of Small Business Financing
One misconception about starting a small business is that the only way to receive small business financing is through a bank. Though the bank is a viable option, it is not the only option. Looking towards multiple sources of financing can get your small business the financing it needs. Alternative sources of financing can be used instead of, or in addition to a bank loan. Using multiple sources of financing can help a new or veteran business owner maximize his/her business’ working capital.Listed below are a variety of small business financing sources, that small business owners can utilize when building, expanding and maintaining their businesses.Small Business AdministrationThe small business administration was created to help small businesses get on their feet and remain on their feet. Their mission is “…to maintain and strengthen the Nation’s economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of communities after disasters.” So why not look to the SBA for assistance?The most common SBA loan program is the basic 7(a) loan program. This program is specifically designed for small business owners who may not be eligible for business loans through normal lending channels. Other loan programs offered by the SBA include the 504 Program, which provides growing businesses with long-term, fixed-rate financing for major fixed assets, such as land and buildings, Micro-Loans that provide very small loan amounts for startup small businesses, with a maximum loan amount of $35,000. Disaster Recovery Loans, which can assist in the recovery of your business if it is involved in a disaster, and Special Purpose Loans, that can be used for any special purposes within your business.GrantsJust like there are scholarships available for just about anything, if you do enough searching, you could find the small business grant that works for you and get free money to finance your business. Though the federal government does not offer grants to small business owners, there are numerous other grants available for small business owners. You can look to your own state to find free funding your small business. Every state has a state development agency, and many of these agencies offer small business grants, and/or information on where to find them.Small Business Cash AdvancesThough a small business cash advance is not plausible for startup businesses, it can be used after your business has been up and running for a period of time. A business cash advance can offer fast and easy-to-obtain money for your small business’ financial needs. With few requirements, even business owners with average or fairly below average credit scores can qualify to receive a business cash advance.Financial IntermediariesA financial intermediary is a person who specializes in finding funds for business owners. Once you’ve done all you can to find money for your business, try hiring a financial intermediary to find the funds that you may have overlooked.You can decide to use the expertise of a financial intermediary in order to give yourself the time to work on other aspects of your business, or you can use them in combination with your own expertise; as the saying goes, two heads are better than one.Financial intermediaries can also be used to help in the start up of your business, offering help with the writing of business plans, proposals, etc.
Has Technology Kept Its Promise?
As I observe humanity, moving in ever-faster and faster paces, racing to achieve ever more at dizzying speeds even as technology threatens to outpace our very mental capacity, something is amiss. Some deeply held idea that we seem bent on fulfilling, a frantic technologically powered promise, has been broken.Whether we realize it or not, underneath all this amazing technology we are creating, is a subtle but powerful promise: that we can accomplish more, in less time, and thereby achieve a greater quality of life.Oh, at first the idea is seductive. Let’s build a machine that can do the work in half the time! We can work in the morning and play in the afternoon. This works great in theory, except it is rarely practiced. No, once that amazing whiz-bang machine is built, it’s run 24/7, working employees to the bone, so we can produce a gazillion times more in a fraction of the time! By all rights there should be a lot more people loafing. Or at least, having a high quality of life. But are they?How is it that our very lives are powered by machines that admittedly double in speed every 2-years, yet as a nation we are poorer than ever, more tired than ever, and less able to enjoy life as we know it? Who doesn’t walk around with more lines on their foreheads even as the world races by? Whose stress levels are lower thanks to the amazing advances in technology? I don’t know many.Ladies and gentlemen, there’s a conspiracy afoot. Yes, really. As a society, our job is to care about each other and improve our quality of life personally and collectively, yet the very technology that has promised to provide this is doing just the opposite. In fact it’s aggregating wealth into fewer and fewer hands, and in a very real sense oppressing the rest, creating a new kind of upper class, a “technorati” if you will, that is able to harness technology to their advantage. And despite all the nifty perks of technology, are our lives really better?Sure, we can point to increased efficiencies. Information can be transferred faster and in larger quantities than ever before, and computers can crunch numbers in ever-larger chunks.Yet have we ever stopped to ask, is that always necessarily good? Computers enable people to make mistakes, faster. Think about that for a moment.And besides simple “business gains,” and increased production, what are the actual tangible gains in human terms? Are employees happier, or are they working just as many hours as in 1960?And another important measure: do people feel more connected to one another, with all the gizmos for interaction?Ironically, technology tends to isolate people rather than bring them together. It promotes anonymity, and separation by encouraging us to interface over longer and longer distances, using bits of metal and plastic for the interactions. What happened to the warmth of a handshake? Looking someone in the eye? Something is getting lost in the digital revolution, and it’s in the intangible, and arguably more important, realm of our lives.What about all the fancy speed of the technology; surely this is making the world more efficient, right?Can anyone point to studies showing the increased production and sheer extra volume of goods, services, and foods, are actually being circulated to those in need? Is the human family as a whole benefitting from the excess, or is the wealth being concentrated by those in position to take advantage of the windfall?Again, this answer is obvious; the human family as a whole is not reaping the benefits of the technological advances, as evidenced by similar or worse levels of poverty, literacy, living conditions, and general conditions of peoples throughout the earth. Sure, there are certain segments of the population that are benefitting, yet we see the makings of a “digital divide” in which the middle classes are disappearing, while the ranks of upper and lower classes continue to swell, in large part due to technology which aggregates more and more power into the hands of those at the top. This has always been a classic harbinger of trouble, for those that care to pay attention.And don’t get me started on our amazing scientific advances in healthcare; what passes for healthcare, rightly should be labelled “sick-care” as it uses 2 main modes of operation: cutting and drugging. The human body does not generally suffer from lack of cuts, or chemicals. Many of the greatest bits of wisdom from thousands of years of human survival are being summarily censored, and even outlawed by those in charge. Don’t believe me? Tsk tsk. Google it. As the saying goes, “just because you are paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.”Then, perhaps, is the planet better off for all the amazing increased production technology affords? Again, ha! No, the planet is hurting, possibly getting a temperature, and for sure getting filled valley to mountain with more trash than ever before. See http://www.storyofstuff.com/ for an amazing video.What about the potential of the human brain: surely we are getting smarter and smarter every year, and children are benefiting greatly from exposure to all this marvelous new stuff, right? (See http://www.flixxy.com/technology-and-education-2008.htm).Well, er, sort of. Actually what I’ve found is that we think differently, not necessarily better, than before. We have greater capacity to multi-task because, surprise, we’re constantly bombarded with the need to process so much at once. But this comes at the expense of the ability to really concentrate. I’m not sure that being “scattered” is better than being “focussed.”What about social skills? Are computers and technology enhancing these? Evidence indicates that our new silicon taskmasters don’t have hearts, and our capacity for human understanding, compassion, and love are not enhanced to any significant degree by our technology.I could go on and on. The basic, simple question is, what are the actual real benefits of this technological craze we are in? Are we honestly better off with the technology than before? And what is driving this insane rapid-fire chase, and what is it for? Or have we lost site of the goal we are running towards? If it’s the betterment of mankind, we are off-course.One can always argue that the technology is not the problem; it’s the biology operating it, and this is a truthful point. Technology is neither good nor bad but in the hands of its users. Truly we can do amazing things with our new gizmos, but will we? Are we? Currently, generally not.So the jury is out. Thanks to the crazy advances in computers and technology, we can do more than ever, but the results are that we as a species are not better off in tangible ways, en masse.In short, technology is not making the world, the planet, or people as a whole, better off; in fact many are worse off and we have the makings of a technorati that control the rest; how is this different than those in power making the world better for themselves at any other time in history?With great power comes great responsibility. ‘Nuff said.