Couples' Reprieve

Money is a hard topic to talk about just on your own, and when you are in a money crisis with your partner it can even break a marriage.

How do you break the ice so that each of you can state your claim, and listen with an open heart and mind to each other?

A few things that my husband and I do...

• Make sure that we have a quiet place to talk. We tend to go to a lounge where we can relax and it tends to keep the loudness down.
• Make a game plan that is manageable and can be split up thru out the week. Remember Rome was not built in a day and neither were your debt troubles.
• Talk about the positive aspects of getting your debt under control; what do you both want to do in a year's time; what do you want to save up for individually and together.
• DON'T TALK ABOUT how you got in this predicament -- you both know that: someone or both of you spent beyond your means.
• DO TALK ABOUT how you will both be accountable for the spending, how you should record it. My recommendation is that you meet on a weekly basis together and tackle this together. This positive and the negative belong on both of your shoulders.

Remember -- YOU LOVE EACH OTHER, and you can conquer this just like anything else you have faced together.

Trust me when I say that if you can work thru this now and together you will have a very fulfilling life together. AND YOU WON'T BE IN MONEY STRESS!

One step at a time,

Your Accountess
Tina Pratt