How to Simplify Your Finances to Survive Economic CollapseBy selfnews Post The first of these strategies is to simplify your finances by concentrating on the essentials like getting out of debt and optimizing your savings with prudent investments. Its hard to be of any use to yourself, let alone anyone else, during economic collapse if you are buried up to your neck in debt. Notice we are not saying pay off your debt like most financial advisers say to do. It says to get out of debt. Yes, its wise to honor your debts to banks, but not if it gets in the way of your basic survival. Generally, being in debt is bad. Yet not all debt is created equal. Mortgages and business loans can be beneficial. For instance, if youre upper-middle class, financing a home, capital equipment or inventory for your business offers certain tax benefits that make these loans more desirable than just their obvious utility. However, credit card debt, car loans and, increasingly, student loans are rarely used productively and should be paid off as quickly as possible so you can get busy creating independence. These categories are what we mean when we refer to debt going forward. By the way, having an Xbox Live account and multiple iPads doesnt count as basic survival, just in case some of you who might be infected with first-world-problems syndrome need clarification. Food, shelter, clothing, heat, medicine and essential tools are the basics. If you cannot afford these essentials, your debt is just a number on a computer screen and you have more important things to worry about. We published an article in 2010 titled 5 Reasons Not to Pay Your Credit Cards, which is still relevant today. However, since then, banks have gotten much more aggressive about garnishing wages to collect your unsecured debts like credit cards. Therefore, its probably not a good idea to ignore your credit cards if you have normal job with a W2. Excluding a comet smashing into Earth, your debt is likely to continue to be a ball and chain slowing you down until you pay it off. The faster the better. This may seem daunting to some of you. The total amount may seem insurmountable. It can make you feel trapped. But youre only trapped by your belief about what is possible. Youve run the numbers a million times in your head. Itll take you X number of years to pay off your debt. Weve all enslaved ourselves this way at some point in our lives. Do you know how to free yourself from this torture? Its really quite simple. In fact, its so easy you wont believe it works until you try it. The way to free yourself from this mental torture is to deliberately imagine paying off all your bad debt in 2016. Yes, in a single year. Think about it at the gym, during your commute, while at work, on the toilet, in the shower, while paying bills, while meditating or praying before bed. Think about it a million and one times. And do you know whats going to start to happen? Youll consciously and subconsciously begin doing things to help you achieve that outcome. The significance of changing your thinking cannot be overstated. The universe will bend to your will and start to reveal opportunities. It may seem too law-of-attraction or faith-based for you, but indeed an invisible mechanism is at work. Science-based folks may call it Reticular Activation. This is the effect that happens when we buy a new car and suddenly we notice that same model everywhere we go. Or, if youre in a crowded train station or night club and someone says your name, your mind immediately recognizes it within the sea of noise. You may not pay off all your bad debt in 2016, but well guarantee that by scaling your thinking and setting this goal, youll be much closer to achieving it than you were before changing your mindset. What are appropriate investments to protect yourself from economic crashes? Although the answer may differ depending on your financial status, some investments are universal for everyone. Whats more, not all investments are financial. You can also invest your time or expertise into a project, organization, skills, etc. Yet, for those of you with enough abundance to worry about protecting it, here are some general tips that may help insulate you from a pending collapse: First, sell your boat, literally and figuratively. There comes a point when the boat becomes worse than worthless. You cant sell it and it costs you money to own it. That day is coming. Cut the fat from your budget. Get rid of annoying expenses that no longer deliver you satisfaction or value. Second, become independent in every feasible way. All of the wealth in the world doesnt matter if you are dependent on others for your basic needs. If you have investments in stocks, bonds or even in cash, convert some of it into alternative sources of energy and water for your home. This is crucial physical insurance against potential disruptions due to the economy or other outside forces. Third, localize your investments. Invest in real estate and cash-flow businesses close to where you live. These are tangible assets that you can personally add value to as opposed to owning stocks of companies that are entirely out of your control. Most of all, if you have the means, your first goal should be to secure your independence. The rest of this report focuses on strategies to achieve self-sufficiency. The good news is that many dont require large financial investments. Please see the video overview of this FREE Special Report put together by selfnews Post and presented by Derrick Broze. Know thyself, said the old philosophy. Improve thyself, saith the Virtue is my lover, my pride, my Who are these idiots that keep posting these type of articles. If we had money to invest we wouldnt really be in debtduh!!! berry there is a difference. Money invested might (probably) be pretax (unconstitutional extraction of paid labor) and goes directly into a 401K (K= kikedom). Can u explain more about that strategy? 