You may have heard or read the advice that you should work to maintain your credit if you have good credit, and to improve your credit If you have bad credit. But you may wonder just how much your credit actually affects your life. If you are attempting to make changes in your life, your credit score could have a significant effect on your day-to-day activities. But if you never use or need credit, your credit score may have little or no impact.

A consequence of the ongoing financial crisis has been a virtual standstill in the average wages earned by American workers. Some of the lowest paid workers, including employees of retail giant Wal-Mart and fast-food gargantuan McDonalds are the most recent high-profile recipients of across-the-board pay hikes.

Obtaining sufficient operating capital has always been a challenge for small business owners and entrepreneurs. During the depths of the financial crisis, banks and other lenders were especially stingy about extending credit even to established small businesses with sound business plans. Startup businesses and entrepreneurs with credit challenges faced nearly impossible odds when seeking funding.

According to a 2014 report issued by the Federal Reserve, nearly a third of all Americans reported experiencing wide variations of income over the course of a typical year. A 2013 Federal Reserve report claimed that for a particularly unfortunate 10% of workers, feast or famine cycles represent a way of life – occurring every single month. Many of these workers are associated with the so-called gig economy where there are few guarantees. But many workers with so-called regular jobs must also deal with having no guarantees of when, where or whether they will be working.

If you have less-than-perfect credit, the available options for major credit cards are limited. You’ll be turned down for the best offers from major credit card companies. The credit cards for which you can be approved will often carry less-than-appealing terms, including low credit limits, high APRs and few or no perks. To rebuild your credit, consider looking into department store cards for bad credit.

As a parent, you strive to give the best to your child – the best possible home environment, the best schools – and the best possible financial foundation.  One way to get Suzie or Jimmy off to the right start financially is by helping them establish and maintain good credit.  Fortunately it’s relatively easy to help your child build a good credit history and a high FICO score.

Who earns more money, introverts or extroverts? If you said extroverts, you were correct. Extroverts score higher on both job satisfaction and income than introverts, according to the results of surveys conducted in April 2015 by Truity Psychometrics. That’s in no small part because extroverts make up a majority of the American population – by some estimates as much as 74 percent.

If you run into financial trouble, you may try to juggle your bills in order to stretch your money as far as possible. Under such circumstances, many financial experts recommend prioritizing debts such as mortgages or insurance, while categorizing unsecured debt (such as credit card bills) as a lower priority. But some credit cards are equipped with a nasty surprise – the capacity to repossess your personal possessions. Even bankruptcy cannot protect you from this potential financial hazard.

Who doesn’t like getting free stuff? A free sample allows us to try a product with no investment and may introduce us to an amazing new product we might have missed. Many people shy away from online sites offering a free sample or product because of the hoops that many sites make you jump through. Other people don’t like getting tons of junk mail or spam email (actually, nobody likes that). What if you could receive free samples without new headaches. The sites listed below allow you to score freebies on items that people actually use—the free samples available range from free beauty products, health products, baby products, and personal care products to free media. The free media is not just magazines. One of the sites listed offers free movie tickets.

If you’re always pinching pennies and wondering why you perpetually have more month than money, you may wonder how other people seem to manage their finances successfully. The key is in the word “manage.” One of the primary features shared by nearly all budget-savvy individuals is that they take an active role in managing their finances. Borrow a few of their budget-savvy strategies and you will soon be on your way to achieving financial solvency.