Although I have never claimed to be an expert when it came to credit cards I must say I always felt that I knew how to stay ahead of the game.  Pay your bill on time, if you are carrying a balance, look for a low rate card, if you pay your balance in full, look for the card that offers the most goodies, etc.  I never expected the wakeup call I got this past week. 

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What does it take to be an entrepreneur? Which personality traits make for success? Let's see if you have what it takes.

FICTION: To be an entrepreneur you must be born that way.

FACT: Anyone can learn to operate like an entrepreneur.

Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur. It takes a special talent. Some owners of small businesses have it and some don't. Before you invest time, energy, money and a piece of your heart, it's important to do some serious self-analysis. To answer such questions as: Am I prepared to work hard and make sacrifices? Am I self-disciplined? Do I have management ability? Am I experienced enough in this field? What do I want out of life? Are my goals realistic and attainable?

If you need money to pay bills or make home improvements, and think the answer is in refinancing, a second mortgage, or a home equity loan, consider your options carefully. If you can't make the required payments, you could lose your home as well as the equity you've built up. That's why it's important not to let anyone talk you into using your home to borrow money you may not be able to afford to pay back. Not all loans or lenders are created equal. Some unscrupulous lenders target older or low-income homeowners and those with credit problems. These lenders may offer loans based on the equity in your home, not on your ability to repay the loan. High interest rates and credit costs can make it very expensive to borrow money, even if you use your home as collateral.

How can you join the ranks of America's wealthy (defined as people whose net worth is over one million dollars)? It's easy, say doctors Stanley and Danko, who have spent the last 20 years interviewing members of this elite club: you just have to follow seven simple rules.

What do you do after you've written the No. 1 bestseller The Millionaire Next Door? Survey 1,371 more millionaires and write The Millionaire Mind. Dr. Stanley's extremely timely tome is a mixture of entertaining elements. It resembles Regis Philbin's hit show (and CD-ROM game) Who Wants to be a Millionaire, only you have to pose real-life questions, instead of quizzing about trivia. Are you a gambling, divorce-prone, conspicuously consuming "Income-Statement Affluent" Jacuzzi fool soon to be parted from his or her money, or a frugal, loyal, resole your shoes and buy your own groceries type like one of Stanley's "Balance-Sheet Affluent" millionaires?

Standard & Poor's official word on dividend-rich investing--now completely updated with 1997 data. This invaluable resource distills Standard & Poor's successful dividend investment philosophy into a user-friendly guide for the individual investor. the authors, both editors of Standard & Poor's high-rated investment newsletter, The Outlook, tell readers why dividends are a vital part of the investment equation, what to look for in a dividend-paying stock, which stocks are the dividend leaders, and who successfully uses dividends as a stock picking tool.

Bill and Mary Toohey are about as average as a couple can be. They live in Iowa, pull down about $65,000 a year combined, and have three children. What's not average about them is that they have a net worth of about a half-million dollars. They've paid off their mortgage, and they paid cash for their cars. Their oldest daughter graduated from college with no debts and with money in the bank. How did they manage?