Yesterday I was spending an evening with friends when one of them said he’d just started to read the free edition of “Back To The Black”. I asked what he thought of it so far and he said what friends do, that he liked it. However, he said, there was one thing missing. Naturally, I wanted to know what was missing.
“The bit where you advise people to work out how much they can afford to spend … and then spend a little less.”
Barry was right; I hadn’t specifically advised people to do that. However, I had instead quoted the dictum of Mr Micawber. In case you’re not a fan of Dickens, Mr Micawber was a character from “David Copperfield”, who famously said, "Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen shillings and sixpence, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds, ought and six, result misery."
My friend is a very well-read guy but the message was that I should perhaps have been a little more direct with the advice.
Last night to the Metropolis in Bristol (UK), a beautifully restored former cinema that is home to Jesters Comedy Club. Last night, though, was a special treat for fans of Steely Dan. The performance by their UK-based tribute band Nearly Dan was great, though the sound was nothing like as good as it had been at their previous Bristol venue, the rather scruffier but atmospheric Fleece.
My only other gripe about last night: on a cold night in January, everyone arrived well wrapped up. Those of us who’d arrived early enough to get a seat at the small number of tables were OK; they could drape their jackets, coats etc over the backs of their chairs. For the majority, who had to stand, no such luck. They had to dump their coats on the floor, keep them on, or pile them on one of the few empty chairs.
That prompted a thought; is it only in the UK that we seem to forget that in winter the weather can get cold? Is it only in the UK that venues will welcome punters and the money they’ve paid for admission and will spend over the bar, but provide nowhere for them to put their coats? Theatres generally have a cloakroom but cinemas don’t. As for pubs, I know a few (old-fashioned) pubs where there are jacket-hooks and coat- hooks on walls and under the bar, but they are an exception.
End of moan. It was indeed a great evening. Highpoint, for me and many others, was a superb trumpet solo in an extended version of “Hey Nineteen”. I was keen to find out the name of the player; the band’s website indicates it could have been either Phil Nicholas or Steve Parry. Sadly, due to the imperfections of the venue’s sound quality and / or my hearing, I couldn’t make out the name when he was credited by the leader. Memo to self; must get my hearing checked out again.
When I was doing that second radio interview with Heart FM earlier this week, an instructive fact about the state of our economy cropped up.
I was talking to Heart’s Rob Mayor about the necessity for Brits with debt problems to get tailored and impartial advice, preferably from one of our excellent independent advice organisations within the charity / voluntary sector. The best-known examples at the national level are probably CAB (Citizens Advice), CCCS (Consumer Credit Counselling Service) and National Debtline. I also said that a face-to-face interview was better than a phone helpline, especially for anyone starting to get to grips with the problem for the first time.
However, just before we started to record the interview, I had a call from Citizens Advice in response to an earlier enquiry of mine. As Rob and I had just been talking about the recession, I asked my CAB contact what was their current waiting time for a face-to-face debt advice interview. The answer was 3 - 4 weeks; longer than usual and a sign that the effects of the recession will be with us for quite a while yet. Phone help is, of course, available a lot more quickly.
Yesterday I was working with Jenny Layton, who's giving me fantastic help with the text-editing of Edition 2 of "Back To The Black", i.e. the complete content as an e-book. I am still hoping we'll get the file uploaded by the end of February.
After that the next project will be a podcast and an audio version of the complete book.
This morning I did another interview with Heart FM, this time with Rob Mayor. This came about because Heart felt that the issue of "Payday Loans" needed exploring further. We talked about why people are tempted by such loans, the benefits on which they are sold, and the well-known disadvantages of the astronomical interest rates. Those rates could be affordable if it's the only game in town AND if the loan really is repaid really quickly, i.e. on payday, but if it's rolled over then the problem starts.
We talked about credit unions as an alternative to high-street lenders or to payday loans.
I also stressed the need to take advice, preferably from an independent, impartial (i.e. not-for-profit) advice service such as the local CAB (Citizens Advice Bureau, for the benefit of any readers of this blog who are not in the UK) or CCCS (Consumer Credit Counselling Service) or National Debtline. Then the need to formulate a plan with the aid of that advice, and to inform the creditors that is what you're doing and ask them to freeze interest while that's happening. If you don't ask you don’t get, but many debtors spend too long in denial (and I was one) and don't communicate, which makes the situation worse.
All this is the kind of advice that most people have read lots of times; however, my hope is that when the complete book is published, people will view the advice in a different light because of what I say about where I went wrong. In fact the book’s subtitle could even be “Learn from my mistakes”.
Belated posting about another radio interview, following the launch of the free edition of “Back To The Black”.
This was with Heart FM in Bristol, (formerly GWR FM Bristol) who sent their reporter Chas Rowe to interview me at home. The station had told me that clips / soundbites from the interview would be broadcast during their news bulletins last Monday, i.e. 18 January, aka “Blue Monday”. This is a day which has apparently been “scientifically proven” to be the most depressing day of the year. Heart FM said that the launch of my book was a good news story they’d like to run on that day, which was encouraging to hear.
Apart from the questions I’d expected, was one about payday loans: would I advise anyone cash-strapped at the end of January to take out one of these loans? This is a tricky matter: anyone considering any such loan must have exhausted all other possibilities. These loans, for sums up to £1000, are known to carry very high interest rates but they are marketed as instantly available, which of course is very attractive when things are tight.
If the sum is repaid very quickly then paying that interest may be better than having to default on the mortgage or a credit card bill; the problem arises however if the sum isn’t paid quickly. I said that if anyone was in a situation where they saw no alternative solution by month-end, then they could take the loan provided they immediately set in place a debt management plan, e.g. with the help of Citizens Advice, or CCCS (Consumer Credit Counselling Services), or some other local independent debt advisory service, and then repaid that loan as a first priority.
For the record, an online resource lists the top 5 payday loan providers ranked by “rough estimate of lender’s approval rates”. The APRs of these lenders varies from 994% to 2339%.
For extra info see a posting on the MoneySavingExpert website:
Finally, credit unions are an alternative and much cheaper source of short-term finance that people in this situation could look at. Here in Bristol (UK), for example, they can be found at http://www.bristolcreditunion.org/and offer loans from £100 to £7500. Their website says: “By law credit unions cannot charge any more than 2% per month on the reducing balance of a loan. This represents a maximum interest rate of 26.8% APR (Annual Percentage Rate), and that is the most you will ever pay on your loan.”
Today I was a guest on the drivetime show at Bristol’s community radio station BCfm, (link here for website), being interviewed live by Station Manager Phil Gibbons about “Back To The Black”. Although I had been a presenter on the station for much of last year, it was a new and pleasant experience being a guest. For a start, I didn’t have to pay for my coffee this time. Seriously though, who doesn’t like being asked questions about a topic in which they are interested?
My interview was interspersed with two others: with Neil Innes and Michael Palin, no less! This was because the station was running a live outside broadcast from Bristol’s Colston Hall, where both were about to perform in the city’s Festival of Slapstick. Phil said I could now dine out on the fact that I’d appeared on a chat show with these two luminaries; and that they “kept cutting across my airtime!”
Phil asked a very good question about one of the tips from my book. I’d mentioned some of the basic stuff about communicating with creditors, making an offer, etc, and he pointed out that those tips could be obtained in other books, websites, etc. “People know that’s the thing to do” he said, “so why don’t they do it?” My answer was that people like to read stories rather than to be told what to do, so the fact that my book’s advice is interspersed with the story of my own debt problem and how I worked my way out of it, will hopefully make people more likely to act on the tips given.
Phil wrapped up the interview by wishing me well with the book: “Hope it makes you rich – no, sorry, that’s not the point. I guess your point is to stop other people becoming poor”. To which I readily agreed.
In fact the Free Edition of “Back To The Black: how to become debt-free and stay that way” is available as a free download, in .pdf format, at www.scribd.com/michael_macmahon
A new self-help book for people with debt problems has been launched today. “Back To The Black: how to become debt-free and stay that way” is based partly on the author’s practical experience of escaping bankruptcy and partly on the principles of coaching. Chapters 1-3 in their entirety are now available as a free downloadable file, at www.scribd.com/michael_macmahon .
The book’s author, Michael J MacMahon, says: “A few years ago I survived a major financial crisis. While digging myself out of that hole, I became interested in the principles of coaching, especially the idea that most people have the knowledge and resources to solve their own problems, if only they get the right support. One of the best ways of providing that support is to ask the right questions, because questions help to focus thinking, especially at times of stress; and being in debt is certainly one of those times.The book is thus derived from my experience and also demonstrates how those key questions can help anyone get out of debt.”
The book has been favourably reviewed by debt advice experts at the UK’s Citizens Advice organisation. Some of the best advice is simple practical stuff, for example:
Start by listing all your debts, bank balances and assets: knowing the truth is better than a vague feeling of threat.
Communicate with creditors: the problem gets worse if you ignore it.
Make an offer: any offer, no matter how small, is better than none.
Never negotiate on the phone: do it in writing; it’s less stressful.
You don’t need to be alone: get help from a debt advice organisation.
Keep records of all communications: it pays dividends.
The free download version, containing Chapters 1 - 3, of my book “Back To The Black: how to become debt-free and stay that way” is now available as a .pdf file.
It's on the social publishing site Scribd.
Click on this link, or copy and paste this URL into your browser:
Tomorrow is a crucial day for cricket-lovers. England are playing South Africa, until recently the no. 1 side in the world, in a Test series in South Africa. What’s more, against all expectations, England are one-nil up in the series with only this final Test match to play. If we lose the match we will draw the series one-all, but if the game is drawn then we’ll win the series one-nil. Add this to the fact that we won the Ashes by beating Australia last summer, and you’ll see that this could be a crucial day for English cricket.
As I write it’s the end of the third day’s play. England are on the back foot – an appropriate metaphor – and will be hard-pressed to avoid losing the match, which makes the situation all the more nail-biting.
On this important day for English cricket, comprising maybe six hours of play, how much coverage will I be able to enjoy on TV, either terrestrial or freeview? Nothing, nada, rien, nichts, zilch. Not even five minutes of highlights. I could watch it by subscribing to Sky Sports, of course, but I don’t think it’s worth committing to that monthly cost for the occasional overseas Test match.
So the BBC did not think it worthwhile to cover this series. What other sporting delights does the Corporation offer in its place? The answer is snooker, which dominates airtime this week in “BBC Sport”. (I use the quotation marks advisedly) Last week it was darts. And when I say dominates, I mean it: up to six hours coverage in every 24 when there is a major tournament on, sometimes even more.
No doubt snooker and darts are cheap TV compared with cricket. But are they sports, as BBC branding insists they are?
Right now, by the way, the snooker competition that swamps the schedules (especially on BBC2, which was promoted as the culture channel when launched) is called the Masters. No, let’s give it its full title, as a sponsor has no doubt paid handsomely for the privilege. It’s the “Pokerstars.com Masters”. I know this, because I saw it in a graphic alongside the BBC Sport logo. Maybe, in future, the BBC Sport schedules could include poker too? And why could not snooker, darts and then poker become Olympic sports?
I’m about to stop writing this before it becomes a full-on rant, so that I can watch the football on “Match of the Day”. I am not really a football fan; after all I don’t really support any particular team. Rugby is really my game and I’ve never played football except five-a-side. But I appreciate – and often watch with pleasure – the superb quality of English Premiership football: the skill and, yes, the athleticism and fitness levels, which seem to get better and better every year. (although some of the pundits say this is a lacklustre season.)
Where am I going with this? Snooker, darts, (and poker too) require great skill of course. But athleticism? Fitness? What constitutes sport and what constitutes a pastime? Discuss, as they say.
Simon Barnes in the Times did indeed discuss that, very recently. (see link) He praised the skill of the darts player Phil Taylor (no problem with that) and suggested that anyone who says darts is not a sport (and that includes me) does so out of snobbery. Well, who am I to disagree with such an eminent sporting journalist, but I shall. If you were to suggest that croquet is a sport I would say that that is a pastime, just like darts and snooker; snobbery doesn’t come into it. Tosh, Simon, no matter how brilliantly you expound it. Frankly I think it’s marginal as to whether golf (now to be in the Olympics) is a sport; or whether it’s “a pastime that’s almost a sport”, as one of my all-time favourite Dilbert cartoons memorably described it.
Greetings to my readers in Bristol (that's the one in the UK) and surrounds. I wish you a very enjoyable (and, of course, cultural) 2010.
My random selection of imminent events starts here:
Sun 10 Jan, 4 pm: something new at the Coronation Tap, Clifton. The Neil Smith 4TET: standards from Coltrane to Carmichael. Neil Smith, guitar; Jon Short, bass; John Blakeley, drums, Dino Christodoulou, sax, with some Greek-flavoured originals. www.thecoronationtap.com/calendar.php
Sun 10 Jan, 7.30 for 8 pm: “Sunday night at the Lansdown”. Acoustic Evening, featuring Emily Grist, Rosie Garrard, Bashema. Lansdown Inn, 8 Clifton Road, Clifton, BS8 1AF.
Tues 12 Jan, 8 pm: Science Café at @Bristol. “Waste not, want not”. Forum for discussion of waste. Representatives of local organisations, e.g. James Sessions-Hodges (Ethos Energy), Sean Spencer-Worte (Bristol City Council) and Katie Winterborne (Resource Futures) share experiences and viewpoints. “Bring an item of rubbish for a warm-up activity!” www.at-bristol.org.uk
Weekend of 15 / 17 Jan: Bristol Acoustic Music Festival at St George’s. Too many acts to list: see www.stgeorgesbristol.co.uk
Here’s a copy of a media release I’m in the process of circulating, regarding the launch of “Back to the Black.” Watch this space for updates.
MEDIA RELEASE
Date: 5 January 2010
From: Michael MacMahon
Subject: New book helps debtors get “back to the black”
AUTHOR PHOTO AND INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE
______________________________________
A new self-help book for people with debt problems will be launched this month. “Back to the Black: how to become debt-free and stay that way” is based partly on the author’s practical experience of escaping bankruptcy and partly on the principles of coaching. A substantial extract becomes available as a free downloadable file on 18 January and the complete e-book will be available in February.
The book’s author, Michael MacMahon says: “A few years ago I survived a major financial crisis. While digging myself out of that hole, I became interested in the principles of coaching, especially the idea that most people have the knowledge and resources to solve their own problems, if only they get the right support. One of the best ways of providing that support is to ask the right questions, because questions help to focus thinking, especially at times of stress; and being in debt is certainly one of those times.The book is thus derived from my experience and also demonstrates how those key questions can help anyone get out of debt.”
The book has been favourably reviewed by debt advice experts at Citizens Advice. Some of the best advice is simple practical stuff, for example:
Make a detailed analysis of your financial situation: no matter how bad, it’s better to know the truth.
Communicate with creditors: the problem gets worse if you ignore it.
Make an offer: any offer, no matter how small, is better than none.
Never negotiate on the phone: do it in writing; it’s less stressful.
You don’t need to be alone: get help from a debt advice organisation.
Keep records of all communications: it pays dividends.
ENDS
NOTES FOR EDITORS
The book
The first release of “Back to the Black: how to become debt-free and stay that way” will be an abridged e-book, available free of charge from 18 January 2010. The complete publication will be released as an e-book in February: prices depend on format but average below £5. Audiobook and paperback editions will be available later.
Michael MacMahon is a freelance writer and voiceover. He was previously a managing director in the chemical industry and then ran his own training business. He lives in Bristol.
