Train Routes

In this day and age getting credit is easier and more convenient than every, and if you have found yourself trying to juggle a huge number of debts, trust me, you are not alone. A great many people have continued to clock up debts in the form of loans, credit cards, store cards, catalogues, and other forms of unsecured finance over the years, and have eventually found themselves in a situation where they are unable to keep up with repayments on these debts.

Although you may try and struggle on with the repayments on your debts for a while, you can only rob Peter to pay Paul for so long before you start to go under. This is why it is vital that you tackle rising debt problems right away rather than waiting for something drastic to happen before taking action. The good news is that there are now a number of courses of action that you can take in order to try and alleviate the financial stress of dealing with your debts.

The first thing to remember when tackling your debt problems is that you should never take out further finance by way of a short term fix, as this will only make the issue worse. If you are looking to consolidate your debts with a consolidation that is fine, providing it will reduce your monthly repayments and you can refrain from clocking up further debts again once your credit cards and loans have been cleared through consolidation.

If debt consolidation is not an option – for instance if you cannot get a consolidation loan – then there are a number of other options. You can try writing to each of your creditors, explaining your financial situation, and asking them to accept reduced repayments for a longer period in order to clear the loan. You could also get support and assistance from a credit counselling service, where a trained expert will go through your income and outgoings and try and help you to manage your finances.

A debt management plan is another option, and there are a number of fee free agencies that will take one monthly repayment from you, which will then be distributed to all of your creditors based on how much you owe to each one. Another option is a legally binding agreement known as an IVA, where you make reduced repayments on each debt for a period of five years, after which the remainder of the debt is written off.

The route that is right for you will depend on your own circumstances, such as how much you earn, how much you owe, and the amount that you can realistically afford. The earlier you take action with regards to unmanageable debts the quicker you can stop stressing about your finances and get on with dealing with your debts more effectively.

I’d been working a 70 hour week for as long as I could remember. I was doing it for the family. So they could have the best things in life. Out at the crack of dawn, back after the kids were in bed, a microwaved evening meal in front of the TV with a large whiskey to help me unwind.
I didn’t see much of the wife or children but sacrifices had to be made. I was building a future, a legacy for my children. This was the most important thing in my life. I’d wasted my youth and was now determined to show the world I could make a success of my life.
It was around this time that I took a call from a management training company. No thanks, I said, like I need help!
I’d worked my way up the corporate ladder. God knows how! Sometimes pure luck but there had been some close shaves along the way. Like the time I was working towards my first promotion for departmental manager. I had such a vast workload. I had no choice. There was no-one else as capable as me. I couldn’t afford to let anyone else screw this up for me. How I coped I’ll never know!
The area managers job was now in my sights. All those people to give orders to. Maybe I could delegate some of the workload and take an easier route. I sat up all night working on my presentation. I was determined to show those in power that I had what it took. After my sixth whiskey the presentation looked perfect and I fell into a fitful sleep on the sofa.
Waking late the next day, I threw all my things together with no thought to my personal appearance. A little dishevelled, I realised, when I got there but a quick spruce up in the gents would suffice. Once in the meeting I began to feel the effects of last nights alcohol consumption. Sweating and shaking, I managed to bluff my way through the presentation and scraped through to my much prized area managers job.
My subordinates were not appreciative of my managerial style. They begrudgingly did what I asked but they had no drive. No ambition. They took sick days for stress related complaints all the time. What did they have to be stressed about when I felt like it was always me doing the work?
Another call from a consultancy claiming they could improve my departments productivity with some tailored courses on managerial training. What would they know when it was me, out there, doing it. And doing it well as far as I was concerned.
If I could just make it to regional manager Id be happier. More affluent, better car, bigger house, the envy of all the neighbours. Of course, it would involve extra work but I could cope.
I took it on and I took it home. Weekends passed in a blur with me hammering away on my lap top – regular expletives and shunting away of children occuring. But I did it. I got that promotion. So, I stepped on a few people on the way. These things happen. Dispensable commodities was how I saw them. If they didnt want to succeed then more fool them!
Then one day everything changed. I closed my laptop the evening before and went to bed with that last drink that would get me off to sleep. Well, it did that alright.
I remembered nothing else until I work up in hosptial the next day after suffering a heart attack. I will never forget my wifes distraught face. It was like seeing her for the first time. Holding my children I couldn’t remember the last time I had done this.
Of course it was stress, bad diet, bad life style, no work/life balance that had brought me here but above all it was my foolish refusal to accept help. I didn’t understand how so many people could get as far as they did and not end up here, in hospital, beside me.
I recovered well and returned to work but things had changed. The atmosphere was different. I was called into the boss’ office and their kindness amazed me. Without many words, my boss quietly slid a business card across the table with the business training and coaching consultancy’s number on it.
I conceded what I thought was defeat and gave them a call. With the utmost tact they put my life back together. I learnt how to deal with my staff, how to delegate efficiently, how to organise my workload and change my outlook. More importantly they gave me back my family that I came so close to losing.
Within a year I had recovered enough to get back to where I was. But with a difference. After several management training courses tailored to my specific needs, my staff were happy, I was happy, confidence soared within the company as the training was applied to all and business was thriving.
I also learnt to leave work at work and enjoy my family.

Do you remember that teacher striding into the room with the air and authority of a sergeant major? Do you remember that sick feeling of knowing that you had to approach him with a problem? Oh how first impressions count!
It is estimated that 40% of managers will fail at their post within 18 months of promotion. This is directly attributed to their actions within the first 100 days of their transfer. A sad statistic, and quite drastic in terms of loss of productivity for a business, but curable.
With the right management training solutions in place the above would very rarely happen. Being thrust into a position of responsibility, however much yearned for, can be daunting. However, training alone is not enough bringing only a 22% increase in productivity. Whereas, training combined with coaching brings a vast 88% productivity increase.
Employers can do much to help their staff with the knock on effect of boosting their company’s success. Effective training and coaching to ensure employees are ready for the responsibilities of management are a good start. But why not encompass all staff members to ensure job satisfaction?
Many members of staff have been lost to job dissatisfaction. They often feel unchallenged and unappreciated. They don’t believe their complaints are listened to or acted upon. Stress is just as paralysing to the lowly receptionist or typist as it is to the high flying managers when a work/life balance is out of synch.
Effective management training along with coaching will re-dress this problem to bring about a happy, industrious work force and successful business. Start with the managers, or more importantly, those approaching promotion, first. Teach empathetic and reflective listening skills, teach them problem solving instead of how to just deal with the symptoms of a problem and all their team will feel that they count.
Teach managers how to hold meetings that people come away from with a feeling of inspiration. Here, presentation and planning skills will come to the fore. Even the mundane activities of report writing can make or break a manager.
Nobody will doubt the importance of the work/life balance and management training and coaching will make the appropriate people aware of all this. A manager with a happy balance in his own life should ensure his staff are the same thus creating a happy, dynamic workforce without the debilitating effects of the work related stress responsible for work absenteeism costing society around 3.7 pounds billion a year.
With the correct management training programme, specifically tailored to suit the individual company, the majority of problems can be halted before they take hold. This starts at the very beginning with managers learning effective recruitment techniques.
And, very importantly in today’s PC society, managers will learn how to deal with undesirable behaviour from employees as well as being in no doubt about their own conduct. Assertive, aggressive and passive communication skills are dealt with along with how to present persuasive arguments without belittling the opposition.
On line learning is a useful tool on the path of management training and will assist in the route to truly professional leadership.