Individual Reflexive Learning: Cognitive Skills

The life incident that I feel I could have handled more effectively was becoming bankrupt. I constantly made use of credit cards, and not debit cards. This was because, I could not live within my means. I celebrated each time I had sufficient credit to buy extra effects. This was despite not having a backup plan. Consequently, I ended up using all my money to pay debts. As such, I had to go to the attorney to inform him that I had a lot of accumulated debt. At some point, it was humiliating to have my name printed under the town bankruptcies in the newspaper. Moreover, I faced other costs of bankruptcy including restricted housing choices, ruined credit, and the fear of what I would do for the lack of high credit bounds. Similarly, I ended up filing for bankruptcy despite being an awful experience.

This course has taught me communication and cognitive skills that could have helped me to handle this issue with ease. Through meditation, I could have employed my consciousness in realizing the effects of using credit. The communication skills could have compelled me to seek financial help from friends and family and not credit cards (Altenburg, 2012). Also, inventiveness and creativity evident in this course could have been beneficial in helping me to avoid being bankrupt. With these, I could have invented measures like never spending what I could not have earned. Therefore, becoming bankrupt could have been impossible for me. As such, my money would be available for me, and not for debt payment. Finally, the course is full of accountability and personal independence concepts, which could have been beneficial in solving my case. If I were accountable, then I could have stuck to using my money without borrowing or using credit. Hence, bankruptcy could not have befallen me (Delaney, 2014). Also, through independence, I could not have depended on credit cards to fund my luxurious life, but on my income.

Other strategies to manage any impending case of being bankrupt will entail cutting down on my spending. This would be achievable by having a strictly followed budget. Also, I will maximize my income by taking as many jobs as I would be able to handle. Finally, I will come up with an emergency fund to avoid such trouble again ("Management Insights", 2014). My effectiveness in applying these strategies will be evident if I do not become bankrupt again. The possible obstacles that I may encounter include forgetting the shameful encounter and continuing with my poor spending habits. However, I will ensure I stick to my budget even if it means involving an outside party to assist. Also, I can fail to increase my sources of income. I might opt to be lazy and assure myself that everything would unfold smoothly. Nonetheless, I will diversify my incomes by starting many business ventures for security (Timpe, 2015). Also, an initiative to create an emergency fund may not materialize for failure to get extra cash. This will be solved by ensuring this requirement is included in my budget.

References

Altenburg, A. (2012). Bankruptcy (1st Ed.). New Brunswick, N.J.: New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

Delaney, K. (2014). Strategic bankruptcy (3rd Ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press.

Management Insights. (2014). Production and Operations Management, 20(2), vii-ix. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1937-5956.2011.01178.x

Timpe, A. (2015). Leadership (4th Ed.). New York, N.Y.: Facts on File.