The ChocolateSophisticate

The ChocolateSophisticate's express goal is to inform, transform and transcend the everday experience of women on the ChocolateSpectrum.  How you ask?  Through creating a community where we can learn, share and grow!  I hope you will join me in my quest to push boundaries, create opportunities, encourage and celebrate the successes of today's ChocolateSophisticate.  So as I kick off this new site, I say bystanders be damned!  Get up, Get Active, Get Involved.  Be the change that creates the change we all desire.  ~Trai

Not everyone can do it.  Women on the Chocolate Spectrum age beautifully.  Don't believe me?  Check out a few:

   Iman                  Angela Bassett

 Oprah                Pam Grier

Photo sources: 

Iman http://www.jamati.com/online/lifestyle/iman-sade-and-stacey-dash-are-sizzling-over-40/

Angela Bassett http://www.openentrance.com/2007/02/05/mercedez-benz-fashion-week-2007/ 

Oprah http://blogs.bet.com/entertainment/spotlight/2009/01/07/oprah-winfrey-talks-up-2009-resolution/

Pam Grier http://www.buddytv.com/articles/the-l-word/profile/pam-grier.aspx

Did you know that when looking at clearing your debt, big ticket items like student loan and mortgages aren't where you should start?  Believe it or not, smaller balances like those on credit cards are what could be negatively impacting your credit score. 

If you want to do it right, pay off smaller credit card balances first.  Particularly those closer to the limit as carrying high credit balances vs. available credit can damage your credit score.  Once you get that down to half the credit limit, start working on the cards with the highest intterest rate.  Whatever you do, do not purchase credit reports.  If you have had a recent credit refusal you can get a copy of your report free from the credit reporting house that was referenced. You are also entitled to one free credit report a year.  Put the money you would have spent on your credit report toward one of your credit card balances!

Failing to negotiate can be costly to us. Women earn 20% less than men in their first year in the workforce because they do not negotiate their salary.  It has been shown that women not only fail to negotiate pay, they also don't bargain for cars, credit-card rates, or cellphone services. 

Don't think that negotiating is confrontational.  You could be throwing thousands of dollars down the drain over the course of a lifetime. Employers actually expect this type of negotiation.  Haggle where you can.  All they can say is no.