Prepare for emergencies; good budgeting practices have helped Kysa and Derwin Daniels handle a layoff. (Black Wealth Initiative).

IT'S AN OLD ADAGE, PERHAPS OVERUSED, BUT FITTING just the same: Put something away for a rainy day. For Kysa and Derwin Daniels of Conyers, Georgia, the downpour came last Thanksgiving when Kysa, 35, lost her job as an overnight anchorperson at CNN Headline News in Atlanta. "I was blindsided," she says. "I had just been given keys to my new desk literally minutes before I was laid off." But the Danielses have since put away $18,000 and have remained relatively unaffected by the loss of Kysa's job because of their adherence to DOFE Principle No. 5: to engage in sound budget, credit and tax management practices. Their diligence has left them debt-free. The emergency fund remains untouched, and Kysa adds her severance pay to it as they continue to live solely on Derwin's salary of $48,000.

But things weren't always so simple. When Kysa graduated from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico, with a master's degree in mass communications, she went back to Texas to live with her mother while she worked at the Houston Defender. It would have been the perfect opportunity to build up her savings; instead it marked the beginning of her spiral into debt. "When you don't have to account for your money, it just goes," says Kysa who, though she describes herself as a modest spender, is unable to say exactly where her money went. It wasn't until 1994, with the birth of her son, Ryan, that the then single mother had to really juggle to make ends meet. She had to pay 20% of the hefty hospital bill after having her son. And living on her own, she occasionally used her credit card to pay the rent. "I told myself I'd pay it off," she explains, "but things just began to mount. I had only two cards, but between them I was $12,000 in debt."

Kysa made other financial mistakes, among them, cosigning on a loan for an ex-boyfriend who left her with an additional $3,000 of debt. Eventually, she determined that it was time to get her finances in order, but it wasn't until she married Derwin in 1997 that they put a plan into action. "I've never really used credit cards or had much debt," says Derwin, 41, a coordinator of fire management on the Decatur campus of Georgia Perimeter College. He used those fiscal principles to set the tone for the marriage.

The couple began by listing all their debts on a dry-erase board, an amount totaling just over $20,000. They agreed to live on Kysa's then $33,000 salary and used Derwin's to pay the debt. As each amount was paid, they crossed it off rather than erasing it so they could track their progress. In just 10 months the debt was gone. They paid off both their car notes, totaling about $34,000, a little over a year ago, then began building an emergency fund.

"It was simple math," Kysa says, "the power of two." The next goal is to pay off their mortgage and start seriously saving for retirement, though they both already contribute 15% of their income to their 401(k) accounts and varying amounts to their Roth IRAs. In the meanwhile, Kysa intends to finish her manuscript, God Bless the Positive Thinker, and concentrate on motivational speaking. To achieve their personal financial goals, the couple followed three simple rules:

* WRITE IT DOWN

The Danielses use an old-fashioned pad and pencil to record their budget, and believe that there is something about documenting the flow of money that makes financial goals easier to attain. "A lot of times people don't even know who they owe or what they owe," says Kysa, "It helped to write things down. When you can see the goals it just makes them so much more achievable." The couple adjusts their budget when there are major life events, such as Kysa losing her job, and they still use the dry-erase board to tackle major projects.

* CULTIVATE HEALTHY FINANCIAL PRACTICES

"I was never taught the importance of saving money and that's what drove me into debt," Kysa explains. While her parents did open two savings accounts for her, one at each of their credit unions, "they didn't tell me about putting money into it," she jokes. The Danielses have opened savings accounts for their children Nicholas, 1, and Ryan, 8. Ryan is already being taught to set aside money for his tithes and for savings.

* LIVE BENEATH YOUR MEANS

"It doesn't mean that you have to live in squalor," says Kysa. "We often make the journey to financial stability more difficult because we won't sacrifice and commit to putting [money] aside." The Danielses put off nonessential purchases, like furniture, until they were able to afford them, and Kysa often shops at consignment and thrift stores. The couple also saves bonuses and other windfalls, rather than spending them, and they pay off credit card bills every month. But being frugal doesn't necessarily mean doing without. The Danielses are considering a trip to Rio de Janeiro this year. Says Derwin, "Now that we have our finances under control, we can start to live a little."

Declaration Of Financial Empowerment

From this day forward, I declare my vigilant and lifelong commitment to financial empowerment. I pledge the following:

1 To save and invest 10% to 15% of my after-tax income

2 To be a proactive and informed investor

3 To be a disciplined and knowledgeable consumer

4 To measure my personal wealth by net worth, not income

5 To engage in sound budge, credit and tax management practices

6 To teach business and financial principles to my children

7 To use a portion of my personal wealth to strengthen my community

8 To support the creation and growth of profitable, competitive black-owned enterprises

9 To maximize my earning power through a commitment to career development, technological literacy and professional excellence

10 To ensure that my wealth is passed on to future generations