I've been writing songs for a long time and play piano (by ear, until I started music reading lessons a year ago), but it's always been a private hobby of mine. It is my real passion in life but I didn't think of seriously trying to pursue anything with it until I played some songs for my piano teacher who insisted they were really good. My songs are normally singer-songwriter style pop.
My vocals are okay but I don't have a distinctive tone and honestly think the songs would be better sung by someone else, plus my real joy comes from writing them rather than a desire to perform them myself. So that I can create some decent sounding demos, I am learning to produce at the moment and going to get some vocal lessons.
My question is, where do I go from there in terms of sharing the demos and becoming a writer for other people? Do labels work directly with songwriters or is there another way? Sorry for the stupid questions, I have no network in terms of family or friends who work in the industry so I'm really not sure how it works for songwriters who aren't performing artists themselves, even though I know those do exist!
My absolute dream would be to become a co-writer for other artists and go to songwriting camps etc.
Thank you for any tips & advice!!

A Long time ago in a call center far, far away, I worked for a credit card company. One day, an elderly gentleman called in spitting mad about not receiving services rendered for a purchase and wanted to file a dispute. Oh of course! I said, and asked for the relevant information of the transaction such as the date and the name of the company along with the amount. "Well, it isn't a company, it was a (venmo/zelle/paypal type service) to a woman and her friend for escort services".
I choked over my empathetic customer service sounds, while trying to figure out how to navigate the absolute fuckery of this call. Did this man just admit to illegally soliciting sex through his credit card company? What?! I tried to ask him to clarify what he meant by "escort" services, secretly hoping it would be something inoccuous, but also terrified he would actually give me the raw details of what he was asking from them. I really felt like I did not get paid enough to hear about some old man's sex life(or lack therof). Thankfully he ignored the answer and just went into an unhinged tirade of how this was elder abuse, and terrible customer service on their part. Cool cool cool cool.
I weighed the pros and cons of possibly arguing with this man about how this was not going to go in his favor at all, and by his demeanor, how well it would go down. Judging by how riled up he was over the phone, it wasn't going to go well.
Perhaps it was wrong of me to do so, but I just filed the dispute, let him know when he would get an answer, and left very, very detailed notes on the interaction. I also sent a note to my manager, but I received the professional equivalent of a shrug in response. My reasoning on this was that the dispute department could send him a nice note back saying "sorry, we can't help you, this is illegal", and maybe seeing these words in print might make him realize we weren't going to get his money back from two prostitutes who swindled him. I had to take a long break after this call. The goddamned audacity of this guy.

I've owned a small towing operation for three years now- and we are $100K in debt, both personal and business. All my personal debt however are mostly startup funds for said business. Most of our small loans (equipment, etc) are ending within the next year and a half, which is great- and according to our debt planner we should be out of debt within almost time frame. But I don't believe that. I feel crushed under the weight of debt and with business slowing down the worst it ever has, we are struggling. I've contacted a local bank to see if we can secure a consolidation loan, I've tried personal loans (waiting to hear back) but I feel like I'm exhausting all my options. At this point we want to consolidate everything into one payment and possibly sell the business. Does ANYONE out there have any tips? Been in the same situation? These were not frivolous purchases- they are all business related credit cards.

My usual card spending is $2-2500/month or so. Most of my credit cards have $14k+ limits or higher.
My USBAR came with an incredibly low limit of $5k - I’m expecting to get that up in October (my 6 month mark), but wondering the best way to increase my odds.
Given the limit, my utilization on this one card will range from 40-90% based on when the statement balance is due. It’ll never really drop below 40% since I pay the statement balance in full on the due date. When it gets to September, should I start paying it off weekly to keep <20% utilized so that it’s reported with lower usage to the bureaus by the time I apple for a CLI in October? Or will they see that the statement balance is ALWAYS paid in full, and possibly grant a CLI since my usage shows I should have a higher limit anyhow?
Usually when I run into this issue I’m applying for a CLI with another card, so my method of just paying it down more often for that period makes sense but given it’s the same card I don’t know if the same rules apply.

Anyone know how long Cardless takes to make a decision one way or the other? I applied for their new Qatar Airways Visa Signature credit card, and it's been 7 days since I received this non-answer on my application, basically saying they'll get back to me:
"We need some more time to reach a decision. We'll send you an email once we've finished reviewing your application.
Best, Cardless"

I've seen comments on this sub that say to use your card for purchases during the month to keep it active, but to pay it off, in full, by the due date. This sounds good, except..............
If I have a card that I charge $500 on Jan 1 and pay it in full on the due date of Jan 20. My statement on Jan 23 will show a zero balance, so the credit bureaus will see 0 utilization. Then I do the same thing again in February - $500 Feb 1, pay in full by due date Feb 20, statement on Feb 23 shows 0. Again credit bureaus show 0 utilization, and in fact will show 0 activity since credit cards only report once a month. I can repeat this over and over and will continue to show 0 utilization, I will pay 0 in interest, but the bureaus won't ever see how I manage my debt. As far as they're concerned I never use my card because it's 0 at every reporting cycle.
So, is this an accurate assessment? If so, does this help or hinder my score?

Template is below. So my SO and I typically fly 2-3 times per year, we typically always rent a car when we do, 50/50 split whether we stay at an airbnb or hotel, just depends.
I currently only have one credit card which I do the majority of all of my spending on, except for things like rent or that can’t be on a CC. I get 1-3% back on spending and usually get between 40 to 70 bucks a month.
Anyway, we are hopefully planning a wedding and a trip abroad in the next few years , including a big expenses this November on travel for a destination wedding. So many opportunities to earn points. I’d like to start building some points and hopefully save some money on our flight this November, and on flights in general moving forward.
Current cards:
-Bank of America Customized cash rewards platinum plus Mastercard
FICO score:
-745 according to Bank of America
Oldest account age:
-opened April 2018, so 6 years
Income:
-84000 salary plus 20 to 25k in capital gains/distributions
Average Monthly Spending $2500
Dining $137
Groceries $600
Gas $132
Travel $511
Open to business cards: not applicable
Purpose of card: earn points to use toward flights, hotels, (air bnb if points for that exist lol). To continue building credit.
Cards I’ve been looking at: chase preferred, capital one, but open to anything
Category spending or general card: not sure what would be more beneficial

Been together six years, two kids. Lots of ups and downs in the relationship but I’ve always thought things were fixable. I’ve been feeling “not loved” since July – I reached out to a long-distance ex in December telling her that things weren’t good here, that I missed feeling loved, that I was sorry for how I treated her ten years ago and my general struggles. Spouse found out on my phone, I told her I had no interest in leaving her, that I loved her. Stopped all communication with the ex. Acknowledged it was an emotional affair.
In February my spouse started a romantic affair with a previous partner (his affair from 9 years ago that was left unfinished) which turned sexual when she was flying to another city to visit a girlfriend. I found out three weeks ago while snooping her phone – while trying by best to repair things at home. I felt absolutely betrayed. She booked him a flight and expensive hotels beyond our means for them to have a four-day seaside retreat / bang fest together coming up in June. She denied it – said he didn’t have a credit card and gave her cash to book a flight, but when I told her I saw everything and reached out to him and said “Hey, we live together, we’re raising kids together and she’s not single” she began packing to move to her sisters.
For two weeks I’ve been doing everything against Chump Lady’s advice – I’ve begged, proposed, wrote letters that I can forgive her because I wasn’t very good in December (although the scale is very different). I’ve offered to do anything to fix things – but she’s beyond checked out and still communicating with him. She fully moved out last week and I have a lawyer drafting a separation proposal. I’ve told her that I can forgive the past – but I can’t forgive her going on the trip with him in three weeks. I’ve offered money for the hotels ($600/night) – take the kids, I’ll stay home etc.
I have been going to counselling since January – I’ve gone four times in the past month. Going again tomorrow. A quote that my counsellor told me “She’s showed you that she is the kind if person who can betray her partner without remorse. Think about this - Is she really the kind of person you should WANT to stay in a relationship with”. The logic brain says – no, but my heart does. I love her, our kids, her family. I know we can fix things. I have been trying so hard in communicating since January, trying to rebuild trust, thinking about the relationship – but if they go on their affair week adventure I don’t know if I can ever forgive and move forward with her. She seems fully intent on moving forward with her adventures.

Has anybody else been charged by Apple for in-app purchases you didn’t make? Is there any way to stop this from happening, other than removing your credit card?

Hi all, I’m finally an happy owner of the kindle scribe. Can you advise a very strong project management template? I saw many on Etsy but I cannot decide and honestly I don’t like websites that accept only the credit card.

[Discussions on self neglect and poor mental health ahead]
The titles says it all. Also, the hospitals in my area and in neighboring cities don't seem to have an on call dentist or emergency dental surgery care and I'm unsure of what to do. My parent has several physical disabilities and a a multitude of psychological illnesses that have caused them to self neglect over the course of many years. All the emergency dentists in my area have no up front payment info on their website and most of them only have credit financing plans and I have no credit history/FICO(I think that's what it's called) to apply. I would have to get my relative to hold a conversation with a financial counselor to approve any medical loans/a medical credit card. They're not cooperative and just keep sobbing or arguing with the air and I can't get them to focus.
They almost died of sepsis three weeks ago. Like one day from being found dead on the sofa due to self neglect despite how much I've fought for them to at least get two bottles of water in their body a day and trying to get them to not starve themselves then dealing with the paramedics/EMT not taking them to the hospital because they didn't look ill enough and wouldn't consent to going. I'm unsure how to go about the situation and am waiting for the social worker to get back to us or take a risk and just get her to the emergency dentist and accept the debt (if they'll even see my relative). I'm going to try getting in contact with the social worker today and see if they found anything. Any advice on what to do would be greatly appreciated.
P.S This is literally just me looking for advice on how I can better go about the current situation at this point...Thanks in advance.

Chance coma boy for Cornell sha-hotel
Chance me for Cornell hotel admin-SHA
CHANCE ME FOR CORNELL SHA-Hotel
CHANCE COMA BOY WHO SAW HİMSELF GETTİNG CHASED İN TEXAS TO CORNELL SHA/HOTEL ADMİNİSTRATİON ED1
Demographics:FGLİ,African(Parents moved to Turkey then moved to US right before my junior year),very rural in Turkey(village with 1000 population,almost no one goes to college),semi-feeder public school in America, US RESİDENT(green card)
Went from rural village public school in Turkey for middle school to a private school in İstanbul(biggest city in Turkey) because the school was connected to a university and agreed to give me full ride and also university housing to my family. Was the only kid there that came from a public school(public schools are horrible in Turkey)
Gpa(UW/W):9th grade: 92.13(top 5 percent), 10th grade selective ib program:83.17(missed like 40 percent of the year due to car crash/coma) 11th: 4.0/4.85 Class rank 1/494
Coursework: No ap/ib offered in 9th grade, 6ib classes in 10th, 11 AP classes in 11th-12th(so total of 17ap+ib)
İB HL MATH A&A in 10th, AP PRECALC AND AB İN 12th
Sat: 1540(800 math, 740 eng)-They're test blind tho
Major:Hotel Admin
**ECS:*\*
İnterim CEO(10th grade): Ran/fully managed former uncle's now family-owned business/motel 42 hours a week. Really small motel tho,6 rooms. Did school work when nothing was happening.
Founder of financial/educational based organizaton(11th-12th):**Raised 14.5 thousand dollars/475 thousand lira for my former elementary school through collective funding/raising money. Money went to renovations/additions.
(2 ecs in 1)Founder of Nonprofit/Owner of small shoe-reselling business(9th-12)th: Ran shoe-reselling business and made 20k and 10k/325k lira of the money went to buying shoes with the money and distrubuted kids at my old village shoes.
İntern at Divan Taksim(Hotel) in turkey, going back summer after 11th
Real estate internship in summer of 10th
Political İntern with Mayor of Turkish City(Elazığ)(CHP)(10th summer)): networked through the time when İ was a lobbyist around a bunch of rich people(you'll see below) Noted that İ want to be the minister of culture and turism in Turkey
Associate to Turkish Volunteering Agency/leader at school(10th grade): Personally volunteered 200 hours for earthquake. Raised 3.8k usd/70k lira throughout my school and district for relief efforts in Southeast Turkey
Student lobbyist for school renovations(10th grade): Was selected to be the only student lobbyist for my school's multi-million Lira expansion to increase class sizes by around 25% with an additional side building and a new library. Mayors son went to my school so thats where the internship came from
Published a book(11th grade) : on outsiders view on hospitality and finance(20k words)
Family responsibilities(11th-12th)(wont go into detail but valid)
Awards:
3.12 percent on LGS-Standardized test that is the sole factor of high school admission. Best score my middle school has ever produced. Only kid that was in the top 10 percent coming out of my middle school since 1998.
TBB National Finance Competition: 2nd out of 10k+ in national Financial knowledge competition ran by Turkish banking association
10th grade research project qualified for Tubitak(Turkish research council: project was about Corona's effect on reading habits throughout Turkish students)
Takdir 9th grade(top 5 percent of freshmen)
4th in national school based swimming relay in 9th.(Was varsity/ A team swimming in 9th grade)
LOR:Ap lang , AP cogo
Additiional info
İnjuries from car crash(coma)- not a joke, got in car crash right before 10th. Was in a coma for 4 weeks and missed like 40 percent of the year from pt, rehab and surgeries.
İ had to delay taking preclac because İ moved here late so İ took precalc and ab senior instead of ab and bc.

This post has the potential to be a bit long, so please bear with me...
A question I often ask myself is "are there financial planners for people like me who don't have a ton of money and often barely make ends meet?" So now, I guess I'm asking this sub. I don't know where to turn at this point in my life, which has been riddled with terrible financial decisions, bad luck, and family health issues.
About me: 39, male, USA. I work full-time for a health care company in Pennsylvania, making right around $88K yearly before taxes and deductions. My wife is unable to work due to a variety of health issues (both mental and physical), but does have a small Etsy shop that brings in an average of $300 on a good month. We have an unusually large family by today's standards -- 7 children ranging from 6 years old (twins) to 17. This is the part where people usually look at me like I have three heads, understandably so. Before my wife's health issues, she was a paramedic and in nursing school. So the plan was to eventually have two incomes once the kids were a bit older, but life didn't turn out that way. And before anyone asks, yes, we are done with having kids. I love them all more than life itself and would never imagine a world without them, but I am smart enough now to know that it would not have been this hard with fewer kids.
It's been very hard (nay, impossible) to get by on one income and a large family, even with some help from relatives along the way. But through it all, we have barely made it work, although I have shot my credit to hell and back in the process. My score hovers around 550 to 570 most of the time, but plummets pretty fast if I miss a payment on something.
Right now, high interest debt is my main issue. I have a variety of low-limit credit cards all maxed out (probably $5k total) a personal loan from OneMain Financial ($400 payment), an auto loan from Carvana/BridgeCrest ($508 payment, worst mistake of my life honestly but was in a desperate situation at the time), and student loans I've had to either defer or flat out stop paying. Other high expenses are groceries, obviously, but I do get $600 in SNAP benefits each month, car insurance at $250 per month because my wife has gotten into a few accidents the last 5 years, and of course rent, which is $1,900 since we need a 5-bedroom house for our large family. We used to own our home but were forced to sell in 2022 due to a variety of issues and our dire need to find a larger place to live for our growing kids.
Suffice to say, most months we either barely make ends meet, or don't at all. I sometimes have to rely on cash advance apps like MoneyLion and Earnin just to make it to the next payday. I have pretty much nothing in savings except for a very small "retirement" account, which is in quotes because I contribute 1% to it just to get my company match. I drained it a few years ago during an emergency that is too long of a story to tell here.
Everyone that I have talked to has said the same essential thing -- to look for a higher-paying job. While this is true, it's more complicated than that in reality. My current job (which I have been at for 1.5 years) affords me the flexibility to work from home most days, and understands that I need to care for my wife (who has substantial mental health issues) and kids and not be "on" 100% of the time. That is often more valuable than a higher salary, but I do know that I am capable and skilled enough in my field to eventually take a shot at a higher paying job.
So. What the heck do I do? Is there someone I can talk to about all this, who can give me real, practical advice? Would a credit union be able to help me with my high-interest debt yet terrible credit score/profile? Ideally, I would love to be able to consolidate all my debt into something more manageable. Is that even a possibility with my credit being bad? I get mail offers all the time saying I am "pre-selected" or pre-approved for a consolidation loan from some random company. I think these are all debt relief companies or possibly a scam, right? I am also severely underwater with our current vehicle as mentioned above. I owe probably 8k more than what it's worth right now, and the van is pretty much a lemon with how many problems it has.
Thank you for reading all this. I am a fairly positive person (I have to be, with the kids and taking care of my wife) but this feels pretty hopeless to me right now. I just wish I could hand over everything to someone who can manage my finances for me, and do the heavy lifting to get things under control. Sigh.

Hey guys,
I just received an awesome offer.
I was making 50k in sales and now I have an offer to make 110k.
My only concern is my new company does a credit check. My credit is fine roughly a 620, but I have only about 700 dollars available credit my others are maxed. I can pay them down more when I get paid Friday.
The recruiter said it’s to make sure people can carry a credit card. I told her a little about how I don’t have much available credit. She said it usually isn’t a concern but can be discussed if my credit doesn’t come back well. I have several credit cards, they are just close to maxed.
Has anyone had a company credit check? Especially with not much available credit? If so, how did it go and if it came back bad what happened?
I’m super excited about this step in my career but just worried about this small road block. My parents will also lend me money if I need to pay my cards down further.

I live in the eu/eus and as a result i have the right to deletion. a few years ago i found this website that automatically sends requests to all advertisers, telemarketers ect about deleting your personal info. I just got a scam call with all my personal info minus my full birth number and credit card info. I dont want this to happen again, but i cant find the website, could anyone ell me it. You basically inputted your email i think, and then a long list with hundreds of marketing names came up and you could checkbox them and then request deletion

I am 28f, he is 31m. We've been together for almost 8 years and married for almost 1 year.
He works in tech and makes way more than what I used to make, ~ $50k/yr. I have not worked for the past year because we both agreed that it'd be a good idea for me to finish college and get a degree without any distractions. For the past year of school I was receiving about $8k from financial aid and paying the rest with my savings. Now that we're married, I no longer qualify for financial aid. Before getting married, I asked him multiple times if this was a good idea because I wouldn't get financial aid anymore. He continued to say yes, that it's fine and he will help pay. This is my second and last year of school, which will cost about $25k including books and I am running dangerously low on cash. I've talked about it with him and he said to just tell him how much and when it's due and he'll get me the money.
I have had zero income for the past year and he has been paying for everything - other than my cell phone bill and our internet bill - I continue to pay those myself. I have never asked him to buy me anything nice like clothes or jewelry, I only use our shared credit card when it's something for the both of us like groceries or gas.
I just hate asking for money, not being able to take care of myself and having to rely on someone else, but I guess that's what marriage is?