My Life Experience with Bankruptcy

by Andrew Bernstein
Certified Personal Finance Counselor 

In 1985, I had completed my first 10 years in the newspaper business, 5 as a managing editor, which had been my dream all through school and life. The opportunity was presented to me to open my own publishing company and start to produce my own magazine and newspapers. I literally jumped in without even thinking about it. I knew how tough it was going to be and that there might be a stretch that finances would be tight.

My partner and I got great backing from a few local banks and investors and we were off and running. Our first publication, a women’s magazine, was an instant critical success. We had hired a great staff and of course with my experience as a managing editor, I was able to put a gentle hand in things. The problem was that we didn’t have a great sales and marketing team. We were relying on an outside company to do it and unfortunately their staff was not totally geared to the job. After a few months, we were able to cover costs, but had little left over for my partner and I. AND THAT IS WHERE MY TROUBLE BEGAN!!!

My credit had always been great. Buying cars, homes, etc., had never been a problem. I had 4 or 5 credit cards and I started living off them. Within about a year, the debt had crept up to the $10,000 mark, which back then was very significant. I was making all the mistakes, using one card to pay off another, using cash advances, etc.


It appeared as though I was heading for a small disaster and indeed I was. At some point I had maxed out all the cards and I was looking for more. I did get a little more and then the nightmare hit home. I started missing payments and got hit with penalties and late fees. The debt soared by several thousand and I was beginning to panic. I had always been taught that good credit is essential.

At this point, my ex-boss and good friend decided to lend me a hand. He would spot me a loan to pay off the debt and I would take on managing one of his publications in my spare time. It seemed like a good deal. The only problem was that I had not learned from my recent mistakes and started using the cards again out of necessity. Again the debt soared and while all this was going on, my partner decided to leave the business and when he did, I found out that he had left some major unpaid bills, so that of course effected the business.

It was the true perfect storm, no way to pay the bills, no way to pay myself and/or the credit card companies and the loan. To say the least it was depressing, at worst, it was totally devastating. My dream was about done and I was overwhelmed by all the debt. At that point I decided the only way out was a bankruptcy.

I filed for Chapter 7 on the personal side and I was going to file for a Chapter 11 business bankruptcy and then decided against it. I knew that it was a long shot to ever be able to open again, so I just let it go, despite pleas from certain leaders of the community to keep things going.

For the next year, I virtually lived in hiding, my reputation tarnished and my future looking bleak. There were no real credit counselors at the time per se, so there was no one to talk to about rebuilding, other than friends and interested colleagues. I started doing some consulting work for businesses that were having problems. It seemed so strange to see so many of them going through what I had just been through. I was able to help turn some of them around or at least delay the inevitable. It was then I also started seeing some potential in the fledging credit counseling industry. I joined a company in the late 1990’s and acted as a mediator between clients and their creditors. I felt as if I were getting a second chance. My own finances were now under control and I had decided to limit my credit cards to the minimum that I felt I needed.

My employer decided to move to FL in 2000 and I moved with them. I had always wanted to live in FL and this was a perfect opportunity, except that exactly a year later, the owner decided to move back to NY. I wanted to stay, so I was able to hook up with a similar company and in a short period of time, I became a floor manager and then general manager. The company was sold in 2004 and I immediately got hired by the company I work for now. I was doing counseling and began to conduct financial literacy seminars. It grew to the point where I was presenting programs in prisons, county jail facilities, the Air Force and many other agencies. I had and have truly found my niche. Of course, it’s not publishing, but I do get to write and create a lot of good and useful information. I have also learned to live exactly within my means and I keep to a tight monthly budget. It is the budgeting process that I love to teach at my seminars.

Most of all, I have discovered that there is life after bankruptcy and this is the message I like to convey to all my clients; that is, if I could come back from total economic devastation, so can they.


Andrew Bernstein

ABernstein@debthelper.com
Certified Personal Finance Counselor
Credit Card Management Services, Inc.
4611 Okeechobee Blvd. #114
West Palm Beach FL 33417
1-800-920-2262