Toxic decisions to be avoided.

• Position: Personal Finances

Making a wrong move when it comes to managing personal finances can have long-term consequences. Managing money successfully requires learning the right steps to take rather than those moves that can land you in toxic circumstances. "Consumers who learn how to avoid common financial missteps will be better prepared and have a much brighter financial future," notes David Jones, president of the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies, Fairfax, Va.

AICCCA offers five toxic money moves to avoid:

Saving nothing for unexpected expenses. An emergency savings cushion is an essential money management tool that will help you avoid going into debt each time there is a large unexpected expense. Your goal is to put aside three to six months of living expenses in a savings account that will be used only for financial emergencies.

Borrowing to get out of debt. Payday loans and debt consolidation are common terms and ones that get their fair share of advertising time. What is not pointed out in the ads is the fact that paying off credit card debt with a consolidation loan or meeting an unexpected expense with a payday loan does not make the debt...