Credit: Simply put, credit is financial responsibility and a way to pay for goods and services immediately but arranging for a deferred payment of purchase or loan.

Credit cards have changed the way we live, globally, but they've also put us into massive credit card debt. But "debt" whether through credit cards or loans doesn't necessarily have to be good or bad. It's all relative to what the debt was used to purchase.

Good debt is when you gain a financial benefit. This can mean an investment where money comes into your pocket every month (say from a rental property) or a business where the income or assets exceed the debt every month. It can even be a "no frills" credit card which can be used to buy property to give you an income.

Bad debt is when people use debt to cover depreciable luxury items, holidays or even consumables and so live beyond their means because at the end of the day they still have an outstanding balance.

Leverage is one of the most powerful words and greatest means of creating wealth. Warren Buffet, Billionaire, said "I'd rather have 100 people working for one hour, than 100 hours working on my own" - that's leverage of time, and this is basically how big business, network marketing etc work - the use of leverage.

However to make use of this tool when using other people's money (OPM) - which increases your purchasing power - you have to first have good credit relationships, prove to be trustworthy in your past credit dealings, and now more and more, a good FICO score. When you use OPM you must be certain to calculate how you're going to repay the individual or institution who loaned you the money. Remember using other people's money has been the way many honest poor men have become rich.