Those of us who are fortunate enough to have good credit may wonder (with a soupcon of immodest superiority) why others of us are so unfortunate as to have serious credit woes. The financial causes of poor credit vary from out-of-control consumption to burdensome medical bills, but these financial problems often contain a psychological component as well. In this case, defeatism--the belief that one's ruined credit is permanently beyond repair--is a typical barrier, according to Robin Chandler at my client LendingTree. For more on this subject, watch
Maxed Out, a shocking Michael Moore-style documentary about the tragedies of personal debt.