Clark recently read an article in Money magazine that revealed 25 percent of people bury their heads in the sand when facing financial hardship. Think about all the folks who avoid calls from bill collectors or throw out past due notifications that come in the mail. This mentality reminds Clark of his late father, who once had a heart attack during a meeting. He simply excused himself from the table, sat in the bathroom until he felt better and then returned to the meeting as if nothing happened. Clark's friend Michelle Singletary recently wrote a column arguing that you have to face your difficult financial situations to deal with them effectively. The sooner you face it, the sooner you can work out a solution.