Asking credit card companies, banks, hospitals, schools, and other businesses for better rates and discounts works. Here’s how to do it. In this must-have money manual, personal finance expert Matt Schulz empowers you to ask 45 fiscal questions in seven key areas of life: credit and debt, healthcare, housing, shopping, travel, work, and relationships. The questions feature decision trees, success stories, potential risks, and other practical tools that skillfully guide you through the pros and cons and explain the relevant data. Every request also comes with an easy-to-follow, fill-in-the-blank script. Gain the confidence to request a lower rate on your rent or mortgage, better financing for an auto loan, a higher salary, a refund on a cancelled flight, a lower phone bill, and even a fair split for that group dinner. You are the lifeblood of every company that you pay, and you have more power over your money than you realize. Put more of it in your pocket and keep it there. Sometimes all you have to do is ask.

Matt Schulz is chief credit analyst at LendingTree. He has written for Bankrate, Business Insider, CBS MoneyWatch, and USNews.com and has appeared on ABC World News Tonight, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, Today, and more. He lives in Austin, Texas.