Productive Sunday

I spent the day vacillating between watching trashy TV and trying to be productive. Overall, I would like to say that productivity won, but you can be the judge of that.

Three women live at my parents' house. We turned an extra spare space into a "closet room" in our old house. Really, it's just a catch all for the purses, shoes, and clothes we can't fit in our small rooms.

We've been needing to clean for months now. It finally was a good day to buckle down and do some cleaning. I definitely will not take the credit for cleaning that room. My mom spent hours up there and made some headway on the project. I helped organize my shoes and choose what should go to the consignment store. I also took on the "purse project."

In a bin were purses I've had for over eight years. Since they're all smashed in a bin, you can tell I haven't used them in quite a while. I narrowed it down and threw out the overused items and put some aside to try and consign.

The best part of the project was finding lost goodies along the way. Here's what I scored:
$5.00 x 1= $5.00
$1.00 x 4 = $4.00
$0.25 x 4 = $1.00
$.10 x 7 = $.70
$.05 x 2 = $.10
$.01 x 8 = $.08
Coldstone Giftcard = $.11
Boston Market Giftcard = $.68
Panera Bread Giftcard = $7.40
Panda Express Giftcard = $1.77
Forever 21 Giftcard = Unknown

Total Found = Over $20.84

I was also excited to find an old Coach wallet I used back in the day. Its only a few years old and still in great condition. We were out shopping over the weekend and I really wanted to buy a new one, but I was able to find and re-purpose an old one.

Cleaning out a closet can be a productive day - both in appearance and in budget.

Making Headway

Since July I have paid off $7,079.46 in loan debt. This is the first month in my “pay off $10,000 this year” goal. I have figured out that with just my base payments I pay off $532 each month. That means I only need $3616 extra this year or about $300 a month. Breaking it down like this has me super motivated. When I made my $10,00 goal, some people balked that it would be too hard on the little amount that I make. I know that I can do it, but I wish I had more of the data since my very first loan payments a year ago.

It’s been tough this month. Now that I’m out more with my friends and trying to eat better, I’m finding that my money goes quickly. I’m starting to become the person who only brings enough cash for the night with her to an event. I’ll be close to my $300 savings for this month. Next month, I hope to do a little better and get above that to even things out.

I’ve been spending my newfound free time at the gym and taking my cockapoo to the dog park. Eating healthier and exercising more were part of my “new year new me” resolutions and a result of getting my heart broken. My mom has so helpfully volunteered to exercise with me. She put our venture in a great light, “Any exercising I do today is more than I typically would have done.” It’s such a positive spin on the effort we put in towards our goals. The penny I find in the street or the coupon I use on milk are all more than I have done the previous day.

Who is supporting you on your journey? What are you doing extra today?

Piggy Bank

With all of my troubles this month,  I wanted to put any extra cash I have left over from nights out into my trusty piggy bank. My granny has slipped me a few bucks here and there, so those have all gone into the piggy bank too. If I have cash, I will spend it frivolously.

Now, my question is - do I keep this piggy bank theory, or do I start depositing it into my savings account every month to put toward my loan pay off?

My piggy bank offers great convenience. It is right on my night stand, and I can drop in my change or extra bills right away. The reason I’m hesitant on this option for the long run is because I can hear those bills calling to me every night. They are asking to be spent on cheese curds and movies.

I don’t really earn a whole lot in interest for my credit union savings account. It still is more than just sitting in my room. The debate lives on, but it would be an interesting challenge to see exactly how much I can stash away. I want to take it into the bank next year to see how well I did. As long as those bills stop calling my name, it should be a successful way to stash some extra cash.

Rough Times for the Bank Account and Heart

Last week was rough. For multiple reasons.

I started this blog, because I wanted to tell my story. Well, my story was inspired and encouraged by my then significant other. He decided to call things quits, and that left me dreading this blog post.

I enjoyed so very much that I was with someone who was financially on the same plan as myself. We could talk about anything - our debts, hopes for retirement, and daily struggles. We just happened to not be on the same page emotionally.

I’m definitely someone who learns from experience. After every relationship or encounter I learn more about what I want and need in my life. I learned how important it is to connect with someone on that financial level.  

Now, I’m left wondering if there is a “Financial Independence People Meet” dating website? If not, I hope someone comes up with it soon. I was initially worried that I would give up on all of this now that the relationship is over, but editing that Google doc with my updated pay off still made me excited and happy to keep going.

Like I said, this month will continue to be rough, but Adel and mint.com will get me through. I have blown money due to emotional spending. I’ve been stashing away extra cash in my piggy bank to try and hide money from myself. I also need to adjust my budget to factor in the lack of help on the entertainment front. Luckily, I have awesome family and friends who love the extra time with me.

What has set you back this month? Who is inspiring you?

Growing Your Income

Financial independence is centered around two main concepts. Reduce your expenses and grow your income. 

I’ve planned out my debt avalanche with the idea that I will be earning the same for the next seven years. I want to get my debt paid off in a significantly less amount of time. The best way to do that, is to make more than I am now. 

I want to keep advancing my career, and not only for the pay raise, but for the accomplishment and responsibility. I hope to keep working in the recruitment field for a long time. I’ve learned that it has innumerable amounts of opportunities and organizations to work with. I’m hoping to move up with my current company in about four months. At that point, they will offer classes that can help me move into a new role, but I have to position myself so that I will be eligible and favored for the program. 

So, the planning begins. I’ve learned so much about LinkedIn from sourcing for new candidates. I’m starting the overhaul process on my profile based off ideas and inspiration from other good profiles. A weird thing happened, my dad asked me for LinkedIn advice. I remember going into my university’s career center asking the same type of questions. I want to move into a mentor role, it just happens that my dad is one of my first. 

Here starts the “let’s make this a career” phase. I’m excited to see where this path leads. It will take being open minded and hard work, but hopefully in about a year I’ll have doubled my income.