Being Financially Prepared.

This blog post is all about financial preparation.

I started the whole 52 Week Money Challenge at the beginning of the year. To date I have saved about $200. Not too shabby. I have been doing pretty good financially since being on The Suze Orman Show.  I had roommates. Paid off a bill. I'm planning to have another roommate in August and that will help even more. I was excited with the progress I've been making.

The progress of my bank account seemed to dwindle little by little in the month of May.  I think I got carefree and started old habits again.  Going out.  Drinking. Eating out. Not planning meals when I got to the grocery store.  Buying clothes that I don't need. I thought I had it all under control. However, I have dwindled my cushion of funds from $400 to $100. WHAT IN THE HECK???  In my head I thought I had about $200 in the bank.  Nope!  How did I find this out?  I bought a Groupon for duct cleaning in my home. They came by today to begin the process but checked out the furnace first.  The interior of the furnace was covered in mold! Mold that has been there for years according to the serviceman from the company. I've only lived here for 4 years.  How did the Home Inspector miss this?

The company told me what could happen if I didn't get it removed - and I was already well aware of that. I was also aware that it would probably cost a decent amount of money.  The look on my face surely showed concern because inside I was thinking, "Oh my God! How am I going to fix this?" Mind you, I already had planned a budget trip to New York City that I am leaving for tomorrow morning.  Needless to say - I had to figure something out quick, fast, and in a hurry! 

Had I not started this money challenge and the freelancing is picking up - otherwise I wouldn't have had the money.  Now that it's all of the mold cleanup is completed, I'm thinking, "Well, it's nice looking now and no mold. Thank goodness I have a three year warranty. But DAMN... $600???" After seeing the end result - it does look pretty awesome but I could have done that mess myself!

The lesson here?  Always save your coins! 

The other lesson?  Don't feel pressured by companies to do anything.  If it's not broke. Don't fix it right away.. .fix it eventually.

The moral of the story:  Make sure you think clearly and have a plan on how you would manage something that is unexpected.  June is going to be a tough month to get through. So it's time to hustle more freelancing opportunities and sell more items!  Need a graphic designer?  How about supporting me by buying a t-shirt?  Jewelry anyone?  It's time to get back to basics!

Until next time...

Educate. Empower. Economize.

52 Week Money Challenge - Doh!!

I have to make a confession. 

I haven't kept up with the 52 Week Money Challenge as well as I had hoped.  Honestly, I forget about it.  I need to make a habit of putting the money into the savings account as soon as I get paid.

Today, my balance is $160 whereas $231 is really where it needs to be.

If you're doing the 52 Week Money Challenge - How has your plan for saving been working? 

Time to tighten up the purse strings man bag strings if I want to make this trip to Europe happen!

Keeping my eyes on the prize.

Keepin' My Head Above Water

On my drive home from work I was thinkin', "What did people do before all of these credit cards?"  Then I thought, "Wait.  Credit has been around for ages.  What's happened is that people have learned to abuse the system and companies have learned to take advantage of those abusers."

It all makes me think of the theme song from Good Times.




I've been keeping my head above water. Making a way where I can.  There are no temporary layoffs, or easy-credit rip-offs. Just good old fashioned downsizing. Living without  roommates for about a month now doesn't allow for that extra income.  I also haven't used my credit card since my trip to Las Vegas in March.  Mind you, I only have one left after consolidating all of my credit debt (credit limit of $300). 

When I started thinking about all of this, I started thinking about how not having credit cards and relying on cash finds me with more cash each week - still being able to put money into the 52 Week Money Challenge. It has also helped that I have been getting hired to do freelance graphic design projects! 

One of the tricks I use is giving myself the, "Do I really need this?" assessment. It's actually helped me control my spending and  I only buy what's necessary and don't really go out on the town much.

This is truly a case where less truly is more... more money in my bank account.

Educate. Empower. Economize.

Roommates Make a Difference

Hey folks!  I'm back.  Yep, it's been a while and there's no excuse for that. But, hey... I'm here

writing. 

It's been nearly a month since my two roommates have moved out.  I would be lying if I said that I miss them.  What I miss is their money.  It's not that they were awful roommates.  They most definitely were not.  Probably the best roommates I've had since my senior year of college.  I just happen to like the solitude of the space in general. They weren't loud at all and it was definitely a treat to come home and have people to chat it up with for a bit then go out separate ways in the house.  I think what made the experience nice was that one of the renters is a friend of mine from my college days.  We already had a rapport.

Now that there's no more money coming in, I'm back to fitting the bills all alone. I have considered getting another roommate. I have a friend who is weighing his options with regard to signing a new lease or moving into my house in August. We get along well, so I don't foresee any problems.  Best of all, it would only be for 6 months!  I love a short term situation. 

Sometimes you just have to do things you're not completely comfortable with in order to get yourself out of another uncomfortable situation.  In hindsight, had I not took all of those student loans out I wouldn't be paying back nearly as much... Had I just sucked it up and paid the loans when they first went into repayment, I'd probably be paid off by now.  Had I not gotten all of these credit cards and paid them off only to run them up again, I'd probably not need a roommate. However, I did and this is my life and I am "handlin' my business".

So, you see, there is a nice span of time between now and August.  No extra money coming in and me trying to save money as well as pay all my bills during that entire time!  I'm still on target for paying off my credit card debt (haven't missed a single payment) and I have made every payment on my student loans without fail. 

What's a man to do to keep his head above water in the interim?  He gets his hustle on!  I'm clipping coupons and saving my coins!  Oh, and selling things online.   If you'd like to check out what I sell, visit Five Loves Artistry, Brilliant Banana Tees, or my Etsy shop!

As Prince wrote in his song, "America", "..may not be in the black. but (s)he's happy (s)he ain't in the red."

Any other money saving tips from readers are welcome!