I'm looking into this more. Oracle have taken us over and are currently offering full-time positions to Sun's permanent employees. I've heard they will also do the same with contractors but it will take a couple of more weeks/months for this to happen. Once I receive information on this I'll look into their benefits. I just started using direct deposit and I'm finding it a lot more easier to "get paid" but is there any other benefit apart from less of a wait? Like I said in the previous post, I don't use my credit card... I guess that's one good thing.
Most of your shit probably goes into consumer goods like clothes, shoes, music (if you pay for it) or food. Being social is an expensive habit.
Here are some really simple things that will add up. --Don't eat out when you can eat at home. If you have friends eating out, join them for drinks afterward. --Don't buy processed food. Learn to cook with cheap ingredients--fresh vegetables, pasta, rice, etc. --When going out for the night, have some warm-up beers at home. You'll save the price of 4-5 beers you would have drunk in a bar. --Always make your lunch. Never eat out at work. --Always make your coffee. Never buy it at work. --Take 10% of your gross paycheck and put it into savings. --Never spend your change. Instead, put it in a jar. Every few months, deposit that money in the bank. --Pay for everything you can with a credit card and pay it in full at the end of the month. Not only will it categorize your purchases for you to track, but you'll get a free 30-day float.
Rent things if you can instead of buying (i.e. Netflix). The less stuff you have, the more mobile you are and the less likely you are going to have an "accumulation" mindset. http://trendwatching.com/trends/transumers.htm
This. I had a basket I just threw loose change into. It got heavy...so I took it to coinstar...$500. Only bad thing is I blew it all in vegas.
The most important is to try and not "keep up with the Jones'". Terrible habit. Just don't give a fuck. nice to have a few good gadgets and toys, but don't try to keep up, there are always those types that try to one-up each other with shit (esp. cars)
Read "Think and Grow Rich". From a philosophical point, its a great book. http://www.amazon.com/Think-Grow-Ri...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265242478&sr=8-1 not too much in the field of "savings" and shit like that, but a bunch of that shit is good for a while...just don't get so obsessed with it that you miss out on life. So many people saved and did all that normal shit and took a hit when the economy tanked and what are they left with?
Quality over Quantity. Its not like I have multiple pairs of these. Buying expensive shoes is usually a good idea because you buy less, you can get them resoled and repaired and they last much much longer. Same goes with shirts, pants, etc. Buying quality is better than buying a bunch of shit from old navy.
Agreed. I actually try to take the mindset of making it a game, and an on-going joke of how cheap I am, and how I never have the latest, newest "stuff".
It took me a good year to buy a toaster oven, debating the pros and cons of things. Takes me 3 months to find the perfect wallet. Carry on suitcase? Don't even fucking ask. I usually now spend a lot of time before buying something...still not perfect, I do buy a lot of shit but its better than I was before.
Google Dave Ramsey.com and check out his program, Financial Peace. It is Christian based but it's principles work for anyone. He is on cable TV and on radio. Many thousand have made his plan work. Some of the principles include: making a budget and sticking to it, cutting up your credit card as you don't need them, pay cash for all planed budget expenses, and many other steps.
I have the cable/internet bundle that I split with my roommates (four of us) that's $27/mo (each). I pay ~$90/mo insurance for my '04 Jetta and it's about $40 to fill her up ($2.60 a gallon here) but I rarely do that. I usually just throw in $10 whenever I get close to E. I'm still on my parent's health insurance but that will change once I turn 19 (next month) so that will be a bitch. Then, $35/mo for my cell which is a must-have for work. ~$400 for rent & utilities. No other subscriptions. No Netflix. Sometimes I get a movie from the Redbox which is $1 for a day.
Thanks for the great advice, Paxil. I'm going to head down to the library after class tomorrow evening and make a list like you said. When you say "things I wanted to accomplish", do you mean financially or just in life? I already know I'm going to be shocked at where most of my money goes so it will be interesting to see (sort of dreading it, to be honest!). I feel like I would just buy whatever I liked when I went shopping for clothes instead of looking for the bargains/deals. No need to rush, I guess. Yes, I'm very thankful for my job as it helped me move out and helped me become more independent. I want to capitalize on the opportunity as much as possible as many of the engineers at Sun were originally in my position and they didn't start as early as eighteen! Thanks again.
I'm good @ saving for some reason. My mom has always taught me how to manage my money well. I use the change in the jar method (a handle of Jack Daniels, once it is full, roll it and deposit it). This sounds like a crack head method, but I put $20-$50 from each paycheck, tips, birthday, Xmas, w/e money in an envelope that I leave in my room and forget about TBH. It works. You have to have the discipline not to spend that money if you keep checking the envelope, though. Once every 3 months or so, take a run to the bank and deposit it into a Savings account. I guarantee you spend most of your money on food.
I feel like I would have a hard time doing that but I'll see how it goes. I only know handful so a couple of more wouldn't hurt. Pre-gaming, FTW! I usually head out drunk and keep it at that. Definitely a good point. Going to start doing that from now on which will help me save more than $50 per business week. Luckily we get free coffee. Definitely something I'm going to start doing. I'm going to SunTrust tomorrow afternoon to see if they have something to help out with that. Now this is a great idea. I can't begin to imagine how much change I waste. Hm, interesting. I'll think about this, as well. Thanks for the great tips, maxie.
What the fuck are you trying to say? I might be fat but that's taking it a bit too far. Joking aside, that is a good idea. I like the JD one! I feel like I might misplace the envelope too badly though!
