The Celtic show is Saturday so I have a lot to do this week. Daughter is home for spring break and she is going to help me! Lucky her. She gets to help do all the laundry from the Musical and finish costumes. I get to sit down and pay bills. You all know how I love to pay bills. But I will be glad for an extra pair of hands this week.
I read a finance book this week by Jean Chatsky called The Difference. It was good, full of many studies on peoples tendencies to save, move up out of poverty and the like. Since it was written after the crash it was more involved in the personality behind wealth or wealthy people. Sadly I was not in the category. But a good book all the same. I think it would have made a difference to me if I had read it a few years ago, but I have made so many changes in my financial life over the last 5 years that I look at money differently. I certainly look at debt differently. When you write out your budget and you are $7-800.00 in the hole every month you cannot save or prosper. Credit card debt can make it almost impossible to get away from this life style or cycle and I know I lived that cycle for way too many years.
Hard work or earning more is what finally broke the cycle. I had to earn more money to be able to pay my basic living expenses before I could tackle debt. I could not blame any one else it had to be me. As I earned more I was able to put aside money for debt and for things. The ability to pay cash for a carpet was to me a big thing. I had always charged anything I wanted and paid for it over the years until it was old and drab and I still owed on it. Sad but true. When I started to have extra, even a little I wanted it to go for something good. Something that would make my life better, happier and I realized nothing made me happier than getting out of debt. That is my mind set now. Where is this extra going to go? If I do that project where will I put the money? It is a good change.
Out My Window: It is warmer but overcast today and I beleive it will be colder by the end of the week.
Now I need to get to work!
So what made a difference in your life when it came to finances? What habit did you make or break in your struggle to get out of debt? Just wondering?
Have a great and productive day!
Kim
Good for you, Kim! If we want 'extras' we need to earn a little extra $ as well. Whether it's going to savings, debt, 'stuff', earning extra is the way to go! :) Hope you have a great day, Kim!!
ReplyDeleteglad your feeling better. what one thing- I think just being sick and tired of worrying about money, feeling stresed about it all the time. the catalyst was a job loss, but the constant stress - that would be the one thing for me
ReplyDeleteI think we had to start plan for expenses. Not wait for OT or hope we can float something. We started making future expenses part of our monthly budget.
ReplyDeleteI've always had a budget but the numbers have improved over the years. My budgeting method was simple: calculate my total monthly pay, set aside enough for bills, debt repayment and savings and live on what was left, no matter how little it was. I did use two credit cards if I HAD to pay for something extra but then that payment was added in and I had even less to live on. So extras were far and few between. I guess you could say I lived as though I were very poor, and now I'm just used to it even though I'm not poor anymore. What a strategy!
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