So no one is actually lying to me but ME! When you have debt some people tend to lie to themselves. They are afraid to check their checking account balance and credit card statements because they know it will ruin their day.
From my last post you can tell I am pretty open about my finances. But it took me a while to get this way. I was the person afraid to look at my credit statement because I knew it was high!! I would pay the cards off but a few months later I was buying something else.
In November 2018 I had to start being honest with myself. I had to stop telling myself that it wasn’t that bad and it’s okay because I was saving a good amount of money. I was putting more than most into my 401K/TSP and my side hustles were bringing in a good chunk of change!
How can you be honest with yourself? The first step is writing it out! Write down everything debt or spending habit that you might have. Come up with a plan!
When I did this it felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I knew what I had to work toward to be in a better financial space!
That leads me into the current status of my financial journey. I am still using my cash envelopes. It is a struggle spending only what is in that envelope category. However, I am getting use to managing my budget and learning my spending habits. I had not swiped or used a credit card online since November 2018.
BUT I had to find a method to be able to use my card online because as you know online shopping is the best! :) Amazon is probably my favorite shopping site. I have an Amazon store card as well as PayPal credit. So what I did was have an allotment from my paycheck into one of my other checking accounts that I do not use just for shopping online. We are going to call this account the"Shop Account". When I want to purchase something online I use either the Amazon card or the PayPal credit (only if the same amount of money is in the Shop Account). Once the amount has been charged to the credit card then I turn around and pay the balance off using the Shop Account. I only buy online if I need it. For an example, I needed to purchase some photography lights for my photography business so I bought those on Amazon. I try my hardest not to buy unnecessary things while I am paying off debt because that extra money can go towards an additional payment.
I am not saying credit cards are bad. Credit cards are actually great if you know how to use them. You can use them but pay off the ENTIRE balance before the next billing cycle. This not only will keep you out of the hole but it also will boost your credit score!
The journey has been challenging but I know that this is only temporary! Once my debt is paid off I will be able to enjoy more without feeling buyers remorse! Don’t get me wrong I still enjoy hanging out and buying things I want but just on a smaller and smarter scale.
As always pray while on your financial journey and stay focused! Try your best to surround yourself with like minded people!
Love,
Kinna
Saturday, January 12, 2019
Friday, January 4, 2019
Where Is All My Money?
Money makes the world go round! You need to have it no matter who are you and what you do. The secret is if you cannot manage your money while making minimum wage you sure won't be able to manage it when you're making six figures!
I learned this the hard way. When I was in high school and would get paid on Friday I would blow my whole check during the weekend and Monday morning I would be asking my mom for gas money. When I turned 18 I got my first credit card and within 2 months I maxed out my little $700 credit limit. Little did I know that those bad money habits would follow me well into adulthood until I learned to fix them.
Once I graduated from undergrad I started making more money and each year my annual salary continued to grow tremendously. The problem was that every time I received a raise I found a way to make a new bill. New tv, new sofa, new something and all on credit. I always paid off the bill in months to come. But here is the thing I never was struggling financially. When I got paid I had money to pay my bills, put money in my savings account, and still have some fun money. Some may say well seems like you are doing fine to me! Yes, I was doing fine but I could have been doing better!
Here is what I mean...when you keep your expenses low you have more money to save and more money to experience life.
November 2018 I found a book named Money Diaries by Lindsey Stanberry. I have been thinking about writing my own book about young woman and men and our finances. The first step in writing your own book is researching others in the same category and that's how I found Money Diaries. I won't give you all the details because you just need to read it :) I will say it will definitely open your eyes when it comes to spending and saving money.
As I was reading this book my brain started to work on overload. All I could think about is budgeting, saving, and where the heck all my money was going.
Here is how I got started.
1. I am not a professional financial advisor. These are only my experiences and opinions. One day I would love to become a personal financial advisor. As my friends and family are already asking me about what I am doing and how can they join the journey.
2. I made a budget binder. I went on my favorite site, YouTube! Yep YouTube, I spend more time on there than IG or FB. I found a YouTuber who had a binder I liked and I mocked her templates and added my own touches. Here is the link to a video I made for my friends on YouTube because the video was too long to send in a text.
3. I wrote out my debt from smallest to largest. Credit cards, student loans, and car. I did not include my mortgage. I have only been a homeowner for going on 3 years so I have a long way to go and can tackle that once I tackle the bills that are smaller than the mortgage.
4. I ordered some cash envelopes. Not sure if you heard of Dave Ramsey but he is financial genesis. He suggest a zero based budget. Meaning you tell every dollar when you get paid where to go. So when I get paid I calculate all my bills and pay those and whatever is leftover I divide that up into different categories. Such as fun, groceries, household, beauty, business expenses, and sinking funds (I will write another post about sinking funds and my savings accounts). If there is any money leftover in the envelope the next payday I just leave the money in there. The fun envelope is always empty lol.
5. I did a test run. Budgeting is a learning task. I took the whole month of December 2018 and found out what worked for me and what didn't (I will have another post on this as well).
6. I started my debt snowball. I focused on credit cards first because those are smaller than the students loans and car loan. I paid off the first two credit cards with some cash I had in my savings. I felt it was no point to have all this money in one of my savings account, with no interest, and have debt. Then I decided to sell my second car. I love it but I don't drive it as much as my primary car. Plus I can only drive one at a time :)
As I pay off one debt I roll that money into the next debt. My plan is to keep finding ways to get extra cash. I already have three side hustles so from those I will use the money for debt as well as extra spending money when need be.
Step 6 is where I stop and I update you as I go along.
The main purpose of all this is I don't want to look back 5 years from now wishing that I would have started 5 years ago. Over the past 4 years I have taken amazing vacations and bought things that I wanted but I want to be able to take vacations with ease and purchase things without having buying remorse.
If this is something you want to do stay focus and pray about before you start.
Love,
Kinna
November 2018 I found a book named Money Diaries by Lindsey Stanberry. I have been thinking about writing my own book about young woman and men and our finances. The first step in writing your own book is researching others in the same category and that's how I found Money Diaries. I won't give you all the details because you just need to read it :) I will say it will definitely open your eyes when it comes to spending and saving money.
As I was reading this book my brain started to work on overload. All I could think about is budgeting, saving, and where the heck all my money was going.
Here is how I got started.
1. I am not a professional financial advisor. These are only my experiences and opinions. One day I would love to become a personal financial advisor. As my friends and family are already asking me about what I am doing and how can they join the journey.
2. I made a budget binder. I went on my favorite site, YouTube! Yep YouTube, I spend more time on there than IG or FB. I found a YouTuber who had a binder I liked and I mocked her templates and added my own touches. Here is the link to a video I made for my friends on YouTube because the video was too long to send in a text.
3. I wrote out my debt from smallest to largest. Credit cards, student loans, and car. I did not include my mortgage. I have only been a homeowner for going on 3 years so I have a long way to go and can tackle that once I tackle the bills that are smaller than the mortgage.
4. I ordered some cash envelopes. Not sure if you heard of Dave Ramsey but he is financial genesis. He suggest a zero based budget. Meaning you tell every dollar when you get paid where to go. So when I get paid I calculate all my bills and pay those and whatever is leftover I divide that up into different categories. Such as fun, groceries, household, beauty, business expenses, and sinking funds (I will write another post about sinking funds and my savings accounts). If there is any money leftover in the envelope the next payday I just leave the money in there. The fun envelope is always empty lol.
5. I did a test run. Budgeting is a learning task. I took the whole month of December 2018 and found out what worked for me and what didn't (I will have another post on this as well).
6. I started my debt snowball. I focused on credit cards first because those are smaller than the students loans and car loan. I paid off the first two credit cards with some cash I had in my savings. I felt it was no point to have all this money in one of my savings account, with no interest, and have debt. Then I decided to sell my second car. I love it but I don't drive it as much as my primary car. Plus I can only drive one at a time :)
As I pay off one debt I roll that money into the next debt. My plan is to keep finding ways to get extra cash. I already have three side hustles so from those I will use the money for debt as well as extra spending money when need be.
Step 6 is where I stop and I update you as I go along.
The main purpose of all this is I don't want to look back 5 years from now wishing that I would have started 5 years ago. Over the past 4 years I have taken amazing vacations and bought things that I wanted but I want to be able to take vacations with ease and purchase things without having buying remorse.
If this is something you want to do stay focus and pray about before you start.
Love,
Kinna
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