Some of us are creative thinkers, especially when it comes to making excuses about saving for our emergency fund. From the weak economy to the falling dollar to high gas prices, there are new ones every day. To break the trend of using our creativity to think of excuses, I challenged myself to instead think of some not so obvious ways to build an emergency fund. I actually had fun doing this exercise but what’s more important is for those struggling to build an emergency fund to try some of the tricks listed below. Here they are:
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I have seen it time and time again. My dad changing careers because of $50 a month, my friends switching jobs for a better pay and my old classmates telling me they demanded a higher salary or they consider quitting. Let’s face it. Money is an important part of our job and without it, we wouldn’t be grinding the 9-5.
Stop the “Show Me The Money” Attitude
Money, however is not what we really want. Money is what we need, and most people are surprised to find that we really don’t need that much of it. I recently decided to give up a 6-figure salary to go full time blogging. While it was a decision that will force Emma and I to cut back on some of the luxuries we enjoyed, we will also be much happier. We won’t be driving nice cars, living in a mansion and watching hired gardeners work on our lawn. Instead, we will be spending more time walking to get our groceries, figuring out a way to even get a house and working on our garden together.
At first glance, it would be a wrong decision to quit but what Emma and I gained are precious moments of being together. As a salesperson in my current job, it was hard for me to stay at home much. I was traveling 40% of the time, and I would be so tired from all the timezone differences and lack of sleep to enjoy the rest of the time that I was home.
Consider These Points About Your Job
I know that many people are working solely because of the salary, so this article is for you. Consider the following about your job to see if it’s the right choice for you.
Out of City Travel
Some jobs just require traveling. My job would be great for a bachelor that likes being in different cities but it’s not so great for someone who wants to start a family. Don’t underestimate the disadvantage of not being at home.
Location and Commute
There’s someone at my office that drives 130 miles to and from work each day. He typically spends at least 2 and a half (if not more) hours every day on the road. On top of his 9-10 hour work days, he only has time to drive, work and sleep for at least 5 days out of the week. He’s not alone though, the record for longest commute is 186 miles, each way..
Work Environment
There are companies that are fun to work for and there are others. Work environment should be about what you are comfortable with and not what you can tolerate. If it’s a new job, your first instinct is usually the right one so learn to trust it. You can also get a sense during the interview and remember to ask your interviewer to give you a tour of the company to get an even better idea before you commit.
Coworkers that You Directly Interact With
Many companies will have employees that are less than stellar and often become blockers. These people usually cause more grief than relief for yourself. Either find a way to:
- Teach them to be team players
- Get rid of them
- Work yourself out of any interactions with them
- Polish your resume and start looking for another job
Every time these people stand in the way, you are either spending more time at work or being upset about it. Absolutely unnecessary.
The Boss
The supervisor and everyone above the chain of command (including head of the company) can make your life in the corporate world a delight or a train wreak. It’s has to do with the rules, the instructions and the guidance. If you don’t respect your boss, it’s time to get a transfer or find a new place to practice your expertise. It’s as clear cut as that. You don’t need the stress and your family certainly don’t appreciate it either. Every excuse you give yourself is only because of the money and you know it.
Passion for What You Do
Unless you have passion for what you do, it’s very hard to enjoy your day-to-day job. Being passionate about your work is also the needed drive for you to succeed. You know if you are passionate about something, so if you are wondering, then the answer is obvious.
Go find something you are passionate about, and live a happy life instead.
Do What’s Best For Your Family
There’s always a choice and it is entirely yours. It’s not always about the money, or so they say. This time, they are right.
Yesterday, I received a notice from the rental car company telling me that I didn’t pay toll on one of the toll booths in Chicago, Illinois. Didn’t pay toll? I would never skip that and I live in Southern California.
As my blood started pumping faster and I was beginning to fill with anger, I remembered one thing “Maybe it was the customer visit I had in May”. I read further and got to this line: “Citation Date: 05/08/2008”. Doh…
On the letter, it says that it’s actually the government that caught it so the letter was only to notify me that they called the citations department to change the responsibility to me and also to charge me a $15 administrative fee. I called Alamo and to my surprise, the lady was willing to waive the $15 fee (I guess they were never expecting anyone to pay).
She also told me that the government will be mailing me a letter citing the charge and asked me to wait for the letter to come. “That will take 8 weeks” she says, I say “Great………”
To this minute, I still cannot figure out why I would miss a whole toll booth. The date seems to be reasonable, but I do not remember running pass a toll booth at all. After much thought, the only thing I can think of is that I paid and didn’t wait for the green light to notify me that they received payment.
At this point, I don’t even know how much the charges will be. Those tolls are nothing more than $1, so hopefully the penalty is not that much.
What Good Came Out of This?
I did learn a few things after this incident though.
- Be patient and always wait for the green signal before leaving the toll booth
- Always call the number on the citation notice to get clarification
- Always ask for a discount (they might even waive the fee)
Now I wait. Hopefully the citation from the government will come soon and I can put all this behind me.
Now that I plan to quit my job and pursue my own business, it’s time to look into how I should handle my current 401k account once I leave the company. As I don’t have a huge 401k account balance, the penalty if I don’t do anything will be relatively small but this doesn’t mean I should neglect this. After all, managing our finances successfully means making sure that we take care of all the little things so let’s explore what I can do with my 401k.
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Ever since I decided to become a full time blogger, I’ve spent many hours worrying thinking about my finances. It’s not that I believe Emma and I will starve one day, but what will happen when my income is cut to 25% of what it originally was? How will I feel when the checks aren’t coming on a regular basis?
My gut instinct is telling me that it is not good for me because my worry intensifies when I spend more energy trying to analyze the situation. So, I decided to write this post to help me organize my thoughts and also listen to everyone’s comments on what I should do. Thanks in advance for your support and advices.
What Happens When I Start Worrying About My Finances
At the beginning, worrying about my financial situation was good. The concern helped me decide whether going full time was the right choice for me and Emma, but once I decided and made the choice, worrying about it didn’t help at all.
Worrying further raised many questions about the future. The more questions, the more I wanted to know and the more time I spent trying to find out possible outcomes, the more questions were raised.
What I Should Do Instead of Worrying
Do Something Constructive
Once I decided to go full time, I should stop worrying and start facing the situation. I knew that there would be no way to know what would happen in the future, so the time I spend worrying was totally wasted. Instead, I should do something that actually helps the situation. In this case, I can spend time thinking of ways to grow my blog (or write articles) instead of thinking about “what if”.
Think of the Positives
There’s no substitute for attitude and outlook. In order for me to stay positive, I should remember what I have going for me. These include:
- I have a substantial emergency fund to weather any downturns
- If the whole online industry really tanks in the future, I can always find another job so it’s not the end of the world
- Emma is extremely supportive of what I plan to do
- Emma and I are frugal enough that our expenses are low to begin with.
- Not having a great income will force me to think creatively in ways to save money. This will be allow me to share what I learn on the blog
- MoneyNing already has great readers like you that I can speak and talk things with, which is not true with every business ventures that first start out
Listing these out really helps remind me that it’s not as bad as I thought. The future is as bright as our minds let us to believe, so stay positive.
What This All Means for You
When it comes to our finances, we all worry at times. Next time this happens, turn the situation around by:
- Focusing on Solutions to the Problem
- Being Optimistic
- Stop Worrying.
The personal finance community totally ignores the importance of my contribution. Without me, life would be so different since everyone would have to carry so many coins. I have decided to contribute my story to the public. I am a dollar bill.
I was once available everywhere. You might know my other siblings instead of me depending on which country you were in, but my brothers and sisters were available in every country. I was a critical part of the financial system.
Slowly, I became less and less important. I think people call it inflation, which to me is such a useless phenomenon. What society decided to do was give people raises and then make everything cost more. No one cares about this because they are still able to afford similar things but why have inflation? Who does inflation help? I keep telling everyone to to stop buying things that go up in price so the demand goes down, keeping inflation intact.
No one is listening though, because I am now pretty insignificant. Some countries even decided to turn my brothers and sisters into coins. Why? It cost more to create them and they are heavy. I overheard a few days ago on the highway when someone couldn’t even use me because the toll machine only accepted coins. Arrgghhh.
Another invention that sucks is those evil credit cards. Credit cards makes not just me but all of cash useless. I hear that people who are irresponsible end up racking up those credit card debts. Those companies seem to find a way to lure you to get into debt. In the old cash days, things were so much more logical. You have money, you buy something; if you don’t, then save up for it. Nowadays, if you want to buy something, just get into more debt.
Not all is lost though. In some countries like the United States, 45% of the currency produced today are dollar bills. They say they end up producing more of us because we are fragile but I hear that we can last 18 months on average.
I just don’t get it, why does no one like me anymore?
PS: We are in danger, look what they are doing to me.
