Mama Knows Best

You know those moments in life when you take a step back and realize that something has to change?  I am at that point in my life.  I spent several years in college, just to realize I no longer want to do what I was going to school for.  Debt was accumulated and I am now miserable, trying desperately to figure out the quickest way to pay it all back.

And the way this week has been going, I feel as though I am completely losing my bearings.  Stressed to the max.  It’s so hard to explain everything that is going on right now in my personal life, so I figured that beginning with the financial aspects would be best.  Therefore, I am inviting everyone to follow along on my goal to becoming mostly debt free in 2012.  It’s going to be a long road to travel, but one I am excited about tackling head on!  Life is too short to continue worrying about money.

When making the decision to go into business for myself (spoiler alert), I started with some of the very basics.  Aside from having my product lines, I started selecting website designs, logos and stationary to send correspondences between myself and potential clients.

With so many wonderful options available to business owners, it was pretty hard to narrow down who I would hire to do my designs.  The Logo Boutique has amazing design concepts at reasonable prices, which made them a step up from the rest.  With a tight budget, I am having to watch my pennies more closely than I usually would.  Their prices allowed us to stay under budget, which left a little bit of extra money for any mistakes we may or may not make along the way.

I also consider using their services for stationery printing for my home office/personal use.  One of my goals for the 2012 calendar year is to become a little less lazy about sending out quick thank you notes to friends/family members & to write people back.  Their prices are affordable and with the right design, who knows?  I may become a little less lazy!

Two weeks ago, part-time employees were given the option to purchase a retirement package and disability/life insurance coverage.  Being a planner for the future, I jumped on the bandwagon and purchased all benefits available to me at the current time.  I will not kid any of you and say that I know a thing about finance, but I have read a thing or two about mutual funds, using an online brokerage, and understand stock accounts.

Finances are something I wish I knew more about.. quite honestly.  As I watch one of my good friends live a completely debt free life, I feel envious.  Could you imagine walking into a car dealership with enough cash on hand to purchase a brand new vehicle?  Or being able to put down $75,000 on a house?  Which around here, houses don’t even necessarily cost that anymore.   She has no student loan debt, she has no credit card debt, no mortgage and no car payments.  She is by far one of the smartest gals I have met and I wish I had her ambitions when it came to money.

One of the biggest issues I have with my best friend and her husband is this- their financial stupidity.  Though it should not bother me, it does.  When they spend their money unwisely and run out, they always turn to me for help.  Mind you, between the two of them, they bring in almost $3200/month more than I do.  So where in the hell does all of their money go?  And what drives me completely bonkers is that at least 2-3/month they are going to Check Into Cash to get a payday advance. Seriously people, who in the world could not live off of that kind of income? I would be completely debt free if I had their kind of money.  The only reason I am mentioning this right now is because I just spent some time with them and had to listen to their financial woes… although they did not ask to borrow money this time.  Maybe they are learning that I am just not handing it over for unnecessary spending?