Hey everyone,
This is Kairi. I’ll be posting weekly hopefully on:
– My financial journey in life
– Review’s on things
– Things I found interesting that week…etc.
Hope you’ll join me for that.
See you soon!
Love, Kairi.
Image from Unsplash
This is my journey to paying off my debts (5 digit student loan) and aiming for my goals. I’ll be documenting as I go – if nothing else it will be a reminder to myself, how far I come when I look back and how it’s not easy but I hope worth it.
Looking back to last fortnight (1st fortnight) of my new budget of the year. I’ve done budgets before no big deal except now I had a goal I was all “fired up” about paying off my debt and that means going to a “beans and rice” diet (as Dave Ramsey refers to). I had never really cut my spending that much but when you have that change of heart you look at everything differently.
I find the most surprising I did last week was cut my own hair. I’ve been going to a $200 salon nearly every three months to get my hair cut and re-dyed. Money I didn’t really have to be throwing around so needlessly now I look back. I didn’t re-dye it myself, not only for cost but so my natural colour can come back (it’s getting too light every time I re-dye it) but I did end up cutting it myself. Which really wasn’t as bad as I thought. Probably wasn’t the best but it’s passable when tied up and no one noticed the difference but me. (Which for an absolute amateur that is a win.)
Overall I looked at everything with a different lens and everything I brought I asked myself could I get it cheaper, is there someway I can get something for free that’s similar, can I repair this because that money could be going off to my payments.
I remember approaching that second Wednesday of that fortnight….and it was so hard. I was watching every cent making $5 last over two days. Never had I ever budgeted down to the last dollar. It was hard and I felt extremely deprived. (We might see how this affected me this fortnight when it ends.)
I had one friend who was telling me I should buy what I want who criticized me for being “cheap” because I didn’t want to buy a $50 skin care cream. I was a bit hurt by it as I don’t really have anyone who knows I’m budgeting except my close friends but I think she’s come around the second week to while she doesn’t understand why I’m doing this she does respect the self control it takes. So I guess it takes a while for people to come around.
However at it again this fortnight and it doesn’t feel as bad. I think once I got over the first fortnight it became easier. I didn’t feel as deprived (I do a little) but no where near to where I was that first week. While this fortnight hasn’t ended I’m in good hopes to see how it will go. I’ll check it then.
x Love Kairi.
Image by Unsplash
My goal in 2018? Pay off my student loan debt as much of it, as aggressively as possible by May. I will probably need to dip into savings to pay it all completely but I want to reduce that as much possible so it’s less of a dent when the time comes.
Getting all fired up at the start and motivated to do this is one thing. Staying motivated I found was another.
It’s hard when there isn’t an inner circle to support you (they all think I’m crazy or one or another for going against the norm of having debt) but there are times it can leave me feeling a bit deprived.
Keeping in mind my reason. Everything I want to buy something or wonder whether a task is worth it, I think whether it will be worth it to help pay off my debt fast or how long would it prolong me paying it off. I keep picturing in my head what it would be like to have this goal accomplished and it helps now and then.
Podcasts. I’ve been listening to podcasts from Dave Ramsey channel on my phone. While I don’t agree with every single thing (and maybe it’s because I’m still new to the concept) – I listen to it because it forms a sort of support for me to hear others who have struggled and achieved their goals and it constantly inspires me to keep going and persevere even though it’s hard.
Reminding myself this is not forever. It doesn’t mean I won’t get everything I wanted to get it just means I can’t buy everything right now but this state is only temporary and it helps me cope in the short term.
Practicing being content with what I have. It keeps me from having that desire to buy things. It also stops me from buying things to impress others or to be seen a certain way.
These are little things on the way I’ve been trying since early December to help keep up this goal and I hope I can achieve my goal this year.
Image from Unsplash
I first fell in love with their bags and items in early 2017 (and I fell out of love at the sight of their price tags) but its been a journey since then.
I was a pretty simple working girl, saving a bit. I didn’t have anything but a debit card – never trusted myself with a credit card. I was 10k down having spent it carelessly on a trip (How that trip costed that much I don’t know). I had never even looked at my student loan despite I’ve filled out my tax’s for the last three years. My University sent me letters for the 3-5 years I was with them and I never looked at a single one.
I started this journey around March. I saw the bag I wanted on the resale market. I didn’t have anything for it since at this point I refused to take further from my savings. I only decided to put whatever I had left after my week to it. It was three months later when I realised – this was not enough.
I began wondering what to do and I started watching personal fiance video’s, listening to audio books and I learned about this thing called an emergency fund. I did nothing towards it – I wanted this bag so much more. However what I took from it was emergency funds are vital you had to look seriously at your budget and cut all the fat from it. It taught me to practice discipline in sticking to it. I cut where I could (except my morning latte that got me to work – I kept it because it made me happy.)
I started to gain a bit of traction in my savings after that. I put whatever I could towards the bag. I wasn’t perfect with my budget but I did feel I made progress. I was getting closer. I started looking at side hustle. I didn’t rake in much but even if it was a few cents I was grateful for it.
About July or August I was learning about debt. Hearing about how American’s have student loans and how they were paying it back. I knew we didn’t have it as bad in Australia but I got curious. What was mine? I was filling out tax’s at the time. That’s when I first looked at it. It was nearly 40k debt. I did nothing. I closed the page. I forgot about it for some time. I used the tax money to pay the remaining of the 10k I was down by from that trip.
In September I learned about credit cards and their points systems. I thought it’d help me save money so I opened two. I did get some value out of at least one of them for a while. (The point system got revised in December) I never spent more than what I could pay off.
(Now the credit card may not be for everyone.)
In October I kept hearing this thing about 401k and retirement and how it wasn’t just for the oldies. I looked up mine for the first time. I found out the fees I got charged I was staggering. I didn’t do anything about it.
I hit my goal in November. But the bag was sold out and gone. I was at a lost for a while. (After spending two days scouring the net and calling stores for a miracle re-release before accepting it and waiting).
Now in December my views have completely changed and now I’m not so sure that bag is first on my list anymore.
This journey started because I wanted that bag so much. The bag taught me how to picture my goal, practice discipline and acting out my budget. It changed the way I looked at everything.
““I started this journey thinking luxury was my Chanel bag.
At the end that changed; luxury was being free from debt and obtaining financial independence.“
It got me financially aware. I’m still learning to see and there’s a lot I’ve got ahead of me but now I want something more. This whole year was a series of baby steps. Learning about all these concepts. Learning to really start saving. In late November I started an emergency fund and I started paying off my student debt.
That bag came back on the market again that I wanted but I didn’t take the leap. I realised now even though I had the money but I could not afford it. It’s an odd statement to make but that’s the truth. I stopped keeping up with the Jones’s. I still want that bag but for now I’m okay with putting it off.
I’m focusing on other goals and hopefully I can give a positive report next year. Let’s see how it goes.
Image from Unsplash
My job has a lot of downside which include the hours, the responsibility, not much progression and an average pay it’s no wonder I often get asked why I haven’t left sooner.
I suspect every or most jobs have some sort of downside to it. Some jobs have less downsides then others. However looking back I want to take the time to learn to be grateful for what I have and taking stock of that at the end of the year.
It provides me with an income: This in itself I am grateful for. While I do earn every dollar I’m given being employed is a great thing in itself. We are lucky that we have a job even if it’s not our dream job (or pay the dream wage) because it gives us freedom to pursue things we want, establish that emergency fund or even using it to try other ventures or hobbies.
There are small perks: Sometimes I might get a freebie even if some are company branded or were just slightly damaged stock. Sometimes a little goes a long way in a bare-bones budget like mine.
This month:
Free pair of good quality black socks = $10
Cotton Tips = $2
Notebook = $2
Christmas dinner = $15 (It was one meal cost which I otherwise would have spent. It was probably better food then what I normally get myself.)
It’s not much but it saved me from buying them and I’m grateful for that. Some places that can afford to give more. I don’t expect these things but it’s nice to have when it comes my way.
My boss: He’s a good boss – as far as boss’s go and out of all you can expect from a boss. He takes my concerns seriously, does what he can and has acknowledged my progression from when I was a student in the field. Overall he is as kind as boss’s are and fair. He may not be a reason I’d commit to this job forever but for the time being it’s something again I just appreciate.
I suspect there will come a time sooner or later when I will move on to something else that offers more but for now looking back I am grateful (and don’t confuse that for being complacent) for what I have. I think there’s something to be thankful for to be found in that job of yours and if there isn’t anything at all – either you didn’t think hard enough or it’s time to consider a job change as a new years resolution. Which one are you?
Image from Unsplash
The Furla Mini Metropolis is known as one of Furla’s signature bag’s but just how well does this little bag stack up?
Love, Kairi 