About sixteen years ago, I met him for the first time. My trainwreck sibling brought home this adorable puppy he had no business adopting because he had not one thing in his life that wasn’t a mess. I was furious at my sibling – he didn’t even take care of himself, how could he drag
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December 31, 2008
| Retirement Savings |
Rollover IRA: $1,026
Roth IRA: $4,499
401(a): $4,448
403(b): $11,977
Total: $ 20,924 (21,604)
|
| Emergency Savings |
Catastrophe: $ 21,659 (20,000)
Problem Cushion: $ 1,000 (794)
|
| Short Term Goals |
Car Maintenance: $352
Car Insurance: $1,356
Travel/Con: $1163
Taxes: $3,507
Moving: $1015
Total: $ 7,273 (6,554)
|
| Long Term Goals |
House Down Payment: $101
|
| Investment Loans |
Prosper-ish: $12,630
Personal Loan: $5,000
Savings Bond: $357 (current accrued value)
Total: $ 17,998 (17,998)
|
| Total Assets |
Illiquid: $20,924
Semi-Liquid: $17,998
Liquid: $22,659
Expense Acct: $5,461
Goals Savings: $7,273
Total: $ 74,315 (73,110)
|
| Debt and Liabilities |
Truck: $2,353
AX: $196
Citi: $92
Citi 2: $1,090
Chase: $245
Rent: $1,360
Total: $ 5,336 (6,075)
|
| Net Worth |
$ 68,979 (67,035)
|
December: the month of three paychecks, and the final quarterly payment. That balanced out some of my profligate spending (hello pretty laptop, suit, heat for the below 40 degree nights) and fattened up my reserves just a bit. I’m going to need every bit of safety cushion I can get in the coming months and am very happy that even with paying out over $2000 on ridiculous car expenses, I haven’t lost too much momentum. In fact, I’m ever so grateful that I’ve gotten to the point where a blow like that just stings and takes up time and energy without draining me completely. There was a time when something like that would have meant debt.
I do feel a major sense of urgency: need a new job, need to purge more junk from the room, need to complete a million things before the official return to work. Urgency is good, it keeps me going and every little task builds a step for the next. In fact, I got rid of approximately 15 pounds of stuff, organized gift stuff into a single box, starting packing away photo frames, and paved the way to organize stored clothing. Fantastique!
Honestly, I think I’m just repeating myself now. I expect the January snapshot to announce bigger and better things.
Happy New Year everyone!
I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year!
We’re having the quietest New Year I could manage: getting the out of towners and hometowners together at a girlfriend’s new apartment just to hang out and gossip. That’s it. No partying, no excitement. Just maybe a Wii, and a board game or two, and food.
For the last three years, another girlfriend has gone to massive lengths to throw a hugely elaborate party with music, alcohol flowin’, all kinds of party foods, swimming and hot tubbing, and all that jazz but we’re old and worn out this year. 🙂
Catching up with friends, quiet reflection, enjoying our friendships and celebrating the new baby on the way is plenty good enough for me.
We had a laaaazy sort of Christmas gift exchange this year, so I didn’t open the last of my gifts until day before yesterday.
It’s one of the more modest exchanges we’ve had, the big group of friends didn’t attempt a massive Secret Santa thing for once, work didn’t bother to do anything, etc. ’twas sort of nice!
I bought myself the laptop and my business suit, and will be paying for some minor tailoring. Work related, yes, but we’re calling them gifts. 🙂
Actual gifts:
A most lovely Brooks Brother’s miracle white button down shirt (needs a tiny bit of tailoring), and a great pair of Banana Republic Martin fit pants that fit per-fect-ly. The pattern is the tiniest herringbone I have ever seen, and cute besides!
Three pairs of trouser socks. I looooove trouser socks.
A two coffee mug set complete with the most delicious smelling hazelnut coffee and chocolate syrup, all wrapped on a great tray. I don’t drink coffee, so it was reluctantly given to my coffee drinking buddy. I kept a mug, though.
An Aeropostale jean miniskirt. It’s now the shortest skirt I own … selected for me by someone six years younger and wears my size. Um, it’ll be fine as beach wear, over a bathing suit or something.
Another Bluetooth headset. Shot in the dark by my friend, I guess, ’cause I got one for my birthday but my dad needs one so that’ll be regifted. He won’t mind.
With the exception of shoes, I’ve got two very nice new professional outfits this year, which is great because I’m trying to update the wardrobe slowly and on a budget.
And I bought a set of ten thank you cards at Target last night for 74 cents, so now I can properly thank my friends for their generosity.
December 30, 2008
It feels like I’ve been on a 12-step program for pending resignations and layoffs. Despite recession fatigue, and family nonsense, the following plan has kept me on track even while I internalized the news, and updates on a daily basis.
1. When signs point toward instability, tell no one connected to your current workplace that you’re looking unless you absolutely trust them and they’re a good resource. Commence resume polishing and editing.
2. Contact mentors and trusted colleagues for feedback on resume and verify that your previous references are still relevant and willing to serve.
3. Form a mental target: what are you looking for and why? It’s very important not to look at it as something you’re running to, in desperation, or a means of escape from something awful. It can be, there’s no doubt, just don’t let that be the motivation that fuels your search. Make it positive: make it about where you want to go next, what new challenges you’re looking for, what inspires you? This may not be concrete in your mind. It certainly wasn’t in mine three or four months ago, but it’s solidified as I’ve refined my search and dealt with the everyday challenges.
4. Speaking of everyday challenges, don’t forget to do your job to the best of your ability while you still have one! If you’re using this 12-step program, you’re still employed so you should stay that way until you are ready to move on. Give your employer no reason to target you for an early layoff and derail the plan. Paychecks are good.
5. Search relevant job boards, selecting possibilities that most closely match your new goals.
6. Refresh: take a few minutes a day, or a lot of minutes every couple of days to refresh yourself: take a walk, play with your pets, do anything that’s not work and job related. Juggling job hunting with maintaining your existing job and keeping everything together can be intense.
7. Cover letters! When you have a group of possible jobs that you’d like, write or edit your existing cover letters to address the requirements of each job. It took me about three months and several fresh starts to hit my stride. Templates are great, but only once you have a strong basic template to work from; some of those standard letters I’ve seen are weak sauce. You’re not weak sauce, don’t let your letter say otherwise!
8. Request recommendation letters. I prefer to keep hard copies with my resume in case of interview.
9. Prep your interview skills: review possible questions and answers with a friend. Mentors are wonderful people – if they’re able and willing, draw on this resource! This is great for your confidence in phone interviews which should then lead to face to face interviews.
10. Prep your interview wardrobe! I nearly had an aneurysm when I was asked to pick an interview date, and I still didn’t have a THING to wear. (I’ve outgrown the old suit.)
11. Repeat steps 4-7 until you have need of 9 and 10. Very importantly: keep on saving your pennies, nickels and dimes while working toward your next step. The healthier your emergency fund, and the safer you feel financially, the more confident you’ll be. That directly translates to better negotiations, and a more discerning job hunt. Remember, if employers can smell your fear or desperation, you’re either a less respected candidate or not a candidate at all. Either way, bad times for you!
12. Knock ’em dead!
Aside from some fretting, (or a LOT of fretting sometimes) it’s been slow but steady progress. I count my blessings where I can find them:
~ I’ve got strong recommendations
~ I’ve got great skills in my area, and a very strong work ethic
~ I’m setting up freelance work starting now to keep an income stream no matter what happens here.
~ I’ve got my readers and fellow bloggers for moral support and cheerleading – priceless!
If anyone has advice or stories to share, please feel free to do so!
December 28, 2008
During a GChat last night, I realized that I’m now in the worse shape of my life, starting from the time I actually built up actual muscle mass. Probably age 13?
Have to say, I swore up and down that this would never happen. During the high school years, I was so active that it was nearly impossible to imagine that nothing of the track/running/horseback riding/biking/martial arts regimen would survive through (and past) the college years. As my martial arts teacher predicted, however, nary a hobby made it through the gauntlet.
There was a brief period of yogaing last year, in an attempt to alleviate stress, but there’s really nothing like a high-impact, exhausting routine to really get the endorphins flowing. At least, that’s what I always thought so if I couldn’t have it all, I wouldn’t bother.
Now, though, older and completely weak, I have no choice but to start slowly, and with low impact exercises; I don’t want to cripple myself with one walloping exercise session and ruin the rest of the month. Been there, no fun. Luckily, my conversation was with a member of the military who immediately instructed me on stamina and core building exercises.
Of the ten or more drills, I picked three to five that sounded the best: wind sprints, bar hang, the plank (extended version), leg lifts and crunches. Actually, I hate leg lifts and crunches because I thoroughly stink at them, but they can be done anywhere and there’s soooo much room for improvement.
Of those five, I’m going to do the plank every other day because I want to work up to the 2 minute time limit, bar hang on the in between days as my wrists allow, and seed the running, legs and crunches throughout.
The plank’s most intriguing because it sounds SO challenging. Holding your back completely straight and staying in each position for two minutes: you start in a plank position on your hands (push up position), then lower to forearms. Rise up and balance weight on right arm, hold, switch to left arm. Return to right arm, shoot left arm underneath right arm to flip over to back without ever releasing plank position, holding arms at 45 degree angles, knees bent, feet flat on ground, hold. Extend right leg parallel to ground, level with body, hold. Switch to left. Drop to ground, and lift head two inches off ground, looking straight up. And done!
In only 20-second holding increments last night to get a feel for it, my muscles were shaking halfway through… this will be fun!!
It’s not a New Year’s resolution to go to the gym or anything, but I’m pretty sure that this will stick better than the other would. (And it’s free!) It’d be even more fun with a buddy. Volunteers, anyone?
December 27, 2008
Many young folks are advised that when starting out, if faced with the choice between a lower-paying job with more opportunity, and a higher-paying job with less opportunity to learn or less mobility, experience trumps money. That makes sense, to a point. You probably want to choose the lower paying job that offers the chance to learn and grow because you’re building the foundation of your career and will be able to make better money as you move on if your skills are good.
The opportunity to develop is essential if you expect to move up, around, or through your current job to the next step, whatever that is. Since I enjoy working, I want that movement to be upward to more responsibility, challenges, and of course, money! [Caveat: It has little to do with lifestyle inflation, but, see note below. I simply enjoy achieving in the workplace as long as it’s in line with my values.]
But at what point, or what age, does the experience stop trumping the money?
The premise of that choice only works if you eventually take that experience and make it pay off by working for a company that will pay you what your experience is worth. [Allowing for the fact that it’s commonly said that people always think they’re worth more than they really are. It’s a subjective measure, I understand, and I refer to industry standards when I refer to “worth.”]
Based on the “experience = bonus points” theory, I stuck with the post-college job for much longer than expected, despite the frustrations, because I was gaining managerial experience without risk. Made sense at the time: no one was going to hire a kid in my field with no command experience, so why not try it on for size and experiment while I could? And it worked out: the money did come because taking on that work made me an MVP, but only to a certain extent.
Now that I’m ready to step up to a whole new level, and with it, a huge step towards a six figure salary, I’m facing the same question. Do I pursue the job that offers some major development in management accompanied with a much more restrictive budget? Or continue searching for a position that offers more money?
The limiting factors on that “huge step” towards a high salary, of course, is the availability of jobs, the economic environment, and the industry norms. For example, I’m realizing that if I want the money to follow my experience, I have got to stop working for non-profits, they don’t have money to throw about. FB’s a great example of someone who parlayed her training from an employer into consultant work with, thus far, some pretty fantastic success. I’m not interested in going the freelance route with my niche, for various reasons, but it is one way to go for those with skills in high demand.
In this economy, the answer is: both. But at some point, I’m going to have to make a choice. And at some point, I’m going to have to take the job I can get, because it’s still at least three times better than being unemployed for who knows how long.
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On lifestyle inflation: I keep saying I’m not interested in lifestyle inflation, but reading MoneyMonk’s post on the perception of a $100k income, I got a funny thought. Moving to take a new job while continuing to support my family IS lifestyle inflation. And not the fun kind, either!
Note: I’m not against nice things. I like nice things, but only in moderation. I mostly like freedom of choice which is muuuch more accessible if you’re not poor.
December 26, 2008
Since I missed wishing everyone a Merry Christmas or Happy Hannukah, I’m wishing you all a happy, prosperous, generous new year instead!
I had a wonderful Christmas spending time with best friend’s family. My own family isn’t up to the holidays, generally, so since I missed Thanksgiving with them, the surrogate family got me for Christmas. Absolutely relaxing, and full of hilarity. Glad I went – definitely glad I didn’t have much in the way of presents because I was really just there for the company and it was so much more fun to bop around chatting and clearing up the wrapping paper as they opened gifts.
Today, I knocked out three medical appointments, and came home with some skin creams, and a new eyeglass prescription. Will be reusing my old frames for non-bifocals, this should be a relief because the bifocals make my eyes feel like they’re crossing.
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California budget crisis: Well, crap, you know, I was kidding! I said that I wasn’t going to depend on unemployment if I haven’t lined another job lined up before the ax falls because California wasn’t going to have any money left, but I didn’t expect it to happen by February!
Evidently, corporations aren’t the only ones who are asking employees to take unpaid leave to alleviate budgetary burdens, Governor Schwarzenegger has issued an executive order to all state employees: they must take two unpaid days off per month.
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Checks are in the bank, sans a bonus check -frown- so the accounts are in pretty good shape and almost ready for a snapshot inspection.