New financial year - goals and things

I cannot believe it is a new financial year already! Every year I make plans to keep better records and never do.

This year I am setting up a better folder system and will be keeping track of everything much better. I have 2 spreadsheets set up on excel; one for expenses and the other for income. I also have a new folder for all my receipts and records.

I am pretty hopeless really with keeping it all organised. It gets thrown in a box, then pulled out and handed to my brother (awesome tax dude that he is) to “fix” and get me money.  Yep, gotta love him. No one else would be able to sort through all my crap and tell me how it should all be. This year it is going to be SUPER fun for him coz I have an ABN again! Lol. He loves me though.

Anyways, since I am totally motivated for a new financial year, I thought I would share with you my goals for this one, plus the things I will be making sure I keep to claim on tax and stuff. This will make filing online taxes easier next year.

So goals first.
1.) Keep proper records of everything.
2.) Earn enough from home to enable me to be a WAHM getting a good wage.
3.) Buy a property.
4.) Have my net worth at $250,000 by the end of this financial year (aim big people!)
5.) Buy shares


I don’t want to list too many financial goals. I have enough going on and since they pretty much all revolve around the same thing I don’t really need to say much else.

Some of the things I am going to keep proper record of are

1.) The tithing I pay to my church. We put it in an envelope, get a little receipt and can claim it on tax. I never keep that receipt and just trust that at the end of the financial year when we get a big receipt that all my money will be on it and recorded. I’ve had a few friends where this has not been the case, so I really should take more note of it.
2.) Record the dates and times I go to my rental property. I don’t actually need them I know how many times I go etc... But it would make for more accurate records for myself if I have that written down.
3.) Get receipts for everything and keep them all. Not just that, but scan them onto my computer coz receipts fade then you can’t read them.
4.) Organise said receipts into groups – Health (I seem to be quite good a raking up medical bills), Charity, Business related, anything else. I will probably think of these groups more once I do my return this year.
5.) USE my spreadsheets. It’s all very well and good to have them, but I am not always the greatest at using them. To change this I am putting a little reminder in my phone each night reminding me to record things so hopefully it will become an ingrained habit.
Those are the main things I will be looking at this year. I need to have a chat with my brother about what I can claim and things for the upcoming year, so I don’t accidentally toss something I could have used.

Just thought I would mention that taxes are different state to state and country to country. I know many of the laws in Aus are completely different to USA and UK and NZ, so what I write might not apply to you.

50 Challenges

So over at Blog This there is a 50 things challenge. It can be any 50 things you like, such as 50 things you don’t know about me, 50 places I want to visit etc... Since my blog is a challenge for myself, I thought I would write down my personal challenges. I’ve grouped them to make it easier to read.

Financial

1.) Obviously there is my million dollar challenge. I mean, that is what this blog is about; my aim to be a millionaire by the time I am 30.
2.) Sell 10,000 copies of my book 26 Ingredients. If I sold that many copies, after tax, charitable contributions and things it would be a nice deposit for a house.  I lost interest in doing this because I had some other big projects come up which were more deserving of my time and will reap a higher reward.
3.) Be financially free. This is my ultimate aim. It surpasses the million dollar challenge, but the million dollar idea was my first step to believing in myself and that I can do this.
4.) Make a will. I am one of those people who still doesn’t have one, despite meaning too for a LONG time. Yes, I will do it within the next 2 months. I MUST do it.
5.) Own 4 rental properties with reduced rent to help people save money for their own home. One of the big drives behind my million dollar challenge is being able to provide affordable rent for people. House prices and rent are just ridiculous in Aus and I would love to be able to help people save money and get their own place.
6.) Live debt free. As in no mortgages, no credit cards nothing. I want to own my home and rental properties outright and just live in the knowledge I have provided for myself.
7.) Raise $10,000 to donate to charity. I would really love to donate to cancer research as my mum died from cancer in 2000. I am leaning towards ACRF, as all money donated to them is used for the research.

Family

8.) Travel Australia in a caravan with my family. I want to show my daughters our beautiful country and have them experience things I still have not seen or done. I have relatives who have done it and they say it was the best thing they did.
9.) Learn to love being a mum. I do love my kids and I love being a mum in one sense but in another I find it so hard. I need to learn to enjoy the little things about being a mum more.
10.) Have an annual family holiday. As a kid we went away every Easter camping to the same spot with another family and every Christmas/New Year, somewhere near there we would go for a week with the same family. It was awesome and I looked forward to it every year. I want that for my kids. A tradition. An annual event they know will happen and can look forward to. It doesn’t have to be a big overseas event. We loved staying in tents, cooking on a fire, fishing etc...
11.) Create a recipe book for each of my girls. My mum died at 37 and there are many of her recipes I wish I had. Some I have, some I have recreated from memory, others are lost forever. I don’t want that for my daughters. I will be writing down our favourite meals and putting them in folders for them when they are older.
12.) Give my daughters the best life I can. I want a stable home where they feel safe and know they are loved. I want to travel with them so they can experience the world and live in different cultures. I want them to have fun as kids and not be too hung up on academics, but to still culture a love for learning and reading. I guess everyone wants the best for their kids. It’s only natural.

Personal/Spiritual

13.) Learn to love myself. This may surprise you, but I am not very confident and can be pretty negative towards myself. I have a lot of hang ups which I am trying desperately to overcome. I really want to be happy with me and love myself for who I am.
14.) Learn my life purpose. This is a big one and one I am really focussing on. I have read lots about how people have worked out their life purpose and done various exercises, but nothing seems quite right yet. I am sure it will come to me eventually. I think it might be coming to me, but will have to sit on it for a bit before I share what it is.
15.) Become more eco friendly. Switch to all natural products around the home, grow my own food, have chickens, solar power, water tanks etc... I am doing this slowly because I also don’t want to replace things unnecessarily, as I see that as being just as un-environmentally friendly. What I am doing though, is saving so when things break or run out I can replace them with the eco friendly options.
16.) Read the Bible the whole way through. I am in the process of doing this. If anyone has done this, you’ll understand how hard the Old Testament is. In the process
17.) Write a letter for myself to open in 5 years. I have done this a few times in my life and it has been so interesting. Considering I am aiming for quite a few things for when I am 30, I could write an interesting letter. DONE
18.) Create a life motto to live by. I have little quotes and sayings, but I want a motto for myself. Presumably this will be decided once I have worked out my life purpose.
19.) Identify 100 things that make me happy. I want to write it out and make it into a nice big poster to put up in my house to remind me every day.
20.) Answer the 50 questions that will free your mind Lambchop has done it in 4 parts on her blog. Here’s part 1.

Things to learn
21.) Learn to surf. I have wanted to do this for about 8 years now and still have not got around to it. I don’t know what my fascination with it is. I just love the idea of it. I love the ocean and grew up body boarding in the freezing waters of Tasmania. Learning to surf would be so much fun.
22.) Learn a second language, either French or possibly Tongan. I used to know French in high school. I was actually in the advanced French class. Do you think I can remember any of it now? I want to learn Tongan depending on my mood any given day. Some days I do, some days I don’t. My husband doesn’t really speak it, but it is something we would like our kids to know.
23.) Learn the guitar. I dabbled a bit previously but haven’t picked it up in a few years. I use to be able to play a few songs, but don’t think I could even play them now. I have a book and a husband who can play really well. It’s pure laziness as to why I haven’t started it up again. In the process
24.) Learn at least 1 form of dance. I am not a good dancer. My aim is to at least 10 classes of some form of dance. Started 16/08/10
25.) Learn how to shoot a gun. This is something else I have wanted to do for years. I have decided I will be doing it before Christmas. There is a shooting range no too far from me and I am going to go there soon and have a look around.

Health
26.) Be a healthy size 10 – 12. I am a 12 – 14 at the moment. Clothing sizes vary from store to store. Ideally I would like to be 65kg but a healthy 65kg, not just I ate less so got skinny. I want to be toned and really should exercise more!
27.) Do a proper 10 day detox. I have wanted to for some time. I plan on starting next week when I get back from Sydney. I have had a book I want to do it from for some time, but have never found the right time. No more excuses. DONE

Experiences and Travel

28.) Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge. This has been on my list for almost 10 years! How scary is that. I never had the money or the time, then I was pregnant, then I moved. I am determined to do this within 12 months though!
29.) Live overseas at some point for at least a year. I would really like to live in the States for a year, travelling around, but my husband is not so sure. Funny, coz he is from Hawaii. My 2 main choices are USA or England.
30.) Climb Mount Kosciusko. This one I am aiming to do in the next year. It is not too far from me. I could drive there, climb it and drive home in a day. I just haven’t. I will, this spring or summer though.
31.) Go on a road trip with no specific destination. This sounds idyllic to me. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I would love to jump in the car with my kids and just go somewhere, anywhere, make it an adventure.
32.) Climb the Great Wall of China.
33.) Go on a cruise. I would like to do either the South Pacific or the Greek Islands.
34.) Ride an elephant. I have wanted to ride an elephant in Thailand for years. My husband won’t go to Thailand, and won’t let me take our girls there, nor does he want me travelling there, so I might have to compromise and do it somewhere else.
35.) Be an extra in a movie or TV show or in a TV audience. It shouldn’t be too hard; I have just never done it.
36.) Ride in a hot air balloon. It sounds so dreamy. I actually have a voucher for like $80 off I think it was, somewhere... I must find it. I know it is valid until next year. So I will be doing this one in the next 12 months as well.
37.) Hike the Grand Canyon. I have flown over it, but I would really love to go into it and experience it properly. It’s gorgeous.
38.) Visit the Eiffel Tower. Oh, who could resist Paris? Not me. I so badly want to go. We have a pic somewhere of me in Vegas and the angle it was taken at it looks like I am standing near the Eiffel Tower. It has fooled many people, though I always tell the truth! I would love to have a REAL pic and see it, not the one on a Vegas casino.
39.) Try a different recipe from a different country every week for a year. That’s 52 countries where I will pretend to be for one evening each week. It will be a culinary round the world trip in my dining room.

Things I want to own or do

40.) Do project 365 – Take a photo every day for 365 days. I will be starting this one as soon as I get my desired camera, either a Nikon D5000 or D90, depending on how much I want to part with. Just bought a Nikon d5000. Can't wait to start playing with it!
41.) Create a room I love when I own a house. I will eventually do all the house, but because I plan on letting my kids decorate as they wish I am pretty sure I won’t love their rooms. I want one room that is just for me, decorated how I want for me to do what I want in there. I can dream.
42.) Throw a massive party. I really want a HUGE Halloween party one year, when I have a house. It is not really celebrated here in Aus, but I think it would be SOOOO much fun and have wanted to do one for years. When I finally buy here it will be at the top of my list.
43.) Own a classic wardrobe. I am part way there. I have it written down and have a few items. Mind you, as I lose weight, those items will probably not fit and I will have to start again. As such, until I get to my desired weight, this will be nothing more than a list.
44.) Donate blood. Every time I go to donate, something happens or there is some reason I cannot do it. I have been quite a few times. I will be donating by the end of July! I WILL. (I did it at the start of August 2010.)
45.) Be the host of a meme or blog hop. I love all those little blog hops and things you see around the place and want to host one. Not sure how I will do it yet, but stay tuned. I did it, but wouldn't do it all the time.
46.) Sew a skirt for myself. I can sew and I have fabric I want to make a skirt for myself out of. I have a style in mind but am not the weight I want to be for it.
47.) Go into a shop; buy something I love without worrying about the price. Buy it because I love it. I have a HUGE problem parting with my money, which is a good thing, but sometimes I just wish I could go in, get something and not feel guilty. When I have a house, I will be buying something I want for it, because I love it and will not be worrying about the price.
48.) Own an awesome DSLR like a Nikon D90. They are not cheap, but I will have it in the next few months (thanks tax return!) DONE
49.) Write an eBook. I have been in the process forever. I just need to sit down and do it.
50.) Switch my blog from Blogger to my own domain. I keep meaning to do it, but have just been lazy in it. I plan on doing this in the next few months though, because I know of a few people who have lost their blogs completely being hosted on Blogger and things. DONE


So there you have it. Did I surprise you at all? Is there anything on there you are thinking of doing/owning etc...?

ERE 21 day make-over continued

I have been doing the 21 day make-over at ERE and it has been quite interesting. Lots of it I already do and other things I am working towards. I was going to post on here various posts about the make-over challenge, but I have decided to sum the rest of it up here and now, but in the way I’ll be doing it.
Day 5 talks about finding a free hobby. I’m lucky that I love to blog. It’s my new found free hobby. Whilst it’s not technically free if you don’t already have a computer and internet, since I already had those things to me it is free. Other great free hobbies are things like gardening, playing sports (after the initial set-up costs), reading etc... Lucky for me I like these things and they don’t cost me anything.

Day 6 talks about clothing. I used to be part of the buying cheap crowd. I was more interested in quantity rather than quality. Now I look for good quality (I have specific brands I have found to be good quality) and I buy them at op shops or on mega sale. You see, I have found here op shops often cost as much as what I can get things for on sale, so I have stopped going to them as much for my things.

Part of clothing for me is to eventually have a classic wardrobe. This is one that is basic, has things I like that I can mix and match easily and everything goes with everything. It is a great base wardrobe in which I will have quality clothing. I have about ½ the items I would like and won’t be getting the rest of my classic wardrobe until the clothing “I don’t like but does the job dies”. You see, I can add “fashion” accessories if I want to update, such as scarves, jewellery etc... But I won’t feel the need to as with a classic wardrobe I will always be able to dress nicely. That and the fact I am getting stingier when it comes to these things.

Day 7 is go car free. I have car fee days; lots of them. I have looked into getting rid of my car but it’s not 100% practical at this point. I am however looking at changing the car I have to a more economical one. Cars are money pits really and if you can do without, do it!

Day 8 is get engaged. Basically use your time. Find things to do, don’t waste it. If you have a hobby you are less likely to go to the shops and hang out. I used to go to the shops just coz all the time. Now that I like blogging, I am less inclined to hang out there. Between reading, blogging and taking my girls to the park or doing family things, I don’t feel the need to fill my time with mindless wanderings in the mall.

Day 9 talks about budgeting. I have a budget and stick to it. Very rarely does it get blown out. A budget is pretty easy to do once you know what you are doing. I mean the main thing is to write out your expenses and income and make sure your expenses are less than your income. Sometimes it can take a little while to work the kinks out of your budget, but it’s worth it.

Day 10 is calculating your net worth. Is this something you have done? It’s basically adding up your assets and deducting debts. The number you are left with is your net worth. Personally I do not include things like cars, household furniture, jewellery etc... because realistically these are worth not as much as we think and usually next to nothing. So if you own a house that’s worth $400,000 and you owe $290,000 on it, you have $5,000 in one savings account and $2,000 in another plus $3,000 worth of shares your net worth would be $120,000. It’s not as hard as most people think and it’s a great way to see how you are going. Do it every 3 – 6 months as part of a financial health check.

There are other ways to do it and ERE’s is different and better if you are looking at retirement figures, but if you are wanting a general guide, my way is good.

Day 11 is setting up a barter/borrow system with neighbours. It can work out much cheaper than buying everything yourself and also means you save space by not owning everything. I do this on a small scale, not structured or anything with my family. For example one of my sisters has a staple gun (and it is AWESOME!!) I have a snap machine. We’d both like what the other has and just borrow as needed.

You can do it on a more organised level and make lists of say DVD’s, CD’s, small kitchen appliances (like food dehydrators, food processors) and give them to everyone in the group so you can use each other’s things. All you need to do is establish a group and set a few rules such as you break it replace it and return it as good or better than you got it.

Day 12 establish a savings account. It is amazing how many people don’t have one. I would have thought it would be the first step for anyone trying to save money. Open an account with a high interest rate and then put money in it each week that is off limits. It is being saved, so no spending from it. Train yourself to pay yourself first or get payroll to deduct an amount and out it in savings for you. Make the account hard to access too, so no atm card to tempt you, It’s too easy to spend it otherwise.

Day 13 discusses insurance. He discusses self insuring, but I am not so keen on that idea. Mainly because in my lifetime I have had my house burn down (ok, I lived there, it was my parents house) been robbed (different house), had many friends have flood damage/fire damage etc... to their house which is hundreds of thousands of dollars to replace and the insurance is cheaper than trying to find that money to replace.

I don’t have contents insurance because my stuff can be replace by freecycle/opshops for next to nothing, so I do not see the point in it for me.

As for car insurance, last month my husband caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to our car. It truly floored me the quote. Thankfully my insurance covered it all and it was not even 10% of the quote. So personally, it’s not something I will give up. I have also been involved in a hit and run plus various accidents in friends cars, so it’s too risky not to have it for me. That said if I had a little bomb that was not much to replace I would only have third party insurance instead of comprehensive. It all comes down to what things cost you and how much you are willing to part with if/when something goes wrong.

Day 14 is about investing for retirement. This is obviously a good idea. I don’t believe in superannuation. You put your money away for years where it’s not really working for you and retire on not much OR you could use that money to invest whilst young and reap the rewards much sooner. It is up to you what you invest in, but the most important thing is to learn as much as you can about your options, how to do it etc... Knowledge is power.

I’ve discussed my investment plans on here before which mainly revolve around property. But just because I am partial to that doesn’t mean it will suit you.


Stay tuned for my overview of the last 7 days.

Fundraising with my book

Today I have been organising fundraising with schools through my book. So far I have only contacted local schools, and not as many as I was hoping to contact today, but that’s ok, I will do more tomorrow.

Basically what I am doing for anyone who does fundraising is I have a special where they run the fundraiser for 2 weeks and for every book sold 50% of my royalty goes back to them. I organise the order forms, brochures etc... After the 2 weeks, I collect everything and arrange a delivery time 1 week later (or whenever suits them).

I will also be doing incentives for the kids to fundraise, like sell one copy get a silicone band, sell 2, get a yo-yo, sell 10 get a soccer ball, things like that, so there is something in it for them besides money for the school.

I am hoping I can get a few schools on board with it. The ones I spoke to today all seemed quite interested and positive so I am hopeful. I plan on doing it all over Aus, focussing on Canberra, Syd and the surrounds to begin with as that is easiest for me, but I am happy to do it anywhere in Aus.

This is 1 of the big things I have planned for my book. I have lots of work to do but a short period of time to do it in. I am positive I can do it all though.

I got a suggestion a while back from someone (and now I can’t find the comment!!) about how they would be shameless and promote everywhere, like sports clubs and things. I had never thought of doing fundraising with sports clubs. I had thought of the schools, but not sports/work social clubs.

That is something else I will be doing. I have been so slack and really need to get my butt into gear with these things. They don’t happen by themselves!

I have organised some brochures to give to schools about it and am in the process of designing the other things for a fundraising event. There’s more to it than I first thought and I want it to look professional, so have been working hard on it.

If you have any suggestions or would like to do some fundraising, let me know!

Update on what I am doing

There is so much going on in my life at the moment I thought I would give you a quick update on the main things.

My job
I have the job, I think, but I have a few questions I thought of on Friday after my last conversation with my potential new employers. On Friday I got another “we’re really happy with you but the reference” call on Friday, I wrote about the previous one on Thurs.

Basically they are happy with my references now, but the person I will be working under still needs to approve of them, so I have the job provided they are happy. I will start in 1 week, and things will be a bit up and down as I have to go interstate for the training and there will be a bit of a juggling act going on with my kids whilst I settle in. Luckily we have lots of support here.

The base wage is not huge, but the commission and benefits are good. I am nervous about it, but I am sure it will all work out.

Debt reduction
The loan that was taken out a few months ago has been drastically reduced and should be gone soon. I still have my emergency fund and have managed to plug away at the debt. I have been really careful with my spending plus it’s almost tax time. Also once my husband stops working (which wont be for a few months) he will get a small pay out from holiday pay which will pay off his remaining half of the loan.

Buy a house
Back at the end of Jan, I decided I would have a house within 6 months. This one I won’t quite achieve. I thought my house in Syd might’ve sold by now and since I am not working and my name is on that property, the debt is too high on it for the bank to lend me anything right now. So even though I do own a property I am yet to buy one in this challenge, but that’s ok. I will eventually.

21 Day Make-over
I am going ok with the various things in this. I ended up not lasting very long before getting credit for my phone because I need to make a lot of phone calls and it is cheaper via my mobile cap and by signing up for a home phone or using a payphone. Oh, well. Once I have finished with these calls I will try again.

As for the other aspects in it, I am still yet to get a bike, but I won’t give-up.

Jewellery
I managed to sell most of it and make a profit, which was the aim. There was a little more work involved in doing it that I would’ve liked and I didn’t get to do markets like I planned with them, but it was all good. I got to keep a few pieces I really liked and gave a few as presents. Since I got them for way cheaper than I could ever buy them if I was buying a present I was really happy with that. There are a few select items I put away for Christmas as well, as it will save me a lot of money then. So it was a good move, but it was a slow process.

My book
I have not promoted it as much as I should have and have been really slack in doing what I planned lately. I have new goals for the coming months with my book, so things will improve in that area.


I think those were the main things. I did not want to state my exact net worth anymore, as I was feeling a bit exposed. I have been asked a few times, so I will tell you it is around the $50K mark, due to a recent amount I was owed and have been waiting for. That pumped it up quite nicely. It will go up again soon and I have an amount I would like by the end of the year, which I set for myself last year. Hopefully I get there! I am very determined.

The year is almost half over and I am not yet halfway to my aim for this year, but I still have 6 months and I have big plans.

Passive Income

My ultimate aim is to have various passive income streams. Recently I realised not everyone knows what this means or how to go about it. In a nutshell passive income is basically money made without doing any work. Interest from a bank account is a perfect (albeit low) example of this. You put your money in there and you make money from it.

Many people have the idea that if the money is made outside of their regular job/career it’s passive. This is wrong. You do earn passive income outside of your job but not all income is passive. I have been thinking about it and many things people list as passive income aren’t really passive. Blogging and freelance writing for example are often listed as passive income, but they involve a lot of work.

So after thinking about it and knowing already what I plan to do here are my passive income ideas

1.) Rental properties. If you have a good manager and tenants, this can be something you don’t have to do anything for. It is finding a good property manager and tenant that can be the hard part. Yes, you can do it all yourself, but then it’s not passive, is it? It can save you a lot of money if you chose to do it that way, which is fine.
2.) Shares. They are risky as we have seen recently, but if you pick stocks well, you can earn dividends from them.
3.) Bank deposits. Here in Aus we have a pretty good interest rate at the moment. This is not always the case. Whilst it won’t earn you big dollars generally, it is passive. Your money sits there and multiplies.
4.) Own a business. Some businesses run without you and they are the sort you want. You are just the owner. You don’t work there or do any of the work, other people do. They can be hard to get or you have to start them yourself and it doesn’t always work out, but it is an option.
5.) Online. There are a variety of things you can do online which require a little bit of work at the start, such as an eBook, but once set up, they are automatic.

So those are my plans. Do you have any other suggestions?

They are not all easy and things do not always work out. Shares and property drop in price, people might not buy your eBook, all your staff might walk out and you have to run your business. Lots of things can happen, but unless you try how will you know?

Obviously you need to be comfortable with varying levels of risk and have to know what is right for you. What works for one person can cause someone else to have sleepless nights. Work out what level of risk you are willing to work with and go from there.

Also most things require some money to start up. We don’t always have the extra money lying around to do these things with. That’s where being frugal, or finding a business partner/investment partner come in. Often you can find people willing to invest in your idea, for a split of the profits.

Make sure you do proper research though. No one is going to invest in something that has not been properly thought through and has no research to back it up. Also, you need to know that what you are doing is the right thing. Even with copious amounts of research things can go wrong or not quite as planned, but it is better than going in blind.

Job update

Just got word back apparently I did really well in the interview, they were very happy with me. They have spoken to one of my references and she gave me a glowing report (Thanks!!) They can’t get a hold of my other reference though and they have problems with it.

You see they want someone I have reported to, but other than my very casual job which I LOVE, I have not reported to anyone in a long time. I ran my own business in Sydney then had babies. The 2 salons before my business have changed owners and I have not stayed in contact with the owners. The only other person I have reported to that I still talk to is my original hairdressing boss, from 2002! Obviously not recent enough.

So I performed well in the interview and they would love to have me on board, but they are unsure because the only other reference I have is someone who reported to me and worked with me when I had my business. They need to discuss that. EVERYTHING else about me is perfect.

I don’t quite understand that. I have had 2 interviews and an online assessment all of which I aced. They were obviously happy with my application and resume, my first reference gave me a great report and I am tentatively going to be employed provided this reference is good? But then they are not sure if they will include her reference because I didn’t report to her, she reported to me.

If they can get a hold of her and they decide to include her reference I have a job. If they decide that since she was an employee not employer they won’t include her reference; I’ll have no job. It’s a waiting game still.

8 things to do in group interviews

Yesterday I had a group interview for a job I would really like. It was a very interesting experience. I have been in group interviews before but yesterday I noticed some things that people do which are quite detrimental for themselves, so I thought I would point them out here, in the hopes that we don’t make these same mistakes.

1.) When they ask you to talk about a specific time something happened be specific. That probably sounds obvious but yesterday the interviewer had to continually ask a few people for specifics. Instead of them starting like everyone else saying something like “One time I had to...” They would go on about how working in that industry it’s required or you do such and such, no specific times when they personally did something. This caused a bit of frustration for the interviewer.
2.) When they ask about you, they do not want to know about the “team” you work in. They want to know about YOU! What are your strengths, what makes you stand out etc...
3.) Listen to what they are asking and answer accordingly. I noticed people often went off on a bit of a tangent and didn’t really answer the question. A few times the interviewer had to ask the question again and sometimes even 3 times. It is not good if they have to repeat themselves because you didn’t answer the question they asked or you weren’t specific.
4.) Be prepared. Go in with some knowledge of the company, why you want to work there, what strengths you will bring to the role, how your previous employment can cross over etc... Why should they employ you?
5.) Make eye contact. Don’t look around the room, at the floor or ceiling or your hands. Make eye contact with the person or people you are speaking too.
6.) Use good body language. Leaning in, nodding your head, open and friendly body language is a good sign. Sitting there with your arms folded or fidgeting will not leave a good impression.
7.) Speak clearly. Don’t mumble or speak to fast. You want them to be able to understand what you are saying and not have to ask you to repeat parts because you spoke too fast and they could not follow. Speak at a reasonable pace, mouth open, no mumbling.
8.) Presentation. Dress appropriately. I have to say I was impressed yesterday with how everyone dressed. Everyone wore business attire, had done their hair and make-up, nails were neat and tidy and jewellery for the most part was appropriate. There were a few things some people were wearing or doing that I didn’t think were appropriate, but that is just my opinion. Leave the big chunky jewellery at home (unless of course you are going for a fashion related job and it’s appropriate). Also be careful with your make-up. Not all businesses are happy for employees to look like drag queens. Also remember to remove your hats and sunglasses when inside.

Those were the main things that stood out to me. Everyone had a lot of confidence it seemed, but not everyone was happy to be specific and talk about themselves. You are at an interview to show people why they should hire you, so you need to be talking about and promoting yourself.

I am hoping I did well in the interview. I know there were some things I could have said better, but overall I was pretty happy with how things went. I’ll know by the end of the week if I was successful.

Day 4 - drop the mobile/cell phone

Day 4 at ERE is drop the cell phone plan (or mobile for us Aussies). This is part of what he says
“Is your cell phone worth it? This is easy to answer. Multiply your monthly bill with 300. Then divide this with your monthly savings rate. This is the number of months, that your cell phone is keeping you from retiring e.g. If your bill is $50 and your monthly savings is $500, then your cell phone is delaying your retirement by 50×300/500=30 months or almost three years.
For the geeks, the 300 comes from the principal 4% annual withdrawal rate, hence 12/0.04=300.”

I worked out my mobile is costing me 1.45yrs then. I like to chat and get a good deal on my phone. I am not actually on a plan, I am prepaid, but I have often thought I should just use it for emergencies.

Problem is it is how most people contact me. I don’t have a home phone and not everyone is on facebook or has the internet so I can’t contact them that way. In my current situation I can’t do VoIP, though I highly recommend it for cutting your phone bills.

So what am I going to do? Well, I need to recharge soon as I have no credit. Instead of my usual monthly cap, I am going to get the minimum credit and just not use my phone. This is easier said than done. I think I am a little too attached to my phone.

I do like to have it around because I have really needed it at various times in my life. I know people get along just fine without theirs, but for emergencies with no other way to contact anyone, it’s needed.

I have been desiring an iphone, which is a definite want not a need. At how much they cost I just could not justify that expense. It’s either pay closer to $1000 outright or go on a monthly plan for like $70 a month. Considering I like 1/3 of that a month, it just doesn’t make sense to do that.

If I can cut back and use my phone only in emergencies I could save myself close to $300 a year. The credit I could buy lasts 365 and if I am not using my phone unless absolutely necessary, $300 would be a nice amount to save instead of spend.

Could you do it? Have you considered doing it? I know my sister doesn’t spend much on her mobile.

I have had lots of people say I should get a home phone because mobiles are so expensive. I understand it is expensive for them to call me unless they are on a home cap/bundle/use VoIP or the same phone company as me. I get that. But many people seem to think it is cheaper for me to have a home phone rather than making calls from my mobile.

Here’s the thing. When I had a home phone it cost on average $50 a month. Way more than I spend on my mobile. I had to pay to have it connected and when I moved I had to pay to have it connected again. My mobile just comes with me and costs no extra when I move around. So no, a home phone is not cheaper for me.

I am actually going to see how long I can put off buying credit for my phone at all. I’ll let you know how long I go for before I get it. Have you looked around for cell phone deals?

How to prioritise your life

This is something I have been focusing on a lot lately. The other I day realised how far I have come in the last month, but also how far I have to go. I thought I would share with you all how I worked out my priorities and what I did to change my life so the things I do and the way I spend my time reflects my priorities properly.

Firstly I sat down and had a good think about what is important to me. I wrote down everything that I love/do/want to do in my life. Who and what mean the most to me. At this stage the order did not matter. What mattered was just finding out what meant the most to me.

I realised that my main priorities are
- My family – which includes my daughters, my husband and our marriage and my siblings/parents etc...
- My religion
- My health
- Becoming financially free

Notice cleaning is not really on there? It does matter to me to have a clean house, but everything else comes first!

Once I knew my priorities, I could place them in order of importance. This can be easier said than done, and I will explain properly further down in this post.

After I realised my priorities I looked at how I was spending my time. This is where you might notice that you’re supposed priorities are not your real every day priorities despite what you think. One thing that might help you with doing this is to keep a diary for a week or month of everything you do and how much time you spend doing it. It may surprise you to see just how much time you spend doing things that have virtually no importance to you.

Another thing this exercise will help you see is what changes you can make to have more time for things that really matter to you.

Once that you know what is important to you and how you spend your time you are in a better position to make the changes in your life necessary to reflect your priorities.

Obviously there are some things that are constant which you cannot change such as sleep, eating, showering, dressing etc... But lots of things you do can be changed to be more efficient, higher on your list of priorities or gotten rid of completely.

Once you take out sleeping, eating, getting ready, work (if you got to work), commuting and other daily tasks, how do you fit those things that are important into your life?

Have you ever heard the story about the empty jar?

“A professor stood in front of his philosophy class, with some items before him. When class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large, empty jar, and began filling it with golf balls. When they reached the top, he asked the class if the jar was full.

They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He gave the jar a shake, and the pebbles rolled into the spaces around the golf balls. He asked again if the jar was full.

Again, they agreed that it was.

Then he picked up a box of sand, and poured it into the jar, and it filled all the spaces between the pebbles. He asked yet again, if the jar was full. The students replied with a resounding "Yes!"

Then, he produced two cups of coffee, and poured them into the jar, filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

When the laughter subsided, the professor said to them "I want you to recognise that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things: God, family, your children, your health, good friends, and your passions. If all else was lost, but they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter, like your house, your car, your job. The sand is everything else - the small stuff.

If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. It's the same with life. If you put all your time and energy, into the small stuff, you'll never have room, for the things that are important.”

Setting aside those things you can’t change (sleeping etc...) what can you do about the rest to make more time? As I mentioned recently here my husband and I are switching roles, so he will be at home. We are doing this because his current work means he is away for roughly 13.5 hours every time he has to work which is about 10 – 12 days a fortnight. Taking out sleeping and eating it essentially leaves no time for family.

We have made our family our number one priority which has meant some big changes for us. We make a conscious effort to do things as a family such as having meals together, playing games together, taking our daughters to the park, having family picnics, planning day trips. Basically doing things together comes first.

One of the hard things about determining your priorities can be what your number 1 priority is. This can be hard because they can overlap or be as important as each other. If you look at my priorities family comes first, but the other things are all extensions of that.

Our religion is a very important aspect of our family’s life. Most of our friends we got to church with, our religion has all the principles and values we want to teach our kids, we make the time to go to church every Sunday, attend activities for our church etc... It is a very central part of our life. To us it goes hand in hand with everything about our family. In our religion, family is of utmost importance. As such I do not see these 2 priorities as being exclusive or one above the other, even though I say family comes first. I am in the blessed position where virtually all my family, both my side and my husband’s family are of the same religion, meaning all our lives are centred on the same things.

Health is equally important. If I am not healthy I cannot do the things with my family I want to. If I am not healthy everything else is pointless. Thus health is a top priority.

Finally, my aim to be financially free goes hand in hand with my family because financial freedom means more time together as a family and being able to do the things we’d like to do. That said it is on the bottom of the list because when it comes down to it, if I had the choice of having excellent relationships with my family and poor forever or being financially free but have no family relations ships I would choose my family. Sometimes looking at our priorities in this way can help determine what your very top priorities are.

Once you know your priorities, how are you going to change your life to reflect them?

I have done a few things. It is up to you what you do as your priorities will probably be different to mine and your life is definitely different, but to give you some ideas here is what I have done so far...

1.) Started to apply for jobs. I am only applying for what I really want to do, not just any job. I have had 1 interview, which I have gotten through to the 2nd set of interviews, so I am hopeful.

2.) Stopped watching TV. I still let my kids watch ABC kids, but not heaps. I posted about that here

3.) Worked out more of a routine for my day. I have limited the time I spend online and working on my blog with the help of this program 31 Days to Becoming a Better Blogger.

4.) Read what I could about healthy eating in books such as Low GI diet (as I have PCOS and this diet helps with that), Nourishing Traditions, Friendly food and Fed-up.

5.) I also looked at what I could that would save us money from books such as The Tightwad Gazette, 26 Ingredients, $21 Challenge and sites such as Saving advice, Simple Savings and in Wisebread top financial bloggers there are over 500 bloggers who blog about finance and frugality. You will find so much info on there.

6.) I worked out ways we could do things together as a family that won’t cost money, as well as free or cheap dates.

7.) I put cleaning on the backburner. This is not saying I don’t clean. I vacuum like 3 times a day thanks to my daughters. What I mean is my home does not have to be immaculate. If everyone has clean clothes, clean dishes to cook and eat from, if everything is CLEAN I am happy. I do not need to spend 80% of my day picking up things to keep the house tidy. I will tidy of an evening or in the morning, but not all day. I have a cleaning schedule and try to stick to that to free up more of my time.

8.) I got copies of The Duggars, because it helped me appreciate the value of family more and also had lots of great tips on EVERYTHING as well as The busy woman’s survival guide (recommended by Michelle Duggar) and applied what I learnt in these books.

Having a real, honest conversation with your family about what is important to them and what changes they would like to see can really help you set your priorities.

Good luck with it all. It’s not easy to start with but it is worth it.

* When buying books I have found Book Depository to be the cheapest and fastest followed by Amazon

Wants vs. Needs

I found this post I wrote a while a go, but forgot to put up. It came about due to a program I saw months ago on the TV, how ironic it inspired me so much and now I don't watch it! lol.

I was watching Oprah the other day (month)at my friend’s house and Suze Orman was on. It was a repeat episode from the start of last year but still good to watch. Most of it did not apply to me and I let it go in one ear and out the other. Things such as FICO scores (not relevant to Aus), credit card debt (I don’t have one), their loan system for kid’s college etc... One thing that did get me thinking was to think about what you want and whether it is a need or just a want.

All wants should go until you have paid off your debt. Some people had over $100,000 in credit card debt. One lady had 23 credit cards!!! I have one that is used rarely and paid in full every time we use it.

So many people can’t save or are massively in debt, yet Foxtel/cable is still on, they buy lunches at work, they have the latest mobile phones, computers, furniture, car etc... They use credit to pay for everything and often people will get another credit card to pay for the other card or get a personal loan to cover it, and then end up racking up the credit card again.

This is just plain crazy. If you sat down and looked at everything you spend money on you will quickly realise that those things you think are “needs” are in fact “wants”. You don’t need Foxtel, you don’t need a brand new car (and the loan to get it). You can live simply and save your money instead of keeping up with the Jones.

Looking around I know what we could cut back on. We often go look in the op shops and 9 times out of 10 buy something we do not need. We could plan our trips to Sydney better and not buy take-away. We (I) could stop buying books. I could be more organised and make more of the presents we give. I know we could cut back on our grocery bill further.

You see if you really broke it down and really wanted to get ahead, look at everything in your shopping cart. Junk food is not a need. Ice-cream is not a need. We have cut back on processed food and treats and instead of buying them every week because “We deserve them” we get them occasionally and use them as treats, not something that goes in the weekly shop. We don’t feel deprived either. These treat foods are more special and seem to taste better now that we do not have them week in week out.

Do you really need a second car? Some people do as there is no public transport or car pooling is not an option and the only way for them to get to work is to drive. Also some people’s hours do not work for public transport (My husband is one of them. Buses aren’t running when he needs to leave.) Having said that though, could you ride a bike? If you are a SAHM could you walk the kids to school, plan errands so you could do them on a day the car is at home or do groceries in the evening after your husband finishes work? There are many options if you change your lifestyle a bit.

New clothes are a want. You can buy clothes second hand, but make sure you actually need it, not just want it. Kids normally get given so many toys that buying them more “because they’ll LOVE this one” is a definite WANT not need!

Sit down and re-evaluate your life and spending habits and I am sure you will be able to come up with areas you could save by eliminating the wants and only getting the needs.

Changes in my life

This post is a bit more on my personal life and things that are changing in it which ultimately affect my challenge. Some of you know that I am separated. I have been since Nov 2009, but we have been working hard on things and it has gotten a lot better.

One of the big problems has been his work. He works 12 hour shifts, usually leaving about 5am and getting home 6:30pm or leaving 5pm and getting home around 6:30am. With only 24 hours a day, 8 for sleeping, him spending 12 at work, 1.5 commuting, 1 to get ready, that leaves 1.5hours a day. Once you take out dinner and the fact he is so wasted from work he usually wants more than 8 hours sleep it actually leaves NO time in the day for playing with our daughters or time for us to go on a date or even talk.

Now, his roster was supposed to be 7 days a fortnight, which is not so bad. Except it alternated between day and night shift, alternating days each week, with week 1 being 2 days on, 2 days off, 3 nights on, week 2 being 2 days off, 2 days on, 3 days off. Then the following fortnight it would swap, where the nights were the fortnight before are now days and the days now night. Every night shift results in the day before and after the shift in him sleeping. PLUS he is never just doing the 7 shifts it is usually 10 – 12 shifts. As you can imagine on the rare day he is not working, he is so exhausted.

He is in a bit of a tricky situation in that the contract his work had for a certain site finished and he has had to become a “floater” between sites. So at the moment he has no permanent position anywhere and just has to say yes to every shift otherwise he will get no shifts. Sounds like fun hey?

He has no qualifications, doesn’t feel comfortable in an office setting and doesn’t want to get any qualifications. He worries so much about being able to provide for the family that he has been working himself to an early grave.

After much discussion about many things, more than just work, we have come to some decisions. We will be getting back together, but we will be switching roles. I love my daughters, but it will be better for me to go to work (don’t shoot me, I know I said work is not for me, and it’s not, but hear me out) and him stay at home.

You see, I have a higher earning capacity and enjoy working. I am also able to get employment that does not disrupt our family life so much. You see, our family is the most important thing to us and his work makes family life impossible. So by working for a small time, until I have investments and such so that I won’t need to work is the only thing we can think of to fix this situation. In the few years of our daughters lives, even before the separation it has not been uncommon for him not to see them for days because of work. He leaves when they are asleep and sometimes they are asleep when he gets home.

He will be doing some casual work here and there, but he won’t be working like he is now. He will be doing something he loves.

The differences between me working and him working are huge. I will have set hours, not get called in at 2pm to go to work at 6pm for 12 hours, not have 12 hour shifts, 10 – 12 days a fortnight. I will have more flex time, more bonuses/perks in my job than his.

Me working will mean we can both take better care of ourselves health wise, we’ll have more time together as a family, time to work on our marriage and actually see each other. It will be a massive improvement for our lives.

There are some down sides, like it means less time for me with my daughters, but I will be ensuring the time is more quality time. I will still be cooking dinner, but he will be doing other house work so it won’t be like I have 2 jobs. He is more of a perfectionist with the cleaning than me and does do a really good job. He has had to do everything for himself since we separated and has no problems with this. It will also mean less time to work online.

Whilst it will sort of change the dynamics of the challenge on one hand, on the other it won’t. Yes I will be working, but I will not be using my wage as part of my challenge. My wage will be going to support the family, exciting things like food, petrol, housing, bills, you know the exciting things. Lol.

My aim is still to do it myself, using investments, online things, hairdressing, whatever I can myself to earn extra income. I still aim to complete it by 2015, without using a working wage to do it.

Plus, hopefully I won’t actually be working for that long, because I really am not an employee. We’ll, see. I am job hunting now. Hopefully I will get something soon, but I also hoping some of the things I have been working on will come to fruition soon, so employment will not be a long term thing for me.

De-cluttering, freecycle and groceries, Days 2 and 3

In the last week I have started Day 2 and Day 3 of ERE’s (Early Retirement Extreme’s) 21 Day Makeover. Day 2 is de-cluttering and managing stuff. The main tasks set are basically clear your clutter, list it on freecycle and get a bike. Day 3 is grocery shopping.

Clearing your clutter is not just a matter of clearing knick knacks and things. It is going deep into everything you own and really evaluating if you use it, get value from it or are just holding onto it for sentimental reasons.

I have some things I keep on a seasonal rotation. In Canberra you get the hideously hot days in summer (that to me means anything over28°C! lol) and beautiful freezing days (think regular minuses) in winter, guess which season I prefer? I have blankets and warm clothes for winter I store away and bring out, because I don’t need them in summer! Often we are told to get rid of anything we haven’t used in the last 6 months and for many things that is true, but the exception is seasonal items that you use each year. That only applies if you DO use them!

I have gone through my entire unit. I have managed to get rid of 3 bedside tables, clear out my craft cupboard so that can go, magazines, books, baby things and some other random things. Surprisingly, despite having cleaned out my unit recently I still had so much I wasn’t using. 1 month ago, I seemed much more attached to lots of my things than I am now.

I listed what I could on freecyce, what I couldn’t is going to the tip in the morning. It is so freeing to have bagged up so much stuff to get rid of. It’s just things, most of which is completely unneeded.

The other part of Day 2 is to get a bike. I will need a bike trailer for my daughters as well. The cheapest I have seen this is $130 in Sydney, but I will be keeping my eyes peeled for a bargain!

Now, onto the grocery shopping. Before you roll your eyes and think I’m going to talk about couponing, I’m not. For starters, we don’t have coupons in Australia. Well, we get deals on pizza and coffees on the back of our dockets, but that’s it. We don’t get grocery coupons.

But that’s ok. From what I hear most coupons are for highly processed junk, not the sort of food you should be eating anyway.

So the first part day 3 is to use up all the food in your house. I decided to get all the dry goods out of my cupboards and put them on my bench where they are in front of my face. I have also written up a list of everything in my fridge and freezer and stuck it above the food.



That is pretty much what my bench looks like now. Not in the picture is the 5kg of rice and big tub of bread flour I have.

I’m pretty sure I have enough food to keep me going for a while! I will get some fresh fruit, but the challenge to use up everything I have should mean I save a fair bit!

So, after you have used up all your food, you need to scale back what you eat. Get used to more simple and plain foods, as well as repetition. If you look at food as fuel, you realise you don’t need to eat as much food or as big a variety. It’s sad that the average household we throw away something like 1/5th of what we buy. Why? Because we eat what we fell like. Instead of eating leftovers, we throw them away. We cook more food than we can actually eat. Portion sizes have blown out of control.

If you got a dinner plate from the 1950’s and compared it with a dinner plate now, you can see why we are obese. We eat BIG portions of everything, coz the bigger the better, right? WRONG!! Oh so wrong.

Another thing you would notice if you compared what we eat today to earlier decades is the lack of variety compared to now. But you know what? They were happy. They didn’t need 30 different dinners a month. They ate pretty much the same thing week in and week out. You know what? This can work out to be much cheaper, because you get used to simple meals and soon realise that life does not revolve around food!

Basics like rice, some veg, fruit, lentils and beans cooked with some spices can provide a variety of nutritious, cheap meals. It makes for easy shopping too! Most of these you can buy in bulk for cheap from Indian or Asian grocers.

Another great way to reduce your grocery bill is to get free food. Check your local area for fruit trees, blackberry bushes etc... Barter with your friends, neighbours and family for any excess fruit and veg they might have in exchange for you doing something for them. If you have fishing gear, put it to use.

Groceries don’t need to cost hundreds a week. They shouldn’t cost hundreds a week. That’s easier said than done. Changing habits can be hard and if you have kids, they can whinge and kick up a stink about not wanting whatever you have served. Serve it in different ways and be patient. It may take a while for them to come around to eating differently. They may not come around to lentils, but what other areas can you cut back your food bill?

For me, my kids are 2 and 1, so I have started them on things like oats for breakfast, lentil curries, TVP, rice and things. Being so young they will just adapt to whatever I feed them. Sometimes there are tantrums and they don’t always want what I give them, but they soon come around. The key is to start kids when they are young. If you feed them oats and veg as their first foods, avoiding sugar and sweets, you give them a better start and yourself more chance of maintaining a healthy budget and lifestyle for years to come. That said, yes my kids eat junk, not health food ALL the time! I’m not that good. lol

What do you do to reduce your grocery bill? Any special tips or tricks? Do you have any great vegetarian recipes?

Buyster Winner Announced!

So it is time to announce the winner of the Buyster give away. Thanks to everyone who entered, I will be replying to all your comments down below. I didn’t like to on that comment thread, as I don’t like to comment on my give aways until after. :)

I went through, added up all your entries and used the random number generator againto find out the number of the lucky entry and it was...

EMMA!! Congratulations chic! So email me your addy and I will get them to send you the voucher! Now you can get the clock!

BTW everyone Emma is an awesome photographer, you can check out her stuff here.

Now in response to all your lovely comments, I will go from start to finish...

Thanks Susan, I checked yours out and the coupons and things look great! I wish we got stuff like that here in Aus.

Thanks for being a long time follower Melissa, hard to choose which one, hey? lol.

Thanks Mummyof3angels. I’m so glad the blog helps you. The snakes and ladders is a cool one and thanks for the Facebook mention.

Hi Dee, thanks for being a long time follower. The Domus lighting is really cool.

Aww, thanks Linda, hope you like it when you get it. And thanks for the Facebook shout out.

LOL @ Miggles, sure 1953 entries! Lol. Thanks for all your work! :)

Emma, CONGRATS! Hope you get and love the clock! And I just clicked to follow you, I thought I was, but apparently not!

Lol MMB, too much to choose hey! I like your blog btw. I checked it out the other day.

Thanks for all your support everyone!

Give away reminder

Just a quick reminder for everyone about the $40 Buyster giftcard give away.

Click here to see the original post you need to comment on to be in the draw.

Good luck and have a great weekend!

Renting vs. Buying

The great rent vs. Own debate has been around forever and will be around forever. It is not something where you can be told exactly what to do. In every situation what is best is different. In some areas it is cheaper to rent then own and in other areas the mortgage repayments are less than the rent, so it would make more sense to buy.

I have desperately been wanting to buy my own home here, but lately I have been thinking that might not be the best option. I do love it where I live, but it is hideously expensive and I am not 100% sure I want to live here. Mortgages are A LOT more than rent, but the rent is hideously high too.

I have come to think that buying investment properties instead of my own home might be a better option. I have a house, so am already in the property market. It is not located in an area I would ever live in again, (because there are too many people in the area I am related to) but it is a foot in the door. It is on the market at them moment, but I am not sure I really want to sell it.

I think buying my own home here would be more an emotional choice rather than a smart investment choice. I can understand why people want their own home and I totally do, but I think I can set myself up better financially by holding off on that decision and buying an investment property somewhere I would like to live.

I also think the Aussie real estate market is so overpriced it’s no longer a joke! All the houses I have looked at here are at least $100,000 MORE than other areas for the same damn thing. That’s outrageous. Especially since there is nothing really here. There’s no beach, no rainforest, awesome bushwalks or anything. You can drive to some close by, we are only like 1 – 2 hrs to the snow fields, 1 – 2 hours to the beach, 3 hours to Sydney, so you can drive to lots of things, but here there is only public servants who are overpaid and are paying too much for real estate making it hard for everyone else.

So I think right now, the best option for me is to continue renting, whilst looking for property elsewhere.

What are you doing? Renting or paying off the mortgage? DO you wish you had done it differently?

I now wish I had not bought where we did and bought where I wanted to, because we would have had a smaller mortgage, been able to pay off more of it quicker AND be able to charge higher rent than we can for the place we have. Ahhh, hindsight is a wonderful thing!

I also wonder how long this real estate bubble can continue. I mean, we have some of the highest rents and mortgages in the world, which have sky rocketed to the point you pretty much need 2 people working to afford the repayments. Surely this is not sustainable and will have to crash at some point. It has before. Real estate has NOT always gone up. It does come down. Just look overseas at the moment and you can see what I mean.

For an interesting read check this out. It talks about why you should rent vs. buy. On the other hand Money Magazine said this month that properties in capital cities in 2020 will all be over 1mil, which would make it impossible to buy and smarter to buy now. What do you think?

As for me, I change my mind every week it seems as to buying here or not, so we'll see what I end up doing! lol. Though right now, it's continuing to rent.

21 day early retirement challenge

I have been reading about the 21 Day Makeover for early retirement. It has been really interesting, and I have decided to give it a go.

I am going to go a little slower than 21 days and do it more like 1 a week. I have only read a few weeks and the basic overview and it is definitely doable. Some things will be harder than others where I live, but that’s ok. His is an “extreme” blog, so naturally the ideas will push boundaries. How else can you expect to retire early?

If you have never seen his blog, you should definitely check it out. It is very interesting, with lots of good information. He is extremely frugal, as is his wife.

A lot of his ideas might seem crazy at first, but when you think about his lifestyle vs. the average person’s lifestyle, don’t you think working 9 – 5 in a job you probably hate is worse? I mean, it doesn’t leave much time for spending with family and it is a HUGE portion of your day. If cutting back a bit meant you had more time to do things you enjoy, wouldn’t you do it?

One prime example of this is your spare room. When I did the math on this is horrified me.

Day 1 is Finding a place to live. He recommends no more than $200 - $300per month per person. With my 2 kids, I come in at $245pm per person. When my husband was living here it worked out to be $184 pm per person. Why? Well, I live in a 1 bedroom granny flat under someone’s house. It is nicely done and larger than most 1 bedroom places. I wanted it as soon as it became available. I know my landlord is not going to sell the house which gives me security whilst looking for a house to buy.

I have pretty much the cheapest rent available where I live. Last year when I moved in there was maybe 1 or 2 places that were getting rented out for less, also in less desirable areas. I live on top of a hill, with gorgeous views and cheap rent. Those 1 or 2 places were only $5 cheaper and are now $20 - $40 more expensive than mine.

Yes, it can be hard. Yes, if I moved cities I could buy cheaper, but right now, I want to live here. As such, I found the cheapest rent I could. It would not be possible if my kids were older I don’t think. It would be a complete nightmare actually to have teens in a 1 bedroom place, but you do what you have to and if that was all you could afford, so be it. They would adjust. It would be an excellent life lesson for them.

I am also within walking distance to some shops and since I do not work I don't need to be near anywhere in particular.

So, lucky for me, Day 1 was already done. It will be slightly different when I buy a house, but still, I am not looking for a big house and am still saving for a decent deposit.

What would you do if you got $1,000,000

So, what would you do? I know it’s not likely and people think it’s silly to waste your time thinking about it, BUT if it did happen, what would you do?

I hear a lot how $1,000,000 isn’t enough, wouldn’t really make a difference etc... But seriously, if you got $1,000,000 it wouldn’t make a difference? You really think it’s not enough to live off? Sure, it won’t give you a million dollar lifestyle, but if used wisely it sure can help. In fact, I know if I ever got $1,000,000 I could live off it and never need work again. (I know I don’t work right now, but I am trying to make a point here! Lol)

If I got it, I would pay tithing to my church first then buy a few homes to use as investment properties. I would live off the rent from them and they would be a long term investment. I would also purchase some shares. And before you jump the gun saying you couldn’t buy a few homes, or if you could the rent wouldn’t be that high/they’d need a lot of work etc... If you look around in areas other than where you currently live or the centre of capital cities, yes there are properties you could buy and rent out for a reasonable amount.

On my current budget, if I received a payment like that, I could easily live off the rent of some properties and still save money. Not everyone is happy with what they have though and would want more. I could save a few hundred in fact. Yes, I do think about “If I had $1,000,000”, probably too much!

What would you do?

Statistically most people who get a windfall like this blow it. They buy flashy cars or houses they can’t really afford (ok, $1,000,000 won’t get you a really flashy house anymore, least not where I live). They end up worse off than they were before they got the money, which is sad, as it could really enhance your life.

I think one important thing many people forget to do is to sit on it. You just received A LOT of money. Before doing anything, put it away and have a good think about it. Don’t rush out and buy everything you have wanted or pick the first house that you see. If you want this money to make a difference to you, just hold onto it for a bit. Put it in a savings account and earn interest on it whilst you think about it.

The interest alone on $1,000,000 a year would itself be enough to live off (if you are relatively budget conscious already.) That said, not everyone is that way inclined.
I know I would be sorely tempted to buy new clothes, a new car, new furniture etc... but when it comes to the choice of having new things or setting myself up for life, I know I would prefer to set myself up for life.

So, tell me, what would you do?

Give Away!!

Ok, I know I said I would do a give-away when I reached 70 followers and I am only at 67 BUT Buyster offered to give me a product to review or give away, so naturally I chose to give it away.

Buyster has so much to offer such as wallets and bags, rugs, taps, furniture such as Melbourne bar stools, beds and more. Check it out. There is so much!

So, since I could not pick as there was too much, they offered a gift certificate to value of what I could’ve spent. That means a $40 gift certificate is up for grabs! How cool is that?

This is only open to Aussies though, sorry to my international readers. Here’s how you can get entries

1.) Become a follower + 1 entry
2.) Already a follower + 2 entries
3.) Leave a comment about what your fav product is/what you want from Buyster + 1 entry
4.) Post a link on Facebook/twitter/myspace/bebo/whichever + 1 entry
5.) Post about it on your blog + 2 entries

You will need to list in your comment what you have done so I know how many entries you have, then I will be using a random number generator to pick the winner. It will be open until 5pm AEST, Monday 14th June 2010.

Good luck everyone!

Working out your real work wage

I’ve been thinking a lot about how much my time is worth, which led me to think about my hourly wage.

I used to earn $20 hour which was average. After tax that’s about $14 (assuming 30% tax bracket). Looking at all my work related expenses, my wage was not really that good. Have a look at yours and tell me what you think.

From that $14hr, how much goes to parking, work wardrobe, lunches at work, childcare, petrol and car maintenance to get there or public transport fares. What else do you need for your work? Then take into account the commute to and from work. How long does that take, add it onto the hours you work, then see what your hourly rate is. Mine looked like this

Work hours 43.5
Weekly commute 2.5
Getting ready for work 2.5 (yes, you get ready every day any way, but I took longer getting ready for work than anything else by 30mins a day)
Getting hair coloured 1 (I was a hairdresser, expected to change my colour regularly in line with fashion, but had to come in on my day off to have it done and it usually took 6 hours, as I was slotted in between clients and was the very last priority. 6 hours, every 6 weeks. It sucked.)

So make actual work hours were 49.5 hours a week.
Next, my work related expenses looked like this
Wardrobe $15wk (very moderate estimate)
Lunches $25 wk (ok, by choice, but at home I do not have that temptation)
Birthday presents/social club, all those things I wanted no part of $20wk
Train fare/juggling car rides sometimes with my husband $50wk
Courses/equipment $30wk

So all up it cost me $140 to just be at work. Now since my wage was $14hr after tax for 43.5hrs, my wage was $609. Minus the $140 to be there leaves me with $469. Divide that by the hours really put in and I was working for $9.47hr. That’s less than HALF what I was apparently earning!

So if I want say a $400 games console (Wii, Ninetendo, Playstation, take your pick), round my “wage” up to $10 that would be 40 hours I would have to work to buy it. All of a sudden it’s not worth it to me.

I haven’t read Your Money or Your Life, but I am going to in the next week. Apparently they discuss this sort of thing in it, so I will definitely be interested in it.

Have you sat down and worked out your real wage?

Yakezie Challenge, better late than never!

I recently came across this challenge. It started 5 months ago and finishes in a month, but i joined anyway. Why not give myself a push to see how well I can do? It is basically a group of bloggers trying to help each other out with their Alexa ranking. The better your ranking, the higher your blog is placed in other areas.

So, I’ve joined and although I don’t have long to do much, I do have a WHOLE month to do as much as I can.

Here’s a few of the blogs who have also joined the challenge

Peak Personal Finance
Upside of money
Bucksome Boomer
Money help for Christians
Money Relationship
Smarter Spend
My Financial Objectives
The Saved Quarter

Check them out. There’s heaps more in the challenge. It’ll be interesting to see how everyone goes!

9 Things I've had to learn the hard way

Katiegirl from The Life and Times of an Ordinary Girl tagged me so here it is. 9 things I've had to learn the hard way. This was not easy to write. I really had to think about it!

1.) We should have bought here when I wanted to instead of Sydney. Back then my husband did not want to move interstate, so we bought near his family. Fast forward 2 years and we moved interstate to Australia’s most expensive city to buy a house in. We could have bought a house 4 years ago for much less than they are now.
2.) I should have stood up for myself a long time ago. There are things I have put up with and put up with and I look back and can pinpoint the exact moment where I said ENOUGH! Only to be talked out of my decision. I should have stood up for myself then and not let people talk me out of what I know I should do. I don’t anymore. I do what I know is best for me adn my family.
3.) I should not window shop. I end up wanting things I don’t need. Especially when I have a bit of time between things I am doing and I think, oh, I will just pop in and have a look. No, don’t do it. I end up spending $20 - $50 on something I barely use and end up throwing out within a few months or worse yet, never using at all.
4.) I should charge properly for what I do. I know when I had my business I should have charged more for lots of things I did. I know I should have charged more rent when I first rented out my house. I realise now that my time and skills are worth more than what I have always thought. Not everyone can do what I do and just because I think it’s easy doesn’t mean it is.
5.) Paying more for a quality item is a much better way to spend money than getting a “bargain” on the cheap thing. I used to have so many cheap clothes I hated. I bought a cheap digital camera and the photos were crap. I bought a cheap vacuum cleaner and it’s useless. With all the cheap things I have bought I have either not used them or hated them. I now buy quality and even though the last pair of shoes were 7 times more expensive than my regular shoes price (I usually spend $20) they are worth every cent. I use them ALOT. I bought a better digital camera and the pictures were 100% better. The quality was amazing compared to the cheap camera. Quality, even if more expensive will get used more and last longer making it a better “investment”.
6.) Kids break everything. You need somewhere to lock away anything you do not want them to touch otherwise it WILL get broken. They have this amazing ability to sense you love something or need something and without fail will go out of their way to damage. Yes, it’s a fact. It does not matter how often you tell them not to touch something the temptation is too strong.
7.) Nothing ever goes as planned so stop expecting it to. I have a hard time with this one but I am getting better. I expect things to go a certain way but it never does. It’s good to have a plan, but you need to be flexible if things don’t go as planned and be able to wing it. Also, you have to try not to get too hung up on the fact that it hasn’t worked how you wanted. It’s nice when things do work out how you want, but be prepared that they probably won’t.
8.) Pay yourself first. If I had done this properly as a teen and young married and invested the money properly, I would be much better off. When I think of all the money I wasted it’s quite sickening, BUT it gave me life experience. I wasted so much money on clothes, make-up, eating out etc... If I had put that money into a savings account, invested in various things I would be rich now, but you live and learn. I am still young and am so glad I have realised this now and not gotten to be n my 40’s looking back going – “Wow, I have wasted all this time, and now I have to play catch up.” The younger you start the more it’s worth.
9.) I need to believe in myself. There are so many people out there who like to tell me I will never make it, or why am I trying etc... That sort of negativity serves no purpose and leaves me feeling bad about myself. But I know I can do it and I know that I am trying because it will work. Just because others might not see it (which could be partly due to jealousy or not wanting me to succeed) does not mean I won’t succeed. If I don’t believe in myself why should anyone else?


So there you have it. I'm sure there are more and I know there will be plenty more to come. After all, isn't life about learning?

I forgot to tag on! lol. So I am tagging Alicia at One Mum's Musings, Chocoholic Mummy at The single mums guide to owning a home debtfree and lastly Lambchop at Let the Games Begin. So girls, pass it on! lol.

Benefits of knowing your rights

Companies do not want you to know your rights. They will fight you even if you do know your rights. The amount of money you can save when you know the law is amazing.

Laws vary from state to state, but it pays to read up on certain issues when they arise, so you know what you are legally obligated to do and what you legally have the right to expect from the company.

There have been many times in my life where I have received a refund for items that were not of merchandisable quality or when I have received gift cards for unacceptable “service” (well, lack thereof).

Some things to consider when dealing with companies are
1.) Always keep proof of purchase and warranties to prove when you bought the item and that it has not done what it was supposed to.
2.) Always record when you make calls. In some states it is legal to actually record with a tape the conversation, in others it is not. Regardless of that you can make a record of date, time, how you spoke to and what was discussed.
3.) Check that the outcome you want e.g. a refund is supported by law. Have the documentation that supports this handy.
4.) Always be polite but firm. Maintain your stance that what you have/how you were treated/whatever is unacceptable. You want a refund/replacement/to complain to the supervisor/whatever. Do not accept less than your desired outcome. Saying please and thank you and speaking in a clear, calm manner does wonders.
5.) Know company policy. Some supermarkets have the policy where if an item scans at the incorrect price you get it free. It’s worth knowing who does this as it can mean lots of free products. I would say every 3rd time I go through a shop an item scans wrong.

If you know your rights and push for them, it can be truly beneficial. Be careful with complaining about products though. If it is a legitimate complaint, fine, but many people complain about the tiniest things and since so many smaller companies are actually owned by one big company all complaints are put on a system. This means if you complain regularly, it will be noted and you will be seen as a problem, not a “valued customer”.