How To Save Money

Before I started college, I used to think being a college student would be the best thing to ever happen to me. While this is a very fun time in life, it is also one of the most stressful times as well. Why? Well...I will give you one word: money. College is expensive, living on your own is expensive, your car is expensive, your cell phone is expensive...okay, I think you get the idea. Life in the real world is expensive.

The expense of "life" after high school came to no surprise to me. In fact, I have been putting away money for school since I first got a job in seventh grade. I did not want to have to deal with debt from student loans, and I am hoping that upon my college graduation, I won't have nearly as many loans to pay back as most college graduates do. I will admit, between school, a cell phone, a car, two horses, and expensive taste in clothes...money is something that I feel I do not see a lot of at this time in my life. However, I have mastered a few simple tricks to saving money, and I am just hoping that in the end, I come out in the positives, rather than the negatives with money. Since they have been useful tips for me, I wanted to share them.

1. Save. Save. Save. I know it sounds obvious, but if you save more than you spend, it will only help you in the long run. If you are not in college yet, open up another bank account and put a certain amount of money away from every pay check...and forget it is even there. Even if it is only $10, it can add up fast.

2. Always pay in cash. I bring this up for two reasons. First, it helps with the mentality of "If I don't have the money now, I don't need it." Credit card bills add up ridiculously fast because it feels like you automatically have the money. In reality, you may not really have that money and will have to come up with it instead. But if you start paying in cash it will be more evident if you have the money for something right away or not. Second, with identity theft on the rise with each passing day, you keep yourself at low risk for having your credit card number being visible for all to see. Save your credit card for emergencies only. I am all for building a credit, but not building a debt.

3. Don't go out to eat. I read a statistic last week that stated 45% of money spent on food is from going out to eat. Even with fast food, you can easily spend $7 a meal. That's $35 a week and $140 a month. It adds up quickly. By packing a lunch every day for work or school, you can save a lot of money. I am not saying that you cannot go out to eat at all. Treat yourself in moderation.

4. Have a weekly "social" limit. Limit yourself to spending "x" amount of dollars each week for social activities. It costs a lot of money to go to the movies, go out for a night of fun, go out to eat, etc. If you limit yourself to $20 a week versus $20 a night, you'll save a lot in no time. It may be hard, but you'll appreciate your frugal-ness later in life. Find ways to entertain yourself that do not cost a lot of money, like enjoying public parks or reading books from the library.

5. Don't buy on impulse. Before I make a purchase, I always ask myself: "Do I REALLY need this?" If the answer is no, then I simply just don't buy it. This is an easy task for some, but for most of us, it is just plain hard. Along with going out to eat less, I am not saying don't spend money on yourself, but once again, do it in moderation.

These 5 things may or may not have been obvious tips for you. There are hundreds of ways out there to save money, but for me, these are 5 that make a larger impact on the budget. In the long run, I will be very thankful that I made a constant effort to not spend money each and every time I need to reach for my wallet.

No Expectations = No Disappointments

Recently, I have learned a profound life lesson and I learned it from two of my fellow co-workers. Last week, literally one day after the other I had one co-worker tell me something and the next day have another co-worker tell me the exact same thing. The funny thing is, each of these two conversations were not remotely similar. What is this profound life lesson? Well, I will tell you. In life, if you have no have expectations, you will never be disappointed. It almost seems quite brash, but I plan to tell you why I feel that this is a great concept to keep in mind and even live by.

Pick an area of your life, work, friends, families, relationships, hobbies, etc.

For now, I will pick work. I work at a hotel and every day when I am on my way to work I think to myself about what kind of day it will be...hard or easy. I usually base my predictions based off of things our head housekeeper or general manager will mention during the day about what tomorrow will be like. If I know that it is going to be a hard day, I do not expect an easy day because if I did, I would automatically set myself up to be disappointed if the day turns out to be tough. With a job like mine that is so physically demanding, it is important to never expect an easy day because then no disappointment will occur. In fact, I often expect every day to be hard because then any sort of amount of rooms seems easy. Plus, when it is a hard or long day, I get more hours which is always nice when the pay check comes.

This simple concept could be applied in many areas of our lives, and I could go on with many different examples. Next time you have an expectation of your job, of a friend, of a family member, of your day, of your work out, or of the weather...eliminate it. That way, when things do not go as expected, you will not be disappointed.

17 Again: Getting a Second Chance

It is crazy how much life can change in a year's time. It is crazy how much you can change your mind in just a short period of time. It is crazy just how fast time flies.

Last September, I was 100% certain that I had found my career path. I loved my classes, I loved my school, and I loved the town I was in. I was on my way to what seemed like the perfect life and perfect career. However, around mid October last year, that feeling of 100% certainty disappeared. I did not have a love for all of my classes. Luckily, I still loved my school and where I was located. After a long time spent debating what my next move should be, I decided to not only switch my major, but my school as well. Essentially, I am starting completely over because my previous major and new major are so different.

My life has taken quite a drastic turn in the last month. I went from being a college student who had a job that provided minimal hours allowing me to have tons of free time to moving back home. I now work 2 jobs and put in over 50 hours a week. My free time to do the things that mean the most to me like going to ride my horse, spending time with friends, reading, etc. came to a halt in a matter of a day once I began working. Even though I was not doing much with my time for nearly a whole semester, I loved my life and I was content...despite being at a "standstill" with my future.

I relocated to a very familiar place: home. While I have had this same schedule in the past, it is quite the change of lifestyle compared to the one I had, and it has been a struggle to balance work, friends, horses, family and "me" time.

It would be easy to say that I completely wasted nearly 3 years of my life doing something that was not right for me. When I stop and reminisce about the last 3 years of my life, I cannot feel anything except blessed. I have had experiences and opportunities that few people gain in a lifetime, I have truly grown as a person, and I have made the friends of a lifetime. If given the chance to go back 3 years and start over to what now feels like the "right" decision....well, I would not do it. There is no way I want to eliminate the people, experiences, opportunities, and memories from my mind because they have shaped me into the person I am and helped shaped my future. If I did have the opportunity to do things over I may not be where I am at in life now.

If you have ever seen the movie 17 Again, I feel exactly the way the main character does in the end of the movie (sorry if I spoiled the ending for you). Even though I was not given a second chance like he was, I can be content with the fact that I know I would have lived my life exactly the way I have even if I would have had a glimpse of my future. I am thankful for this peace of mind because it would be easy to feel like I just wasted the last 3 years of my life. However, I know that my life has turned out exactly that way it has needed to and that is perfect.

The Secret of Happiness

The above book is an absolutely fantastic read. I am not going to do my typical review like I have done of previous books that I read, but I will say that this book was an easy read and I had a hard time putting it down. It teaches a lot of valuable lessons about faith, Heaven, God, how to treat people, life, and how not to judge people based solely upon their past.

There was one part of the book that really jumped out at me and I wanted to share that little passage because I think it is very important. The book discusses the secret to happiness. I am going to share this with you because I think it is valuable no matter when you read it, but I encourage you to read this book to develop an even deeper appreciation of this secret we all strive to know. Remember this and live by this.

The Secret of Happiness:

"Be satisfied. Be grateful. For what you have.

For the love you receive. And for what God has given you."

-Have a Little Faith

Forgiveness

"Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” -Paul Boese

Forgiveness. Sometimes one of the hardest things to do in life is to forgive someone for something that they did that may have hurt you. Why is it that many people would rather hold something against a person for a very long time rather than just let go and avoid that extra stress in life? It has always confused me that people would rather hold a grudge than forgive someone and move on.

I have never been the type of person that can stay mad at a person for a long time, but I know that not everyone is this way. At some point in life, almost everyone holds a grudge against another person. Personally, I feel that every one's life would be less stressful if people would simply not hold grudges against another person. What bothers me the most about people not be willing to forgive? Let me tell you.

Well, first, I think that it affects relationships with others. For example, if a friend of yours is mad at someone (or holding some sort of grudge against another person), it often seems that your friend expects you to treat this person with little respect too. Now this grudge that you have against someone affects their relationships with others. Personally, I find this to be very immature of both the person who is unable to forgive and his or her friend. Why would people expect their friends to treat others poorly just because they cannot forgive another person? A person who makes a mistake does not deserve to lose other people as friends.

And second, I cannot understand why a person is willing to hold a grudge for so long. It is unhealthy. Think of a time you were really mad at someone. How long did you stay mad at them for? Are you even still friends with this person? Did your unwillingness to forgive a someone later affect your relationship with that person? Chances are, if you are still friends with someone you were really upset with for a long time, it affected your relationship and friendship and it was difficult to move forward after a "bump" in the road. Take a second to think about why you are mad. In three months from now, will it really matter? If the answer is no, forgive immediately.

I understand that people can have a hard time forgiving people when they are let down. Even the person you trust the most is going to let you down one time or another. People are not capable of doing the right thing all the time or keeping others happy with decisions they may make. Next time you find yourself mad at someone, holding a grudge, or being unwilling to forgive...take a step back from the situation. Try to understand why a person did what they did. Maybe there is a reason that may make you understand. Talk to the person and never make assumptions because that only makes a situation worse.

Forgiveness. It is a hard thing to do at times, but when we forgive others, we can move on and keep our relationships in our life healthy. When we forgive others, we are happier and less stressed. Forgive when it is hard, forgive when you do not understand, forgive before it is the last thing you can do, forgive because you know that it will not matter down the road. Do it for others and do it for yourself.

“Let us forgive each other - only then will we live in peace." - Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy