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Request for Advice: Subsidizing my Paycheck
14 years ago
I graduated college two years ago, was unemployed for a year, but now that I have a full time job, it seems like the student loans and bill payments are still a little suffocating. I've been thinking about money for a few months now--thinking of what I can cut or reduce from my budget--and now I've been thinking of ways to subsidize my paycheck. A couple of hundred dollars a month would be nice, but even fifty bucks a month would be a hell of an improvement. Right now I'm just on the cusp of being in the black.
Once things settle down with my life in a couple of weeks I'll put out a general call for commissions, but I'm not expecting much to come from that. I'm a writer, and I know what writers are worth, so I'll be charging 1/2 cent per word. I don’t have a very large following in the furry community, so I doubt story commissions are a viable and reliable source of income, even if I do manage to get a couple of bites from it.
So, here’s my question to all of you who have opened this journal article: would you be so kind to share some advice on how to make a few dollars more each month? Even advice on how to spend a little less would help.
Thank you in advance for your advice.
Once things settle down with my life in a couple of weeks I'll put out a general call for commissions, but I'm not expecting much to come from that. I'm a writer, and I know what writers are worth, so I'll be charging 1/2 cent per word. I don’t have a very large following in the furry community, so I doubt story commissions are a viable and reliable source of income, even if I do manage to get a couple of bites from it.
So, here’s my question to all of you who have opened this journal article: would you be so kind to share some advice on how to make a few dollars more each month? Even advice on how to spend a little less would help.
Thank you in advance for your advice.
If you drive a lot, Make yourself WALK to places that you may have thought of as far before. Instead of saying, "geeze, ten blocks to the store seems far..." say "You know, I could use a walk anyways"
Since your trade is in writing, look around for freelance editorial work. Even just simple jobs at a newspaper or opinion column, might or might not be able to make money there.
If you see or think of anything you want to buy, write it down, let it go for a bit, then come back to the list. Re evaluate if you still REALLY need or want it. If you still feel after evaluating it for a time you want it, then go for it.
If you drink alcohol, well, there is a lot of money right there you could save.
The most drastic would be to look into a place with cheaper rent or getting a place with a roomate or two.
Hope that helps!
P.S. In last ditch effort, marry some rich man.
Note: if this response sounds confusing, rambling, or otherwise convoluted, it is because I am responding to multiple answers on multiple sites.
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I didn’t phrase this right, by my trade isn’t writing (well, it kind of is and isn’t), my hobby is writing. I’m an engineer by trade, but I do a lot more technical writing than actual quantitative analysis. I would be doing very well monetarily if my manager would just pay me for the overtime I put in. *bitch bitch bitch* 50+ hour weeks *bitch bitch bitch*.
I would like to get my loans paid off quickly, so I would rather not defer any payments as long as that’s possible. I do take a small portion of my salary and hide it away into a couple of savings accounts, and of course I participate in my company’s 401k program. It’s good advice for anyone: if you don’t start saving for retirement in your early twenties, you will never have enough money to retire (assuming you’re making an average American salary and don’t win the lotto or become the CEO of a large corporation or anything like that).
I live all of 2.5 miles from work, so I bike there when the weather is decent enough. Right now that is not the case. I really don’t do a lot of driving, so that’s not something easily cut.
Another one of my hobbies is cooking, so, even though I have been eating out more often than I have in the past (working on reducing that number right now), on a day to day basis I cook my own meals and bring my lunch into work instead of buying the overpriced filth served there. When at the grocery store I choose the store brand items, and completely avoid higher priced items as much as possible (like delicious cheese, unless it’s specifically required in a recipe). Because of a medical condition I need to eat healthily (fats, especially, wreak havoc), but also make sure I get enough protein and iron, which brings me to my next point:
A substantial portion of my paycheck goes to medical costs, but that is unavoidable. While the medicine is covered substantially with health insurance ($25 a month vice $4000), vitamins and supplements not covered in my insurance add $50-$100 a month on top of that.
I do spend a lot more on alcohol than I ought to. I’ve begun to brew my own beer (my name IS BunnyHops, after all), so, even though it’s a large initial investment, it’s cheaper per beer and should start to have a good return on investment right there, especially since I’m going to get some supplies/ingredients for my birthday in a week. Woo.
As for driving or taking the train as opposed to flying, I used to fly all the time to go back and forth from my parent’s house and college. 2800 miles is a lot cheaper to do flying than driving, and I never considered taking the train because of the time consideration. But that’s all in the past. The last time I flew was for work, so they paid for it, and I got a nice per diem.
I do need to cut my cable, since I don’t watch it nearly as much as I used to.
Once again, thanks for all the advice. I really should work on writing more, honing that skill set for work and as a hobby, and try to get some stories published or do some freelance work. It doesn’t add much money to my bank account, but it will at least make me feel like I’m doing something.