This photo reminds me of the journey towards financial freedom; lots of steps that are sometimes elusive.

I’m realizing that my goal to purchase a house with in the next year is still many months away. I started out with a 3-step plan: pay down debt, raise my credit score, save for a down payment. My first two goals are going swimmingly; I’ve paid off close to $8,000 in debt and am working towards paying off my line of credit and my car loan. I used a debt repayment calculator and found that at the rate I’m going, I should have both paid off in under two years. That’s great news, if I can pay it off before then, even better. I’ve also raised my credit score by over 100 points in a year. All there is for me to do is keep making my student loan payments, use my credit cards lightly, then pay them off in full every month. If I keep this strategy up, I should see a 740 score this year.

However, I’m struggling with the 3rd step of my plan: save a down payment. These last few months my income has waned. As a a temporary employee with a school district that is running out of funds, I’m seeing this as a long-term pattern. My husband’s business is doing okay, but he is only bringing in enough income to equate to one salary plus a part-time employee (who is a programmer). This means I have to develop a new plan for bringing in more income.

My plan is still in the fuzzy- vague-I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet stages, but at least I have a direction:

• Option A: Be a marketing genius and bring in more work for my husband, which would create a job for me. This plan is more long-term and the results wouldn’t be immediate. However, if I am successful, it would be my ideal option.
• Option B: Take on a part-time position with a local company or the Census Bureau. This would bring in extra cash for a few months while I develop a more long-term strategy, still allowing me to take teaching gigs.
• Option C: Stick it out with the current school district and hope their budget improves. This is a risky scenario, I don’t want to wait until the bitter end only to find out I was right all along.
• Option D: Go get a permanent position and switch professions. I’ve been teaching for almost 9 years, I haven’t had to work in a corporate office or go on a job interview in a very long time. I like my summers off and my three weeks of winter break. This option scares me!

As I switch gears and begin moving towards option A, I realize I need to be really organized and manage my time wisely. I can easily fall into a pattern of sleeping too late, or wasting time running errands when I ‘work’ for my husband. To optimize my time, I’ll begin focusing on tasks using my task manager in Outlook. This should keep me in line.

Have you had to change jobs lately? How do you manage your time when you’re at home? Which option would you choose if you were in my position? Do you use a program to help organize your tasks?

A Lazy Day

I’m one of the lucky gal’s who gets today off. As a substitute teacher, I  pretty much get every national holiday off, a week for spring break, three weeks of winter vacation, and a full 12-week summer vacation. Not bad, considering of those 180 working days I’m home by 3pm. Of course, I don’t get paid on my days off, but that’s a whole other story. So, today I’m spending my day relaxing in the warm California sun. Oh, yeah! Our temp’s have zoomed back up to 77 degrees, making me realize why I pay so much for living in sunny Southern California; the weather!

This weekend I not only helped my husband with a client project, finished 3 school projects, but also had the luxury of spending Sunday and most of today doing absolutely nothing. My favorite thing to do, out side of bike riding (I got to do this as well this weekend). I’ve decided that I can shrug off the guilt of doing nothing because I accomplished plenty on my three days off. But, that brings me to making the most of a 3-day weekend without the guilt. It all boils down to time management:

• Saturday: Since my husband manages his own business, he often has to catch up on projects on the weekends.  I helped him for a few hours. Results: completed one project, got paid.
• Sunday AM: Skype meeting with my brother who is starting his own business. Not only is he 12 hours ahead of me time wise, he also has different work days, Sunday being one of them. Results: finalized his logo, he should pay soon. (He’s my bro, so I can’t harass him too much!) Since I had to wake up early for the meeting, I had enough time to finish 2 school projects. Results: Two down, one more to go.
• Sunday PM: Had time to throw in a couple of loads of laundry while my husband cleaned the car and bikes (my Valentine’s Day gift, I think). Went to a friend’s for an early B-B-Q via a bike ride. Wrapped up the evening with a movie at home and a beer. Results: My do nothing time! Minus the laundry, of course.
• Monday AM: Sleep in! Finished the final school project. Will hop on my bike later today and head out for my 2-hour class. Results: I finished everything without being pressed for time and stressed out.

Since today is a holiday for many people, I intend to catch up on some pleasurable reading and not worry about the remainder of the week’s impending work.

How are you spending your 3-day weekend? Did you get to do something romantic or plan a weekend get-away? Are you one of the lucky people who get’s every national holiday off?

This Thanksgiving I visited my family. They live a couple of hours north of me in a small town, and I visit them a few times a year. They moved to their small town (population just under 7,000) right around the time I entered college, I decided to stay behind in the “big city” because I had too many things going on. My brother, however, was only in middle school at the time of the move and had no choice but to move with them. He has basically grown up in a small town.

Small towns can be great. At least, that’s what I’ve heard and read. I wouldn’t really know from a first hand experience. They seem quaint and homey in some ways. Yet, they can also be inhibitors when it comes to looking for work. For instance, my brother is almost 30 and still lives at home. He has gone from part-time job to part-time job never holding on to any one job for more than 6 months at a time. There are many factors influencing his spotty work history, but his one excuse has always been that he lives in the middle of nowhere and it’s hard to find work.

Over the years I’ve tried to give him some tips on how to get a job, where to look for a job, even some specific examples of places that are always hiring. I have been employed non-stop since the age of 16, so my experience should be helpful to his particular situation. Of course I realize that all of my experiences have been in a city of millions and the job prospects are ubiquitous. But, I’ve also struck out on my own and worked for myself. This is something that can work anywhere, small town or big city. As long as the person is willing to work! (This is the main point here!)

While visiting this week, he made a comment about how he was only working about 16 hours a week and would like to work more. Trying to be a helpful sister,  I mentioned that he should look into part-time work in town (they live in a community about 15 minutes from their small town).  I specifically pointed out that Starbucks may be hiring for the holidays and he might want to look there. He poo-pooed that idea, coming up with excuses as to why he couldn’t get a job there.

I soon realized that he didn’t want to work part-time in a retail or restaurant type setting,  based on his excuses for not applying for jobs in town. So, I gave him some entreprenuerial ideas that I thought he might be more open to. The community where my parents live have many retired people. One thing that immediately popped into my head was running errands for the elderly. I told him that he could pick up their groceries for a fee, or be their driver on certain days. Another helpful idea was to mow their lawns, or help them with landscaping. The properties in that community are all over an acre, much too large for older people to take care of on their own. He again came up with an excuse as to why that wouldn’t work.

This made me realize that he really doesn’t want to work. Every idea I came up with, and I thought they were quite good, he had an excuse as to why it wouldn’t work. His excuses weren’t based on experience, he hasn’t tried any of the ideas I’ve mentioned over the years. Instead, they are based on his unwillingness to work. Many of his excuses over the years have revolved around the fact that the small town they live in has a limited amount of jobs available. This may be true, but the number one reason he hasn’t been able to solidify a career for himself is his weak work ethic. As he gets older, his priorities may change and he may decide to develop a stronger work ethic. For now, he is content living with my parents indefinitely.

I’m the expert on running on fumes. To be more specific, I run on fumes in a number of ways. Let me count them for you:

1. I can go about 3 hours in the morning on a Starbucks coffee alone. No food, just java juice, teaching 5- and 6-year old’s how to read up until their recess time. I run my body on a highly caffinated and sugary drink. (Sometimes this includes a 45 minute bike ride to school on a beautiful day).
2. I work a total of 12 hours a day, if I include my travel time. I start the work day at 8am (no travel included here) and finish around 6:30 pm or 7pm, depending on the day. I teach, I help my husband with his graphic design business, I post daily, and I have homework to complete. I rarely have time to breathe, let alone have a sit-down meal. (There’s a trend building here I think).
3. I can stretch our bank account dollars until our next payment arrives, whether it’s a client we’re waiting on, or my monthly (yes, monthly) paycheck. The most frustrating part of owning your own business is the infrequent payments; some clients pay within a week or two, others pay on a monthly basis, and still others take their time and pay when they feel like it, pushing 45 – 60 days at times.
4. I can hyper-mile our car until the gas light has been on for a full day running on fumes, or ride my bike if I feel like not filling that day. This isn’t as difficult for my husband and me since he works from home and rarely needs our one vehicle, and I enjoy biking to and from work or school.

I’ve always been a very active person, I can’t sit still for very long or remain unproductive. I’m not ADD or ADHD, I know what this looks like, I can actually focus on tasks and complete them. I just like to stay busy. I’ve been like this since I was a child; playing outside until the street lights came on, babysitting when I was a teenager, working two jobs or more jobs when I was attending college for my BA in my early 20’s. It’s very difficult for me to just sit.

Full Speed Ahead

Most friends and family members comment on my fast-walking pace as I zip around the neighborhood, school, or store. I physically can’t walk slowly, it hurts my hips, which you would think would be just the opposite. Whether I’ve eaten a balanced, nutritious meal, or I’ve only had my sugary Starbucks drink, my speed remains the same: full speed ahead.

When my husband and I visit our families, we become restless while the television is blasting in the background and our relatives are in a vegetative state on the couch. We fidget and squirm until we finally get up and leave for a bike ride, or a drive to the store, or a bar for a drink (not that I’m a big drinker – I’m always the designated driver, a complete tee-totatler). With the holiday season coming up, we’re making our plans and dreading the family visits. We love our families, but we don’t necessarily like how they celebrate the holidays, in front of the TV! So, we must decide how we are going to keep busy, active, and productive over the holiday season, whether I’m running on fumes or a full tank.

Financially Free

When I think about the times I felt financially free, it was when I was making less money than I do now. It’s sort of ironic how that works out. Years ago, after I had graduated from college, I was working two jobs and making just enough money to cover my expenses. I never worried about money because I was employed and didn’t ever feel like I was going to be let go at any time. I felt financially free in some ways. I didn’t have an emergency fund, but I always had some money in case I needed new tires or some other emergency popped up. I wasn’t in debt, and that was the key to my financial freedom. I didn’t owe anyone any money. I was living below or at my means.

Then, my lifestyle changed. My husband and I started our own business (he was actually my boyfriend at this time) and that sunk us into our initial debt. We were stressed about money most days, always trying to figure out how to make more and keep up with our expenses. For many years we felt strapped down to our debt. Slowly, we paid it off or let it expire off our credit reports. We were young and figured we would have time for the negative items to fall off and be forgotten.

Once this started happening, I again felt more freedom. We didn’t acquire any new debt, we were living below our means and even had a savings account started. Our small business was bringing in just enough money to cover our costs and we didn’t have to work 80 hours a week to make this happen. We felt financially free, we were even working on improving our credit. We were able to purchase a new car at a decent APR and didn’t stress out about the payments. We felt excited and  happy most days about our new path.

Then, our lifestyle changed. (There’s a pattern evolving here!) We decided we wanted to move out of our 2-bedroom apartment in a shady neighborhood, and into a rental house in a slightly better community. I had figured out that we could afford $400 more in rent and an additional $200 more in utlities. We had enough in our savings account for the deposit, and chose a fixer-upper of a rental house. At the time, my husband liked the idea of the landlord living 2-hours north of us, rarely visiting, and being able to fix the house up to our liking. I originally didn’t factor in the cost of fixing up a rental.

A month into living in our rental house, our small graphic and web design business was picking up new clients. I was subbing full-time and didn’t have much left over time to help my husband. We decided to hire a part-time employee. Another $1,600 a month that I hadn’t factored into our inital lifestyle change. Luckily, our business was able to keep up with the cost of having a part/full-time employee, and later that year we gave him a raise.

Slowly, our financial freedom began to wane. I was becoming stressed out due to all of these added expenses that I hadn’t originally factored into our move. Our business slowed down over the summer months and I stopped working because school was out. We took on a line of credit to get us through the first summer with our employee. We didn’t want to let him go since he had only been with us a few months and was working out quite well.

A few years have passed, and this year, my husband and I decided we are tried of feeling so stressed out about money. We started saving towards a down payment on a house. We’ve also started paying off our debt and trying to get back to that financial freedom we once had. Meaning, not oweing anyone any money. We’ve reduced our employee’s hours, so the stress of trying to pay him his salary is slightly relieved. We have also stopped improving the rental house. We realized it is silly to put in our hard-earned money towards something we don’t own. The house is in slightly better condition than when we moved in. The two rooms we spend the most time in have new carpet, paint, and window treatments, thanks to us.

What I’ve learned, looking back, is that the key to financial freedom is not having any debt and living below your means. My husband and I are planning on purchasing a house within the next year, another lifestyle change. However, this time, we will be doing so without having any other debt to pay off. We are also restucturing his business so it is something he can manage on his own and not have to pay someone a full-time salary. Hopefully these tactics will allow us to feel financial freedom even with another lifestyle change.

One thing I’m beginning to understand is that even if you work hard, you sometimes need to expand what you already know and maximize all avenues of revenue. For instance, I consider myself a hard worker, but am realizing that I’m at a point in my life where I really can’t waste anytime. To build some background, I’ve been working since the tender age of 6 months, if I count my parents shuffling me from agent to agent posing for baby ads. This was only due to the fact that my parents, in their youth, were actors. They of course thought that maybe their children would follow in their footsteps. Only one of us is still a “struggling” actor/dancer, and it’s not me. The rest of us (all half- and step-siblings) continued on towards other, more stable, career goals.

I'm a hard worker, I deserve a sticker! (I've been teaching too long)

I’ve always held at least one job, if not more, to maintain my lifestyle – I would define it more as a minimal middle-class lifestyle. My husband, early in our relationship, had numerous entrepreneurial ideas and eventually one of them panned out. I encouraged him to pursue the one idea I thought would prosper, and helped him build a graphic and web design business. All through this time, I worked a full-time job. First, as a sales coordinator, then as an administrative assistant. Finally, I landed a job at an internet start-up company as a Trade Show Events Manager. However, in 2001 the company flopped due to not having a product.

Later that year (2001), I began substitute teaching. I originally thought I’d only teach for a year or two, or until the economy improved. However, here I am 8 years after initially becoming employed with our local school district. Last year I began to realize that I might be teaching for a few more years. Heck, 8 years have flown by and I have to admit that I like teaching. So, this year I applied for a teaching credential through my state university.

The credential program is usually a 1-year program. However, because I already work full-time and need to continue making a salary, I am spreading it out to over 2-years. One of the drawbacks of this credential program is that there are 2 semesters where I have to student-teach. This means I have to teach a total of 18 weeks without pay. This is where I realized I needed to be creative and figure out a way that I could sustain my current lifestyle with this daunting task upon me.

I began exploring all of the ways I could make money. My husband also helped come up with some of the ideas so that the 18 weeks of unpaid teaching wouldn’t be too painful. A few ideas we brainstormed included:

• Maximizing affiliate links – my husband has affiliate links with a few vendors, but we’ve never really utilized them. This year our mission is to promote some of these affiliates.
• Write articles through Hubpages to maximize adsense income – I recently read an article about how one writer was making a small amount of money through her adsense links by writing articles on Hubpages. I signed up for an account, and currently have 9 articles posted. It’s a small start, but every little bit helps.
• Continue networking with other schools - this year will be tough for all substitute teachers, our local district is short on funds and many subs won’t be working as much this year as in the past. However, if I continue networking with schools I should be able to remain employed until it’s my time to student-teach.

Of course these ideas aren’t likely to bring in a windfall of money, but even small amounts could help towards those unpaid 18 weeks. Fortunately, my student teaching is a year away, this gives these avenues of revenue some time to mature.

Do you have alternative ideas for making small amounts of money that could add up over time? Have you tried maximizing all of your avenues? What things have you tried? I’d love additional comments or ideas.