Now: 11,435.97.

This is moving very slow. My goal was 20,000. The year is almost at an end. Getting a raise 4% starting 12/2/07, then another from my yearly eval 3-5%. Maybe this will help give my savings a little kick.

Just got my check from Global Test Market. I was beginning to think this was a fraud. They sure take a long time.

On Friday, I didn't have to pay for bfast, lunch or dinner at work. Someone brought bagels & Mexican food.

Anyone out there know of any other surveys that pay?

10830.31 - Emergency fund became house fund.

Savings: $10,480.31 so far...giving myself another 2 years.

I think I'd be better off renting for now. Don't want to have to work 2 jobs, like my friend does, to pay the mortgage. I value my free time.

I hope the market stays like this for a while.

I’ve been thinking about where my life is headed. I have a good job. I work three days a week. I get up at 4:30 in the morning and work until 6 pm. It is repetitive with occasional bouts of stress. I have some good days and some days I can’t even tolerate it. I feel like a drone. I work, come home to my apartment, eat, sleep and do it again tomorrow. I really can’t see myself doing this another 10, 20 or even 30 years.

So the question to ask is: what’s next? What do I want to accomplish next?

Setting goals will help give me some aim. It’s like a game and games make life fun. What I need are some long/short term goals. Here are a few things I’d like to do:

• Become a homeowner
• See the world
• Write a book

Right now, I’m right where I planned to be. This was my vision. I think anything can be accomplished if I have a clear picture of what I want in my head. Overall, the most important goal is happiness. The main thing to overcome: fear.

I’d like to add becoming financially independent to that list. Then I’d be free. I am so sick of getting up at 4:30 in the morning. In addition to that, I’m sick of all the b.s. I have to deal with at work. I just read that there is no such thing as job security. Social security is going bankrupt and many people will not have enough money to retire. So what now?

How long will it take to reach my savings goal?

It will take 1 years and 2 months to save $10,136 starting with $4,244 and depositing $400 monthly.

Deposits & Terms
Initial Balance $4,244
Regular Deposit $400
Frequency of Deposit Monthly
Savings goal $10,000

Interest rate
Interest rate 5%

Taxes
Taxable Interest? Yes
Marginal Tax Rate 28%


Details
Initial balance $4,244
Total deposits $5,600
Total interest earned $426
Total taxes paid $97
Total saved $10,136

Assumptions and simplifications
Results are computed using a standard future-value calculation and your investments' nominal rate of return, rather than annual percentage yield (APY). Banks are required to advertise APY, which allows direct comparisons between accounts using different compounding schedules. This calculator assumes monthly compounding.

Love having 6 days off in a row, it allows me to get things done. On Friday, I got my taxes, oil change, tune up and tire rotation done. I couldn’t decide whether to get my car washed since it looks like its going to rain Tuesday or Thursday, then it would be a waste. I’m not getting as much back as I did last year. I guess that’s a good thing, it means there wasn’t much income for them to tax last year. The tax guy showed me that I saved money on taxes by contributing to my 401K. When I start withdrawing the money at retirement, it will be taxed at a lower rate. I want to try filing my income tax myself because it seems so simple. All the tax preparer does is fill in a bunch of blanks which takes less than 20 minutes. I paid $108 when can do this myself with Turbo Tax or something. My financial situation is not even complicated (yet).

I have to take that return & put it back into my emergency savings fund. We’re supposed to get a bonus at work, but I heard it was coming late. I’m putting that into the EF also.

Friday spent about $200 (tax & auto). I used a $20 off coupon for my auto services. Yesterday was a no spending day, even though I did go to the mall. I told myself "You're only here to look." I saw a top that I liked, cost $88 – I was tempted but, I didn’t. I was just there to hang out, went into B&N and read a little bit. Had dinner at home & watched Indpendence Day.


More inspiration: [ From Creating Wealth by Robert G. Allen]

• Our aspirations are our possibilities. – Robert Browning

• Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “press on” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race - Calvin Coolidge

• Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambition. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. – Mark Twain

• Every great man, every successful man, no matter what the field of endeavor, has known the magic that lies in these words: every adversity has the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit. – W. Celement Stone

• Inch by inch, anything’s a cinch. – Dr. Robert Schuller

• Don’t let the opinions of the average man sway you. Dream, and he thinks you’re crazy. Succeed, and he thinks you’re lucky. Acquire wealth, and he thinks you’re greedy. Pay no attention. He simply doesn’t understand. – Robert G. Allen

• History records the successes of men with objectives and a sense of direction. Oblivion is the position of small men overwhelmed by obstacles. – William H. Danforth

• Industry, thrift and self control are not sought because they create wealth, but because they create character. – Calvin Coolidge

• Progress always involves risk. You can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first. – Frederick B. Wilcox

• Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is a freedom. – Marilyn Ferguson

• The road to hell is paved with good intentions – Karl Marx

• My life seems like one long obstacle course, with me as the chief obstacle. – Jack Paar

• There is not security on this earth; there is only opportunity. – Douglas Mac Arthur

• No man is free who is not master of himself. – Epictetus

• Unjust criticism is usually a disguised compliment. It often means that you have aroused jealousy and envy. Remember that no one ever kicks a dead dog. – Dale Carnegie

• Come to the edge, He said.
They said, We are afraid.
Come to the edge, He said.
They came.
He pushed them…and they flew.
- Guillaume Apollinaire


PRESS ON!!!

This is my first entry. Goals for this year are as follows:

Pay off student loan. As of this date, I owe $5,330.97
Pay off any unsecured debt $3,445.94
Reduce spending (credit cards/living expenses)
Remain debt free
Build up savings account, as of this date $7372.03.
Need to start saving for a house.
Contribute max to 401K, as of this date $22,753.75

I've been doing little things here and there, like bringing my lunch to work and turning off all the lights. Last week I canceled my international long distance plan (b/c I won't be calling Canada anymore!) & chose a cheaper package for DirectTV. Also work a little bit of overtime here and there. Hopefully all these things will add up.

Long Term Goals:

Buy a house within 2 years. Have it paid off in less than 30 years.
Have atleast $10,000 in emergency savings.
Comfortable retirement, where I have more than enough money to live on.

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” [Lao Tzu]