Trying to Make a Dollar Out of 15 Cents

The urban legend (for some odd reason) Tupac said this over a decade ago. Does this still apply to you? Are you still trying to make a dollar out of 15 cents?

Well, the fact of the matter is, you are not alone. Being deep into the recession has forced people into jobs they never thought they would do. It has made people do things they never ever would have considered before. Just the other day, I actually passed on going to Red Robin and instead settled for the “evil empire”, McDonald’s. Why, you ask? Because I had to decide on going to Red Robin or getting my eyes checked. So, after a long deliberation on whether it is necessary for me to see what I’m eating, I decided to see – you never know what you’re going to get from McDonald’s.

So I went to McDonald’s first, I wanted to concentrate fully to make sure my eyes were seeing perfectly. I went inside and ordered a Oudla Cunfer Poumber with Qheesa and medium Sqnifa (Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese and medium Sprite). And proceeded onto the eye doctor. I got there and decided to eat in the office because everyone tells me there is ALWAYS a wait at the eye doctor. So I went in and to my surprise there wasn’t a wait and they could see me. Of course, I asked for a moment to eat my Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese. The receptionist looked at me strange and said “Sir, you’re holding a Whopper.” I was flabbergasted and shocked. Why would the evil empire – McDonald’s give me a Whopper even wrapped in Whopper paper without telling me they had new menu items?

Back to the lecture at hand, for many younger adults that have just arrived in the world of adulthood this age in life is turning out to be a bit testy. Rest assured though, these times will soon end. And if you can get through this, the rest of adulthood should be a breeze compared to living in a recession. Let me help you.

One, create a budget. This way you can preset your spending amount for each pay period whether it be one week, two weeks or monthly. This will help you in the beginning to actually see in numbers how much money you are bringing in every paycheck. Secondly you can budget how much to spend in every area of your life. Google has free documents that you can utilize and even export/transfer to your computer in its programs. Check it out, you need a google account. They also have other useful documents.

Two, I have just become aware of a great website, thanks to my sister, that automatically tracks where you spend ALL of you money, Mint.com. It has other features too, that I have not utilized. If you are into it and don’t mind it syncs with your online bank account and categorizes each and every transaction that you make. You can even adjust the categories to your liking. It is very very useful. It is a really nice website and helped me to realize that I was spending too much money on a website called Goodeyesiteforidiots.com.

Last but not least, when you use the afore mentioned websites to budget and track your spending make sure you set aside 10% for savings. That 10% adds up over the course of a year and the course of your lifetime. By doing that and investing in the right stocks, mutual funds, saving accounts (compound) you can easily become a millionaire by the time you retire.

If you still want to find out how to make a dollar out of 15 cents (it is possible), check out this video (and subsequent videos if you are up to it and can mentally take it).