swamped with work this week...which is always a good thing.
definitely looking forward to the weekend so some rest can be had!
haven't spent a penny all week (6 or 7 days and counting) and i've received a nice little bonus in the mail today...the ontario energy and property tax credit for $83.75
can you guess where it's going?
that's right, straight onto my highest interest debt owing!
chipping away at things and feeling good about it.
anyways, that's all for now.
onto a fantastic 12-hour+ day!
the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts has concluded. we'll report on the winner once it has been announced. check out their blog for some great tips to help you on the road to financial freedom!
Thursday 15 December 2011
Tuesday 13 December 2011
day 594 report
business has been booming this month and there's no sign of things letting up. if things continue on this path, i'll definitely be able to make a few extra payments towards my debts early in the new year. and perhaps even earlier if i stay on track with invoicing on time.
today i was thinking a lot about cashflow and how not staying on top of paperwork really held me back from tackling this mountain of debt ($44k and falling!). i would sometimes delay invoicing clients which is a HUGE no-no when you're self-employed. most times i didn't really want to be dealing with any more paper work after a long hard day (usually 10-12 hours in front of a screen) so i'd just let invoicing wait till tomorrow. always tomorrow...until nearly a month passed by. twice now in 2011...and to the point where clients were emailing me asking if i'd like to be paid! (sigh) it has been an incredibly busy year mind you so i'm not going to beat myself up over it.
anyway, i've always managed to get by comfortably, but as part of this plan i've put a stop to this. i now invoice on a weekly basis, batch processing this paperwork and quickbooks entries for greater efficiency. feels a lot better to be on top of things and waaaaaay easier to invoice when things are still fresh in your head. another obvious benefit to all of this is having a clearer picture of where you stand at all times. so now i have a better idea of what i'm making and spending on a weekly basis.
anyway, time for some rest. it's been a long day.
if you haven't checked it out yet, there's just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips to help you on the road to financial freedom!
night ★☾
today i was thinking a lot about cashflow and how not staying on top of paperwork really held me back from tackling this mountain of debt ($44k and falling!). i would sometimes delay invoicing clients which is a HUGE no-no when you're self-employed. most times i didn't really want to be dealing with any more paper work after a long hard day (usually 10-12 hours in front of a screen) so i'd just let invoicing wait till tomorrow. always tomorrow...until nearly a month passed by. twice now in 2011...and to the point where clients were emailing me asking if i'd like to be paid! (sigh) it has been an incredibly busy year mind you so i'm not going to beat myself up over it.
anyway, i've always managed to get by comfortably, but as part of this plan i've put a stop to this. i now invoice on a weekly basis, batch processing this paperwork and quickbooks entries for greater efficiency. feels a lot better to be on top of things and waaaaaay easier to invoice when things are still fresh in your head. another obvious benefit to all of this is having a clearer picture of where you stand at all times. so now i have a better idea of what i'm making and spending on a weekly basis.
anyway, time for some rest. it's been a long day.
if you haven't checked it out yet, there's just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips to help you on the road to financial freedom!
night ★☾
23 powerful tips to eliminate debt
Here are some more great tips on how to eliminate your debt quickly!
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings + attaining financial freedom!
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings + attaining financial freedom!
debt repayment resources
good morning,
not even a week into my 600 day plan and i feel like some great progress has been made.
still feeling very motivated and confident about my plan for financial freedom and i thought i'd review + share a few articles on the basics that i read when formulating my 600 day plan.
Check them out here:
7 rules of debt repayment
stop the bleeding
create a strategy
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings!
not even a week into my 600 day plan and i feel like some great progress has been made.
still feeling very motivated and confident about my plan for financial freedom and i thought i'd review + share a few articles on the basics that i read when formulating my 600 day plan.
Check them out here:
7 rules of debt repayment
stop the bleeding
create a strategy
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings!
Monday 12 December 2011
15 questions to ask yourself if you're in debt
check out this great article by gail vaz-oxlade that outlines some great questions to consider when facing your debts:
why are you in debt | part 1
why are you in debt | part 2
why are you in debt | part 3
why are you in debt | part 4
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings + attaining financial freedom!
why are you in debt | part 1
why are you in debt | part 2
why are you in debt | part 3
why are you in debt | part 4
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings + attaining financial freedom!
day 595 update
hope everyone had a good weekend.
well i must say, only 5 days into this 600 day plan and my journey to financial freedom is well underway.
as i mentioned in an earlier post, part of my plan to pay off my debts as quickly as possible was to contact friends and family that i've loaned money to in the past. well today my good friend came through on part of what is owed (we agreed to a payment plan) and i've just deposited $1270.00 into my account. so once it clears, guess where it's going? you got it, straight onto my highest interest debt owing.
never thought i'd be so excited about paying the piper but you know, the quicker this is over with, the sooner i can get on with working towards the future (perhaps even retirement).
so, now i pull out my trusty debt snowball calculator spreadsheet and punch in this extra payment that i didn't account for in my original plan - because let's be honest, why count your chickens before they've hatched? so thanks to this little surprise, a full 30 days has been taken off this journey, give or take. so i could very well be in the clear by june 2013!
might be adjusting the plan later this week when another friend plans on returning $400.00 i loaned them. and if that comes in before the end of this month, we could very well be looking at a debt free day sometime in may 2013.
feeling empowered.
thanks for checking in.
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings!
well i must say, only 5 days into this 600 day plan and my journey to financial freedom is well underway.
as i mentioned in an earlier post, part of my plan to pay off my debts as quickly as possible was to contact friends and family that i've loaned money to in the past. well today my good friend came through on part of what is owed (we agreed to a payment plan) and i've just deposited $1270.00 into my account. so once it clears, guess where it's going? you got it, straight onto my highest interest debt owing.
never thought i'd be so excited about paying the piper but you know, the quicker this is over with, the sooner i can get on with working towards the future (perhaps even retirement).
so, now i pull out my trusty debt snowball calculator spreadsheet and punch in this extra payment that i didn't account for in my original plan - because let's be honest, why count your chickens before they've hatched? so thanks to this little surprise, a full 30 days has been taken off this journey, give or take. so i could very well be in the clear by june 2013!
might be adjusting the plan later this week when another friend plans on returning $400.00 i loaned them. and if that comes in before the end of this month, we could very well be looking at a debt free day sometime in may 2013.
feeling empowered.
thanks for checking in.
just one more day until the conclusion of the $500 financial bucket list contest being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. check out their blog for some great tips on savings!
Saturday 10 December 2011
some inspiration...life without money?
over the years i've thought a lot about bartering and at times have even participated in this form of trade. but what if we were to do this on a larger scale and make it a regular part of our lives?
this afternoon a friend pointed me in the direction of someone who has taken bartering to a whole other level. check out this article about a 69-year old woman that hasn't used money for the last 15 years...with all her needs met and then some. and she's happy.
so although many of us are not yet in a space to take on such an ambitious project, i definitely think there are ways for us to incorporate more bartering into our lives and free up some space in our budget. here are some ideas:
598 more days :)
by the way, still working towards the $500 prize being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest.
this afternoon a friend pointed me in the direction of someone who has taken bartering to a whole other level. check out this article about a 69-year old woman that hasn't used money for the last 15 years...with all her needs met and then some. and she's happy.
so although many of us are not yet in a space to take on such an ambitious project, i definitely think there are ways for us to incorporate more bartering into our lives and free up some space in our budget. here are some ideas:
- organize a meal exchange with a friend or group of friends, especially if you live alone. prepare several servings of a meal and share with your friend once or twice a week, and then switch. saves time and money to cook in larger batches...and oftentimes food can go to waste if we cook for ourselves.
- organize a clothing swap among friends and family. great way to clear out the closet and spruce up your wardrobe.
- barter your time or skills - know a handyman or a mechanic? barter home cooked meals, bookkeeping or cleaning services for small repairs or your next car tune up.
- other things you can barter with friends, family + your community - books, DVDs, CDs, homegrown fruits and vegetables, childcare, lawn care, snow removal....the sky's the limit.
598 more days :)
by the way, still working towards the $500 prize being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest.
Friday 9 December 2011
contingency fund: progress
progress is a good thing.
especially when it means that i have a fighting chance of building a contingency fund.
the purpose is two-fold.
1. having funds to rely on in the case of emergency (not line of credit or credit cards that got me into this mess in the first place).
2. it allows for a certain sense of security, especially as a self-employed individual. and this was the biggest contributor to my not tackling this debt any sooner - fear of not having enough to cover future expenses.
so at the end of november i deposited $1,500.00 into a high interest savings account...a step towards meeting my goal of having a $5,000.00 contingency fund. yes, it is a modest amount covering only 3 bare bones months of expenses, but it's a start. i really want to put all that i can towards my debts first and once those are out of the way i'd like to build the fund to $10,000.00 and then $20,000.00. but one must walk before they run.
anyway, definitely a step in the right direction. pat on the back.
oh, and i'm going to continue putting this out to the universe...i'm vying for the $500 prize being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest. some good motivation for this six hundred day journey! check it out..
okay, now back to work!
especially when it means that i have a fighting chance of building a contingency fund.
the purpose is two-fold.
1. having funds to rely on in the case of emergency (not line of credit or credit cards that got me into this mess in the first place).
2. it allows for a certain sense of security, especially as a self-employed individual. and this was the biggest contributor to my not tackling this debt any sooner - fear of not having enough to cover future expenses.
so at the end of november i deposited $1,500.00 into a high interest savings account...a step towards meeting my goal of having a $5,000.00 contingency fund. yes, it is a modest amount covering only 3 bare bones months of expenses, but it's a start. i really want to put all that i can towards my debts first and once those are out of the way i'd like to build the fund to $10,000.00 and then $20,000.00. but one must walk before they run.
anyway, definitely a step in the right direction. pat on the back.
oh, and i'm going to continue putting this out to the universe...i'm vying for the $500 prize being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest. some good motivation for this six hundred day journey! check it out..
okay, now back to work!
debt payoff pro
over the course of working on my financial plan + debt repayment strategy, i came across a great app called debt payoff pro that can be used on iPhone and iPad. in a nutshell, it allows you enter any number of debts and using the snowball method, provides a number of different strategies to tackle your debt. you can input a monthly additional payment amount and select if you'd like to pay highest or lowest interest or balance or customize your own strategy. the app generates pay off dates for each debt and shows how much interest you would be paying with any given strategy. so essentially you can figure out you plan of attack and document your progress over the course of your debt repayment. super handy. Here's a review in case you're interested in checking it out. Just 99 cents in the app store.
don't forget to check out the $500 givaway courtesy of givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. just visit their site and share some of your goals from your financial bucket list. contest ends on december 14th! definitely worth a shot and there are some great financial planning resources on the blog.
day 599, off to a great start...
don't forget to check out the $500 givaway courtesy of givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. just visit their site and share some of your goals from your financial bucket list. contest ends on december 14th! definitely worth a shot and there are some great financial planning resources on the blog.
day 599, off to a great start...
helpful tool: debt snowball spreadsheet
another helpful tool that i used to help map out my action plan was this debt snowball calculator spreadsheet. super handy and allows for entry of both an ongoing bonus payment as well as a one time bonus payment. now that i've budgeted for an additional monthly payment on my debts of $1800 per month, i can plug in any extra funds above and beyond my projected income and see how much sooner i'll meet my debt free target.
i know conventional wisdom says to not loan out what you cannot afford to, but we all like to give our loved ones a helping hand now and then. despite not really expecting to see the funds returned, i recently made arrangements with the friends and family that i loaned some money to earlier this year and we've come up with a repayment plan. before the end of this year, half of the $4k owed will be returned which, according to the debt snowball tool will slice a whole two months off of my 600 day plan! and when the remainder of the funds come in by March, I could very well be 3 months ahead of target...in which case i would need to change this blog's title.
for now, it's 599 days and counting!
PS: speaking of funds above and beyond my usual income sources, this $500 being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest would surely shorten this 600 day journey.
i know conventional wisdom says to not loan out what you cannot afford to, but we all like to give our loved ones a helping hand now and then. despite not really expecting to see the funds returned, i recently made arrangements with the friends and family that i loaned some money to earlier this year and we've come up with a repayment plan. before the end of this year, half of the $4k owed will be returned which, according to the debt snowball tool will slice a whole two months off of my 600 day plan! and when the remainder of the funds come in by March, I could very well be 3 months ahead of target...in which case i would need to change this blog's title.
for now, it's 599 days and counting!
PS: speaking of funds above and beyond my usual income sources, this $500 being offered by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts in their financial bucket list contest would surely shorten this 600 day journey.
Thursday 8 December 2011
A way to save
One way that I've been able to cut back on my monthly expenses is to limit my transportation costs. So for now, no car, no bus pass and no taxis (with the exception of one emergency taxi fare per month). What carries me are my own two legs, my bicycle, the kindness of friends and a $50 transit fare limit. Since its such a beautiful day today, the bike will be a great choice...and no need for a gym membership!
this week my main focus is trying to win the $500 Give Me Back My Five Bucks competition, sponsored by Life Insurance Finder, the life insurance experts.
this week my main focus is trying to win the $500 Give Me Back My Five Bucks competition, sponsored by Life Insurance Finder, the life insurance experts.
tell your friends...
being in debt is pretty embarrassing, but a reality for many of us.
to make my plan stick, i decided to do the unthinkable...
i told six friends.
i laid it all out on the line and described in bitter detail every last step of my 600 day plan.
and writing this blog further takes me out of my comfort zone.
but guess what?
now that i've put it out there, there's no looking back!
this week my main focus is trying to win the $500 Give Me Back My Five Bucks competition, sponsored by Life Insurance Finder, the life insurance experts.
check it out and contribute some items from your financial bucket list. by puttin in your two cents, you could win $500 bucks to put towards your goals :)
well, on with the day...
to make my plan stick, i decided to do the unthinkable...
i told six friends.
i laid it all out on the line and described in bitter detail every last step of my 600 day plan.
and writing this blog further takes me out of my comfort zone.
but guess what?
now that i've put it out there, there's no looking back!
this week my main focus is trying to win the $500 Give Me Back My Five Bucks competition, sponsored by Life Insurance Finder, the life insurance experts.
check it out and contribute some items from your financial bucket list. by puttin in your two cents, you could win $500 bucks to put towards your goals :)
well, on with the day...
some inspiration...and a chance to get a leg up!
i actually started formulating my financial plan at the beginning of october with the help of a few great resources. what really got me in gear was a face-to-face meeting in october with shannon from the barter babes project. she got my wheels spinning on a great financial plan, how to stick to a budget and introduced me to a variety of ways to tackle my debt. after crunching some numbers i decided to move ahead with phase one of my plan at the start of november. i should add that at that time, i was a tad over $55,000 in the red.
phase one: get a heads start on my plan by using all extra funds available to bring debt down to a more manageable level. i was able to pull together $12,200.00 to do so and put $1,500.00 into an emergency fund by the end of november. not a bad start if i do say so myself!
at the end of november, i discovered two websites that really ramped up my enthusiasm. give me back my five bucks - a quest for financial independence through the eyes of a 20-something canadian blogger has been a great source of inspiration providing play by play examples from someone that was in the same boat as i am + doing marvelously post-debt! another blog called debt free forever by gail vaz oxlade was another huge kick in the backside...and an effective one at that. this article really gave me a push.
phase two: strategize. thanks to some great tips from the above noted resources, i revised my plan to get more bang for my buck so to speak. with much thought (read: 6 hours of calculations) i decided to juggle my debts. at the end of it, i had two of five debts with the highest interest rates paid off using my line of credit. when all was said and done, i was able to save a few thousand dollars in interest and be out of debt 6 months sooner than originally planned. so the end of july became my new debt free date...just in time for my 35th birthday!
phase three: pay off debt diligently. with only three debts to worry about and a solid plan, i'm feeling like these 600 days will go by quickly. my plan is two-fold: firstly, on top of the monthly minimums, i plan on making a monthly payment of $1800.00 (minimum) on the debt with the highest interest. any additional funds at the end of the month will be added to this amount. secondly, i have budgeted an additional $100 on the debts that are not my primary focus so that i continue chipping away at the principal. And of course, any additional funds will be applied. 600 days and counting!
a chance to get a leg up...
i recently learned about a contest being run by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. they're offering $500.00 towards a lucky winner's financial bucket list. those five bills would help me reach my 600 day goal that much sooner. check it out...i for one will be giving it a go!
Recap of my 600 day financial bucket list:
1. pay down my debt of $44,231.88 before my 35th birthday...600 days and counting!
2. Generate 50-60% of $100k+ target net income for 2012
3. Double my business income in 600 days
4. Establish contingency fund of $5000.00
5. Collect all monies loaned to friends and family - $4,670.22
6. Limit of 1 dinner out per month - $30.00 max
7. Follow a very strict budget
8. Blog at least once a week about my progress
9. Seek out any opportunities that will make this plan a success- for starters, the $500 financial bucket list contest is a great start...and at least it will get me blogging more for the sake of accountability!
bye for now!
phase one: get a heads start on my plan by using all extra funds available to bring debt down to a more manageable level. i was able to pull together $12,200.00 to do so and put $1,500.00 into an emergency fund by the end of november. not a bad start if i do say so myself!
at the end of november, i discovered two websites that really ramped up my enthusiasm. give me back my five bucks - a quest for financial independence through the eyes of a 20-something canadian blogger has been a great source of inspiration providing play by play examples from someone that was in the same boat as i am + doing marvelously post-debt! another blog called debt free forever by gail vaz oxlade was another huge kick in the backside...and an effective one at that. this article really gave me a push.
phase two: strategize. thanks to some great tips from the above noted resources, i revised my plan to get more bang for my buck so to speak. with much thought (read: 6 hours of calculations) i decided to juggle my debts. at the end of it, i had two of five debts with the highest interest rates paid off using my line of credit. when all was said and done, i was able to save a few thousand dollars in interest and be out of debt 6 months sooner than originally planned. so the end of july became my new debt free date...just in time for my 35th birthday!
phase three: pay off debt diligently. with only three debts to worry about and a solid plan, i'm feeling like these 600 days will go by quickly. my plan is two-fold: firstly, on top of the monthly minimums, i plan on making a monthly payment of $1800.00 (minimum) on the debt with the highest interest. any additional funds at the end of the month will be added to this amount. secondly, i have budgeted an additional $100 on the debts that are not my primary focus so that i continue chipping away at the principal. And of course, any additional funds will be applied. 600 days and counting!
a chance to get a leg up...
i recently learned about a contest being run by givemebackmyfivebucks and life insurance finder, the life insurance experts. they're offering $500.00 towards a lucky winner's financial bucket list. those five bills would help me reach my 600 day goal that much sooner. check it out...i for one will be giving it a go!
Recap of my 600 day financial bucket list:
1. pay down my debt of $44,231.88 before my 35th birthday...600 days and counting!
2. Generate 50-60% of $100k+ target net income for 2012
3. Double my business income in 600 days
4. Establish contingency fund of $5000.00
5. Collect all monies loaned to friends and family - $4,670.22
6. Limit of 1 dinner out per month - $30.00 max
7. Follow a very strict budget
8. Blog at least once a week about my progress
9. Seek out any opportunities that will make this plan a success- for starters, the $500 financial bucket list contest is a great start...and at least it will get me blogging more for the sake of accountability!
bye for now!
the plan
here are my goals + what i plan to accomplish in the next 600 days...
- Be 100% debt free by the end of July 2013 ($44,231.88 CAD as of December 8, 2011)
- Generate 50-60% of $100k+ target net income for 2012
- Double business income
- Establish contingency fund of $5000.00
- Collect all monies loaned to friends and family - $4,670.22
- Limit of 1 dinner out per month - $30.00 max
- Follow a very strict budget
- Blog at least once a week about my progress
- Seek out any opportunities that will make this plan a success
the goal
i have a plan and i have 600 days to make it happen.
the plan is this - be debt free by the end of july 2013.
why july?
well it's my birth month and i'll be 35.
nice birthday present, don't you think?
stay tuned....
the plan is this - be debt free by the end of july 2013.
why july?
well it's my birth month and i'll be 35.
nice birthday present, don't you think?
stay tuned....
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