July Savings Report

Savings this month just blew me away!

Acquiring a second job has totally made the difference in how much I was able to save. If you are on the fence about getting a second job, but are frustrated with your lack of progress towards your financial goals, just take the leap and apply.

Working two jobs can be temporary, however you will be able to make huge strides with your finances. I should have applied for a part-time job a long time ago!

My savings report for the month of July

Extra money this month

• Craigslist/Ebay/Amazon sales $15.93
• Money skimmed from regular budget items $34.82
• Trimmed expenses (i.e. internet/cellphone) $103.08
• Extra hustle $650.50
• Second job $1,176.37
• Cash back from bank $5.19
• Blog income $10.52
• Budget items saved for annual bills $537.34

Total saved: $2,533.75

Where is the money going?

• Emergency Fund $16.80
• School $1,335.79
• Car Repair/Replace $29.77
• Blog $10.52
• Annual bills $1,140.87

Running totals

• Emergency fund $1,205.01
• School $1,395.80
• Car Repair/Replace $357.77

Grand total of savings in 2015: $7,458.76

Reflections

$2,533.75???? I had to redo the numbers about 8 times, because they didn't seem right. At all! The total was pretty close every single time, so I will go with it.

Um...wow! For starters, this July was my busiest July on record and ended up being the busiest month all year to date for hours worked. Yes, I am tired and find it hard to get much of anything else done, but I am so thankful to have this opportunity to really ramp up the savings for the next tuition payment which is due in a couple of weeks.

The main reason I was able to work so many hours this month was because I officially started my second job, as a Video Relay Interpreter. There was a lot of training and there will be many new challenges which will force me to improve my interpreting skills. And fast.

My start date was early enough in the month to allow me to receive my first paycheck in July, which was a humungo blessing! Plus there are possibilities to earn a bonus and a differential paid for working on holidays.

The hubs has gotten on board with helping sell some things online and he already sold two items in July. I have quite a few items to list and then he will take over the selling process for me. I must take pictures tomorrow, so he can be busy selling things before the next semester starts up.

Recently, I have written a couple articles about making your financial goals visual and realized that I really need to make saving the (remaining) money for the rest of school visual. Hello! I need motivation too!

So I printed out a picture and we will start coloring it in based on how much we save for school. I'm super excited about having a visual aspect to this goal which has always seemed nebulous with nary a finish line in sight.

When you have cut all the expenses in your budget that you can, you need to look at ways to bring in more income. I am just a couple of weeks into my new job and already can see such a huge potential to really move the needle on savings, which has been stuck (or wobbling downward) for a good couple of years.

The opportunity of my job has been available for several years, but I had avoided it because of fear of the unknown and based on what some colleagues have said about the work. However, I am so thankful to see how God has provided through this opportunity and am thrilled to see how quickly I will be able to build up savings.

Do you have an opportunity to move the needle of your finances in front of you, but there is something holding you back?

Let your Why trample your fears.

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