June 2011 Goals: Recap
Well by the time you read this, I’ll be out on a boat on a lake overseeing a video shoot near Sun Peaks Resort, about 5 hours east of Vancouver. :) Looking back, I can’t believe how fortunate I was to have gotten fired from my last job. I consider myself to be extremely fortunate to be working for such a great company. When I first started, I was amazed at the extremely low turn-over rate, positive and encouraging atmosphere, and sense of belonging. Which is why I can’t stop thinking about where I want to take the next 5 years of my career. So many things have been changing lately, making my simple life just a little more complex for the time being. Time needs to slow the eff down!
The only thing I am sure these days is my finances. That’s the one part of my life that I have complete control over, and I’m grateful for the stability. Even though June wasn’t that great of a month.
My “educated guess” on my utilities seem to be a little ridiculous. I only spent $29.55 for my first full month, and $12.50 of that was a set-up charge. I will monitor my usage closely over the next couple of months.
OVER BUDGET:
Cell Phone - I made a few long distance calls while in NYC, as well as some text messages.
Entertainment - I ended up buying 2 tickets ($106.50) to a Sam Roberts concert in October.
Miscellaneous – There was that tattoo ($144.40), and then there was a trip to MEC on Monday ($181.48).
NETWORTH CHANGE: - 6.73% ($4,280) … this is due to renovations ($3,780), and spending money while in NYC (which came from my Travel Fund).
June 2011 Goals (link):
- Make an additional $2,000 above and beyond my FT job. FAIL! Argh. I came so close, making $1,863. This makes me mad because I really wanted to prove to myself that I could destroy the month of June. That gives me more motivation to decimate July.
- Find a new Toastmasters club to join (the one I was going to is now too far away). FAIL! I didn’t even look into it. It’s hard to find the courage to do something you don’t want to do. Especially since I already went through the trouble to find and attend meetings with a different group. I need motivation!
- Sell at least 1 item online. FAIL! Not like I could have anyway, since Canada Post was on strike. I know, excuses, excuses. I could have used Craigslist.
- Buy at least 3 pieces of furniture. CHECK! I ended up buying a TV stand, coffee table, dining room set, and dresser. Still on the list is a bed, desk, chair, storage unit, and outdoor sitting furniture.
- Do research into figuring out how to rent out my extra parking stall. PASS. I did do some preliminary research, but in the end, decided that it’s not worth the money to rent out the space. All of the guests that I have over to my place use the space, and it’s so much more convenient than having them try to find street parking.
- Complete 10x runs around my new neighbourhood. CHECK! I only ran 13 times, but at least I hit my goal.
- Go on one day hike. FAIL! I did not have one weekend day free for the entire month.
Ongoing 2011 Annual Goals:
- No buying lunch, snacks or coffee during the work week. FAIL! I ended up buying lunch to celebrate a co-worker’s upcoming wedding. But, I’m back on track and moving forward.
- No buying clothing, shoes or accessories until December 31, 2011. CHECK! Haven’t made any purchases since coming back from NYC.
- Work out at least 3x/week. CHECK! I worked out a total of 16 times, or 4x/week.
16 Responses to “June 2011 Goals: Recap”
Author comments are in a darker gray color for you to easily identify the posts in the comments
Leave a Reply
As seen in…
Recent Comments
Categories
- annual goals (23)
- banking (26)
- blog (191)
- budget (96)
- car (41)
- contest (26)
- credit card (19)
- credit score (10)
- debt (27)
- design business (37)
- down payment (28)
- education (14)
- EI (16)
- emergency fund (18)
- entertainment (194)
- fitness (165)
- guest post (19)
- health care (56)
- housing (57)
- investing (43)
- job (298)
- making money (55)
- miscellaneous (306)
- monthly challenge (52)
- monthly goals (112)
- motivation (36)
- property (43)
- recipes and food (27)
- relationship (117)
- retirement (30)
- saving money (176)
- scooter (24)
- spending (447)
- sponsored post (8)
- tax refund (22)
- travel (302)
- vlog (2)
- weekly spending recap (80)
Sounds like you're doing pretty good. I'm absolutely amazed by the low cost of utilities that you reported. Wow! Enjoy the trip!
My recent post We'd Better Order Those Diapers Early
I agree. Your utilities are really low.
Don't get down on yourself. You are doing great.
Remember that utilities are 'seasonal'. In Ontario, I budget about $150/month, which is what it averages to over the season – winter is the heavy season for me since I don't have air conditioning.
I don't remember if you said how your home is heated, but if it's electric heating, then winter/summer could be a bit higher. Then again, you're in BC, so you shouldn't get as cold or hot, right?
I have electric heating but haven't turned it on yet, and no air conditioning (not needed in Vancouver). I also have a gas fireplace, and I believe that gas is covered under my monthly maintenance (strata) fees. I'll have to check into it. But my place is small enough that it can be entirely heated with just the fireplace.
What is your tattoo of? (forgive me if you've already written about it, couldn't find another reference to it)
No I haven't written about it before. :) I got my last name in Chinese on my rib cage.
$150 for internet/tv/phone, crazy! I pay $51 and that's for the tv (over internet and free with the air signals – digital and HD) and the phone (Skype is $2.95 per month) and my cellphone is only $100 for a full year (prepaid card… use for emergencies)
I can't believe $150 given to communications companies, each month!
Awesome month. I'm glad you are not letting "all or nothing" defeat you. You are picking yourself up, dusting off, and moving forward!
Just remember, if your $2,000 above Full time job income is from blogging, summer is a slow season! I had a slower than normal month as well.
My recent post An Experiment: Using Walmart’s New Price Match Policy
That's true! Summer is usually slower, but I was just so close I could taste it, lol. :)
I also went on an unexpected trip to MEC this month that put me over budget. Oops. You never know what you need until you're there, and suddenly a quick trip is long and expensive. I'm really glad I spent the money though – I've needed a new rain jacket for a long time.
Some people have different priorities. For example, there's no way I could have a prepaid cell phone because I'm rarely home. I use my phone often to talk to clients, monitor my e-mail, and stay in touch through social media. Without it, I would be a pretty unsuccessful freelancer.
MEC is dangerous! Stuff is rarely on sale too. What did you end up buying there? Stuff for camping?
My recent post youngandthrifty Book Review and Giveaway: Rich Dad’s Cash Flow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki
Yeah a bunch of stuff for backpacking: water bladder, water purification treatment, stove, fuel, pot, and a hiking book for the Lower Mainland. :)
Just a thought, but if you waited until you had Wi-Fi (or anywhere with a computer + internet) to make the calls from NYC, you could've used Google Voice to call any number in Canada/US for free. There should be lots of free wi-fi in NYC?
:)
Oh, good call on the Google Voice. There was surprisingly few free wi-fi hot spots in NYC, but it's something I should look into for my upcoming trips. Thanks!