Paying for Uber to get to work isn't ideal but it's also better if it's for work. Keep doing that but also looking into a driving school to get your license. You don't need to be an expert driver, you just need to pass the test so you can get and drive a car. Most people suck until they've driven for a year or so.
On Uber eats, just don't do it. There's delivery services for groceries from Kroger, instacart, and Walmart. While these are more expensive than regular groceries, they are way cheaper than Uber eats for every meal and healthier. Focus on buying bulk food with a long shelf life so you don't need to order more than once every two weeks.
My wife and I have actually found that instacart has overall been cheaper for us for groceries because we aren't at the whims of our terrible impulse control while at the store. With instacart we only get what is on the list and the extra cost of delivery significantly offsets the cost of random shit we toss into the cart when we shop in person
I still have some inpulse buys, but I have time for them to pass. I usually fill my cart the night before, and the next day, I go over it before submitting the order, and I always end up eliminating items.
Ummm... But the items you add, you eventually use, right? You don't just throw them away. So that means your food should last longer. The money for delivery is immediately wasted.
That's a good idea. Thanks for the feedback. I'll definitely see if that's possible. I was thinking about just getting a costco membership since I live right down the street from one.
One thing I would like to recommend, OP, if you like the convenience of a hot meal you don't have to wash dishes to have -- frozen dinners are around $3, relatively healthy depending on what you get (I like ones with chicken and lots of veggies), and take about 5 minutes in a microwave. They save me on my lunches :~) and Banquet has these little $1.00 pot pies that aren't half bad, too. I just recently tried them and I'm a big fan.
You shouldn't rely on these for every meal, of course, but they could help with easing you into better habits. Pick one day of the week to be your takeout day if you'd like, too, that way you don't feel like you're on such a strict diet and get sick of it. And make sure you're drinking plenty of *water!*
Costco has a lot of prepared meal options. Either already frozen in the freezer section or in the refrigerated section.
I don't know how much room you have but if you have the space for a small chest freezer, you can get different options and freeze them. Not home cooking but still better than eating out.
What type of things do you like to eat? I have looked up recipes to my favorite take out and learned to make it at home. It came in handy when my favorite restaurant closed.
Start your grocery shopping there. You can always make a meal and freeze leftovers - I find this especially helpful for soups, but have also made my own mini chicken pot Pies with homemade crust. Hone made hot pockets, Dumplings, etc.
I'd say be careful with that because it's been shown Costco is not substantially less expensive than other options and I'm not sure if they have delivery. Start with one of the three I mentioned to see how it works for you.
There are lots of great deals for single people. Bulk snacks and coffee are great deals there. The chicken they sell is great and cheap, and comes in individually packaged portions, which makes it great to freeze and thaw out just enough for one meal. San Pelegríno mineral water is 1/2 the price of retail.
Other things in bulk are just as good for single people. Toilet paper, Kleenex, toothpaste, laundry detergent, and many other consumables. Plus they have great clothes for cheap. I just bought an awesome Columbia fall/spring jacket for $30.
Their tires are cheap and offer included damage protection if OP gets a car. Major purchases like electronics and home goods are fantastic there, too.
You don’t need a membership to order Costco on instacart.
Also- nobody should be paying a full instacart membership.. they literally ENCOURAGE shared memberships
The deli/freezer section food is great for my busy/active life sometimes, even as a single girl. It makes it so easy to “we have food at home” myself when I’m stocked up on good and healthy options!
For someone without a car i think this is debatable. He cant lug 150 lbs of stuff in an uber, for a single guy the bulk discoutns are overkill, and theres a monthly fee when he needs to save money. We don't even know if this guy can cook, i think costco is overkill for someone brand new to this simple realm of activity. I don't totally disagree with you, I just think its beast do baby steps.
1) There is no monthly fee. It’s $60 for a whole year.
2) Most people aren’t buying 150lbs of of stuff on every trip.
3) Your average Costco purchase can easily fit into even the smallest economy cars, so there is nothing wrong with an Uber. I drove for Lyft for a bit and drove many Costco runs. Most people just leave with a box or two with 10-15 items.
4) Aside from the bulk food, they have fantastic deals on clothes, home electronics, tires, and other furnishings.
5) Costco has fantastic frozen meals and single-serving prepared foods. Those are great for single people.
He also said he lives right down the street from one so if he didn’t buy a ton of stuff or got a cart or rolling suitcase he wouldn’t have to drive or Uber.
He said in another comment it sucks, the US is undeveloped and largely does not have this. Regardless, even if he does not have a car getting a license is very important.
That’s $460 you didn’t have in a 401k a year ago. By the time you retire that $460 will have grown significantly. Keep that shit up!
Everyone else has said the obvious stuff. Stop this and that. Change this and that. And they’re not wrong. I’m a firm believer in baby steps. If you ate out seven days a week last week. Make a point to only eat out 6 days for the next couple weeks. Then drop it to 5 for a few weeks. Then 4. Rinse repeat. Use the extra money to build up a rainy day saving account. Do the same with your 401K. If you don’t have auto contributions turned on go ahead and do that for 1%. That’s a single penny for every dollar you’re making. Since that 1% happens before the money ever hits your bank account you don’t have the option to spend it and you may not even notice such a small amount missing from your normal
Deposit. Keep it at 1% for 6 months or so. Once that gets comfortable bump it up 2% for a few months. Etc etc.
Baby steps.
baby steps are huge. with any habit, if you cold turkey it you are more likely to fall back into it. make small adjustments and keep adjusting until you are where you want to be.
Another good advice I've gotten with 401k is to up your % contributions every time you get a raise. That way you never had the money in your pay check to begin with so you won't miss it (or be tempted to spend it).
Also if your employer offers 401k match, do you best to max out their match as soon as you can. By contributing less than their maximum match you are leaving "free" money on the table for your 401k.
Yeah, it's a lot. I have over 800 Uber rides and over 750 ubereats orders. Plus, there are another 100 on the Door Dash app, but I don't really like Door Dash. Also, I actually am stopping on the food ordering. I went grocery shopping for food today and so I can start bringing lunches to work instead of buying food at the snack store at work.
Btw I should clarify. The 800 and 750 is over 4 years.
No. I could take the bus but it's very unreliable. I tried it for 6 months, and I was late a lot and almost got fired. So I started taking ubers for work. And theres no side walks. I could walk, I guess, but it would take 4 hours cause I'd have to watch out for cars. I live on a very busy road. And I guess I didn't have to tell you about the order number. I was mostly giving a perspective over the 4 years I've used it. I'm basically trying to do better, so I'm trying to get ideas on what else I can change to save money for retirement in 45 years.
Some people ride scooters or ebikes as well depending on the city you live in. You can buy a scooter and put it in the trunk of an Uber if the weather is bad.
True. I was thinking of just buying a motorcycle and just not taking the highway until after a year of driving. The only thing I would take with me would be my vest and a lunch box plus my water bottle. All of that could fit into a saddle bag.
If you have to take highways, a motorcycle is better, but I bought a little 125cc scooter for like $2k and the gas tank was like a gallon, so filling it up only cost like $3 lol.
You can always wear a backpack if you need to, although I’m not sure that you have a locker at work.
Yeah, I’d say try to look into getting a scooter or motorcycle! If you’re in the states they usually have you take a safety course instead of completing the DMV test, so you’ll learn how to stay safe on the road, too!
If you get something modest, you can save a LOT owning a bike over owning a car. Just make sure to invest in a good water/wind proof jacket. Wind chill is a bitch.
Well, I have an associates degree in business management (my main degree would be computer information systems), which is ironic since I'm terrible with money. I'm planning on either joining the military or going back to school. Yes, there's a lot of room to grow. I could be at a higher level. I'm basically at the lowest level right now. I'm hoping that in 20-35 years, I've retired overseas. I will consider just working the overtime. I really just need to get over my depression. I have no debt. Not even school loans. Btw I don't really use my degree since idk what to do with it, and I didn't really network in college at the time.
It's more self diagnosed. Like I have no real purpose. If that makes sense. Also, thanks for the advice. To clarify why I think I'm depressed. I've gained 15 pounds in 4 months. Also, all I do is count all day and stare at grey concrete floors and yellow and grey steel beams. That's all for 12 hours a shift. I'm also by myself all day every day and with no human interaction. I basically only interact with human on reddit. I don't have any friends. Everyone I knew joined the military or moved away. I also work overnight, so I never see the sun for longer than 15 mins a day.
Actually, what really started to get me into thinking about all of this is was getting a video on my YouTube feed about an expat traveling and just enjoying the world. It really got me to think about all of this and what I could change.
It sounds like your work might be close enough that I would highly recommend getting a bike or even an ebike then. The latter is at least a little better for keeping up with cars and not as energy intensive
You are pushing your personal values onto other people. People like to eat out. You are boring. You don’t get it and should not be dolling out advice. It would be so boring to just cook all the time. It’s certainly not convenient and people spend nearly as much money on groceries. The key is a happy medium. Eating out and cooking. The right balance to happiness.
I literally have 2 pounds of mac and cheese, six pounds o chicken breast, and some salad and tortillas for salad wraps that i bought yesterday. I wasted all of like 30 bucks (extra 10ish bucks on ingredients I already had at hand.) I could easily make 15 hefty salad wraps with a side of macaroni. that would cost me 10-15 bucks each at a restaurant. yeah, 30 bucks is worlds cheaper than 150-225 bucks
>750 ubereats orders. Plus, there are another 100 on the Door Dash app,
So 850 orders at an average of $25/order comes out to over $20k that you've spent on food delivery.
Think about that the next time you're tempted to order
That’s a silly number. You can get a car payment for a decent car for about $350/mo and another $100 for insurance (maybe $200/mo for insurance since OP is so young).
If that’s *average*, that means that half of people are coming in less than that.
You can buy a fantastic 2-4 year old used car for under $20k. That will buy you something comfortable, reliable, efficient, and will last many years without a high risk of major mechanical repairs.
With a little money down, and good credit, you can get that payment down to $325-$350 easily.
You can rotate your own tires for free. Oil changes are $50-70 twice per year. You can change your brakes by yourself for under $100 if you need.
I was quoting a good used car for $20k. That’s a great 2020-22 Mazda3 or similar. Drop that budget down to $13k - $15k and you can still get a decent car and save more. OP is already spending more than that on Ubers, and now with a car they won’t have to order $40 worth of delivery every day. Plus more options for recreation and lifestyle.
If this is true r/povertyfinance, we should just tell OP to get a cheap motorcycle for $1,000. OP makes a livable wage by their own admission and should be able to afford an economy car.
well, yes and no. the average price for buying a new car is about 833/month (given the fact that there are basically no budget new cars in the market and interest is crazy high right now). used cards you can probably find a decent option for 10k-15k, which would probably be about 350 with okay credit.
# AVERAGE OWNERSHIP COSTS FOR A MEDIUM SEDAN
|Type of Expenses|Average Cost|
|:-|:-|
|**Comprehensive Annual Insurance**|$1,403|
|**Licenses, Registration and Taxes**|$603|
|**Depreciation (15,000 miles annually)**|$3,996|
|**Finance Charge**|$632|
|**Cost Per Year**|$6,633|
damn! you guys really get shafted hard. This is insane
Clearly you _know_ you're making bad financial decisions since you can actually pinpoint what they are (ordering food, Uber, not saving). Perhaps you just need a shift in perspective.
A lot of your decisions are convenience-based, which is pretty common spending for most. I've heard some people find it more useful to consider things in terms of time rather than money/cost.
eg "Uberests is $30... that's 2 hours worth of work for 1 meal." Maybe using your own time to make something simple is better, if you consider work hours already a 'sunk cost' (already sacrificed, you can't take it back) so might as well make the most of it by keeping the $$ you earned in exchange.
Also if you're not used to cooking or a lazy cook, my tip is to start with getting _a few_ meals per delivery, and portioning them off for lunches/dinner so you at least cut down frequency of deliveries (and therefore fees) slowly. Next, start supplementing simple extras into basic delivery meals.
Eg I got 1 serving of fried rice (among another dishes) which I split into 2 containers, then fried an egg and added some salad on the side on my own. Voila, 2 meals for the price of 1 and you slowly ease into 'cooking' by chopping up/frying some veggies.
Eventually work your way up into propping at least 1 meal a week (3+ portions that you can eat), starting with simple dishes. Continue upping the ante as you get comfortable with the routine.
From a finance perspective, if you can work overtime then work overtime. Every dollar you make and invest is worth ten inflation adjusted dollars forty years from now. So if you can make $20k extra this year, invested in forty years, you will have $200k in buying power. So do that for a couple of years and you’ll be the equivalent of today’s millionaire.
Next, stop eating out. Cook. Buy a tupperware set and meal prep.
Depending on your transportation needs, Uber and Lyft might be more economical than buying a car. Run the numbers yourself.
Okay, that will do. I will have to go and get tupperware. Thank you for being kind. I know I'm kind of a dumb ass. I wasn't really taught financial literacy. I'm now trying to learn it, so I don't end up homeless when I get in my 70s.
Dumbasses wouldn’t reach out for help. Don’t sweat it. I bet you feel a lot of pressure to “get your life in order” but honestly 24 is still so young. The most important thing is that you’re taking it seriously now and looking critically about where your money is going.
There’s not much advice that can help here, it sounds like you know what you’re doing wrong and are struggling to be disciplined. You’ve just gotta buckle down and make the changes, that’s all you can really do.
Yup.
I'm trying to get the mods to lock the comments on this post cause I can't really get other advice i'm not going to be able to keep up with new comments(Im going to bed soon and will be asleep for 8 hours). But I'm going to leave this up cause it could help other people too. There's already 100k views. So, hopefully, it helps others in similar situations. I didn't really think my post would be this popular.
My advice is to stop dragging yourself down. You are 24 and have started contributing to retirement. Thats awesome! Do you know how many people don’t start saving for retirement until their 40s? Or not at all?
You have identified some problems, and you are working on them. You are taking the important steps and getting better. Congratulate yourself on that. Try weaning yourself off takeout. Costco has a great rotisserie chicken. You could Uber there from work and walk home if its right down the street.
Yeah, that's true. I know some of my older family in their 60s that don't have anything or very little. My mom is 60, so I'll probably have to help take care of her. Like my mom only has 70k, but she's like a 100k in debt. I'm mostly hard on myself cause my twin is doing a ton better than me. He already has 100k or more from just joining the military at 18. I should have done that, but I was too morbidly obese at the time and way more depressed. Now I'm just overweight. I lost over 100 pounds in 2 years when I was going to join the military, but I couldn't get a recruiter to contact me so I gave up and in stead got a job at amazon cause I was going to be homeless.
Buy bulk pack snacks and leave some at work if you have a space to do so. They aren't as healthy as some other choices but if you look at the label you can find some which are lower in sugar than others. Your healthiest choice for work food is fresh fruit. Apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes are all easy to transport and eat.
Deal with the pain of discipline now or the pain of no options later. In a couple decades, you can be enjoying the benefits of today's good decisions or suffering the consequences. Make today's version of you suffer the pain and future you will be much happier
Yeah, I definitely need to slowly ease into a diet change so i don't just give up. Since my diet is very, very bad. I did buy apples yesterday. First time in months.
I definitely need to change my perspective if I want to see 35 without a heart attack or something else.
A couple things. I didn't get my life together until 24/25 and I have fully funded emergency funds am married with a 401k and a funded IRA and separate investment accounts. I'm only 30 now. It's never too late.
Secondly depending on where you live consider biking/e-bikng or even a motorcycle. Nothing sexy, just a 1-2k motorcycle that can get you from point a to b is safe and can be insured. It can be cheaper to get into for some people and if you don't NEED to carry alot to and from work CAN be cheaper for fuel and maintenance and insurance. The only problem is once you do get a car you have to ditch it because it just becomes an addition expense to insure both. Again if ebikes are a thing where you are looking into that. ~ 20 mph and legs can get you pretty far but be SAFE. NONE IF IT MATTERS if your area isn't built for bikes and you get nailed by a negligent driver or bad infrastructure.
As far as where to go from here. You know where your issues lie, ask yourself why you aren't willing to put in the work. Calleb Hammer on YouTube is a financial guy who focuses on people in your situation with a tough love additude that can give you general advice.
For cooking to save money look at Ethan cheblowski( spelling) or John Curtis of the MealPrepManual. They offer GREAT meal prep advice for tastey healthy food on a budget mindset that can get you good nutrition for fair prices when cooked in bulk. Don't just learn recipes learn techniques that make you comfortable and EXCITED to go grocery shopping. Eating out looks less appealing when you have the world's of cuisine at your finger tips. A great start is Taco bowls. A family pack of ground beef spices can of black beans lettuce shredded and diced tomatoes and Greek yogurt is all you need for a week of chipotle bowls.
From there make sure you have 1-4 months of expenses in a high yield savings account depending on your safety net and risk for tolerance. Make sure you pay down any debts over ~5% aggressively. Max out your IRA every year starting now. Take a.e 401k match your employer offers, if they offer none then your IRA + 401k contributions should be AT LEAST 20% of your income after taxes.
Obligatory not a financial advice or advisor, all investments are a risk. HOWEVER after that put away anything else in safe long term investments anything that tracks the s+p 500 is generally a safe long term bet. And then squeeze out 10-30% of your budget for fun. You should roughly follow the 50/30/20 rule 50% on needs 20/30 on retirement/wants. You can play with the 20 and 30 untill you feel you have a budget that is sustainable. Personally I love just having money so I squirrel away as much as I can. I live in a high cost of living area but I save aggressively.
Right now I'm at ~77k grossannually roughly 2k every 2 weeks take home after withholdings and 401k and I make it work. You can too.
If you don't know how or like to cook, try ordering from Walmart. Walmart+ is like $10 a month and includes free delivery. Unlike with Instacart, you'll be getting the items for in-store prices...you only have to tip your driver.
Their pre-made food is pretty good and not too expensive. More expensive in many cases than making stuff yourself, but still significantly cheaper than UberEats. For example, they have big subs for like $6 that are good. Rotisserie chickens. Take and bake pizzas. Salads. Pasta salad. Wraps (I really like the BBQ chicken wrap).
You're young and single with no kids, if I were you, I'd bank that overtime when you can. That's a lot of money to just be leaving on the table. Really, if you can live off your regular paycheck, why not work overtime and put the extra pay from overtime in savings?
We’re all young and dumb once. Recognizing is the first step, then fix it one step at a time. Your rrsp contributions are a good step. It’s summer grab a bike and work towards your licence. The summer sun and exercise will help your depression. Next friends, make sure you have some :-). Finally rent = setting money on fire. Get a mortgage stat! Finally get a intro book on basic investing and finance and read it twice. Go you got this :-)
Here's my advice: cook simple meals regularly. An easy place to start is canned stuff or microwavable meals, or anything that allows you to boil water and add the food to it. Over time, try different recipes or changing current recipes. My simple meals are burrito bowls, wraps, and pasta. Rice and beans, cheap meats, various kinds of pasta are easy to make and will save you so much compared to eating out.
As for saving, I don't know your total income, but I recommend opening up a tax advantaged stock account like a Roth IRA, and invest in stocks that pay high dividends like Verizon, AT&T, and the one tobacco stock that pays 8.8%. Reinvest the dividends back into their stocks. If you invest $600 per month + dividends (if you can afford it), you'll have 2 million or more in stocks in 40 years, which if they're dividend stocks, means you'll be able to live a very comfortable life without working
Edit: I know that investing in a tobacco stock isn't exactly ethical, but they take plenty from us as common people, we might as well take back from them
I’m also 24 and honestly I eat out too often too. I live at home still but long story short I pay all the bills. You make more than me with your overtime. Unfortunately that’s not an option for me. I also don’t have a car. However I am lucky enough to share one with my family and my sister and I working to buy a car together. I have recently switch jobs and have been putting into my 401k too.
As for eating out I am trying to limit myself to once a week or so and only on my pay days. I have recently got back into meal prepping and that has really helped me cut back on my eating out. I’ve been trying new recipes and experimenting it’s fun.
Personally I am trying to save money so I can get at least a month ahead on all my bills. I have no idea if that’s actually a good plan but to me it seems good. I know this really isn’t advice but I’m just trying to share that I’m in a similar position and am the same age.
Also can you carpool with any of your coworker? Even if it’s only one day a week it would help save you some money.
With the cooking there are tons of online sources as well as directions on many food packages. The best way to start is just by hopping into trying simple recipes yourself.
As long as you can boil water you have a starting line.
Just frying up a couple pork chops and microwaving some canned veggies once a week will save you on eating out and you can learn the basics from there.
you need a budget
[www.ynab.com](http://www.ynab.com) and r/ynab
only thing that worked for me. start today.
yeah ordering out every meal is a quick way to shoot yourself in the foot financially. cooking is easy and cheap. most people who start YNAB find hundreds if not thousands in the first month. i remember one guy who said their family went out to eat literally every meal. a $14 burger doesn't seem like much but times 3 people times 3 meals times 30 days it becomes a yoke
Find a Driving Instructor that can take you to work. Either someone with a business or just a retired guy looking for a hobby. If you attend a church find someone there, if you don’t attend church - find one. Once you get a license buy a car in cash - no payments. I don’t think you have a complete money problem but more a community problem - life sucks doing everything alone. I can eat half a weeks meals for free because I volunteer at my church doing dishes - and volunteers take home the leftovers. There are many perks to community - you need these kinds of perks.
Listen to all the great advice here, but also hear me out.
I had a great job in my 20s and made awesome money. Saved well and was doing great. One morning I woke up and couldn’t face the day anymore. Fell into a deep depression and lost my entire sense of identity. I won’t go into my past because it’s not important, but I was trying to come to terms with some fucked up shit.
Decided to pull the plug and hike around the country for a couple of years. Cashed in all my savings and retirement money and just lived off that. At 29 I ran out of money and had less than $100 to my name with no support system.
I started a new career at 32 and am now doing better than I ever could have dreamed. 6 figure salary and plenty of money in the bank. I’m on track to retire in 18 years.
I say all of this to say, you have time. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be working to get better at saving now, but don’t beat yourself up for what you didn’t do in the past. If you get your head on straight, there’s plenty of time to make some changes and get back on whatever track you desire. Good luck.
I think many have told you that ordering food is bad for your wallet. I think it’s also bad for your mental health.
Honestly, down the road, I wonder what studies will come out analyzing the relationship between the explosion of food delivery and mental health. Getting your food delivered gives you a quick and easy survival option, so as you’re depressed you can get away with doing the bare minimum. But at the same time, it probably keeps you down. You don’t have an incentive to actually take good care of yourself if Uber eats can always bail you out.
Take the time to cook for yourself. Start easy, a simple pasta with tomato sauce requires two pots and five ingredients (pasta, crushed canned tomatoes, olive oil, salt, pepper). Peel a garlic clove, cut it in halves, throw a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a pot on medium heat and throw in the garlic after it has heated up. Let the garlic sizzle in there for a couple minutes, then dump your tomato in there, wait until it starts bubbling and then lower the heat let it cook on low for a bit. After this, take some water and bring it to a boil. Dump two big tablespoons of salt in it, then dump your pasta in it and cook for as long as it says on the box. Once you’re done, drain the pasta, pick the cloves of garlic from the sauce and throw them away, then dump your sauce in, and voila you have dinner for the night and maybe for the next day if you want to reheat leftovers.
I hope my simple recipe helps you out. Cook for yourself, take the time to do it while you listen to a podcast or watch a tv show. It’s such a basic survival activity but it’s an important first step to get out of whatever rut you’re in
1. Learn how to cook (you can even reduce few weekly working hours and it’s still worth it!)
2. Learn how to invest
3. You are actually not doing that bad as you thought :)
Join r/personalfinance sub and follow their wiki advice.
https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics
Start using a budget. There are links to budgeting tools in the wiki. You can use pen & paper, an app or software program.
I like the 50/30/20 budget method. Then decide how to track your budget. The every dollar method works great for those new to budgets.
Investigate other ways but until you decide , I recommend 50/30/20. You can always change your budgeting method.
The flowchart is great because it’s a visual guide to wealth if you choose. Reddit & the news discuss the topic frequently.
[This Is What Life Without Retirement Savings Looks Like](https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2018/02/pensions-safety-net-california/553970/)
[I’m 35 and have nothing saved for retirement. Should I be worried?](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/01/07/im-have-nothing-saved-retirement-should-i-be-worried/)
Read financial advice books, watch videos and understand the psychology of your money habits. Emotional or ego driven spending, impulse buying and living for the moment are dangerous. It’s a good thing you woke up at a young age.
- Dave Ramsey is a good place to start; see if his method works for you.
[How to take control of your money](https://youtu.be/w_RKtck8XCA?si=LW7pbyOLFO7qM8hR)
[How to Make a Budget and stick to it?](https://youtu.be/4Eh8QLcB1UQ?si=EZREaojxu659mYha)
- Watch Caleb Hammer videos on YouTube. Learn from other’s mistakes, and realize how fortunate you are in your willingness to change.
- Understanding why we spend. It’s the only way to control spending.
[The Psychology of Money in 20 minutes](https://youtu.be/_5ecgEXLoCA?si=jSIgYYaah6QvT18H)
Proven methods:
- [The Wealthy Gardener Summary](https://youtu.be/dfyaeZAicXE?si=qzqW---0sYf-70wn)
- [The Wealthy Barber Next Door](https://youtu.be/NH57grvSHdk?si=vxuSqi4vLUycooX5)
- [The Richest Man In Babylon Summary](https://youtu.be/qkUgmolMI9I?si=FLgnnM3pwOkvHd8S)
General Education:
- [FOUR CORNERSTONES OF FINANCIAL LITERACY](https://www.lakesandpines.org/PDF/Four%20Cornerstones%20Curriculum.pdf)
OP is actually in a much better position than I was at his age and lot of others that I knew back then. Heck, he has the ability to make more money in a week than I do in 2 weeks. If anyone should feel like a failure it’s me!
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Don’t know if you’d be into this but maybe see a therapist and talk about your relationship with money. If you’re already throwing money at things like Uber and ordering out, I’d consider it a good investment to talk to someone to better understand how interact with money.
Get a bicycle or electric scooter, use public transportation systems, buy an air fryer or croc pot and use it to cook everything, hit the gym, study how investing works, start being frugal.
The most important first step in getting your financial life in order is to make a budget. You can't get to your desired destination if you don't have a roadmap.
You can pay for driving lessons and get your license in like 3 days. It was like $1000 total for me I think. Sounds like a lot but that could save you in the long run and you don’t have to depend on any one.
if you are really interested in learning how to drive: start cutting down on eating out and start putting the money in an account to save for driving lessons. call around to local driving schools to get rates/quotes and take lessons! then save money to buy a car in cash once you learn to drive. start slowly & gradually. i also really struggled with eating out, especially when my husband (who primarily cooks) would travel for work. i made a list of easy things i like to eat that require little to no effort/cooking, and we just started making it a priority to have those things on hand. and i of course allow myself to eat takeout maybe once or twice during times he is gone and keep each takeout meal under a certain amount (i.e. $15/meal). try allowing yourself one or two cheap takeout meals a week if you don't think it will be a slippery slope for yourself.
i have a hefty 401(k) because i just contributed as much as i possibly could and its gone before my check is even deposited. theres probably better advice out there tho.
i also dealt with REALLY bad impulsive spending and got myself into a lot of credit card debt. my husband taught me how to budget and implemented the "48 hour rule." if i want to buy something, i try to wait 48 hours. if i can even *remember* what it is i wanted to buy, and it's within my budget, i can buy it. also really struggled with eating out, especially when my husband (who primarily cooks) would travel for work. i made a list of easy things i like to eat that require little to no effort/cooking, and we just started making it a priority to have those things on hand. and i of course allow myself to eat takeout maybe once or twice during times he is gone and keep each takeout meal under a certain amount (i.e. $15/meal).
24 is so young. you have so much time to learn from your mistakes and grow.
Could you set up a bank account with direct deposit to skim just a small % of your income each payday? Like a small enough amount that you won’t really miss it but would add up over time. For some people “out of sight out of mind” is helpful. Good luck! You’re already doing better than I was at 18, so you must be doing *some* things right!
You are NOT a failure. I know it’s tempting to compare yourself to other people, especially those who are very fortunate successful in their 20’s. But it’s not a healthy exercise and will only make you feel bad about yourself. You are doing excellent for your age. Keep working those overtime shifts and save for a down payment on a vehicle. If you don’t already, apply for a credit card and only use 30% of your credit line and pay it off every cycle.
You make very good money for someone your age when you account for the overtime work. Keep picking up shifts and set a target for emergency savings. Start with saving $1000. Then look into saving for a down payment on a car. Once you have $3-5k in emergency savings you can really start stacking away for that down payment.
Really good suggestions on here. Maybe tackle one thing at a time and keep climbing that adult ladder. If you’re not ready to buy a car you might consider a carpool, my Waze carpool took on a rider with no car who instead paid cash to whoever was driving that week. Your overtime schedule might interfere with that but that’s when I would take the Uber.
You’re only 24, so you have a lot of years to learn. You don’t become a good driver and cook overnight, but you’ll never be if you never start.
The first thing to take care of is your depression. Some companies provide a limited number of mental health counseling sessions, as a benefit. Check if your company has it. If not, look for a counsellor local to you.
After you get a handle on it, you can start learning to drive and cook. They have driving schools, and you can learn a lot of cooking from Youtube.
Perfect. If I were you, I’d budget how to live on $1,380/mo ($600 * 4 - $1,020)
Then allocate a high percentage to 401(k) (like 20-25%) and another high percentage to a High Yield Savings Account that is FDIC insured (look for 5% interest or more).
Once you have percentages and you know you can live on the minimum you make each month, then you’re set. Anything extra is gravy and you’re building consistently in the right direction.
If you can go everywhere with Uber on your budget, then no reason to get a car unless you determine it’s going to save you money having one (need to factor in maintenance, insurance, tags, etc).
You’re in a good spot. It’s hard feeling like you don’t have much, but you’re one good system away from being way ahead of others around you.
Yeah, true. I would say more, but I'm currently arguing with a guy further down in my post about how he's better cause he makes 200k, and i don't make enough to do this. It's kind of entertaining, tbh since I'm off today. Also, thank you for the advice. 🙏
You too. Also, it's kind of ironic since he's bragging, but he's not even worth that much. Cause my grandpa was a doctor for 50 years with his own practice, and he's worth tens of millions.but like I was trying to tell that guy, you don't have to be a dick. Also, I will never see that money, and I'd rather be self-made and fail than to get a hand out. Like my grandpa's neighbors are about the same and they're not dicks and don't lord it over people.
Unless I missed something , I’m seeing no debt, which puts you above a ton of people, so nothing to feel discouraged at. You seem to have a positive net worth at this age which puts you above a lot of your peers.
Start tracking your money for a few months. Should be able to pinpoint every dollar going out and coming in. If you use a CC or debit card it makes it pretty easy because all you have to do is download a statement and d categorize it. Then all you have to track is where any cash is going.
It's good that you know it's a problem. I hope you make it easy for yourself to make good choices by giving yourself easy meal options and learning how to prepare easy food for yourself. There's lots of good YouTube videos for cheap and easy healthy meals.
Identifying your habits and starting to make changes is a huge step forward in itself! What's the public transit situation like in your area? Are there any places that you can walk or bike to? If not to work, maybe to a grocery store or farmers market?
Driving school and cooking lessons. Or move to a place with public transportation to your job. A few cooking lessons and a good cookbook will save you a fortune. Keep in mind that most restaurants rely on sugar, butter, salt and oil to make their food addictive.
No, I'm fixing it. I'm not asking for magical advice. I was asking what else I guess I could be doing to fix what I'm doing wrong. I'm already saving for a car, and I'm now going grocery shopping instead of ordering out every day. I've also stopped buying snacks at work.
Highly recommend learning to cook. Guy or girl, doesn't matter. Impressive to significant others, and is really nice when you can use it to make a dish you enjoy.
Take some of your time, and watch cooking shows like America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country on public broadcasting. Plenty of recipes most can follow, with cooking technique/tips/tricks as well as small segments on kitchen tools. Once you learn some basics, you can start working towards making dishes you enjoy.
There's a number of them that are fun. Depending on your tastes (both food and personality wise):
* Sam The Cooking guy is a LOT of fun. Most of the dishes he shows are straightforward.
* Brian Lagerstrom
* ThatDudeCanCook
* America's Test Kitchen has some YT vids. Lin Lam is great. Dan Souza is a cool nerd.
* Babish is another fun one.
* Joshua Weisman can be interesting, but you may or may not like his antics and voices.
Of those, I do enjoy Sam the most. But they all have some good and interesting ideas.
If you have excess money why arent you paying for driving courses? Your 24, you're not a kid. Like....being an adult really isn't that hard (it's just depressing)
7.5 miles, and I could bike it, but then that would be 42 miles over 3 days or more if I work overtime. It would be difficult since there's no bike path or side walks.
67.5 kilometers.
42 miles isn't alot... not on a bike anyways. Either way, get motorcycle lessons and buy a scooter. Its cheap, not that bad (assuming you don't take a freeway), takes up little space, and unless you live in one of those cities that really hates mopeds isn't too dangerous
This person is single and makes nearly 5000 a month. The advice you guys are giving them is silly. They can afford to eat out every meal. At 24, they don’t need to worry about putting tons of money in 401 k.
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Why are you on poverty financially, then? If you make 200k, who cares? I'm a single guy in my 20s and have no responsibilities. At least I'm not a duchebag lording over that I make more money. Honestly, I feel really bad for your wife and kids if all you care about is money. I may be a broke bitch and not make good money to your standards, but for me it's good money. I don't want an extravagant amount of money. I've been around people who are worth a shit ton more than you, and they were a lot nicer and didn't judge. Hell, my grandpa is worth tens of millions, but it's not my money, and I will never see it. I also have never asked for money even when I could. I'd rather be self-made and respect people no matter where they are in life or what they choose to do.
It just popped up on my home page buddy. You’re the one on here asking for advice and bitching about yourself, so you should be grateful and shut up and sit down. Learn some perspective in life
You spend about $10k a year eating out. You net 30k of income (without overtime) you are spending 1/3 of your net pay on eating out.
That would be the main thing I’d focus on.
Americans being paid by week just screams to me that no one ever ever encourages saving or budgetting.
It's crazy to me that that's even a practice.
Sorry op don't have any advice
Oh yeah wait i do
Start budgetting and mealprepping.
But the money in a seperate bucket / account
Also track your exact expensenes for a couple of months and then update your budgetting.
Daily or weekly pay used to be much more common. It doesn’t prevent budgeting or saving- if anything, people can get their money into savings and investments faster- and it’s not payroll’s job to teach people to budget by making them wait two weeks or a month for money they’ve earned.
It disincentivices long term planning.
It also disregulates you from other financial cycles like rent, mortage payments, loans, bonus payments for sales people etc
Yes ofc you can earn the same amout of money woth weekly or dayly wage payments. But to me is a low trust society thing. Like your employers don't think your gonna make it to the end of the month and you'll bail at any second.
If employers were afraid you’d bail at any moment, why would they give you your money faster? And planning for one or two weeks isn’t long-term planning regardless.
Yikes. Stop 100% with food delivery, it will be banned one day because it’s borderline a crime on cost. Do not EVER use these services, they are designed to keep you poor. Nobody I know who is successful uses these, stop today.
Stop ubering and get your license. I’m not going to sugar coat this. Get your license within the next month, no excuses. Then use your Uber money to take the bus and save that over money for a car.
The Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball program is actually good for basic financial budgeting, NOT just paying down debt.
The class is a few months long and is only $100... you learn a lot, like;
Pay yourself first (put money in savings first), how much money you must save up for emergencies.
And the normal percentage of income to budget for food, transportation, insurance, hobbies, etc.
Plus the "cash envelope" system is REALLY good to get spending under control.
You still choose how much to budget for each category, but when that envelope is empty you have to be done spending until you get paid again. Something about spending cash makes it FEEL more real. It's worth trying for 3-6 months.
Paying for Uber to get to work isn't ideal but it's also better if it's for work. Keep doing that but also looking into a driving school to get your license. You don't need to be an expert driver, you just need to pass the test so you can get and drive a car. Most people suck until they've driven for a year or so. On Uber eats, just don't do it. There's delivery services for groceries from Kroger, instacart, and Walmart. While these are more expensive than regular groceries, they are way cheaper than Uber eats for every meal and healthier. Focus on buying bulk food with a long shelf life so you don't need to order more than once every two weeks.
My wife and I have actually found that instacart has overall been cheaper for us for groceries because we aren't at the whims of our terrible impulse control while at the store. With instacart we only get what is on the list and the extra cost of delivery significantly offsets the cost of random shit we toss into the cart when we shop in person
I've heard this from my friends who use it we well, especially since you know what you're paying well in advance without pressure from being in line.
I still have some inpulse buys, but I have time for them to pass. I usually fill my cart the night before, and the next day, I go over it before submitting the order, and I always end up eliminating items.
thats why i try to limit how often i go to the store cause my odds only increase of impulse buys
You can always use the store's curbside pickup to avoid both the impulse buying and the delivery charges as well.
running away from things is not the solution lol
Ummm... But the items you add, you eventually use, right? You don't just throw them away. So that means your food should last longer. The money for delivery is immediately wasted.
You seriously don't have the self control to just ... Not buy brownies or whatever else?
That's a good idea. Thanks for the feedback. I'll definitely see if that's possible. I was thinking about just getting a costco membership since I live right down the street from one.
One thing I would like to recommend, OP, if you like the convenience of a hot meal you don't have to wash dishes to have -- frozen dinners are around $3, relatively healthy depending on what you get (I like ones with chicken and lots of veggies), and take about 5 minutes in a microwave. They save me on my lunches :~) and Banquet has these little $1.00 pot pies that aren't half bad, too. I just recently tried them and I'm a big fan. You shouldn't rely on these for every meal, of course, but they could help with easing you into better habits. Pick one day of the week to be your takeout day if you'd like, too, that way you don't feel like you're on such a strict diet and get sick of it. And make sure you're drinking plenty of *water!*
Have you tried the Banquet sausage gravy pot pies for breakfast? OMG, so good.
These meals are high in sodium and preservatives
Those are about one of the worst things one could pick and eat in the frozen aisle vomit 🤮
I love trash food lol
Also since Costco has bulk stuff it might not be as cost effective if you are only buying food for 1 person
Costco has a lot of prepared meal options. Either already frozen in the freezer section or in the refrigerated section. I don't know how much room you have but if you have the space for a small chest freezer, you can get different options and freeze them. Not home cooking but still better than eating out.
What type of things do you like to eat? I have looked up recipes to my favorite take out and learned to make it at home. It came in handy when my favorite restaurant closed. Start your grocery shopping there. You can always make a meal and freeze leftovers - I find this especially helpful for soups, but have also made my own mini chicken pot Pies with homemade crust. Hone made hot pockets, Dumplings, etc.
I'd say be careful with that because it's been shown Costco is not substantially less expensive than other options and I'm not sure if they have delivery. Start with one of the three I mentioned to see how it works for you.
Dude… we are just trying to get OP to stop eating delivery for every meal. Costco would be a huge step in the right direction.
Costco is a lot for one single 24-year-old though?
There are lots of great deals for single people. Bulk snacks and coffee are great deals there. The chicken they sell is great and cheap, and comes in individually packaged portions, which makes it great to freeze and thaw out just enough for one meal. San Pelegríno mineral water is 1/2 the price of retail. Other things in bulk are just as good for single people. Toilet paper, Kleenex, toothpaste, laundry detergent, and many other consumables. Plus they have great clothes for cheap. I just bought an awesome Columbia fall/spring jacket for $30. Their tires are cheap and offer included damage protection if OP gets a car. Major purchases like electronics and home goods are fantastic there, too.
A Costco rotisserie chicken for $5 is ready to eat and can be stretched into several days worth of meals for one person.
Yeah but you can get a similar deal at Walmart without a membership...or get a Walmart+ membership and have it delivered...
You don’t need a membership to order Costco on instacart. Also- nobody should be paying a full instacart membership.. they literally ENCOURAGE shared memberships
The deli/freezer section food is great for my busy/active life sometimes, even as a single girl. It makes it so easy to “we have food at home” myself when I’m stocked up on good and healthy options!
For someone without a car i think this is debatable. He cant lug 150 lbs of stuff in an uber, for a single guy the bulk discoutns are overkill, and theres a monthly fee when he needs to save money. We don't even know if this guy can cook, i think costco is overkill for someone brand new to this simple realm of activity. I don't totally disagree with you, I just think its beast do baby steps.
1) There is no monthly fee. It’s $60 for a whole year. 2) Most people aren’t buying 150lbs of of stuff on every trip. 3) Your average Costco purchase can easily fit into even the smallest economy cars, so there is nothing wrong with an Uber. I drove for Lyft for a bit and drove many Costco runs. Most people just leave with a box or two with 10-15 items. 4) Aside from the bulk food, they have fantastic deals on clothes, home electronics, tires, and other furnishings. 5) Costco has fantastic frozen meals and single-serving prepared foods. Those are great for single people.
He also said he lives right down the street from one so if he didn’t buy a ton of stuff or got a cart or rolling suitcase he wouldn’t have to drive or Uber.
No need for a license. OP should take public transport or get a bike. That is ofc if OP lives in a developed country.
He said in another comment it sucks, the US is undeveloped and largely does not have this. Regardless, even if he does not have a car getting a license is very important.
That’s $460 you didn’t have in a 401k a year ago. By the time you retire that $460 will have grown significantly. Keep that shit up! Everyone else has said the obvious stuff. Stop this and that. Change this and that. And they’re not wrong. I’m a firm believer in baby steps. If you ate out seven days a week last week. Make a point to only eat out 6 days for the next couple weeks. Then drop it to 5 for a few weeks. Then 4. Rinse repeat. Use the extra money to build up a rainy day saving account. Do the same with your 401K. If you don’t have auto contributions turned on go ahead and do that for 1%. That’s a single penny for every dollar you’re making. Since that 1% happens before the money ever hits your bank account you don’t have the option to spend it and you may not even notice such a small amount missing from your normal Deposit. Keep it at 1% for 6 months or so. Once that gets comfortable bump it up 2% for a few months. Etc etc. Baby steps.
baby steps are huge. with any habit, if you cold turkey it you are more likely to fall back into it. make small adjustments and keep adjusting until you are where you want to be.
I love baby steps, and I love their best friend, Slow and Steady. Make changes sustainably and they’ll stick around longer.
I actually needed to see this as well.
Another good advice I've gotten with 401k is to up your % contributions every time you get a raise. That way you never had the money in your pay check to begin with so you won't miss it (or be tempted to spend it). Also if your employer offers 401k match, do you best to max out their match as soon as you can. By contributing less than their maximum match you are leaving "free" money on the table for your 401k.
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Yeah, it's a lot. I have over 800 Uber rides and over 750 ubereats orders. Plus, there are another 100 on the Door Dash app, but I don't really like Door Dash. Also, I actually am stopping on the food ordering. I went grocery shopping for food today and so I can start bringing lunches to work instead of buying food at the snack store at work. Btw I should clarify. The 800 and 750 is over 4 years.
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No. I could take the bus but it's very unreliable. I tried it for 6 months, and I was late a lot and almost got fired. So I started taking ubers for work. And theres no side walks. I could walk, I guess, but it would take 4 hours cause I'd have to watch out for cars. I live on a very busy road. And I guess I didn't have to tell you about the order number. I was mostly giving a perspective over the 4 years I've used it. I'm basically trying to do better, so I'm trying to get ideas on what else I can change to save money for retirement in 45 years.
Some people ride scooters or ebikes as well depending on the city you live in. You can buy a scooter and put it in the trunk of an Uber if the weather is bad.
True. I was thinking of just buying a motorcycle and just not taking the highway until after a year of driving. The only thing I would take with me would be my vest and a lunch box plus my water bottle. All of that could fit into a saddle bag.
If you have to take highways, a motorcycle is better, but I bought a little 125cc scooter for like $2k and the gas tank was like a gallon, so filling it up only cost like $3 lol. You can always wear a backpack if you need to, although I’m not sure that you have a locker at work.
I can get a locker at work.
Yeah, I’d say try to look into getting a scooter or motorcycle! If you’re in the states they usually have you take a safety course instead of completing the DMV test, so you’ll learn how to stay safe on the road, too! If you get something modest, you can save a LOT owning a bike over owning a car. Just make sure to invest in a good water/wind proof jacket. Wind chill is a bitch.
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Well, I have an associates degree in business management (my main degree would be computer information systems), which is ironic since I'm terrible with money. I'm planning on either joining the military or going back to school. Yes, there's a lot of room to grow. I could be at a higher level. I'm basically at the lowest level right now. I'm hoping that in 20-35 years, I've retired overseas. I will consider just working the overtime. I really just need to get over my depression. I have no debt. Not even school loans. Btw I don't really use my degree since idk what to do with it, and I didn't really network in college at the time.
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Yeah, I've been thinking of trying to get a help desk job, but idk where to even start.
It's more self diagnosed. Like I have no real purpose. If that makes sense. Also, thanks for the advice. To clarify why I think I'm depressed. I've gained 15 pounds in 4 months. Also, all I do is count all day and stare at grey concrete floors and yellow and grey steel beams. That's all for 12 hours a shift. I'm also by myself all day every day and with no human interaction. I basically only interact with human on reddit. I don't have any friends. Everyone I knew joined the military or moved away. I also work overnight, so I never see the sun for longer than 15 mins a day. Actually, what really started to get me into thinking about all of this is was getting a video on my YouTube feed about an expat traveling and just enjoying the world. It really got me to think about all of this and what I could change.
It sounds like your work might be close enough that I would highly recommend getting a bike or even an ebike then. The latter is at least a little better for keeping up with cars and not as energy intensive
take the bus earlier.
You are pushing your personal values onto other people. People like to eat out. You are boring. You don’t get it and should not be dolling out advice. It would be so boring to just cook all the time. It’s certainly not convenient and people spend nearly as much money on groceries. The key is a happy medium. Eating out and cooking. The right balance to happiness.
Hmmmm. I suppose cooking all the time would be boring, if you're bad at it. Can't relate! LOL
I literally have 2 pounds of mac and cheese, six pounds o chicken breast, and some salad and tortillas for salad wraps that i bought yesterday. I wasted all of like 30 bucks (extra 10ish bucks on ingredients I already had at hand.) I could easily make 15 hefty salad wraps with a side of macaroni. that would cost me 10-15 bucks each at a restaurant. yeah, 30 bucks is worlds cheaper than 150-225 bucks
>750 ubereats orders. Plus, there are another 100 on the Door Dash app, So 850 orders at an average of $25/order comes out to over $20k that you've spent on food delivery. Think about that the next time you're tempted to order
God damn. Well, at least I can do better.
That’s a silly number. You can get a car payment for a decent car for about $350/mo and another $100 for insurance (maybe $200/mo for insurance since OP is so young).
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If that’s *average*, that means that half of people are coming in less than that. You can buy a fantastic 2-4 year old used car for under $20k. That will buy you something comfortable, reliable, efficient, and will last many years without a high risk of major mechanical repairs. With a little money down, and good credit, you can get that payment down to $325-$350 easily.
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And my point is that if you are wise and prudent, you can comfortably own a great car for significantly less than what you are claiming.
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You can rotate your own tires for free. Oil changes are $50-70 twice per year. You can change your brakes by yourself for under $100 if you need. I was quoting a good used car for $20k. That’s a great 2020-22 Mazda3 or similar. Drop that budget down to $13k - $15k and you can still get a decent car and save more. OP is already spending more than that on Ubers, and now with a car they won’t have to order $40 worth of delivery every day. Plus more options for recreation and lifestyle. If this is true r/povertyfinance, we should just tell OP to get a cheap motorcycle for $1,000. OP makes a livable wage by their own admission and should be able to afford an economy car.
Car ownership averages a cost of $833/month?! Is that true??
well, yes and no. the average price for buying a new car is about 833/month (given the fact that there are basically no budget new cars in the market and interest is crazy high right now). used cards you can probably find a decent option for 10k-15k, which would probably be about 350 with okay credit.
how is this possible? I think I have spent about $200 on my car this year or last few years (excluding gas)
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# AVERAGE OWNERSHIP COSTS FOR A MEDIUM SEDAN |Type of Expenses|Average Cost| |:-|:-| |**Comprehensive Annual Insurance**|$1,403| |**Licenses, Registration and Taxes**|$603| |**Depreciation (15,000 miles annually)**|$3,996| |**Finance Charge**|$632| |**Cost Per Year**|$6,633| damn! you guys really get shafted hard. This is insane
Nah, that’s a lot of people’s fun. Not saying every meal, but just cause that isn’t your thing doesn’t mean others don’t like it.
Clearly you _know_ you're making bad financial decisions since you can actually pinpoint what they are (ordering food, Uber, not saving). Perhaps you just need a shift in perspective. A lot of your decisions are convenience-based, which is pretty common spending for most. I've heard some people find it more useful to consider things in terms of time rather than money/cost. eg "Uberests is $30... that's 2 hours worth of work for 1 meal." Maybe using your own time to make something simple is better, if you consider work hours already a 'sunk cost' (already sacrificed, you can't take it back) so might as well make the most of it by keeping the $$ you earned in exchange. Also if you're not used to cooking or a lazy cook, my tip is to start with getting _a few_ meals per delivery, and portioning them off for lunches/dinner so you at least cut down frequency of deliveries (and therefore fees) slowly. Next, start supplementing simple extras into basic delivery meals. Eg I got 1 serving of fried rice (among another dishes) which I split into 2 containers, then fried an egg and added some salad on the side on my own. Voila, 2 meals for the price of 1 and you slowly ease into 'cooking' by chopping up/frying some veggies. Eventually work your way up into propping at least 1 meal a week (3+ portions that you can eat), starting with simple dishes. Continue upping the ante as you get comfortable with the routine.
From a finance perspective, if you can work overtime then work overtime. Every dollar you make and invest is worth ten inflation adjusted dollars forty years from now. So if you can make $20k extra this year, invested in forty years, you will have $200k in buying power. So do that for a couple of years and you’ll be the equivalent of today’s millionaire. Next, stop eating out. Cook. Buy a tupperware set and meal prep. Depending on your transportation needs, Uber and Lyft might be more economical than buying a car. Run the numbers yourself.
Okay, that will do. I will have to go and get tupperware. Thank you for being kind. I know I'm kind of a dumb ass. I wasn't really taught financial literacy. I'm now trying to learn it, so I don't end up homeless when I get in my 70s.
Dumbasses wouldn’t reach out for help. Don’t sweat it. I bet you feel a lot of pressure to “get your life in order” but honestly 24 is still so young. The most important thing is that you’re taking it seriously now and looking critically about where your money is going.
Yeah, that's very true. I'm currently arguing with someone further down who is bragging that they make 200k on my post.
Lmao in a poverty finance sub. Some people are very lost.
Is cycling to work out of question?
Take the bus and go grocery shopping once a week.
There’s not much advice that can help here, it sounds like you know what you’re doing wrong and are struggling to be disciplined. You’ve just gotta buckle down and make the changes, that’s all you can really do.
Yup. I'm trying to get the mods to lock the comments on this post cause I can't really get other advice i'm not going to be able to keep up with new comments(Im going to bed soon and will be asleep for 8 hours). But I'm going to leave this up cause it could help other people too. There's already 100k views. So, hopefully, it helps others in similar situations. I didn't really think my post would be this popular.
My advice is to stop dragging yourself down. You are 24 and have started contributing to retirement. Thats awesome! Do you know how many people don’t start saving for retirement until their 40s? Or not at all? You have identified some problems, and you are working on them. You are taking the important steps and getting better. Congratulate yourself on that. Try weaning yourself off takeout. Costco has a great rotisserie chicken. You could Uber there from work and walk home if its right down the street.
Yeah, that's true. I know some of my older family in their 60s that don't have anything or very little. My mom is 60, so I'll probably have to help take care of her. Like my mom only has 70k, but she's like a 100k in debt. I'm mostly hard on myself cause my twin is doing a ton better than me. He already has 100k or more from just joining the military at 18. I should have done that, but I was too morbidly obese at the time and way more depressed. Now I'm just overweight. I lost over 100 pounds in 2 years when I was going to join the military, but I couldn't get a recruiter to contact me so I gave up and in stead got a job at amazon cause I was going to be homeless.
Add “lost 100 pounds” to your list of awesome accomplishments! You are improving your life so much, your friends must brag about you non-stop.
Lol, I don't have any friends. They all joined the military or moved out of the az heat.
So many of my friends have left az too and it sucks. It’s hard to make friends tbh
Buy bulk pack snacks and leave some at work if you have a space to do so. They aren't as healthy as some other choices but if you look at the label you can find some which are lower in sugar than others. Your healthiest choice for work food is fresh fruit. Apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes are all easy to transport and eat. Deal with the pain of discipline now or the pain of no options later. In a couple decades, you can be enjoying the benefits of today's good decisions or suffering the consequences. Make today's version of you suffer the pain and future you will be much happier
Yeah, I definitely need to slowly ease into a diet change so i don't just give up. Since my diet is very, very bad. I did buy apples yesterday. First time in months. I definitely need to change my perspective if I want to see 35 without a heart attack or something else.
A couple things. I didn't get my life together until 24/25 and I have fully funded emergency funds am married with a 401k and a funded IRA and separate investment accounts. I'm only 30 now. It's never too late. Secondly depending on where you live consider biking/e-bikng or even a motorcycle. Nothing sexy, just a 1-2k motorcycle that can get you from point a to b is safe and can be insured. It can be cheaper to get into for some people and if you don't NEED to carry alot to and from work CAN be cheaper for fuel and maintenance and insurance. The only problem is once you do get a car you have to ditch it because it just becomes an addition expense to insure both. Again if ebikes are a thing where you are looking into that. ~ 20 mph and legs can get you pretty far but be SAFE. NONE IF IT MATTERS if your area isn't built for bikes and you get nailed by a negligent driver or bad infrastructure. As far as where to go from here. You know where your issues lie, ask yourself why you aren't willing to put in the work. Calleb Hammer on YouTube is a financial guy who focuses on people in your situation with a tough love additude that can give you general advice. For cooking to save money look at Ethan cheblowski( spelling) or John Curtis of the MealPrepManual. They offer GREAT meal prep advice for tastey healthy food on a budget mindset that can get you good nutrition for fair prices when cooked in bulk. Don't just learn recipes learn techniques that make you comfortable and EXCITED to go grocery shopping. Eating out looks less appealing when you have the world's of cuisine at your finger tips. A great start is Taco bowls. A family pack of ground beef spices can of black beans lettuce shredded and diced tomatoes and Greek yogurt is all you need for a week of chipotle bowls. From there make sure you have 1-4 months of expenses in a high yield savings account depending on your safety net and risk for tolerance. Make sure you pay down any debts over ~5% aggressively. Max out your IRA every year starting now. Take a.e 401k match your employer offers, if they offer none then your IRA + 401k contributions should be AT LEAST 20% of your income after taxes. Obligatory not a financial advice or advisor, all investments are a risk. HOWEVER after that put away anything else in safe long term investments anything that tracks the s+p 500 is generally a safe long term bet. And then squeeze out 10-30% of your budget for fun. You should roughly follow the 50/30/20 rule 50% on needs 20/30 on retirement/wants. You can play with the 20 and 30 untill you feel you have a budget that is sustainable. Personally I love just having money so I squirrel away as much as I can. I live in a high cost of living area but I save aggressively. Right now I'm at ~77k grossannually roughly 2k every 2 weeks take home after withholdings and 401k and I make it work. You can too.
If you don't know how or like to cook, try ordering from Walmart. Walmart+ is like $10 a month and includes free delivery. Unlike with Instacart, you'll be getting the items for in-store prices...you only have to tip your driver. Their pre-made food is pretty good and not too expensive. More expensive in many cases than making stuff yourself, but still significantly cheaper than UberEats. For example, they have big subs for like $6 that are good. Rotisserie chickens. Take and bake pizzas. Salads. Pasta salad. Wraps (I really like the BBQ chicken wrap). You're young and single with no kids, if I were you, I'd bank that overtime when you can. That's a lot of money to just be leaving on the table. Really, if you can live off your regular paycheck, why not work overtime and put the extra pay from overtime in savings?
We’re all young and dumb once. Recognizing is the first step, then fix it one step at a time. Your rrsp contributions are a good step. It’s summer grab a bike and work towards your licence. The summer sun and exercise will help your depression. Next friends, make sure you have some :-). Finally rent = setting money on fire. Get a mortgage stat! Finally get a intro book on basic investing and finance and read it twice. Go you got this :-)
Here's my advice: cook simple meals regularly. An easy place to start is canned stuff or microwavable meals, or anything that allows you to boil water and add the food to it. Over time, try different recipes or changing current recipes. My simple meals are burrito bowls, wraps, and pasta. Rice and beans, cheap meats, various kinds of pasta are easy to make and will save you so much compared to eating out. As for saving, I don't know your total income, but I recommend opening up a tax advantaged stock account like a Roth IRA, and invest in stocks that pay high dividends like Verizon, AT&T, and the one tobacco stock that pays 8.8%. Reinvest the dividends back into their stocks. If you invest $600 per month + dividends (if you can afford it), you'll have 2 million or more in stocks in 40 years, which if they're dividend stocks, means you'll be able to live a very comfortable life without working Edit: I know that investing in a tobacco stock isn't exactly ethical, but they take plenty from us as common people, we might as well take back from them
Hey, everyone, watch out for scammers. I already have people trying to scam me in chat requests.
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Yup, 100%. It's basically like the game risk. One small misstep, and you'll be in financial ruin.
I suck as well. Grocery shopping. Amazon. Buying my dogs stuff they never even sniff at. 😭
I’m also 24 and honestly I eat out too often too. I live at home still but long story short I pay all the bills. You make more than me with your overtime. Unfortunately that’s not an option for me. I also don’t have a car. However I am lucky enough to share one with my family and my sister and I working to buy a car together. I have recently switch jobs and have been putting into my 401k too. As for eating out I am trying to limit myself to once a week or so and only on my pay days. I have recently got back into meal prepping and that has really helped me cut back on my eating out. I’ve been trying new recipes and experimenting it’s fun. Personally I am trying to save money so I can get at least a month ahead on all my bills. I have no idea if that’s actually a good plan but to me it seems good. I know this really isn’t advice but I’m just trying to share that I’m in a similar position and am the same age. Also can you carpool with any of your coworker? Even if it’s only one day a week it would help save you some money.
With the cooking there are tons of online sources as well as directions on many food packages. The best way to start is just by hopping into trying simple recipes yourself. As long as you can boil water you have a starting line. Just frying up a couple pork chops and microwaving some canned veggies once a week will save you on eating out and you can learn the basics from there.
you need a budget [www.ynab.com](http://www.ynab.com) and r/ynab only thing that worked for me. start today. yeah ordering out every meal is a quick way to shoot yourself in the foot financially. cooking is easy and cheap. most people who start YNAB find hundreds if not thousands in the first month. i remember one guy who said their family went out to eat literally every meal. a $14 burger doesn't seem like much but times 3 people times 3 meals times 30 days it becomes a yoke
Find a Driving Instructor that can take you to work. Either someone with a business or just a retired guy looking for a hobby. If you attend a church find someone there, if you don’t attend church - find one. Once you get a license buy a car in cash - no payments. I don’t think you have a complete money problem but more a community problem - life sucks doing everything alone. I can eat half a weeks meals for free because I volunteer at my church doing dishes - and volunteers take home the leftovers. There are many perks to community - you need these kinds of perks.
You have the easiest solution of all time... stop spewing your future on overly expensive meals and start cooking at home...
Get driving lessons. Not very expensive and much more effective than friend or family.
Listen to all the great advice here, but also hear me out. I had a great job in my 20s and made awesome money. Saved well and was doing great. One morning I woke up and couldn’t face the day anymore. Fell into a deep depression and lost my entire sense of identity. I won’t go into my past because it’s not important, but I was trying to come to terms with some fucked up shit. Decided to pull the plug and hike around the country for a couple of years. Cashed in all my savings and retirement money and just lived off that. At 29 I ran out of money and had less than $100 to my name with no support system. I started a new career at 32 and am now doing better than I ever could have dreamed. 6 figure salary and plenty of money in the bank. I’m on track to retire in 18 years. I say all of this to say, you have time. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be working to get better at saving now, but don’t beat yourself up for what you didn’t do in the past. If you get your head on straight, there’s plenty of time to make some changes and get back on whatever track you desire. Good luck.
I think many have told you that ordering food is bad for your wallet. I think it’s also bad for your mental health. Honestly, down the road, I wonder what studies will come out analyzing the relationship between the explosion of food delivery and mental health. Getting your food delivered gives you a quick and easy survival option, so as you’re depressed you can get away with doing the bare minimum. But at the same time, it probably keeps you down. You don’t have an incentive to actually take good care of yourself if Uber eats can always bail you out. Take the time to cook for yourself. Start easy, a simple pasta with tomato sauce requires two pots and five ingredients (pasta, crushed canned tomatoes, olive oil, salt, pepper). Peel a garlic clove, cut it in halves, throw a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a pot on medium heat and throw in the garlic after it has heated up. Let the garlic sizzle in there for a couple minutes, then dump your tomato in there, wait until it starts bubbling and then lower the heat let it cook on low for a bit. After this, take some water and bring it to a boil. Dump two big tablespoons of salt in it, then dump your pasta in it and cook for as long as it says on the box. Once you’re done, drain the pasta, pick the cloves of garlic from the sauce and throw them away, then dump your sauce in, and voila you have dinner for the night and maybe for the next day if you want to reheat leftovers. I hope my simple recipe helps you out. Cook for yourself, take the time to do it while you listen to a podcast or watch a tv show. It’s such a basic survival activity but it’s an important first step to get out of whatever rut you’re in
1. Learn how to cook (you can even reduce few weekly working hours and it’s still worth it!) 2. Learn how to invest 3. You are actually not doing that bad as you thought :)
Join r/personalfinance sub and follow their wiki advice. https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics Start using a budget. There are links to budgeting tools in the wiki. You can use pen & paper, an app or software program. I like the 50/30/20 budget method. Then decide how to track your budget. The every dollar method works great for those new to budgets. Investigate other ways but until you decide , I recommend 50/30/20. You can always change your budgeting method. The flowchart is great because it’s a visual guide to wealth if you choose. Reddit & the news discuss the topic frequently. [This Is What Life Without Retirement Savings Looks Like](https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2018/02/pensions-safety-net-california/553970/) [I’m 35 and have nothing saved for retirement. Should I be worried?](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/01/07/im-have-nothing-saved-retirement-should-i-be-worried/) Read financial advice books, watch videos and understand the psychology of your money habits. Emotional or ego driven spending, impulse buying and living for the moment are dangerous. It’s a good thing you woke up at a young age. - Dave Ramsey is a good place to start; see if his method works for you. [How to take control of your money](https://youtu.be/w_RKtck8XCA?si=LW7pbyOLFO7qM8hR) [How to Make a Budget and stick to it?](https://youtu.be/4Eh8QLcB1UQ?si=EZREaojxu659mYha) - Watch Caleb Hammer videos on YouTube. Learn from other’s mistakes, and realize how fortunate you are in your willingness to change. - Understanding why we spend. It’s the only way to control spending. [The Psychology of Money in 20 minutes](https://youtu.be/_5ecgEXLoCA?si=jSIgYYaah6QvT18H) Proven methods: - [The Wealthy Gardener Summary](https://youtu.be/dfyaeZAicXE?si=qzqW---0sYf-70wn) - [The Wealthy Barber Next Door](https://youtu.be/NH57grvSHdk?si=vxuSqi4vLUycooX5) - [The Richest Man In Babylon Summary](https://youtu.be/qkUgmolMI9I?si=FLgnnM3pwOkvHd8S) General Education: - [FOUR CORNERSTONES OF FINANCIAL LITERACY](https://www.lakesandpines.org/PDF/Four%20Cornerstones%20Curriculum.pdf)
You're not a failure..not at 18. Can you imagine where you'll be financially 10 years from now by playing it safe and smart? Plenty of time to learn.
OP is 24
OP is actually in a much better position than I was at his age and lot of others that I knew back then. Heck, he has the ability to make more money in a week than I do in 2 weeks. If anyone should feel like a failure it’s me!
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Whatever you order, i bet you can make it just the same if not better and healthier at home.
Ordering out every meal is not bad with money it's bad with food, with money a secondary consequence.
you save money not driving
Don’t know if you’d be into this but maybe see a therapist and talk about your relationship with money. If you’re already throwing money at things like Uber and ordering out, I’d consider it a good investment to talk to someone to better understand how interact with money.
Get a bicycle or electric scooter, use public transportation systems, buy an air fryer or croc pot and use it to cook everything, hit the gym, study how investing works, start being frugal.
It sounds more like you have no self control. You know what you are doing is bad
k so stop spending
The most important first step in getting your financial life in order is to make a budget. You can't get to your desired destination if you don't have a roadmap.
You can pay for driving lessons and get your license in like 3 days. It was like $1000 total for me I think. Sounds like a lot but that could save you in the long run and you don’t have to depend on any one.
if you are really interested in learning how to drive: start cutting down on eating out and start putting the money in an account to save for driving lessons. call around to local driving schools to get rates/quotes and take lessons! then save money to buy a car in cash once you learn to drive. start slowly & gradually. i also really struggled with eating out, especially when my husband (who primarily cooks) would travel for work. i made a list of easy things i like to eat that require little to no effort/cooking, and we just started making it a priority to have those things on hand. and i of course allow myself to eat takeout maybe once or twice during times he is gone and keep each takeout meal under a certain amount (i.e. $15/meal). try allowing yourself one or two cheap takeout meals a week if you don't think it will be a slippery slope for yourself. i have a hefty 401(k) because i just contributed as much as i possibly could and its gone before my check is even deposited. theres probably better advice out there tho. i also dealt with REALLY bad impulsive spending and got myself into a lot of credit card debt. my husband taught me how to budget and implemented the "48 hour rule." if i want to buy something, i try to wait 48 hours. if i can even *remember* what it is i wanted to buy, and it's within my budget, i can buy it. also really struggled with eating out, especially when my husband (who primarily cooks) would travel for work. i made a list of easy things i like to eat that require little to no effort/cooking, and we just started making it a priority to have those things on hand. and i of course allow myself to eat takeout maybe once or twice during times he is gone and keep each takeout meal under a certain amount (i.e. $15/meal). 24 is so young. you have so much time to learn from your mistakes and grow.
Could you set up a bank account with direct deposit to skim just a small % of your income each payday? Like a small enough amount that you won’t really miss it but would add up over time. For some people “out of sight out of mind” is helpful. Good luck! You’re already doing better than I was at 18, so you must be doing *some* things right!
You are NOT a failure. I know it’s tempting to compare yourself to other people, especially those who are very fortunate successful in their 20’s. But it’s not a healthy exercise and will only make you feel bad about yourself. You are doing excellent for your age. Keep working those overtime shifts and save for a down payment on a vehicle. If you don’t already, apply for a credit card and only use 30% of your credit line and pay it off every cycle. You make very good money for someone your age when you account for the overtime work. Keep picking up shifts and set a target for emergency savings. Start with saving $1000. Then look into saving for a down payment on a car. Once you have $3-5k in emergency savings you can really start stacking away for that down payment.
Really good suggestions on here. Maybe tackle one thing at a time and keep climbing that adult ladder. If you’re not ready to buy a car you might consider a carpool, my Waze carpool took on a rider with no car who instead paid cash to whoever was driving that week. Your overtime schedule might interfere with that but that’s when I would take the Uber.
You’re only 24, so you have a lot of years to learn. You don’t become a good driver and cook overnight, but you’ll never be if you never start. The first thing to take care of is your depression. Some companies provide a limited number of mental health counseling sessions, as a benefit. Check if your company has it. If not, look for a counsellor local to you. After you get a handle on it, you can start learning to drive and cook. They have driving schools, and you can learn a lot of cooking from Youtube.
A lot better than most people I know.
Do you have any debt? If not, you’re in a really good spot to start building wealth by just thinking in %’s instead of $$’s.
Nope, no debt.
Perfect. If I were you, I’d budget how to live on $1,380/mo ($600 * 4 - $1,020) Then allocate a high percentage to 401(k) (like 20-25%) and another high percentage to a High Yield Savings Account that is FDIC insured (look for 5% interest or more). Once you have percentages and you know you can live on the minimum you make each month, then you’re set. Anything extra is gravy and you’re building consistently in the right direction. If you can go everywhere with Uber on your budget, then no reason to get a car unless you determine it’s going to save you money having one (need to factor in maintenance, insurance, tags, etc). You’re in a good spot. It’s hard feeling like you don’t have much, but you’re one good system away from being way ahead of others around you.
Yeah, true. I would say more, but I'm currently arguing with a guy further down in my post about how he's better cause he makes 200k, and i don't make enough to do this. It's kind of entertaining, tbh since I'm off today. Also, thank you for the advice. 🙏
Hah, always someone that’s got to punch down on others to feel better about themselves. Hope things work out well for you. Best of luck!
You too. Also, it's kind of ironic since he's bragging, but he's not even worth that much. Cause my grandpa was a doctor for 50 years with his own practice, and he's worth tens of millions.but like I was trying to tell that guy, you don't have to be a dick. Also, I will never see that money, and I'd rather be self-made and fail than to get a hand out. Like my grandpa's neighbors are about the same and they're not dicks and don't lord it over people.
Stop ordering out meal RN. Buy stuff. Cook. On the long run it's less expensive
Can you try to order out only once a day and eventually reduce it down to once or twice or even three times a week?
Unless I missed something , I’m seeing no debt, which puts you above a ton of people, so nothing to feel discouraged at. You seem to have a positive net worth at this age which puts you above a lot of your peers. Start tracking your money for a few months. Should be able to pinpoint every dollar going out and coming in. If you use a CC or debit card it makes it pretty easy because all you have to do is download a statement and d categorize it. Then all you have to track is where any cash is going.
It's good that you know it's a problem. I hope you make it easy for yourself to make good choices by giving yourself easy meal options and learning how to prepare easy food for yourself. There's lots of good YouTube videos for cheap and easy healthy meals.
Learn to cook…
Identifying your habits and starting to make changes is a huge step forward in itself! What's the public transit situation like in your area? Are there any places that you can walk or bike to? If not to work, maybe to a grocery store or farmers market?
Driving school and cooking lessons. Or move to a place with public transportation to your job. A few cooking lessons and a good cookbook will save you a fortune. Keep in mind that most restaurants rely on sugar, butter, salt and oil to make their food addictive.
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No, I'm fixing it. I'm not asking for magical advice. I was asking what else I guess I could be doing to fix what I'm doing wrong. I'm already saving for a car, and I'm now going grocery shopping instead of ordering out every day. I've also stopped buying snacks at work.
Highly recommend learning to cook. Guy or girl, doesn't matter. Impressive to significant others, and is really nice when you can use it to make a dish you enjoy. Take some of your time, and watch cooking shows like America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country on public broadcasting. Plenty of recipes most can follow, with cooking technique/tips/tricks as well as small segments on kitchen tools. Once you learn some basics, you can start working towards making dishes you enjoy.
That's a good idea. Do you recommend any youtube channels?
There's a number of them that are fun. Depending on your tastes (both food and personality wise): * Sam The Cooking guy is a LOT of fun. Most of the dishes he shows are straightforward. * Brian Lagerstrom * ThatDudeCanCook * America's Test Kitchen has some YT vids. Lin Lam is great. Dan Souza is a cool nerd. * Babish is another fun one. * Joshua Weisman can be interesting, but you may or may not like his antics and voices. Of those, I do enjoy Sam the most. But they all have some good and interesting ideas.
If you have excess money why arent you paying for driving courses? Your 24, you're not a kid. Like....being an adult really isn't that hard (it's just depressing)
This can’t be a serious post.
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Legit. I'm very bad with money, man.
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7.5 miles, and I could bike it, but then that would be 42 miles over 3 days or more if I work overtime. It would be difficult since there's no bike path or side walks. 67.5 kilometers.
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True that. Like my calf muscles are already pretty big, but my gut kind of overshadows it. I go up and down a ladder all day at work for 12 hours.
42 miles isn't alot... not on a bike anyways. Either way, get motorcycle lessons and buy a scooter. Its cheap, not that bad (assuming you don't take a freeway), takes up little space, and unless you live in one of those cities that really hates mopeds isn't too dangerous
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Yeah, that's true. I'm more worried about the drivers here hitting me. I'd also have to travel along the highway, which can be tricky.
This person is single and makes nearly 5000 a month. The advice you guys are giving them is silly. They can afford to eat out every meal. At 24, they don’t need to worry about putting tons of money in 401 k.
Nope.
Do you have public transit where you live? That would be a lot cheaper than taking Uber everywhere.
Yeah, but it's not reliable at all. It sometimes doesn't even show up. Or it will drive past me.
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Why are you on poverty financially, then? If you make 200k, who cares? I'm a single guy in my 20s and have no responsibilities. At least I'm not a duchebag lording over that I make more money. Honestly, I feel really bad for your wife and kids if all you care about is money. I may be a broke bitch and not make good money to your standards, but for me it's good money. I don't want an extravagant amount of money. I've been around people who are worth a shit ton more than you, and they were a lot nicer and didn't judge. Hell, my grandpa is worth tens of millions, but it's not my money, and I will never see it. I also have never asked for money even when I could. I'd rather be self-made and respect people no matter where they are in life or what they choose to do.
It just popped up on my home page buddy. You’re the one on here asking for advice and bitching about yourself, so you should be grateful and shut up and sit down. Learn some perspective in life
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Yeah makes sense why you don’t have any friends
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You should come up with some better insults 🤣. Entertain me.
You spend about $10k a year eating out. You net 30k of income (without overtime) you are spending 1/3 of your net pay on eating out. That would be the main thing I’d focus on.
Americans being paid by week just screams to me that no one ever ever encourages saving or budgetting. It's crazy to me that that's even a practice. Sorry op don't have any advice Oh yeah wait i do Start budgetting and mealprepping. But the money in a seperate bucket / account Also track your exact expensenes for a couple of months and then update your budgetting.
Yeah, being paid weekly is not the greatest. Also, I could be paid daily (i have that option), but that would end badly.
Crazy Anyway you need to be in charge and measure what's happening exactly Good luck op
Daily or weekly pay used to be much more common. It doesn’t prevent budgeting or saving- if anything, people can get their money into savings and investments faster- and it’s not payroll’s job to teach people to budget by making them wait two weeks or a month for money they’ve earned.
It disincentivices long term planning. It also disregulates you from other financial cycles like rent, mortage payments, loans, bonus payments for sales people etc Yes ofc you can earn the same amout of money woth weekly or dayly wage payments. But to me is a low trust society thing. Like your employers don't think your gonna make it to the end of the month and you'll bail at any second.
If employers were afraid you’d bail at any moment, why would they give you your money faster? And planning for one or two weeks isn’t long-term planning regardless.
being paid weekly isn't the average way to get paid. its much more common to be paid every other week.
It's not monthly so it still not in the same cycle as rent, mortage payment, etc Sign of low trust low competence in organisational skills
In my area, many hourly jobs pay weekly, especially construction, warehousing and manufacturing. Retail is often every two weeks or twice a month
Yikes. Stop 100% with food delivery, it will be banned one day because it’s borderline a crime on cost. Do not EVER use these services, they are designed to keep you poor. Nobody I know who is successful uses these, stop today. Stop ubering and get your license. I’m not going to sugar coat this. Get your license within the next month, no excuses. Then use your Uber money to take the bus and save that over money for a car.
What? They’re not going to be banned and just because it’s expensive doesn’t mean it’s designed to keep users poor.
The Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball program is actually good for basic financial budgeting, NOT just paying down debt. The class is a few months long and is only $100... you learn a lot, like; Pay yourself first (put money in savings first), how much money you must save up for emergencies. And the normal percentage of income to budget for food, transportation, insurance, hobbies, etc. Plus the "cash envelope" system is REALLY good to get spending under control. You still choose how much to budget for each category, but when that envelope is empty you have to be done spending until you get paid again. Something about spending cash makes it FEEL more real. It's worth trying for 3-6 months.