Financial Stability- Plan Ahead

Alrighty everyone, it's been awhile since I've updated about the moolah.  I've recently realized the sensitivity of the subject on money.  Why is it that people are more willing to talk about their personal sex life than to talk about their financial stability?  It's not like being judged for your promiscuous behavior is going to make them think that you're wealthy...

I've started a couple of new things that I would recommend people to try.  Yes, you.  Don't be such a stick in the mud!  Play around with some of the numbers in your account and you may look at your income/wealth a little bit differently.

Mint.com
Okay, this program is literally one of the coolest tools to manage your personal finances.  It's even better for married couples who don't have all joint accounts and want to make sure they're fiancially stable.  Mint.com puts all the numbers of each one of your accounts together to give you a lump sum/net/cash flow.  You can even create a monthly budget, set goals, and check all of your accounts without having to toggle between websites.  Yes, I was skeptic at first.  Putting my bank account, credit cards, and other personal information into a 3rd party source, but Forbes recommended this financial planner and it's used by over 7 million people in the world.  Give it a whirl; if you hate it, then quit.



SmartyPig
I just started this online account that helps me set a goal to save money for a down payment on a house.  SmartyPig allows people to deposit money however frequently they want to in order to save up for a goal, no matter what it may be.  Since I no longer have to save money for student loans *the angels sing* I'm rewarding myself by spending money any way I want to for an entire month.  YES, it's scary (I've almost maxed out my Discover card!) but very rewarding indeed... [do you know what this means?!  This means Mika is going to be extra frugle about money after this month *cue friends and vacations*]  The best part about SmartyPig is the 1% interest rate!  Other benefits include cashback percentage if you put the money in your account towards Visa debit cards or giftcards for stores/restaurants... up to 11% back.  :) 

Isn't he cute?!

I'm going to put the money I spent on my loans towards this account... I think seeing bigger numbers means I'm going to spend bigger (or maybe just my ego gets bigger). 



These are all avenues of me trying to manage myself without the risk of stock.. yet.  I have yet to talk to a financial advisor/planner about risky money.  I'm too chicken!  ><