I am inching closer and closer to my dreams of self-employment. While this is certainly great news there’s just one little problem: I’m turning into a total Scrooge with my money.
Becoming a Workaholic
There are certain things you have to give up in order to pursue your dreams. For me I’m giving up sleep and my social life. Don’t get me wrong, I am perfectly okay with this. I know my temporary sacrifices will pay me back immensely in the long run.
There’s just one teensy problem. I have been working so hard for my money that I can’t stand to part with it.
For some reason I have no problem at all parting with my money from my day job. Maybe that’s because a) I pretty much just sit on my ass for 8 hours a day and b) I am working for someone else. I’m simply not emotionally invested in my job.
Becoming a Semi-Hermit
I have been working my ass off for myself. If I don’t have my kids you can pretty much expect not to hear from me. I lock myself in my house and work, work, work. Since I spend thirty two hours a week working a regular job I have to devote all of my extra time to working on my side business.
This means late nights, early mornings, and long weekends. Thanks to my girls I’m not a total hermit. I actually don’t do any side work when they are with me and awake. We visit family often and really spend quality time together.
However, when they lay down for bed I get into work mode. In addition, on the evenings and weekends that they are with their dad I am glued to the computer.
Becoming a Scrooge
And, since I spend so much time and effort trying to make my side business work I just can’t bear to part with any of the money I earn.
I am a person who loves sleep. I could literally sleep for twelve hours straight every day. But here lately I have had quite a few work until 2:30 a.m. nights to get up at 7 a.m. and get ready for work. I’ve also had a few days where I’ve drug my butt out of bed at 5 a.m. to get some work done before work at the day job begins.
In short I am very emotionally invested in my side business. I am working hard and the hard work is starting to payoff. And, because I’m working for myself I just cannot bring myself to part with the money I’m earning.
For instance, one of my goals this month is to take the girls somewhere educational and fun. I am dying to go to the zoo. I love the zoo and haven’t been there the entire summer. However, the zoo is freakin’ expensive. I could take a $100 of the money I earned this week and use it to go. But, I just can’t bring myself to do that. Instead I’ve been concocting ideas on how I can make budget cuts in my already bare bones budget to find the money. Trust me, I will find a way to go to the zoo without touching anything I earn from my side business.
What Does This Mean for the Future?
In a way my scrooge-like behavior will benefit me when I go out on my own. I will be more frugal than ever. But, I will have to get used to parting with the money I work so hard for. After all, I do have bills to pay!
If you have some side hustles going on do you like parting with the money? What do you think would be the biggest barrier of working for yourself?
I feel the exact same way! I have Cat writing once a week but that’s the only thing I pay for with my site. I planned on hiring a designer to redesign my site but I still haven’t brought myself to sign the $800 contract. I just like having that extra money sitting in my bank account and want to see it get bigger and bigger. Definitely on the same page as you with this one.
I agree. It may be worth the extra time to learn how to do it yourself. You can always use those skills to redesign later or help others for additional side income. Plus, the $800 will grow some interest and will stay on the positive side of your net worth.
I’m a Scrooge too. Very much so. I tell my niece all the time, I don’t support rich people. (Joke). I know you mentioned not having health insurance. With obamacare you will have to have it for you and your girls.
I can relate. my birthday is coming up and I need a new cell phone. Don’t want to buy a new one so I am applying (warranty) to get a new one since my old one is broken. This way I can have a new phone for free. So much better than spending $200 for another phone right now.
A thought about the zoo: have you considered getting an annual pass? For the zoo here, the cost is just about the same at taking one trip with two kids – and since we have 7 kids, it’s a super bargain!
For the price of one fancy outing you may be able to buy a pass that would mean free trips to the zoo for a year.
I’m going to echo what Carrie said; although up-front it may not seem like a bargain, annual passes to the zoo can be really great! Some of them can also be used at other zoos, so if you’re out of town you can visit another zoo for free. It’s pretty great.
I think I will probably be a Scrooge when I first start making money from my writing. Hey, at least you aren’t saying “I worked hard, I deserve a treat!” and are blowing it all in one spot. 🙂
I worked hard to save enough money to be able to stay at home with my children for a year and like you I can’t seem to part with the money. My thinking is if I can find ways to earn money while I’m home with my children and hardly not touch that money then it’s all good.
We are getting married next year and let me tell you the way I’ve been acting I think I have turned into a major scrooge. LOL
I’m a workaholic and a scrooge so I can totally relate! Hopefully things will get back to normal once you quit your 9-5 job. Then, you’ll finally have time to relax~
As you mentioned, your Scrooge like behavior will benefit you and your girls in the long run. Just keep a little notion in mind…you are not only working on your side-hustles and wanting self-employment just so you can sit on a wad of cash ever month, you want this because it adds greatly to your overall quality of life.
Making money and saving it is a wonderful thing, but…so is living. Once you are self-employed, If you find that you can afford a little so that you and your girls can have some fun and rack up a bunch of experiences as a family, then kick Scrooge to the curb for a day or two. You can always grab an extra side hustle if need be down the road.
Don’t let money stand in your way from living a great life!!
Peace out.
Lyle
While I haven’t made a whole lot from my side hustles, I can totally understand what you mean. It’s hard to part with money you’ve worked so hard for. Also since it’s freelancing, you feel hesitant to spend it because you never know when it might end.
I’m with you, I hate to part with my money! But, like you said, I have to pay bills, right? See ya around!
I think this is part of the reason that the rich Stay rich. Lottery winners ? Not so much.
Do you have an entertainment category in your budget ? Or, Girls Educational ? If you have this and you spend it that will help you from being a Weird Scrooge vs a Scrooge.
~ Christie
I’m definitely a workaholic. I’m hoping that when I make the self-employment switch that this changes though!
Hi Alexa, found your blog recently and I really enjoy it! It’s very motivating and inspiring to see how successful you are becoming with the freelance work (I’m a freelance writer myself). Thanks for sharing so much about it on your blog. I know what you mean about wanting to hold on to that money extra tight. We just took a spur of the moment trip to the beach and spent more than we would have liked, but it ended up being worth it because of how much fun our daughter had. I prefer free and cheap experiences myself, but sometimes it’s worth it when she has a great time and we get some awesome memories out of it!
I know exactly how you feel!
Even though oDesk is really cheap, I can’t stand to pay $5 to $10 per week for things I know I can do. BUT I know that I don’t want to waste the hours doing those things myself, and thus I let things continue.
It’s a really hard thing baricating yourself from spending money and always being on edge that you should use your time wisely to produce more and thus make more money. There are some days where I spend 3 hours on the couch writing articles and blogging because in my mind I’m 1) saving money by not hiring a writer and 2) increasing the chances that someone will find this article, click on the ads, and make me rich. But then I have an “aha” moment and realize “this is stupid”. I need to put down the computer, go play ball with the kids, mow the yard, chit chat with my wife, and actually live my life outside this computer. I think the delicate balance comes from setting a limit for yourself and sticking to it. It can be hard, but it is sometimes necessary.
Similar to your zoo situation, I may force myself to spend some of my blog income on a nice vacation for the family. Sort of a “hey, we wouldn’t be able to do this if Dad didn’t blog, so enjoy it” present if you will.
It’s understandable not to want to part with your money when you work so hard for it. I’m sure it’ll be worth it when you are able to leave your full-time job. You’re not a total scrooge, you are taking the girls to the zoo. I have the same thoughts as Carrie and Alexandra…we bought an annual pass (and took my wife’s little cousins) and it was worth it because we could go multiple times, to different museums and also to the aquarium. Also check for discounts (groupon, AAA, student, etc). Actually, my wife’s cousins somehow got free admission passes from the library to go to the museum which was great as we got to go for free too.
I think it’s kind of admirable that you’re adamant about keeping a certain bucket of money for savings and not violating that agreement. We did a similar thing with my wife’s earnings from her stipend: every dollar went towards the mortgage, regardless of what other things were going on in our lives. We looked up 3 years later with no mortgage.
Now, as you make the transition to a new work set up that division may no longer be possible but I think for the time being it’s an effective way to both preserve your savings dollars, and to motivate you to find creative ways to still do the things you like.
Great post. It serves as a great reminder that if you work hard to earn money you are less likely to blow it on stuff. Conversely if you have no attachment to the money it becomes easy to spend. See most lottery winners – they typically end up broke!
I totally understand where youre coming from. I haven’t bought a new outfit since forever. And I have the money to go on a full fledge shopping spree if I wanted to but I just like the secure feeling of having money in the bank.
I took an extra gig working a day a week for the public health service when we were terribly in debt. I did use most of that money to pay off our credit cards, but since those have been paid off for nearly a year, I almost never spend any of that money. Maybe I think it might go away? I think when you have enough socked away in case it does dry up, you might not have such an emotional connection to the money. I guess being a scrooge isn’t the worst thing you could be unless you start working by candle light to save money on electricity!
It’s all about balance and I’m sure you’ll figure it out!
I think a lot of PF bloggers face the same challenge. I think you need to take time to remember what that money is bringing you…the opportunity to do with it what brings value to your life. If that means the zoo costs a little…think about the time you’ll be spending with your kids! It’s hard to let go though…I totally get it!
I don’t mind parting with money when it comes to things that add value to my life. Going to the zoo with my kids would definitely be one of those things. I’d spend it, assuming it wasn’t needed for necessities.
I’m not making any extra money yet but I’m feeling something similar with time. I find myself spending more and more time on my blog and in some ways it’s beneficial and in other ways it’s not. I’m still trying to figure out what the right balance is. It’s not easy when something is new like this.
I love your ambition. That’s the kind of dedication it takes to make your side hustles really thrive. But it also sounds like you’ve set great boundaries for when you’ve got your children around. One suggestion, you could come to Chicago and go to Lincoln Park Zoo for free!
But seriously, I know what you mean about money being worth more. Ever since I’ve tried to make money through my blog, I’ve thought more and more about ridiculously easy just blow all the money you earn.
When I’m working a ton of hours I don’t want to spend any money as I felt I worked so hard for it. My wife is the opposite, she feels since she worked a lot she should enjoy it. We compromise, although I think I’m gonna lose on holding out on not buying her a Galaxy Tab.
I have been working now late hours after I quit my regular job. I am trying hard on my side hustles and patiently looking them to work out. Dedication can help to achieve this and I am pretty sure you will be see the benefits of being scrooge later
Oh, yeah, how much the money has NOW value, if you’re earning it on your really hard work 😀
I’ve been self-employed for 4 years now and kinda feel the same: it’s not too easy to part with money, when you’ve been busting our behind for it. Don’t worry, in time you’ll probably be more relaxed, even if being careful with your spending is actually not bad at all. I do budget and like to save, now more than when I was being employed and never felt like that’s ‘my’ money.
Having read this I thought it was really enlightening. I appreciate you taking the time and
effort to put this information together. I once again find myself personally spending way
too much time both reading and commenting. But so
what, it was still worth it!
You’re not alone! 🙂 I believe no one wants to part with their hard earned money. But at some point there’s a need to invest on things that will be worth it in the long run. Setting priorities is very important.
I really hate parting with my money. When I earn extra money from overtime at work or from my part-time job, I automatically think, more money in the bank, rather than I should treat myself to a nice dinner. Although what I could use now is a new wallet. Mine is really worn out along the edges and looks like a dog chewed it, but it’s still holding my hard earned money together! 🙂
LAPTOP OR COMPUTER games or online games have increased in popularity currently, not
just using the younger era, but additionally with adults as well.
There are numerous online games available, starting with the intelligent for the regular – your plan of action are truly endless.
On the net role-playing games usually are one of the most widely recognized games
everywhere over the whole world. Keeping this reputation, lots
of people are researching along with striving to get methods to feel
the overall game as swiftly as they can easily;
I have been exploring for a little bit for any high-quality articles or blog posts
on this kind of space . Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled
upon this web site. Reading this information So i am satisfied to show that I’ve an incredibly good uncanny feeling I discovered exactly what I needed.
I so much for sure will make sure to don?t omit this web site and provides it
a look regularly.
It’s enormous that you are getting ideas from this paragraph as well as from our argument made here.
The very first thing that you can do to keep clear of porn is to eliminate your current access to that.
Should you watch this constantly with your home’s world wide web,
try eliminating your internet support (if you are on your own
using the service). If you have older movies or journals, remove them away from your home.
When you do this kind of, you should definitely remove them completely.
Stick them in the dumpster just where they will never
ever manage to go back to you.
Social networking sites give you a great probability to meet and
communicate with men and women from across the world;
still you will need to understand that you actually can’t say for sure these individuals,
in addition to anything posted on the web can and could be utilized against
you if seen by the completely wrong person.
It is additionally crucial to do not forget that once something is placed online, it can be at
this time there foreve. The net doesn’t overlook, nor can it reduce, wrong alternatives.
Along with the consequences can have a long-lasting affect
an individual, and the like.
My weblog brazzers girls