Mollie Craig

As I researched more for the lesson, I learned that you should start building credit at an early age when you don't have any debt and financial responsibilties. I wanted to open a credit card to do this but then the virus hit and everything was closing so I put it off. So instead of getting a credit card I went through all of my subscribtions. I noticed that I had so many useless memberships that I couldn't even afford so I decided to cancel them. This helped me save over 100 dollars. I also change some of my subscribtions to student payments which lower the costs. I continued to work at my job but with less hours so I made sure I wasn't purchasing unnecessary things. I also made a budget for when things get back to normal so I don't over spend. 

The topic I choose for the learn something module was to learn how to better manage my money. I have had a job for 2 years now at a restaurant which has been my main mode of income. I am not terrible at handling my money but I knew I could improve because I was spending too much. The first week I started to research, COVID-19 hit and we were told to quarentine. The first few weeks during quarentine I was still working more hours and was making more than before because school was closed. Places began to close so I wasn't spending my money or wasting gas. I began putting more money in my savings which helped me a lot because then I wasn't spending so much money. After this I used the advice I read from one of my sources, which was to look at your spending history. I gathered that I was spending more than I was making. To improve this I set limits on my spending and started writing down essential payments so I could keep track. 

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/how-to-manage-money/

This source is particulary useful because it tells you how to look at your spending habits and look through your inventory of finances. 

Questions to consider are:

Are you consistently overspending?

Do you have enough saved up to survive an unexpected expense?

Do you live paycheck to paycheck?

Do you feel overwhelmed by financial jargon? 

https://www.themuse.com/advice/50-personal-finance-tips-that-will-change-the-way-you-think-about-mon...

This article provides 50 tips on better managing money. It tackles a wide range of things from interest rates to loans.

The main topics are how to budget like a pro, how to get money motivated, how to amp up your earning potential, how to keep debt at bay, how to shop smart, how to save for retirement, how to build and track your credit, how to get properly insured, how to prepare for rainy financial days, and how to approach investing. 

https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/beginners-guide-to-managing-your-money

This source provides a step by step guide to better manage your money. The first paragraph describes how to set up a budget. Then it lists the items you will need, which are household bills, living costs, leisure, travel costs, and other categories you spend money on. The second topic is paying of loans and credit card debts. This part isn't as important to me because I dont have either of these things. The last topic is the one I focused on most which was setting a savings goal. The article states the best way to save money is by putting in a set amount of money into your savings account every month. 

I plan on learning how to manage my money better. I will be learning this everyday of the week for a month. To achieve this I plan to work more at my job, keep track of my spending using a journal, and by watching what I spend my money on.