I would rather be broke than be away from my family is often what I hear.
Ah no, you wouldn’t is what I say back because folk are ignorant. Most have never been broke and most never will. Going without Foxtel or internet isn’t broke.
Not being able to pay your bills, strategically planning how to make the 500 grams of mince and $1.79 frozen vegetables last the week is close. Or working out which piece of furniture should be sold next is on the road to being broke. Having someone tell you that you have 30 days to respond to their letter before actions will be taken to take your home to recoup outstanding funds is a big flag to say yep your almost broke.
Not being able to put food in your bellies is broke.
Before B1 was born, we were between jobs waiting for the next one. It had been weeks; months even I don’t remember because it was a hellish period that ran together. We were doing what we could, but it wasn’t quiet enough to pay the big bills. The rates, insurance and registration they all kept coming. Back then it was a matter of trying to delegate the most important food, electricity and fuel so we could get to the mowing jobs to earn the money. So I stopped paying the rates except council can take your house to pay the rates and sell it to recoup the $1200 you owe them without an issue.
Being on the road to being broke didnt happen because we were living an extravagant lifestyle it’s never been our style. The husband was working mowing lawns were he could. Then working in marble mines when he could while I was working five months pregnant on a hydroponic farm because I could no longer drive the mountain range, so we were making money; just not enough. So through circumstance we were on the road to being broke.
I have never been so scared in my life of losing what we had worked for, and it set us on the path of never being again. The enormity of being able to live day to day relationship strangling.
This is my story and I can only tell you what we have done..and this relates to FIFO or not..you don’t need FIFO to get out of a hole or get in one. Anyone can be broke in any industry it takes mind set and sacrifices to get out regardless of what you do.
Anything can be gone in an instant and so I like to think is applicable to anyone that earns a wage regardless. So determine what you can live on and do with the rest as you must. Pay off loans or place it straight on the mortgage. Make the hard work worth it. Don’t allow it down the Johnsons or Bakers competition sink hole because you will never get anywhere else.
This is how we live to ensure we are never there are again..its what we did and still do….
- We don’t buy crap we don’t need. We don’t keep up with the Jones, the Bakers or the Johnson’s. We have a simple home, a ten-year-old car, and we don’t buy the latest gadgets. If we do, the husband has a rule of waiting till the second release comes out so all the tweaks are made and we know if we need it. Don’t buy a house that’s too big to manage or a car to large for you to own. Consider your needs over your wants and the cost of running of it.
- Don’t get trapped into investment competition. This is so common for higher income earners i.e., I just brought my fifth rental property, or I just brought the 100k worth of shares. I hear it all the time from not only my miner and offshore friends but defense and civvy too. If that’s the case good for them, I get the whole telling of success and applaud it I do it also but often what gets forgotten is their circumstances are completely different to yours. Sometimes they never should have brought their investment in the first place but they aren’t going to tell you that.
- Don’t fall for the ‘tax deduction’ theory. Check with your account before buying purely to get some of your tax back. The money spent may not be worth the additional 2K you receive.
- Set up a budget. Know where every single cent is.
- Get in advance on all your bills. Add up the totals of all your bills rounding the amount up in each case and dived by the number of pays you receive in the year. That divided then goes directly on to the bill or into an account especially for that. Set up a direct debit from your account, so it happens automatically every pay either onto the bill or into the account. Then don’t touch it.
- Meal plan. Buy in bulk anyone with an ABN can. Consider your food intake limit processed food and where you buy it from. Online shop for supplements, food, and personal items if you can and if it works out cheaper.
- Get in advance on your home loan especially now that the rate is so low and get rid of bad debt as soon as you can. Avoid combining bad debt into a home loan {perhaps?}. It means that 14 thousand dollar quad bike that you have used twice in six months will be worth a fortune in 30 years when you don’t have it selling it for just 6 thousand. Consider combining it into one big low-interest rate loan instead of credit card charging 21%. Talk to your bank or advisor.
- Put away a portion of what you earn for savings even if its 5% of your wage. Ideally it should be 10% but let’s be realistic here sometimes your bad debt outweighs the good, and the other 5% needs to go to the bad debt first.
- Don’t be afraid to sell off toys, clothes you don’t need. Downsize even. If you haven’t used in six month’s consider selling it. There is something freeing about getting rid of stuff and making a few dollars at the same time. It drives me insane when I say downsize and they say I can’t. Seriously everyone has crap they don’t need they don’t use that someone else wants it’s about a matter of emotionally letting go of it.
- Don’t have a credit card unless you can use it properly and pay the entire balance off in the free days limit. If your after something that gives you points to go towards your reward consider the Qantas and Virgin cash cards for your bill account {we use the Qantas cash card – awesome}.
- Having said all of that hard work needs to be rewarded so consider sensibly what yours is given your budget. Ours is family holidays away and even then it’s always on a budget, but that’s a whole other post but put some money aside for that.
- Money can’t buy happiness and making money is hard work but being broke is even harder never be naive about that and for those that tell you different may their fairy tale have a happy ending.
xxDeb
*I am not a finance planner, please seek professional advice always.
