I'm an optimist. But in the back of my mind I've always had the fear that financial security wouldn't last. Something was bound to happen.
And sure enough, this was the year.
For the first time since coming to school, I actually had extra money saved up at the beginning of the Spring Semester. There was gas money for the car. I could even splurge, if that's what you want to call it, on actual name brand macaroni and cheese.
But then a string of bad luck left me questioning whether or not I'd be able to survive the rest of the year.
It started with a pricy car repair. Then my beloved MacBook crashed. But to top it all off, I needed a second car repair for an unrelated issue. Those three surprises turned into one ugly, $2,250 problem.
It wasn't like I did anything wrong. I didn't wreck my car. I didn't drop my computer.
Life just happened.
Becoming an adult is scary enough, and the added stress of the unexpected could drive people to run to Mom and Dad.
I'd be lying if I said I didn't go to my parents for help, but I paid for most of the repairs and found ways to save money so they would have to contribute as little as possible.
And while it's natural to feel a sense of hopelessness when unexpected expenses pop up, you can often find ways to save without too much pain.
The first way is to ask one simple question: What discounts can you give me?
So often when people go to a mechanic, store or some type of repair shop, they just go ahead and pay the first price issued.
Don't just go along with it.
By asking what specials businesses offer, you could find out that they offer discounts to students or employees for certain companies.
The mechanic I took my car to offered me a 10 percent student discount and even tried to find other deals he could give me.
It saved me about $60 - and I don't need to tell you that every little bit helps.
Another way is to limit yourself.
When my computer crashed, I immediately started researching replacements.
It was tempting to look at the 15-inch MacBook. It's bigger, has more memory and only a few hundred more dollars with my student discount. I'd be getting more bang for my buck, right?
Wrong.
If you need to replace a pricey item, find something that meets your minimum needs. You'll likely suffer buyer's remorse otherwise, and you'll be even deeper in the hole.
I'm still struggling to pay my parents back and to get where I was before, but by making smart choices along the way, I'm a lot closer than I would have been if I didn't take the time to stop and think.
It's normal to ask ourselves why financial woes happen. But the better question is, what are the right steps to get out? And as the old saying goes, when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is to stop digging.
-รก
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