Patience is a Virtue

Before I start this post, I’d like to be selfish and direct your attention to two things.  First, I have posted some pictures of my exercise progress on Rabbit on the Run. Even though I’m not putting nearly as much effort into my second blog as I had anticipated, advertising my progress is going to help push me over my plateau. Second, I officially have close to 1,100 comments on this blog.  The blog is just over one year old now.  How cool is that?

I’ve been doing that thing I do again. You know, where I make a decision and get really obsessed over it.

Yesterday, I called up teacher’s colleges, the office of the registrar, and career counsellors. I learned that I am one full credit short from having a second teachable in English, and one and a half credits shy of being able to teach history. I already missed OISE’s deadline of December 1st. I still have time to apply to Queen’s for 2012-13. What frightens me is the thought waiting until next year to apply to OISE and York, then getting rejected anyways. I’d then have to leave Toronto to go to school elsewhere, leaving behind my boyfriend and the life I’ve built here in exchange for a temporary 1 year residence in another city. It’s not ideal, but it’s not terrible either.

But something I realized is that I’m not ready yet to leave Toronto. I’ve spent so much time and effort into setting up an “adult” life here. I’m not yet ready to abandon all of that for the impoverished student life just yet. Job prospects for teachers are absolutely brutal. After I go to school, I’ll be looking at a minimum of 4 years of supplying before I can land a contract, if I’m lucky. So before I take the plunge with college, I want to enjoy what I’ve worked hard to achieve. I need to make sure that I’m making the right decision, while keeping an eye carefully trained on the future.

Going back to school is a big decision, and I don’t want to go through the hassle and expense of getting taking correspondence and going to teacher’s college only to change careers again in five years. So I’m going to look into ALL my options. I’m going to look into Masters programs. I’m also going to look into colleges which specialize in post-grad certificates and degrees.

I’m really glad that I have had these three years out of school in order to get a taste of the real world. I now understand how I function in the workplace and which skills I should hone. Before I worked full time, I would have thought that I would be a business shark type. In the real world, I am a hard worker, but because many of my passions and interests lie outside of the office, I am content with 9 to 5.  This allows me to write my blog, train for a Half Ironman, and spend time with friends and family. If I were able to find a career that allows me to work on initiatives that I care about (sustainability projects, education, fitness for low-income communities, creative arts ventures) then I will definitely be transcending those 9 to 5 boundaries and doing so gladly.

I’m hoping that in the new year, I can start some projects in my community with kids or adults to improve the neighbourhood. I’m thinking fitness, sustainability or arts oriented programming. But before I go too crazy again, I’m going to have to get everything down on paper. There are many goals I have floating around in my head, I just need to see them laid out. My timing is perfect. I hate the term “New Years Resolutions,” but that’s essentially what they are.

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December 20, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 1 Comment »

Bonus Time

I finally got my bonus.  Drum roll please…

$2,775. And a Louis Vuitton coin purse.

Considering that I have only been with my boss since June 22nd, I think this is pretty generous.  He offered to only pay me half and to have me work out with the bookkeeper what I should take off in taxes, but since I already owe the government money from when I worked for my Liberty Village boss, I said I’ll take the full amount.  I think I’ll also be putting $1775 directly into my RRSP.

My goal this year was to invest $2000 into my RRSP.  I am not certain if I’ll be able to meet this goal, but I may shift some of the money I set aside for taxes into my RRSP, to get a higher deduction and to hit my goal.  I’ll be receiving that money on Monday. I think I will take the remaining $1000, set aside $300 for taxes/deductions, and put the remaining $700 into my emergency fund.  This will top up my emergency fund to $1,300, or $1,450 by Jan 1st 2012, after I add in another automated payment of $150.  Merry Christmas to me, indeed!

I've never owned a designer piece in my whole life. I almost cried.

My other goals are going to change too; I originally stated that I wanted to bring in an extra $40,000 through freelancing.  Well, folks, I have something to confess.  By now, most readers know that I was a formerly licensed realtor, who gave up selling (because I hated it) to work as an assistant to a top producing realtor in the Bridle Path. I based that goal on sales that I would do on the side, which is no longer realistic. I am guessing that were I to average out the work I’ve done on the side this year, I probably brought in approximately $150-200/month. That’s a pretty decent side hustle, and I will be looking to increase my streams of income in the New Year. I’m going to look into some tutoring, since a couple of my friends use this as their source of side hustling.

I am also putting some serious thought into a career change. I’ve been working in real estate for nearly 3 years now. I thought it was going to offer me the big city glamour and lifestyle that I wanted:

This is how I pictured my life....

When in reality, the life I actually wanted looks more like this:

I Heart My Bicycle

The same paradigm shift happened with the city of Toronto.  Toronto ain’t for me. Give me space, please.

So, what is it that I’m looking to do instead?  I was looking into writing the LSATs, and maybe going into law.  After the frustration of not making enough money, I was looking into careers that would guarantee me a higher income. But that’s not where my passion lies.  The truth is, I think that my passion may lie in a field that I swore I would never go into, since I’d be the third generation in the profession. But no matter where I go, or who I talk to, people tell me unequivocally that I give off a vibe that screams of this particular field.

I am looking into teacher’s college.

It’s not the most intelligent move, especially because it is nearly impossible to get hired ANYWHERE right now. The salary is not that great, and even if I perform extraordinarily well, I’ll make as much as the teacher in the same pay bracket who barely makes an effort.

But…I love teaching.

Crap.

Time to build up capital. Even if I don’t decide to become a teacher, I will be getting out of my industry in the next 2 years, and I will be getting out of Toronto.

Operation Life Change has begun.

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December 18, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 13 Comments »

I am a problem solver, not a problem whiner

My boyfriend recently committed to doing a 5k run with me on December 31st. He has no interest in running as a pastime, and I doubt he’ll ever lace up his shoes for fun, but the idea of accomplishing a 5k is really important to him, so he’s going for it.  Last night, we did 4.25k, at a 2 minute run/1 minute walk pace. Way to go, Frenchie!

But last night, as I drove down the DVP to meet him, I experienced an attitude shift.  I was stressing over my monthly cashflow, as per usual, when all of a sudden I thought, “what am I doing?!“   This isn’t who I am.  I’m a “make some lemonade out of those life lemons” type of girl. I am NOT a victim.

I’ve been pretty bummed the past month. Every time I needed to buy something essential, like groceries or gas, I’d cringe and check my new account balance the second I got home. I stopped exercising as much.  I wasn’t eating as well as I should’ve been, because I didn’t want to overspend. I made detailed spreadsheets and pored over them, searching for a solution to magically solve everything. My health, physical and mental, suffered.

“The only constant is change.”  – Heraclitus

The objective truth is that I’m genuinely doing my best. I correctly identified that my car is actually a huge liability and a detractor from my overall networth and well being. So even though I have to live with that decision for the next couple of months before selling (typically, you get a better price in the spring), it will get better. I have refused to accept the nonstop auto expenses, and I am taking action to prevent further loss. IT WILL GET BETTER, because I am actively generating solutions to make it so. If my boss refuses to let me part with a vehicle, I’ll start getting imaginative.  Can we say scooter, anyone?

I wish that selling my car was the key to my unending happiness. But there will ALWAYS be something that’s bugging me that I’ll be trying to improve. Once my car is sold, the next thing I want to target is ***the future***  I’ve already decided that I’d like to leave Toronto in either 2013 or 2014.  But I also am keen on getting out of the whole “assistant” thing and starting to leverage my skills in a more managerial (and higher paid) position. If you’ve met me, you’ll know that I am a time management freak, who plans things down to the minute. I’m an intellectual who likes to read and learn. I love to “host” people and make them feel happy and comfortable. I like fast-paced, exciting challenges. I’m not necessarily sold on the whole 9 to 5 thing either. I love to write and be creative.

In short, I am your typical early twenty-something, still bursting with ambition and desire to be appropriately utilized.

I’m happy to remain where I am for the next two to three years. I’m treated very well, the pay is good, and on quiet days like today I can pen a quick post.

But there will come a time when I start to go stircrazy yet again, and will start craving change, and I will start chasing a life that best suits where I want to be, geographically and professionally.

The moral of the story is that it is a very good thing that I’m constantly evolving my life to reflect my needs and emotional state. Selling my car is just one of the rungs on a ladder. The Ironman is another rung.  Moving to a new city/smaller town will be another. In order to be happy, I’ll have to be constantly in motion, and that will mean giving objects and relationships a constant reexamination.  

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November 29, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 6 Comments »

Mission: Income Diversification

Today I made my first major mistake on the job.  I’ve been doing pretty well at work so far, earning accolades and praise mixed in with some feedback to improve my performance. My predecessor had been in her position for over a year and a half, and according to my boss and the rest of the team, kept making consistent significant mistakes and basically augmenting the flaws of an already poorly running system.  So when I arrived I was heralded like my office’s personal saviour, ready to save the team from the horrors of bad paperwork and misfiling.

I’ve been there for nearly two months, and I truly do like it.  The team I work with is great.  I like the daily tasks that I have to perform, and the pay is the best I’ve had ever.

The awesome thing/huge problem is that I ended up getting placed on a bit of a pedestal. Everything I did was better than my predecessor, so it was easy to start getting complacent.  It was my own fault; so instead of asking when I wasn’t 100% sure about something, I made a decision and didn’t think about it.  Three days later, and I’m going through my own paper trail, clearly identifying me as the perpetrator of a fairly major clerical omission.  Whoopsies.

It’s not the end of the world. It’s going to be fixed, but I have to wait until tomorrow morning for a manager to fix the error in our online system. However, it was a jarring shove off of my little golden pedestal.  I’ve had such horrible experiences with employers that this makes me EXTREMELY nervous. I also know that my recruiter charged my boss an exorbitant placement fee; however, he only owes that money if I get past my 90 day trial period.  I’m only on day 60. That fact, coupled with the sudden universal realization that I’m human and make mistakes at my job, has kicked my paranoia into overdrive.

It’s like a fluctuation in the stock market – suddenly I’m worried about the stability of my entire portfolio.

Something else that has bothered me is my networth.  It has pretty much remained the same since I moved to Toronto.  You can see that it climbed up from about $13,000, but that was a fluke month.  I had just purchased my keyboard and was expecting a large sum of money 30 days later, and my car loan was still very high. I was back up in a month or two.  My networth also recently went up to about $23,000.  Again, a fluke; I hadn’t had to pay rent for nearly two months, and so I was able to save all of my income.  This is frustrating, since I’ve been in the city for two years now and my overall networth has simply hovered around the $20,000 mark.

Sleep is for sissies

So what should I do? Well, I’m thinking diversification. My part time writing job has been going really well; I’m loving the work that I’m doing, and my boss is happy enough with my progress that she has offered to introduce me on her website with a photo and a title like “Junior Editor” or “Writer.” (Boss, if you’re reading this right now, you rock!) She is completely supportive of my idea of building more freelancing work, and since I now have this technical writing under my belt, I’m hoping to branch out and start bidding on additional projects.

There’s no doubt in my mind that this will be time consuming; I’ll have to find some sites that offer some gigs, and I have no doubt that I’ll be competing with swarms of other writer wannabes who are also after part time income. However, working with my part time boss has given me confidence that I have the skills it takes to create a steady part time business.  I’m disciplined enough to work from home, and I don’t mind working evenings and weekends.  But it will take additional discipline to seek out the work.

My new goal is to create an additional stream of income of $1000+ per month by December 31, 2011.  That, coupled with my full time work, will provide enough to not only cover all my bills, but to save for retirement and pay off my car. It will also give me the mental security of knowing that I can rely on myself, should worse come to worse and I lose my job. I really, really don’t think that will be happening, but having the extra money and being able to top up my emergency fund will smooth out a few wrinkles that have appeared in my forehead.  I love my apartment so very much, and since I’ve had crazy turbulence recently I have a deep-seated fear of losing it.

That being said, I don’t want to work so hard that I smush out all my creative juices. It’s important for me to continue working on artistic projects, so I’ll just have to do my best to strike a balance between work, play, and extracurricular creativity.  That, or figure out a way of only sleeping 3 hours per day.  According to Tim Ferriss, it’s doable.

Plan: rather than being completely dependent on my full time source of income, build a network of part time opportunities that allow me to generate the additional income I need in order to attain my goals. Start with writing and e-assignments.  See where it goes.

In other news, I looked at real estate in Stratford, one of my favourite towns in Ontario. I lived there for a year and loved every second of it. You can get a GORGEOUS old Victorian home for under $300,000.  You can’t even buy 500 freaking square feet in Toronto for that.  For me personally it’s just another reason to hold off buying in the city, especially since I’m uncertain if I’ll be staying here beyond three years.  I don’t know if I’ll be heading to Stratford per se, but I think I’ll definitely have to explore other cities to try and find “the One.”

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August 17, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 21 Comments »

Dumpster Diving

This is my dumpster dive find ... the flower photography on top is a gift from my Dad, who is a talented nature photographer

Outside of my apartment building, there is a free-for-all area where the contents of entire apartments get dumped when people move. I don’t know why, but it seems like they literally just empty the entire apartment and dump everything out back. On Wednesdays or Thursdays, it all gets picked up when the city collectors arrive. Until then, it’s Open Season on rummaging.

Since it’s the beginning of a new month, last night there were two apartments worth of stuff out back.  I braved the crowd of other rummaging residents and scored this wicked little crescent table. I really don’t have a spot for it per se, BUT I’m going to practice my furniture distressing skills on this piece before I attack my dresser. I bet that when I’m finished, I could sell it for $30 or so. That’s how much you’d pay for it in Wal-Mart, but instead it’s custom painted and made of real wood.

I recently found this blog called Centsational Girl, and I’m in LOVE. I’d been searching for a word that describes my style and the things that I like, and through Centsational Girl I realized that my style is Shabby Chic. It’s perfect for me because it’s recycled elegance … I can dumpster dive from behind my apartment, do an hour of finishing, and have a beautiful original piece. I’ve been looking into this decorating style, and half the fun is scoring all these funky pieces from flea markets, and refinishing them to make them your own.  Cheap, custom, and timeless.  Beautiful!

In apartment related news, I’ve decided I probably don’t want to paint, except MAYBE two walls in my kitchen a pale sage green. I’ve grown kind of partial to the paint colour in my unit, an almost-peachy neutral, which is really warm in the mornings and kind of neutral at night. It would cost about $50+ per room to paint (I have no supplies of my own, I’d have to buy rollers and trays), and even though it’s illegal to ask someone to pay a fine to repaint the walls after you leave, I know it’s common practice for many large apartment corporations, and I really don’t want the headache of knowing that they’ll go after me when I leave. Maybe I’ll change my mind in a couple of months, but for now, it’s not worth the stress, either now to paint, or when I move to fight the property management. For now … I can hardly wait to show you the photos from the dining room, in a month when I can afford a centrepiece of pink and white hydrangeas, it’s going to be a stunner!

I have also had some ideas for businesses that I want to start in a couple of years. I’m enjoying my job at present and it’s a great way to build some capital, while using my evenings and weekends to work on projects that will develop the skills I’ll need. But I am already plotting some ideas … I’m throwing around the idea of a Euro-sabbatical, going over for a year or more to live. It’s going to be entirely dependent on my work situation, my romantic situation, etc., but I don’t want to wait TOO long to go on a big adventure. Life’s too short … but at the same time, I could really use the stability for a couple of years.

So here’s the plan:

-Work for and live in Toronto for a minimum of two more years, pay off my car, build my investments and cash supply as much as I can, have as many adventures as I can

-Travel as much as possible in the interim – try and take a three week trip to somewhere, like Tanzania for Kilimanjaro, or Machu Picchu.

-Go on Euro-adventure for a year; live in France, England or Ireland, continuing to work in some capacity. Either put all furniture into storage, or sell it (don’t worry Mom, I would DEFINITELY store your beautiful kitchenette set and whatever bed frame I end up buying). Find a way to store my car, or sell it.
-Come back and start my own business

The thought of selling/storing all this stuff that I’m working on accumulating is making me feel a little nauseous, but at the same time, life is meant for having adventures, and I don’t want to NOT go on an international adventure simply because I have “stuff” holding me back. So even as I acquire all these beautiful things, I’m doing my best to put myself in a mindset of detachment, ready to let go of it all if necessary. I should be grateful that I have the opportunity to have such lovely items, before they get donated/given away/sold to someone else who will appreciate their beauty.

After all, all I need is a really solid dumpster dive when I get back, and I’m back in the game.

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August 3, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 9 Comments »

I am a tumbly tumbleweed

Yet another personal post – I swear to God I’ll start talking about Personal Finance again soon.

Today was my second day on my new job and I absolutely LOVE it.  I received a call today from my boss, and he told me he was simply calling to tell me that he had received a ton of positive feedback about my performance, and to commend me for the work.  The people I work with are friendly, helpful, and positive.  They have all been on this team for a minimum of five years, some of them have been on the team for ten or more years.  This, to me, is a VERY good sign.  The pace is fast, but manageable.  There are a lot of kinks to work out but I’m loving the opportunity, since I’m already starting to tweak the office to my liking.  Tomorrow I’m bringing in a kettle to have tea available for the agents.  On Monday I’m going to try to bring in cookies.  My goal is to make the office the coolest place to be.

My boss has called me talented from the first day, and today he told me that although the salary we agreed to is absolutely guaranteed, he likes to reward ability highly.  Unless I’m mistaken, that means as long as I keep up the good work, I can do even better with how much income I’m raking in.  It really seems like a great match, because I have always wanted to excel in a position, and now it feels like I’m valued enough to keep me motivated.

The reason I’m a tumbly tumbleweed, however, is due to another set of crazy circumstances, I need to find a place to live on my own.  I was going to move into a big ol’ house in the West End with some girlfriends, but my new job is very far north and I was genuinely worried about the commute from the Annex, and I have decided that I miss living alone.  It has nothing to do with my girlfriends, and everything to do with the fact that I need some space to heal after the complete “ripping off the bandaid” that happened when I lost my job and house.  It’s the final loose end that I need to tie up after the Liberty Village Saga.  Plus it’s a surefire way to guarantee that no one will walk in on me when I’m in savasana in the middle of the living room, or belting along the lyrics to Avenue Q.  Plus, I think I can comfortably afford my own place.

I’m going to use the time alone to really reset myself and my life.  I’m so happy with my part time job and my full time job.  I’m also SO incredibly happy about how things are with my boyfriend (that’s right…boyfriend.  It’s official.  As of last night.)  This is a great opportunity for me to take some time to myself and figure out what makes me happy.  Because the bf, as an investment banker on Bay Street, works insanely long hours, I only get to see him a couple times a week, if that.  So I get to have this wonderful man in my life, while at the same time having a ton of time for myself.  He’s so awesome.  I’m gushing.  Eeeeeeee.

Point being, that I’m going to start running again.  I’m going to start meditating, and I’m going to try to catch at least one yoga/Bodyflow class per week.  I’m going to start to try cooking again, and reading fiction on a regular basis.  Basically, I’m going on a personal retreat, but it’ll be in the comfort of my own apartment.

Om mani padme Hummmm.

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June 24, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 8 Comments »

Can I Has Job?

It’s been a very busy week for me (strange, because I’ve been unemployed since Monday afternoon) and I have some great updates career/financial wise.

My job interview for the Bridle Path position went so well that I was hired on the spot. I was supposed to start tomorrow at 12pm (I had booked my car for maintenance at 8am already), but then my boss forgot he needed to get some things in order before I came in, so I start Wednesday 9am. Essentially, I’m doing everything that I did at my old job once removed, but getting paid appropriately. I asked for a salary of $42,000 and got it. This is guaranteed, and will keep me comfortable – however, he’s also going to set a sales target for himself. If I help him achieve it (aka harrass him on a daily basis to follow up on his leads, etc.) then I’ll be awarded a bonus of between $5,000 and $10,000 (look out, new boss, you are TOTALLY hitting that goal, so help me God). I’ll be awarded an annual raise, and I can take personal time whenever I need to, as long as I don’t abuse it. There’s nothing near the office so I’ll be saving a ton of money by preparing my own lunches.  It was made clear to me that as long as I do a good job, I will be rewarded, although my request for $42k is a guaranteed minimum.

I’m thrilled because I’ll be issued a formal letter outlining my salary and bonuses. I will NOT be doing sales, which I am so happy with, as my previous bosses have used sales as an excuse to not pay me more. I have absolutely no interest in being a salesperson whatsoever. I love houses, but like I mentioned in my previous post, my strength really lies in being the go-to support system, not the star. At least at this point in my life. And that’s just fine with me, because it will allow me to have a life, which combined with my friends and family, is what it’s all about.

I’ve started the freelancing technical writing work which I have found very challenging, but in a good way.  So far, I’ve been able to pick things up relatively quickly, but it involves a lot of poring over multiple documents and compiling it into a single, coherent document for presentation.  It’s not really freelancing per se since I’m only working for the one person and organization, but for the sake of goal setting I’ll keep referring to it as such.  I’m going to aim to do between 10 and 15 hours above and beyond my full time job with this work, which should help me easily attain my goal of paying off the remainder of my car loan before Christmas.

I am excited to start my new job, but it feels different from the other times.  Both of my other full time jobs were positions that I desperately wanted.  I wanted my first job because it was my entry into the real estate industry at an office that I adored, and I wanted my second job because I needed more money and because I was having huge difficulties with my one boss.  Now, I’m in a place where I feel comfortable accepting this position, but not as I have in the past, like a drowning person desperately clinging to a raft that turned out to be a hungry shark.  This time, I feel confident in my abilities and experience, and able to assert my expectations.  This job definitely isn’t going to be a walk in the park, but I’m walking in with reasonable and fair expectations.  In the past, I’ve been quickly disappointed when verbal promises were broken.  This time, it’s in writing, and my boss has made it clear that he likes to keep his employees both longterm and happy.

What this means, between my new job and my part time work, is I will FINALLY be in the $50k range that I have been aching to be in for so long.  If I get this bonus, and I’m able to keep up with the part time work, I may be able to push it to $60k.  It’s taken 2+ years and so many broken promises to get here, but this is AMAZING for my age, and if I’m able to hit this target, I’ll be so lucky and grateful.

My motto is going to be save, save, save.  Step 1:  Pay off car.  Step 2:  Finish Kilimanjaro travel fund  Step 3:  Save for emergency fund/down payment.  Step 4:  Buy property.  Step 5:  Travel all the while.

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June 20, 2011 | Money Rabbit | 16 Comments »

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