The time has finally come that I’ve talked about for months. As of January 1st I have been laid off due to seasonal constraints on my job. Since this is my first year working there and my first time being laid off, it’s been strange to have such an abundance of time off.
I’ve really gotten some pet bonding time in.
Now that I have no income aside from my freelance side income I’m feeling the strain of not being able to pay my bills without cutting into my bank account. It’s going to be pretty painful to watch, but I think it’s necessary and luckily I’ve been padding my bank account with extra money in preparation for this situation.
I’ve been trying to apply to any jobs in my field that I can find, but so far there hasn’t been much. I’m going to keep trying and perhaps venture into some things I’m interested in that aren’t necessarily the normal thing someone with a marketing degree might do. I think that being very open to wherever my life and passion takes me is important at this point.
But I digress. This will be a tough few months for me. Here are some solutions that I’ve come up with to get through these 3 months as painlessly as possible :
I’m getting a break on rent. It’s not really rent, just my share of the mortgage and house bills. My boyfriend has very nicely decided that he doesn’t mind me paying a bit less for the next few months. That’s my biggest expense so it will make a huge difference for me.
I’m applying for unemployment. I’ve never filed before so it’s new to me, but it will give me a little bit of income that should help to cover my major bills. I’ll still be looking for other work but for now it’s necessary and since I’ve been paying unemployment insurance for years at least I’ll get some money back from that.
Cutting back on my spending. In the past few months I have been reasonable, but generally been able to buy some clothes when I want to, go to dinner when I want to, etc. I could easily have been more careful. I may even try a no-spend month. But that might be better left until April when I’ll at least have work to fill my time again. I am going to try to adjust my budget to reflect my lack of income for the next few months.
I’m getting jacked. I always work out a lot, but I’ve been going to the gym for at least 2 hours on most days. I go for a run, do some weightlifting and then go for a walk with a friend later on during the day. Considering it’s a flat rate cost of $43 to use the gym each month, it’s a free way to get out of the house and do something I love at the same time.
Loan payments will be cut back to their minimums. It’s definitely not my ideal situation but it just means that come April I will have to make a great commitment to repayment in order to reach my goal of $10,000 in repayment for 2013.
I am striving to get through the next few months with at least a bit of money left in my bank account. It’s already midway through January. I think time will fly and it will be April in the blink of an eye.
That GIF is cracking me up. Good luck!
Sounds like you have a good plan! Love that GIF also haha
Working out is very important to maintaining your sanity. Remember that deferment of loans is not shameful, though you must carefully review your loans agreement. Also, you’re very smart to have avoided credit card debt. Good luck to you and I wish you the very best on the job hunt. I would suggest you talk to anyone and everyone you might know. I have gotten 2 freelance positions and 2 full-time jobs just by talking to old buddies and family. You really never know what could come up.
Thanks so much! I do need to talk to people and network more for sure. I am not going to defer loans, just going to pay the actual payment instead of the extra money I throw at them every month usually. Hopefully by next year at this time when January comes I’ll have even more in the bank so I can keep my payments high during the winter.
Looks like you’ve got it all figured out. I heard they’ve recently changed the EI rules so let us know how your experience with it goes. Best of luck over the next few months ^_^
Thank you! I’ll let you know for sure.
Sounds like a good plan! My fiance works seasonally, and is off from December to March typically. While it sucks having less income for that time period, he usually saves enough that it’s not particularly noticeable, plus he keeps the house very clean and does all the cooking, which is nice!
It is definitely annoying to have less income, but it’s kind of a welcome time because I don’t feel fulfilled by my job so it’s nice to take a break, recharge, and get back to the moneymaking (until I can get a job that I don’t want to take a break from!! :) ) You should see how much cleaning and cooking I’ve been doing. My boyfriend loves it!
I wish you luck in your job search. I hope you find what you are looking for.
Sorry to hear you were laid off! Good luck in looking after things and hopefully you will find a new job very soon.
Thank you :)
I just recently found your blog and always get a chuckle out of the title of your blog. Whenever I see it I always think of that show “Extreme Home Makeover” and how they say “move that bus” at the end when they finally reveal the newly remodeled home. I always picture a bunch of people screaming “Drop that debt” whenever I come to this blog. Haha. Can’t wait till the day that you get to scream, “I JUST DROPPED THAT DEBT!!!!”
haha thank you! I never made that connection, only seen Extreme Home Makeover a few times. Thanks so much! I can’t wait either.
I just sat down this am and read every post on your blog. It is informative, interesting and well written. Well done!
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Sorry to hear about the bad luck. Definitely not a good way to start the new year. I found when I was in between jobs a few years ago, having that side income definitely helped me stay afloat (although a lot of times I felt I was frantically treading water).
Wishing you lots of luck in your job search. It’s a tough time, but you’ll get through it. :)