Let's Talk Money

Do I see myself as financially responsible? Well, not exactly. I know I could be more responsible with how I spend my money. The last time I went home, my parents showed me my bills and pointed out how much I was spending, which a lot of it was for things I just wanted but did not really need. A lot of it was spent at one of my favorite places of all time. Starbucks. Well, after reviewing my bills, I decided I would have to make the tough decision to cut Starbucks out of my daily routine and just settle for making my own coffee. It was a sad day for me, but I know it will help me a lot in the long run regarding choosing wisely where to spend my money.

I have not ever prepared a budget before. I had known of them previously, but I myself have never prepped one. Making a budget in class for Cocky was the first time I had ever had experience with one, and it was time consuming! It is not something I would like to do by hand ever again. Thank goodness there are other ways to prepare a budget or I would not even think about budgets ever again. However, after making a budget in class, it made me think again about my spending and income. I decided it would not hurt to make a budget for myself to help me keep track of my money.

When I graduate, I would like to be in a position financially where it will not be hard to pay off my student loans. Currently, I am still applying for more grants and scholarships so that my parents will not have to pay as much. I am also striving to do even better in my classes because I know that can affect the scholarships I have now and any future scholarships I may receive. Also, by making a budget for myself, I can see where I spend my money most and factor that in when I go out and decide what to spend (or not spend) my money on.

I had not noticed the financial status of the students at Hand Middle School. I come from a family that did not have much growing up and they believe in being resourceful and saving whenever we can. Whenever I go out, no one would ever be able to guess that my family does not make that much money. Because of this, someone’s financial status is the last thing I think about when I see them.

I found that the most useful thing from the Career Center presentation was that they have multiple options to get experience in any field of work. I learned that they have externships and co-op opportunities which are very interesting to me. If I could have an internship in any field, it would be in the medical field. The majority of my family works in the medical field, so it is what I am most familiar with.