Money's not bad, so why's it so difficult to make a living? I guess I need a second job, or a rich wife.

Income: $16/hr, $400 take-home/week = $1,600/month
Expenses: $750 rent, $300 car note, $150 insurance, $200 food, $150 student loan, not much left for miscellaneous bills and surprises(utilities, vehicle maintenance, speeding tickets, gas) = deficit for savings. Maybe bankruptcy will bring me a little bit of relief. Anybody else having a difficult time?
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I wud hope every1 is fixing their car when things malfunction or at least maintaining it to help prevent things from happening. It is a used car and I got it for a good deal, besides the interest that I'm paying on it. Im young and I have a need for speed so I will get the occasional ticket, This is an extra $75-$150 which puts me in a bind. We eqaute a person with a lead foot as a bad driver, but ironically there's those "running the roads" within the speed limits causing more accidents. As a result of my "criminal" record, insurance companys are excessively charging $300+ a month for insurance which if they were the only company available I would have to make a decision between payin my insurance or eating. Gas prices are at $2.89 for 87-octane. Surprised the hell outta me! My $750 rent provides me a "lovely" apartment in a not-so-lovely neighborhood. If I knew God's address, I wud promptly mail him a check for 10% every week guaranteed to never bounce. Til then I'll hold it for him.

You make a good point, the problem is everyone wants to get into your pocket and there is no one that can stop this crazy cycle by themselves. Used to be you would get TV free and phone calls costs10cents or less, a pair pf tennis shoes were $20.00, Now just the stuff I mentioned is one weeks paycheck for you. You need to get a better paying job, maybe for one of these companies that are making all the money, maybe it will balance out. Good Luck

That's a good income-I work a full time at 7.00 an hr & about 6.50+? an hr at my part time job,(I just got this 2nd job) & doubt if I make that much. (1 reason I still live at home but I don't have high bills.)

Been in your shoes...no fun living paycheck to paycheck.

I agree with the idea of finding a more economical apartment. It may not be your desire to find something different, but you may not have a choice.

Bankruptcy, depending on your situation, may not help you much...or even be possible. Rules have changed.

Trim the fat...speeding tickets are something you can control. Insurance rates will go down as well.

How often do you eat out, grab a coffee, ect? You would be amazed what you can save...

The goal is not to reduce your budget. The goal is to produce more. A farmer never produce as close to his budget as you are because he plans for storms ruining some, animals and insects eating some, some of it dying, etc. You should produce more.

Get a better paying job. You mentioned student loan, are you out of college and only making $16.00 an hour? A rich wife would be nice, but you should marry within your norm, and it sounds like you need to get a roommate first to share the cost of rent and work towards getting a better paying job, maybe a second job. Bankruptcy will only make things worse for you as you won't be able to get any credit and you may still have to pay some of your debts back once you can. Try not and get anymore speeding tickets, think about car pooling, changing some of your spending habits. Did you know that if you save two dollars a day for forty years, that you will have over a million dollars. You don't have to be a high income earner to eventually have monetary security, which most of us strive for by the time we are ready to retire. Also, if you don't get anymore tickets your insurance cost will come down. Maybe you should get a part time job, as well.

Work more hours or get a better job. These days, 16/hr isnt enough to survive.

I don't know where you live, but your rent is more than my house payment and I have a 2,500 S.F. home on a acre of land.

At $16.00 per hour x 2080 hours is $33,280.00 a year. That's not bad money, but then I live in Oklahoma where everything is cheaper.

Live within your means & you'll be ok. If you can't afford it, you don't need it.

You are spending too much in rent. Get room mates. You have no excuse paying that much. I got 500 a month in Mountain View CA, and 700 a month in a luxury apartment in downtown San Jose, CA.

You have no excuse for the car loan. Buy a used car. You can get something good for 3000 total, and insurance will be less. Save the 300 dollar car loan for when you can afford it, because right no you can't.

You're spending too much on food. I got by eating steak and drinking beer for 30 dollars a week, you can too. Cook your own food.

Gas is not a "surprise."

Your problem isn't making a living, it's living beyond your means. You feel entitled to a standard of living you simply can't afford. Cut back.

If you declare bankruptcy based on that, you're a loser. When I made 16 dollars an hour I cut back on my costs and I was still SAVING money.

Your fundamental problem is your rent is too high for your income.

It shouldn't be more than 25% of your take home. Yours is almost 50%. If you correct it, you should free up enough money to live more comfortably.

try this....

http://www.earnxtraathomesg.com/index.php

Speeding tickets? Insurance rates?

Perhaps check out "The Cheapest Family in America", or the Debt Diet.

Priorities. Trim the fat. There are things that are impulse and not really a need. If you need to speed and fix your car, and run the roads, then yes, get a second job.

you need to dump your car. get something paid for. car payments are a killer. imagine if you could give yourself that 300 a month. it wouldn't be so difficult then. been there. done that.

yes, its difficult, but we have to get rid of stuff we really can't afford and stop trying to afford it.

I know exactly how you feel because I felt the same way for the first 55 years of my life. Then, with the help of a mentor (an angel I think), I finally learned why I struggled financially most of my life. The simple reason is because that is exactly what I focused all my thoughts on...how I always struggled to pay the bills and my lack of money.

What do I mean? Read this entire article and you will discover a HUGE secret about how you can change your financial life...

The mind (and sub-conscious mind) is so powerful it will automatically attract into your life what you think about all the time. In other words, if you constantly think about how poor you are and how much you struggle financially guess what your powerful sub-conscious mind is going to bring into your life - more struggle and more lack of money.

That's what it brought to me because that's what I constantly thought about. Financial struggle and lack of money is what you're focusing your thoughts on and the mind has to automatically bring you what you think about. It's a natural law of living. The law of attraction brings you what you think about the most.

Now, if you begin to "shift" your thoughts to finding solutions to your money problems something magical begins to happen. Answers, solutions, and opportunities begin to show up in your life. Why? Because this is what you are thinking about and your mind MUST bring you what you think about. It's a scientific fact. It's a natural law of the universe.

Look at it this way...you know there is a law gravity right? If you fall you know you are going to hit the ground because of gravity. You can't see gravity. You can't touch gravity. But you definitely know it's there right? The law of gravity is a natural law of the universe, or God, or the Higher Power, or whatever you call it.

Well, it's not the only natural law of living. The law of attraction teaches us that what we think about is what we get in our life. When a rich man loses all his money (ie. Donald Trump) and goes bankrupt how is that he can again make tons of money after that disaster? It's because he knows how to think the correct way. He doesn't think about how poor and unfortunate he is. He doesn't wallow in self-pity. He thinks about finding solutions, answers, and concentrates on finding opportunities to make money.

You can do the same. It doesn't matter where you are in life at this very moment. I don't care if you make $15,000 a year or $150,000 a year. You can totally change your life by learning to change your thoughts. Change what you think about. Decide what you want your life to look like in the near future and keep those thoughts in your mind as much as possible. It's hard at first, but it gets easier.

When you do this you are directing your sub-conscious mind to find answers, solutions, and opportunities and bring them into your life. It works. It's a natural law and you cannot escape the effects of your thinking.

So decide to change your thinking and I guarantee you will begin to see changes in your life.

Just as sure as the law of gravity will make you hit the ground when you fall, the law of attraction will bring change and opportunities into your life when you change your thinking. By changing your thoughts you can be anyone you want, do anything you want, and have anything you want. All successful people have known this secret and they all used it because they knew it truly worked. You don't need an MBA, or any other degree to become successful. You don't need a ton of money. You need to simply learn to think the correct way and countless opportunities will begin to present themselves to you. You need to take the time to learn more about the natural laws of living and thinking.

If you want to learn more simply go to Yahoo and type in "the law of attraction." You will find many websites that will help you begin your journey to change your life and be, do, and have anything you want. It won't happen overnight, but it WILL happen.

If you would like some coaching from me you may email at: dougd55@yahoo.com I will ask you questions and determine how I can help you. It's all done by email, so don't be afraid. All I ask is honesty about your present life and where you want to go in life. I presently work with many people and don't know how long I will be able to accept new students, but I have room for a few at this time...and it's FREE. I've been around for nearly 60 years and I have what I need and want from this life and now and it's my mission to help as many people as I can before I'm gone...Doug, Life Coach.

I recommend petitioning your financial matter to God. According to Philippians 4:19, "My God will supply all of your needs according to his riches in Glory". Ask and you shall receive. Also, Do you tithe 10% of your gross income ? This will help also. By giving your firstfruits(10% of your gross income) to God, He will supply and provide for you.

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