Copyright (c) 2011 Julie Austin
You've done everything right. You had a good job and you saved for a rainy day. Then you lost the good job and now it's raining. With the high cost of living, unemployment checks really don't go very far, especially in the big city. So now you've started dipping into your savings and you're starting to freak out a little. What's a responsible person to do?
First of all, you want to tackle the problems before they get too desperate to handle. Focus in like a laser beam on everything you need to do to get work. Take temp work if you have to. Take work you feel is beneath you if you have to. Work for less if you have to. Because if you dip into savings too much you'll end up with no job AND no savings. And that's when things will spiral out of control.
Always make sure you have health care coverage. The minute you let it slip is the very minute you may wind up in the emergency room. I know this from personal experience. Don't let it happen to you!
Even if you do have to dip into savings, make sure you keep your credit score up. Contrary to what some people believe, applying for unemployment benefits doesn't affect your credit score. These days employers will look at that and also your long term unemployment and neither one of them looks good on paper. So pay your bills on time and pay them in full. Late fees really add up. Make sure you don't have any. This is what I would call stupid tax.
The only way to stay afloat and get ahead is to either make more or save more or both. Saving more means cutting expenses to the bone. That should go beyond cutting out your daily latte at the local coffee establishment on the corner and wearing the same clothes you've had since the 90′s. Pare it down to the absolute basics. Nothing more. From now on you'll have to keep track of every penny you spend. Carry around a notebook and make sure you document everything. Then get an online system like Quicken to put it in. You'll probably be surprised how the little things add up. Even things like parking meters where you put in change will add up at the end of the month. Make sure it's all down in your notebook.
If you have to, think of all of this as a temporary situation. It'll make it easier to deal with. Keep your eye on the future and make sure you will still have one.
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