June 2017 – #MoneyGoals

Money is Power

Money is neither good or bad. It is a tool, and can be used for positive or negative things, just as a hammer could be used to build a home or could be used as a deadly weapon.

Unfortunately, we hear a lot about the tool of money being harnessed in negative ways, often in the pursuit of more money and power. Big tobacco companies paid researchers and scientists to claim cigarettes weren’t bad for people’s health, and sugar companies are doing the same thing today.*

But you, beautiful reader who is saving and investing, you can use the power your money grants you in positive ways. You can save lives, help your community, spend more time with people you love. Your power could help you quit a job that isn’t making you happy, travel the world, focus on your health, or volunteer more.

So keep up your efforts to save and invest, and if you haven’t started yet, now is the time! #MoneyGoals

*I found a lot of articles on this, so if you want to read more check these out:

http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/07/20/how-sugar-industry-using-big-tobacco-tactics-downplay-danger-sweets

http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/a-big-tobacco-moment-for-the-sugar-industry

Also, random fun fact I learned while doing some research for this post, every President we’ve had for the last 60 years has been a multi-millionaire.

5 Things I Wish I Did Freshman Year

Being home for my little sister’s graduation party took me back to my own transition from high school to college. I accomplished quite a bit freshman year, but here’s what I wish I would have done on top of those accomplishments.

1. Get a job (preferably on campus)

I worked a few jobs in high school and had a decent amount of savings going into my first year of college. I burned through those savings real quick, and then I had to get a job sophomore year. Looking back, I had so much free time as a freshman, and definitely should have picked up a part-time job.

2. Talk to my professors

This becomes easier as you progress in college. Class sizes get smaller and you become more comfortable talking to profs. But it is also less important at that stage as well. I needed the most help freshman year, but didn’t make it to a professor’s office hours until I was a junior.

3. Join more organizations

You get to meet new people who are interested in the same things you are, make friends, and most importantly eat free food. I didn’t want anything to decrease my free time after being involved with everything in high school, but I wish I would have joined more student organizations freshman year.

4. Eat healthier

I sometimes think that I wouldn’t eat as cleanly now if I didn’t experience throwing down multiple burgers with a side of Lucky Charms every meal as a freshman. But once you start grocery shopping and cooking on your own, you’ll realize that fresh fruit and vegetables are much more luxurious than Lucky Charms. So take advantage of the healthy food you can eat on your meal plan while you still have it!

5. Learn how to cook

The summer between my freshman and sophomore year I told myself that I would learn a few good recipes. It never happened, and the first few months of my sophomore year I was eating sandwiches, mac n cheese, and oatmeal cream pies. Now that I know how to cook for myself, it’s one of my favorite things to do, and it’s a fun and cheap way to entertain other people (who are usually impressed by your cooking skills).

And one thing I wish I didn’t do: Compare myself to other people

My first months of freshman year were spent looking at Facebook at what all my high school friends were doing at their colleges. I compared my experience to theirs, and I also compared myself to the people I met at my school who were taking huge class loads, landing awesome internships, and driving fancy cars.

One of the smartest people I know once told me that comparison is the thief of joy. It’s fun to reconnect with old friends, or meet new exciting people, but don’t use them as a yardstick for how your life is going. You have the power to make an awesome experience for yourself wherever you end up in college, or in life for that matter. Make your life what you want it to be.

Lessons Learned from Australia

Australia isn’t a radically different place from the US, but there were some notable differences and similarities I observed while spending two weeks there.

Public Transportation

Brisbane and the surrounding area easily had the best public transportation system I’ve ever seen. There was an endless stream of buses going in and out of the city, with an easy to use payment system, and relatively low fares. They have a separate “busway” next to the highway, a road only buses can drive on. So even if cars are stuck in traffic, the buses are still able to drive people around at normal speeds.

I was able to explore for 12 days straight and all of my public transportation costs combined came out to be $40 AUD (about 30 US dollars). One day, Mars and I took a train from Brisbane to Gold Coast which takes about an hour by car, and it was about $1.50 one way per person. That’s crazy.

Power Outlets

Every power outlet that I encountered in my time down under had a switch on it. This switch allows you to turn the flow of electricity to that outlet off whenever you aren’t using it, saving energy (therefore money) and making the outlets safer as well. When I told an Aussie that ours were on all the time, she asked “How expensive are your electricity bills?!”

Gas Prices

Gas is expensive in Australia compared to the US. Twice as expensive. While there, my friend filled up her car with 27.65 liters (about 7 gallons) of gas that cost $35.09 AUD (about 26 US dollars). Some quick math, and that comes out to a little over 4 US dollars a gallon, meanwhile the gas station by my house in Dallas sells the stuff for $2.20.

The majority of the difference in costs comes from a fuel tax in Australia. Their fuel tax when converted comes out to over $1 US dollar per gallon of gas in added price. This tax revenue is partially used to fix their roads, but a few articles I read argued that not enough of the tax revenue was being invested in infrastructure.

Vehicles

One would think that with the high gas prices, people would only buy small, fuel-efficient cars. While there were many compact cars, there were quite a few ridiculously large, jacked up vehicles as well. The black tube on the side of the truck on the right is a snorkel, which allows you to drive through water without flooding your engine. These trucks are a great way to explore the Australian bush, but a silly and inefficient way to drive on the highway (which is where I saw most of these contraptions).

While every country has their good and bad aspects, it’s always interesting to explore somewhere new and compare and contrast with your home country. Have you found something different abroad that you wished we had in the US?