Budgeting in the Fun Stuff
by Crystal

1.      Which is better, employment or self-employment? What made you decide to become a full time blogger?

I prefer self-employment, but I think it's definitely a personal choice. With regular employment, there seems to be less flexibility, but my income was more stable and I loved the included benefits including health insurance and real vacation time.  With self-employment, I can live my life exactly how I choose, but I rarely take an actual, full day off.

Plus, my success or failure is 100% on me every day...you can't ever slack off or have a bad day and not feel it directly affect your income when you are in business for yourself.  But the flexibility and no commute win it for me.  I decided to become a full time blogger once I realized that I could make more on my own and have more fun doing it.

2.      Is it preferable to teach our children about finances? What are the roles of the parents?

My parents definitely taught me enough about personal finance to give me a solid foundation for me to work with, and for that I am eternally grateful.  In a perfect world, all parents would know enough and take the time to teach their kids the basics so they have the knowledge to succeed.  

But some parents haven't learned yet themselves, and some just are too overwhelmed to fit in yet another life lesson.  But yes, in a perfect world, parents would teach kids about spending less than you earn, how to save for their future, and how to keep track of their money day-to-day.

3.      If out of the budget, can the credit card save the problem?

I see credit cards as a way to earn rewards on money that we would have spent anyway.  But that is the key - only using them to buy stuff or pay for a service that you had budgeted for already.  No amount of rewards can make up for carrying credit card debt month-to-month and paying any interest at all.  

So credit cards are not for everyone.  If they make someone feel like they have money to spend that they don't actually have, that can be financially dangerous.

4.      I want to earn more however my day job is demanding thus I have no spare time still I want to retire rich, what do I need to do?

When I started blogging, I was working a different day job for 45-50 hours a week.  I also was volunteering about 15 hours a week.  I felt low on time, but somehow I fit in another 30-40 hours a week to blog and join online forums.

Absolutely anybody can sacrifice and find more time.  The trick is finding something to make money with that is worth sacrificing sleep/fun/etc. But when someone tells me that they have no time and need to save for their future, I suggest looking at their income source and expenses.  

Can you make more in the position you already have through raises or promotions?  Do you want to expend that effort?  Do you see yourself in your current job for another 5 years or longer?  Do you have a different dream job in mind?  How can you get into it while maintaining a paycheck? I find that people can accomplish whatever they really want to accomplish.  

Sometimes they just want to vent that they don't make enough though, so it's important to make sure they really want to make more and invest that time before giving suggestions.

For expenses, almost anyone can cut something.  So if the income side of the equation is set already, then it's time to look at spending.  For example, my husband and I could cut cable and our food spending right now to save about $300 a month if we really needed the cash or wanted to use it for something else.  

We make the conscious decision to spend that money since we do also save quite a bit.  It's not rocket science - you get rich by spending less than you earn AND by investing or saving the difference.

5.      The internet is huge, for a beginner; do they still have a chance to make money?

Of course!  The only reason I've succeeded online is that I followed through on what I needed to do - commenting, guest posting, networking, etc.  I put in the time and worked those 100+ hour work weeks for nearly two years to make it happen.  I'm not special or super-human - I just did it.  I sacrificed time with friends and family.  It was tough sometimes but exhilarating too.  

That is the main thing that holds people back - themselves.  99% of success is just doing whatever it is that you need to do.  Making excuses, believing those excuses, or prioritizing other stuff over the time that you need to use to create your own success are the main ways to fail before ever starting.  Just start!