Money Conclusion

Can I be honest for a second? This series I did on money was HARD. You would think it easy to write on a topic which has so many areas as it touches us in all aspects of our lives!

Why was it hard? Well, in essence when I started writing I wanted to write objectively without too much of my opinion of feelings on things. Because feelings are not objective, right?

However, it proves quite difficult to write about such a personal matter. Money being personal? Yes! Let’s say for example I ask you how much you make a month, how does that make you feel? Or, if I ask you how much you spend on for example your electricity bill – how can this not BE personal?

That is why the last two articles became a tad more personal and that is why I have decided to just write in the future. If it becomes personal and is not objective, then so be it. It IS my blog after all! 😀

In any case, this topic is now officially closed! As I have done in the past two series, hereby the introduction of next two week’s topic. Drum roll please! I’m going to talk about innovative ideas. Either from here, or from what is to be found on the internet.. or whatever. Again. I have absolutely NO idea why I’m making my life so difficult, BUT I am not giving up. Yet. 😀

Money conclusion? I learnt that I have to embrace having an opinion on such a difficult subject, and being okay to publish it as well. Wish me luck will y’a!?

Bon weekend all – see you on the other side!   

Value of money

Yesterday morning I had to go purchase some papers for the companies I own. Sitting there waiting for my turn, I started thinking on the money I was to hand over to the nice lady in order to receive the papers. 

Imagine someone telling you: “Hey! give me $x and I will provide you with some papers“, in my mind that would be quite a lousy exchange, right? Just for papers? You gotta be kidding right?

So this prompted me to think about the value of said papers. They will be needed for transactions later on during this year: either for taxes (yay! hm), for bank institution or even in some cases to prove certain aspects of the companies. Now how does the office which is issuing these papers determine it’s value? Because to me, sitting there, the papers need to provide at least three transactions. I can imagine at the same time, that for other people, these papers are literally worth nothing because they don’t perform the same work that my companies do.

So what is money actually worth: what is it’s value? $5 for me might mean not much, while in another country $5 that would buy me a meal in a fine dining restaurant. What about if we add time to this equation? $5 today might be $1 in 20 years in value – who knows? So then we’re talking about inflation or time value of money (there’s even an acronym for it: TVM)

This topic is so diverse, that it proved quite difficult to write a short something on it, because besides adding time to value, you can also add quality, you can add power and so the list goes on.

What do you think is the value of money? Is it even something that we can determine? Let me know your thoughts!

Photo by Oleg Magni from Pexels

sustainable money

What in the world is sustainable money and where do we get some?
Well it’s a made-up phrase I made up. There is no such thing as sustainable money as far as I know, while there is a whole bunch of sustainable other things as can be seen here or read this article or here.

Confession time: I am not the most-green-person out there. I know that plastic has been branded as evil some time ago due to what it does to our environment. There is climate change and a whole bunch of things going on that I don’t know much about to be totally honest. And I’m not making excuses for my un-involvement either: it’s like everything else in life, a choice one makes. Now why then, write about it?

Because contrary to what I have written above, I care a tiny bit on what I am contributing to the world. As you might remember me pointing this out, I own Pop of Flavor. I sell flavored popcorn, of which the Rainbow, Chocolate and the Jalapeño pop are the top sellers. Yay, you might think. Great! But what does that to do with sustainability, and what does it have to do with money?

Well that’s where the coined-up phrase came from. Because in order to keep the popcorn fresh, they have to be packaged. Now what does preserve popcorn to last up to 3 to 5 days, one would ask? Yes, plastic! Now I want you to remember this tiny detail as it will come back later in the conclusion okay? Plastic is relatively cheap.

There is one thing you need to know about the company: the philosophy behind what we serve is that we try to make everything as healthy as possible. Coconut oil for making the popcorn, organic kernels and whenever possible using locally grown ingredients (like peppers for example). Next detail I want you to remember is this: coconut oil is not cheap at all (1) and living on an island means importing a 50 pound bag of kernel is brutal on pricing (2).

Okay, so I went to the packaging stores here on the island to look for alternatives for plastic packages. I am told that tins might be the best next thing. So, I went searching for tins online. I got an instant heart failure, of which I have not yet recuperated and thus Pop of Flavor has since stood still. We are not actively promoting it because we have not found a solution yet to this problem.

So to tie in the sustainability money. If asked, I would agree that the change starts with us in making sure our environment at the minimum stays where it is for the future generations. I would also agree that we should reduce our personal waste and one-use-plastic is one of those possible reductions. But as can be seen with what this company did, single plastic use is difficult to ban – as yet… As I’ve seen when trying to do so for my own little company. Plastic is the only cheap ingredient in what I sell.

So, looking at this challenge with a fresh perspective, what would you do? Let me know in the comments below!

Budget priorities

Disclaimer: Today’s post is quite confrontational for me as it touches on things I haven’t resolved yet. But here it goes!!!
I’m going to state something bold here, so you have been warned. Unless you have looked your child in the eye – or yourself in the mirror for that matter – and had to tell him/her that you might not have enough for the food they need, then please consider yourself blessed.

Now no need start sending me coupons! This has occurred in the past and I am eternally grateful to those who stood by and helped us out in our hour of need. This spurns on another post about your inner circle or your community. Who are your friends and how can you contribute to their well being? The name says enough: it’s a circle so whatever you send out comes back ten-, thousand-, kazillion fold!

I digress, was talking about budget priorities. As some of you know, I don’t work for a boss (so I don’t have a regular job) since January 2016. The decision to take the leap was the best decision I have ever made: there is definitely no price for freedom. Up till Q3 of 2018 I was doing okay, but due to some health issues in 2019, it became a challenging financial year. Because of this, all resources dried up and by the end of the year it was quite a struggle. The lines between want and need then become blurry because even the basic needs are not being met.

So how do you overcome such a period? Because, what I’ve read online at that time, it seemed like everyone has stashes or piles of money stored away for a month or two survival until you get back on your feet. I couldn’t really find an answer on how to get through, if even that basic amount that you need to survive is not in your bank account. And that’s where the magic word (budget) entered the equation.

For a few years now (since 2016 to be exact) I have been collecting data. What am I spending money on? What is the company spending money on? ALL expenses have been recorded (you guessed it, in Excel :D) and now I have a view on exactly where the money goes. And because I had all this data, I was able to sit down with a budgeting person who then helped me see what I needed to make (my break even point) as a company, in order for me as a person to be alright as well.

Did that mean that I had money when my kids needed food? Nope! I survived that period purely by the Grace of God. He pulled us through without a doubt. What it did teach me is that budgeting is also part of the need, not of the want. If you don’t analyze your spending habits (data analysis baby!), it will be a tad more difficult to get to the next level.

And who doesn’t want to go to the next level? So are you ready? Set? Go set your budget priorities!

Photo by maitree rimthong from Pexels

Is Saving important

I can hear you thinking. “This is a rhetorical question, right? This woman can’t really  be asking this question! Are you for real?”

Well yeah I’m asking the question! It’s not just any question either: I want you to really ponder on it and then come back with the answer. If by then, the answer is yes, I’ll congratulate you on a job well done. If your answer is no, I’ll equally congratulate you: YAY! Job well done! 

Nope. I have not lost it. Yet. Because no matter which answer you have provided, that’s the answer which is applicable to your current situation. However, this does not mean that we can not adapt, learn and grow.

So why did you answer yes to “Is saving important”? Is it because society says so? Or is it something you inherently believe in? For me personally the answer to this question is dual. Yes, it’s important to save SOME money. Because to say is it important to save money to me, it might mean in my extreme-brain that I’m to SAVE [insert the word Alllll here] MONEY which means… NO to all happiness that buying that ticket to Africa will provide me for example. On the other hand, I do believe sometimes it is better to spend money than to save it (see previous example haha). 

And what do you know, there is a whole series on psychological reasons why some people seem at ease with saving, while others are having more difficulty to accomplish this task. It IS a difficult task after all…

What do you guys say: yay or nay to saving? And do you have any tips or tricks to use IF you are a saving person? Let us know your thoughts below in the comments!

The necessity of money

Let’s start with the theoretical stuff shall we? In essence it’s the history of where money came to be into existence. Instead of swapping 20 goats for a plane ride to Bonaire, we use money instead.

Having been on both sides of the equation (meaning both having money as not having any), I can say that having money provides the means to live with freedom. Ish. More on the “ish” later. I can also say, that not having money can provide stress. Ish. 

Why “ish” in both instances? Because what I have found is that yes, there IS the necessity of money present in our lives. Society that has been built has been built on the premise that if you want something – whatever that something is – you need to exchange it for something else. Only the sun comes up, or the air you breathe is free.. right? 

One thing I do know for sure, is that as long as everything is in balance, all is well. Having a lot of money but no peace provides the same amount of stress that having no money and being at ease with the situation provides peace. Let me phrase it differently. If you have a lot of money, and you still are not happy due to not having reached your ultimate goal(s) or whatever other reason you might have, then the amount of money you have, will not contribute to your peace. If you don’t have money, but you are free to do as you please (truly free!) and you are being taken provided for, this does contribute to a peaceful mind. Look at the sparrows: they don’t worry about where their next meal is coming from! But still they are happily chirping away every day. 

I realize that what I just said is alien to some, if not to many/all. And I am not promoting nothing of quitting jobs or doing any insane stuff. What I am promoting is living in the now, and trusting that you will be okay, regardless of your current circumstances. So yes, there is a necessity for money. Because with no money, life is pretty difficult in some instances. But at the same time – pursuing only the goal of attaining money is way above ‘money being a necessity’. Consider your choices wisely I would say.

What are your thoughts?

Blogging for Money 

Was reading an article the other day, which had this statistic in it:

• Only 6% of those surveyed earned over $60,000 annually 
• 68% of bloggers earned less than $5000 annually
• 11% of those surveyed earned more than $30,000 annually
• 57% made less than $2500 annually

First of all I had to read it again to make sure I understood it. Secondly, these are actually sad figures are they not? Only 6% of those surveyed. Now of course, we don’t know how many people they surveyed. So this could be a pool of 10 people or a pool of 10M – percentages don’t mean much if there is not more data added to it.

This got me thinking on blogging in general. Seemingly the idea is that when you blog, there is something that you’re pushing. Either a brand, or a product or you’re just blogging for money not attached to a specific product, service or brand. I haven’t found many articles stating that people blog for fun (so no agenda, hidden or otherwise) or even for therapeutic purposes.

Interesting! Because I’m blogging for fun, to get myself elevated to the next level and also remember the good old times in certain cases. I still don’t know where this blogging is taking me, but to say that I’ll be blogging for money at this point in time is not happening. 

And fun fact is, there are many things I could be pushing. My Excel skills, my flavored popcorn, the media production I’m part of, the think tank we’re currently setting up, and there are more. Oh. I probably DID blog for money just now didn’t I? 😀

In any case I’m happy with you guys who read the blog and give me comments on how to improve. It means a lot to me! Leave your comments below as usual! 

Money Goals 

The title of this message is off. Waayyy off to be exact. Because when you have money as a goal, you are actually setting yourself up for a trap! A trap? Really?

Yes, really. If money is the ultimate goal in your pursuit, there are a few basic elements that hinder that process. One of them is: when is enough enough? Once you hit your first target (of for example savings), you might want to set the bar higher and go for more. When will you stop? Another one can be: what are you actually pursuing? Is it security? And do we realize that security is non-existent to begin with?

I’ve watched the film “Up in the air” last weekend where the job of a gentleman was firing people. His speech implied that once we get stuck in a high paying job with no happiness, it was really difficult to let go of all that money.

So some of us keep being in the same cycle: get up Monday with difficulty going to a job which pays the bills, looking forward to Friday where you can relax in the weekend (which is actually 1 full day, because many are stressing on Sunday that the day after is Monday again!). That’s not living, that’s existing – and most of the time it is because money is the ultimate goal. Yes, you have to pay the bills, right? 

This means that sadly, we are only depending on money to get us through life and we are discarding the fact that as human beings we have gifts to give the world. Gifts that have absolutely nothing to do with money. And we are depriving one another to enjoy the gifts we all carry. Listen up: i’m not saying go quit your job. I am saying let’s start looking at money differently, Let us not make money the goal, but rather the tool in accomplishing any other goal you might have in life. And if you really look around long and hard, go use your time to develop that gift you’ve gotten. You like to cook? Well then start cooking during the weekend! You like to paint? Well why haven’t we seen your paintings yet? You like crunching numbers but you’re stuck in a high paying managerial job? What’s keeping you then to go back to what you love?

In closing: having money goals on it’s own can mean anything. But let’s not make money THE goal shall we? Let’s use it as it was intended and gravitate towards the things that bring you joy.

What are your thoughts? Let us know!