Did you hear that HUGE sigh of relief?

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-25-2006
Did you hear that HUGE sigh of relief?
10
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 12:36pm

Oh, my gosh, I'm sure it could be heard all over the country! I had my annual review this morning and I knew the word about my potential raise would be coming with it. I woke early this morning and just couldn't go back to sleep. In years past, it was really just kind of a 'nice surprise' sort of thing because I wasn't paying any attention to finances. I diligently increased my 401k contribution and went on with life. This year I was really hoping for a raise that would allow me to increase my monthly household budget to something I think is a little more reasonable to maintain and then if I got any more than that, I would start funding a Roth. YEEEHAW! Not only did I get a 7% raise but I also got a lump sum bonus that I have never gotten before. And a glowing performance review. And a promotion to a more appropriate job title. I'm soooooo happy!

I haven't quite decided what to do with the bonus but the raise is definitely going where I had planned it to go. Instead of the 401k increase I've traditionally done with 1/2 my increase, it is going to go toward a Roth instead and I'm going to increase my household spending by $100 per month so I can have some breathing room. The bonus is sort of up in the air. I will definitely take part of it for 'fun' somehow but I will have to decide if I'm going to throw some at debt or at some of the savings goals I have or spend it all. I'm pretty tempted to buy the bike I've been wanting or spend it some other way. Will have to think about it. The debt repayment date is safely w/in the end of this year for me so I might be able to spend it.

Peg

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-09-1999
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 12:54pm
What great news for you! It sounds like you are well deserving & a hard worker. It's nice to see it pay off. Keep up the good work!
Have a GREAT day!
cindylee
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 4:33pm

Way to go!!!

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Avatar for cl_phocid
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 5:49pm
Peg - that is so great!

All my best,
Danni

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-06-2006
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 7:03pm
congrats! that's awesome.

Proud sister of a Marine:

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-09-2005
Wed, 03-08-2006 - 10:29pm
Wow! Fantastic -- congratulations That's just great!
Megan
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-25-2006
Thu, 03-09-2006 - 10:39am

Thanks everyone! :) Stay tuned for more ruminations on how to spend the bonus. I've spent it 10x already in my mind! LOL

Peg

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-06-2005
Thu, 03-09-2006 - 4:24pm

That is fabulous news, Peg!!

 

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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-25-2006
Thu, 03-09-2006 - 8:52pm

Aravis,
You ask a good question. I 'think' I have good answers but maybe they're really just rationalizations. :)

1. I am trying to balance this debt goal with other goals in my life otherwise I'm pretty sure I'll throw my hands up and just keep servicing it into perpetuity (that's my creditors you hear shouting with joy at the prospect! LOL). One of the other MAJOR changes that has happened in my life in the last few years was a major shift to healthy eating and lots of activity resulting in a 30+ lb weight loss. It is a constant effort to keep myself in that game though and a new bike is something that I had sort of promised myself last summer. I told myself if I got out and rode my crappy garage sale bike consistently that I would get myself a new one for this year. I rode pretty much at least 1x per week all last summer and really enjoyed it. I also want to do a triathlon at some point and set that goal aside this year in favor of the debt reduction but the bike was still on my list for this year so that next year all the expenses wouldn't discourage me again (the bike is the major expense but there is other equipment/training costs that I would be absorbing come next year).

2. This bonus is a rare thing. I earned it by really busting my behind and going well above the call of duty. I have done that regularly in my career but I can tell you I can count on one hand the times I was financially rewarded for it. It feels like something that shouldn't be spent on bills but on something for me. Sort of the way I feel about monetary gifts. I don't have kids/family, I don't have some of the 'outside work' rewards that I would like to have so I sort of want to relish this a bit.

3. I probably should clarify the debt payoff. That will take care of my consumer debt but I still have a significant student loan balance that will require snowballs for a number of years after this one. If I was going to be truly debt free in a few months, I would be less inclined to worry about declining motivation but I will simply be trading targets after this year. I try not to focus too much on how many years I might be looking at not having much spare income to 'play' with but at moments like this it seems like maybe I should shore up my resolve when I have a chance.

Hope that helps to share my process/thinking. I know on our healthy living board we all get a lot out of hearing each other's process. So you are probably wondering what I'm going to do and I have to say, I dunno yet! LOL I will not spend the entire thing on the bike and accessories because I don't want that nice of a bike. Today I'm leaning towards splitting the remainder between eFund savings and the debt. Tomorrow I might have a new plan. :) I don't yet know how much it's really going to be because of taxes of course and the fact that I'm not sure if they'll pull my usual 401k from it. I think it will be sort of fun to daydream about it for the next 2 weeks until I get the check.

Peg

Avatar for mrslove2000
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 03-09-2006 - 11:12pm

I wondered what that noise was this morning...I thought it was thunder... J/K Congratulations on the raise and the bonus!! May the Blessing continue to come your way.

Susan

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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-06-2005
Fri, 03-10-2006 - 12:26pm

Thank you for clarifying that for me!

 

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