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Monday, December 26, 2011

End of Year Wrap Up and 2012 Goals


Hello, and Happy Holidays, folks!


Whew! It's been quite a year; I have a total of four jobs (one full time, three part time) and am beginning to make a dent in my student loan debt. By the end of this year, I will have increased my income by over 70% (compared to my one full time job). My goal at the beginning of this year was to double my income, and while that didn't happen, I am pleased with what I've managed to achieve.

As a reminder, my goals for 2011 were:

  • Attempt to double my income (from roughly $40,000 from the day job to $80,000 including all of my part time and full time income. With all four of my current jobs, I'll only make around $65,000 in 2011 so I need to add about $15,000 in additional income to get there);
  • Related to the bullet item above, continue to develop my online teaching portfolio in order to bring in extra funds;
  • Pay down my second mortgage to such a degree that I can sell my home in the spring of 2012;
  • Continue paying at least the interest on my student loans.
Here's how I did:

  • Attempt to double my income: I will gross around $73,000 this year, so I almost made it!
  • Related to the bullet item above, continue to develop my online teaching portfolio in order to bring in extra funds: I picked up an online teaching gig that should hopefully continue into 2012 - I will continue looking for realistic opportunities to increase my work in this area.
  • Pay down my second mortgage to such a degree that I can sell my home in the spring of 2012: I changed my tactic on this - instead, I am focusing on my student loan debt.
  • Continue paying at least the interest on my student loans: See above. I have paid off over $10,000 of the principle balance on my student loans in 2011, bringing the total debt to (finally) less than $50,000!! It hasn't been this low since before I finished graduate school in 1998!
Now, going forward, what are my goals for 2012?

  • Reach a gross income of at least $80,000 by the end of 2012;
  • Continue to apply for online teaching positions that will help me meet the above goal;
  • Continue to throw as much extra money as possible at my student loans, with a very ambitious goal of paying it down to $25,000 by the end of 2012 (I currently owe just under $50K);
  • Associated with the above goal, make sure that I have a handle on my discretionary spending - in 2011, I made more money, but I also SPENT more money. In other words, i need to keep my eyes on the prize!
So that's it! I am a numbers nerd, so I am having fun with my various spreadsheets, tracking (primarily) my income levels and sources, as well as my debt payments. I see 2012 as a challenge, but one that I'm looking forward to, as it will move me closer to my goal of getting rid of my debt!

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday and that 2012 brings you much happiness, prosperity, and wisdom!

3 comments:

marci357 said...

Wow! You really upped your income! I've never made over $32,000 - and that was one year only! lol !

Nice progress for you!

For me, my goal was to retire - which I did in Novemeber - at age 57... and live off $980/month, which I am doing ok on :) Enjoying the challenge and the garden and my canning :)

Also enjoying my grandkid time!

Happy New Year to you and yours!
And keep plugging away on it - you'll make it!

Finally Frugal said...

Congratulations, Marci!!! You are truly living the life - I honestly believe that we can ALL live on less (I need to re-read my dog-eared Your Money or Your Life) and you're living proof. Although my goal now is to make more money, I can't wait for the day when my debts are paid and I can dial it back and enjoy my free time a little more. Though I have fun playing with the numbers, sometimes I regret the time I spend thinking about money, money, money when I could be gardening (and believe me, my garden NEEDS my attention!)

Have a wonderful new year!!

marci357 said...

Just read your today's post, and then came back to this one....

Not totally understanding why you are going after the student loan so hard when getting rid of that 2nd mortage would free up the cash flow faster... but guessing it is a matter of interest.

Sometimes, tho, I just had to go for the lower total debt item, to get it out of the way and get the cash flow to improve faster.

Best of luck on the goals for this year.... Keep living tight and you'll get there !
Happy new year!

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